How would we describe this podcast? Well, we have thru-hikers interviewing other thru-hikers, about thru-hiking, while they thru-hike… Time to meet the crew making the magic – formal introductions to our 2017 correspondent team.

It’s finally arrived! Thru-hiking season! We explore some of the what-ifs, hopes, and dreams of 2017 hopeful thru-hikers as we launch Season 3 of Sounds of the Trail. Special guests Amelia and Denise.

It’s that moment that you realize it might be possible… with thru-hiking season getting started, a lot of us are taking a hard look at our goals right now. Those goals you’re not guaranteed – the ones you have to put yourselves out for. In today’s episode, we check back in with a man with a big goal – to ski 2.5 million vertical feet in 2016. We met Aaron Rice in Episode 27, at the very beginning of his year-long effort. Take a listen to find out how it went and why he did it. Find out...

For the start of a new year, we’re leading off with a look back at the last, as we hear from trail correspondent Hey Girl and special guest Sphagnum PI. We follow along on the crazy ride from the night before the finish of the Appalachian Trail to a few months later. If you’re looking for some encouragement in taking the plunge on your own thru-hike, this might be the episode for you.

What does community look like, when it’s made out of a bunch of unwashed people wandering directionally around the woods? Today we explore some facets of the trail community, and what makes it so special. Today’s episode is hosted and produced by Homework, with editing and assistant production by Gizmo. Special guests Crumb Cakes, Boo Boo, Zuul, and Oriole. Musical transitions provided courtesy of Diggin Dirt Band, from the track Wild Roots.

It’s getting to be that time of year again – the end of summer thru-hiking season. Our first hikers are completing their journeys – today we get to hear from two of them, Homework and Juan Durer. Lessons learned, summits summitted, and the feeling of the end. There’s a lot of heart in this episode – take a quiet half hour and make sure you listen through to the end of the podcast, I think you’ll be glad you did.

What’s so great about the outdoors anyway? It’s worth one more podcast at least, so we re-visit the topic in today’s episode. The best part of being outdoors, true love, and a community too good to leave behind – it’s just cool to be in the forest.

Are thru-hikes a spirit quest? Or just a long walk? Sometimes spirituality on the trail is the goal, sometimes it just happens to us anyways. We have two great interviews today with hikers of different stripes who’ve both found things worth believing out on the trail. We’re especially pleased to have a Triple Crown hiker on the show – this is a guy who’s done his miles! Today’s podcast’s special guests are Scarecrow and Pace.

It’s time for a little catching up! In this week’s podcast, we spend a bunch of time with Homework, to find out where he is on the Continental Divide Trail. In between updates we try to figure out what’s so great about the outdoors anyhow. Special guests Smiles and Umgawa

Mt Whitney marriage proposals, injuries, and goats as wedding guests… this episode has it all! But one conversation that often gets left out of trail talk is the stickier subject of race in the thru-hiking community. Well, today we talk about that too. The subject of hikers of color has been making the rounds on the online community, so we took the chance to address it head-on, with the firm belief that nothing helps understanding more than sitting down and listening to each other. Don’t...

Your most important piece of hiking equipment? It’s your meat suit, that ol’ body of yours that’s doing the work to get from place to place. In today’s episode we talk about the effects of thru-hiking on our bodies… and our minds, because that’s part of our body too. We also have two interviews with former combat veterans hiking with Warrior Expeditions, who talk about how thru-hiking is affecting them. Special guests: Yours Truly, Push, Bare Bones, Slim Jim, Helton, and Sage. Music...

Being on trail is a great way to get to know… yourself. From the gross to the profound, our correspondents and fellow hikers discuss what they’ve learned so far from their time as thru-hikers. Big thanks to Audible for supporting our podcast! Get a free 30 day trial at audible.com/hikertalk. Special guests: Magic Mike, El Tejano, Rafiki, and 2%. Check out El Tejano’s blog here.

With just one life to live, why spend it walking around the country, being hot, cold, thirsty, hungry, and tired? In today’s podcast, we ask some hikers what is the best part of their thru-hiking day – the part that makes it worthwhile – and they tell us what keeps their spirits up despite the blisters and the hemorrhoids (ouch!). Our trail correspondents are starting to pick up trail names, so you’ll hear some new names with the voices you’ve already been introduced to. I’m working on an...

Thru-hiking season has officially begun! All our correspondents are out on trail, finally finding out what trail life is all about, and what they didn’t know before they started. This podcast fills us in on the reality vs the expectations. Special guests: Mishap, Shortcut, Spoony, Knees, Bacon, Fruit Snax, Boyardee, and Splinter.

We’ve heard from our Appalachian Trail correspondents, but it’s time to meet the rest! In this podcast episode we get to hear from our 2016 Pacific Crest Trail and Continental Divide Trail correspondents. From the night-before-the-trail jitters to their motivations for getting on trail, we get to know them a little better.

Sounds of the Trail is back for the summer thru-hiking season! In this podcast episode we introduce some of our new correspondents who will be attempting thru-hikes of the Appalachian Trail in 2016. We get to hear about their reasons for thru-hiking, some of their hopes, and some of their fears. Is that a random twinge of the the knee or is it…? Next week we’ll be hearing from our Pacific Crest Trail and Continental Divide Trail hikers as they get started. Thanks to Smiley 501, John...

In this episode we get to hear from two hikers at two different points in their thru-hikes – the Before and the After. Special guests Sandpiper and Buff. We also include some very dubious info on water treatment – I personally recommend a filter. Music by: Baby Gramps I’m getting back on the AZT this afternoon, but I’ll be back in May to officially launch our second season! – Gizmo

Today’s podcast is all about the real stars of our show – the trails themselves. We talk about our 2016 lineup – the Appalachian Trail, the Pacific Crest Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail – discuss hiking family histories, and get to hear from the Triple Crown hiker Wired one more time for some trail stories. Wired keeps a blog of all her hiking adventures, so if you want to learn more about her, check it out here: Walking With Wired Music by: Baby Gramps Other sounds are from...

IMPORTANT: If you are an Appalachian Trail Class of 2016 hiker (thru-, section, or otherwise), please listen right away! We need your help! As we get ready for thru-hiking season, we take a minute to remember why we want to do this. In this episode we hear from special guest Wired as she tells us what she has gotten out of thru-hiking and what about it has motivated her to keep hiking (over 10,000 miles by foot and counting). Then we get to hear from our friends at the Dirtbag Diaries, as...

One guy, with one goal – to ski 2.5 million vertical feet in one year. That is, 2.5 million feet UPHILL. To make this happen, Aaron Rice is planning on skiing 10 hours a day, every day, for an entire year. Kimchi sits down with Aaron and his friend Joey Campanelli to talk about what it takes to do something like this, and why skiing uphill every day for 10 hours a day is something that anybody would even want to do. This subject is a little bit of a break from our usual hiker talk – we hope...

Where does it all begin? How do you grow up to become a thru-hiker? We get to hear from Rock Ocean as he interviews Kimchi and Par 3, from Gizmo, and even from Gizmo’s mom as we explore our origins as thru-hikers. Also, we have a big announcement – Sounds of the Trail is looking for 2016 trail correspondents. Interested? Check out our page and JOIN US. Music courtesy of Baby Gramps.

Sounds of the Trail is transitioning to an off-season format. In this week’s podcast we shift our focus to the third trail in the Triple Crown, the Continental Divide Trail, and get inspired by some youtube videos. Special Guests Liz and Bryan (along with Bumblebee Tuna and Toni the Tiger). During the hiking off-season Sounds of the Trail is switching to an every-other-week release schedule. Sounds of the Trail is planning on sticking around for a second season of thru-hiking podcasting...

We finally get to do a recap with both Kimchi and Par 3 on finishing the trail. We discuss the end of the time on the trail, their best moments, and what it means to be a thru-hiker. Music by: Baby Gramps

It’s the end of A season, but it’s not quite the end of THE season, at least not for a few hardy hikers or for Sounds of the Trail. Not many northbounders are still braving the mountain passes, but we ran into a few still heading for Maine. Special guests Smokey Bear, Homegrown, and Bailey the dog. Sounds of the Trail is back after a short hiatus. We’re in the process of transitioning to an off-trail broadcast, and figuring out what that’s going to look like. We have some good stuff lined...

Thru-hikes are a hugely physical undertaking that take a lot of time and a lot of money – or at least the ability to forego earning money. A lot of people ask – how do you make a thru-hike happen? We have no magical secrets to share – but we do have some thru-hikers share stories about their own journeys on the Appalachian Trail. Young, old, and in-between, the trail is for everybody. Special guests Spicy Guy, Bluebird, Hakuna Matata, and Sock Ninja. We delve dangerously close to “overly...