A Lifetime of Trail Maintenance: the Blackburn Trail Center, Building the AT Rollercoaster, and the Potomac AT Club with Chris “Trailboss” Brunton (BPR #310)
Backpacker Radio
Zach Davis
4.7 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 16 June 2025
⏱️ 100 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, brought to you by LMNT, we are joined by Chris Brunton aka “Trailboss”. Trailboss is a legendary force in the construction and maintenance of the Appalachian Trail, most notably, the infamous Rollercoaster section of the trail through Virginia. Trailboss enlightens us with some history of the trail, the process for procuring the trail’s corridor through that section, how he met his wife (CEO of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy) Sandi Marra, why he dedicates his life to the AT, and much more.
We wrap the show with a brief overview of the difference between freezing and refrigerating food for Chaunce, the triple of the longest minutes, and a listener provides a hack for staying hydrated when you can’t reach the side pockets on your pack.
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[divider]
Interview with Chris “Trailboss” Brunton
Time stamps & Questions
00:05:20 - Trail Days Day 2
00:13:25 - Reminders: Sign up for the Trek’s newsletter, listen to our episodes ad-free on Patreon and apply to blog for the Trek!
00:15:30 - Introducing Trailboss
00:18:00 - Tell us about growing up in England
00:21:00 - How did you get started doing trail work?
00:33:00 - What brought you to the US?
00:37:00 - What was it like to emigrate to the US?
00:38:55 - How did you deal with the aftermath of handshake agreements?
00:42:10 - What was the mindset when building the Rollercoaster section?
00:47:50 - When did the section get its name and its sign?
00:53:40 - What is the motive in purchasing land near the trail corridor?
00:54:50 - What are the positive benefits of the ATC?
01:02:00 - Discussion about Benton McCaye and Myron Avery
01:06:40 - What are the rewarding aspects of doing trail maintenance?
01:12:30 - How did the PATC get started?
Segments
Trek Propaganda: “We Are Transforming These Mountains in a Way Humans Have Never Seen”: The Future of the Sierra Nevada, John Muir’s Range of Light by Karl Ford
QOTD: Does ice cream expire and if so why?
Triple Crown of the longest minutes
Mail Bag
5 Star Review
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | In today's episode of Backpacker Radio, |
| 0:02.2 | Pacific of the Trek, brought to you by Element. |
| 0:04.1 | We are joined by Chris Brunton, aka Trail Boss. |
| 0:08.0 | Trail boss is a legend in the creation and maintenance |
| 0:11.0 | of the Appalachian Trail, most notably |
| 0:12.9 | the infamous roller coaster section in Virginia. |
| 0:16.2 | He shares some fascinating history of the trail, |
| 0:18.9 | the process of securing the corridor through Northern Virginia, |
| 0:22.8 | how he met his wife, Sandy Mara, CEO of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, why he's dedicated |
| 0:27.9 | his life to the AT, and much more. We wrap the show with a brief explainer on the difference |
| 0:33.7 | between freezing and refrigerating food, fourchons, the triple crown of the longest |
| 0:38.2 | minutes, and a listener submitted hack for staying hydrated when you can't reach your pack side pockets. |
| 0:44.4 | But first, if you've listened to this podcast for any period of time, I've sounded like a broken record |
| 0:50.1 | about the importance of supplementing with electrolytes while backpacking. |
| 0:55.2 | During my first through hike, I landed in the hospital with a condition called hypnitremia, a fancy term for |
| 1:00.1 | low blood sodium levels. Symptoms included intense headaches, dizziness, and generally feeling |
| 1:05.6 | like a bag of Richards. This happened as a result of heavy sweating, over-consuming water, and under-consuming |
| 1:12.2 | electrolytes. A couple of saline IVs and a hefty medical bill later, and my energy was magically |
| 1:17.8 | restored. Somewhat counterintuitively, but electrolytes become even more important in cold temperatures |
| 1:23.5 | and at elevation, as our thirst decreases at a faster pace than we lose fluids via sweat |
| 1:29.9 | and urine. In other words, electrolytes and backpacking go together like peanut butter and jelly, |
| 1:35.5 | which is why I'm thrilled to introduce today's sponsor, Elements. Element is a science-backed |
... |
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