The America's National Parks Podcast is sponsored by L.L. Bean dedicated to helping you experience all the benefits of time outside and stay more comfortable while you're out there.

From soft and breathable active wear designed to do it all

to just right layers perfect for changing weather

to sun-smart clothing that blocks the sun's harmful rays.

Every L.L. being product is made with comfortable time outside in mind.

Visit L-L-Bine.com to shop now.

L-L-B, B. an outsider. National trails are secretly my favorite of the over 400 different National Park Service units. So I thought it would be great to do an

episode explaining what the national trails are because not a lot of people understand them.

Thankfully, someone did the work for me.

I'm Jason Epperson and today on the America's National Parks podcast, we join Aaron

Mar, superintendent of the National Trails Office in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

In this audio, Aaron talks about what makes a national trail and a little bit about the El Camino

Real. Here's Aaron.

Well, hi, everybody.

Well, hi, everybody. My name is Aaron Mar and I'm the superintendent of the National Park Services National

Trails Office in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Now in our office, we administered nine of the 19 national historic trails in the United States.

And when I tell people that fact, they're often confused because they ask first of all what what are national

historic trails what are national trails and it's a pretty good question and if you're

asking yourself that on my hope that in the next few minutes I'll be able to answer that for you.

Now when you think of National Park Service, of course the first thing that's going to come to your mind is probably Yellowstone National Park or Yosemite National Park, maybe the Everglades or Acadia National Park perhaps that might come to mind.

But in fact, the National Park Service

includes a broad number of different units that protect

...