The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is THE critical component in a healthy trail for hikers, both now and for the future. Suzanne Dixon is the President and CEO of the ATC and in this week's show, she tells us about the exciting new initiative that the ATC has recently launched.

Mighty Blue on the Appalachian Trail is lucky to have the first media interview about this initiative, called The Wild East. The poster below will give you some of the flavor of the Wild East and there is a new website specifically about the project.

https://wildeast.appalachiantrail.org/

Suzanne has worked in conservation for much of her working life and is a passionate advocate of both the ATC and this initiative. Listen to her as she tells us about the Wild East and learn how you can assist in preserving the trail for future generations. Then, to find out more about how you can help, visit www.appalachiantrail.org

Lisa Rana tells us about her recent journey on the strenuous Grafton Loop Trail. If you'd like to see more of this trail, check out the two videos that Lisa has linked us to.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvvO-xOQLFw&t=6s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiaTo8lVeN8&t=678s

Finally, we have reached the last few chapters of The Year We Seized the Day, by Elizabeth Best and Colin Bowles. I hope that you enjoyed hearing me and my lovely niece Laura over the past few months. When I return from this year's attempt on the Appalachian Trail I'll be reading Paul Stutzman's great book–a personal favorite of mine–Hiking Through: One Man's Journey to Peace and Freedom on the Appalachian Trail.