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“Controversy” is a relative term. The controversies that interest hikers can range from the biggest (questions of environmental policy and the fate of decades-old trails) to the smallest (do you stuff or roll your tent?). This year, we covered backpacking’s biggest debates, delving into topics both grand and personal. From a thru-hiker pushing the limits of ultralight backpacking to whether or not it’s fair to pitch your tent in a shelter, this is what our readers wanted to talk about this year.
This Hiker Attempted the Triple Crown With Less Than 3 Pounds of Gear. Impressive or Dangerous?
When does ultralight become too light? That’s the question sparked by the story of Sam “Shade” Carter, the young thru-hiker who attempted a Calendar-Year Triple Crown in 2023 with next to no gear. After suffering an injury to his big toe, Carter decided to cut his kit down to the absolute minimum, hiking with just a $19 Amazon daypack and an emergency bivy for shelter. Shade didn’t finish the Triple Crown, but he managed to complete the Appalachian Trail and sizable chunks of both the Continental Divide and Pacific Crest Trails with his minimalist kit. Grayson Haver Currin’s story about Shade’s adventure asks: Was it reckless, as so many Instagram commenters weighed in after a video of him on the PCT surfaced on the platform? Or is there something that we could learn from his commitment?
Honolulu Will Demolish its Iconic, Illegal “Stairway to Heaven” Hike
Climbing high into the mountains above Honolulu, the Haiku Stairs are beautiful, a favorite Instagram backdrop, and illegal to hike. That hasn’t stopped thousands of hikers from trying, and while no one has yet to die on the rickety, World War II-era steps, the risks and neighbors’ complaints worried local officials enough earlier this year that the city announced a multi-million-dollar contract to dismantle and remove them. The decision heated up a long-running fight in the area: On one hand, public officials who see an opportunity to rid themselves of a longtime headache. On the other, preservationists and some local hikers who see the destruction of the “Stairway to Heaven” as an assault on both history and one of the world’s most beautiful trails.
Someone is Leaving Tiny Sculptures on the Pacific Crest Trail, And Hikers Are Not Happy
On the trails, one person’s art is often another’s trash. It’s true about rock stacks, those temporary distractions that hikers love to hate. And when small, clay sculptures began to pop up along the PCT this year, many hikers and educators began to cry foul, arguing that any artificial reminder of human presence, no matter how small, detracts from the experience of being in nature. Senior Editor Zoe Gates dove deep into this trailside tiff.
Is it Ever OK to Pitch a Tent Inside a Hiking Shelter?
From hikers spending a few days on the trail to thru-hikers on their way to Katahdin, the Appalachian Trail’s shelters host a variety of travelers, and space there is at a premium. So when one backpacker posted in an AT Facebook group about seeing a tent set up under a shelter’s roof, it sparked an intense debate. Zoe Gates asked: What does it mean to be a good neighbor on a long trail.
The Forest Service is Losing 2,400 Jobs—Including Most of its Trail Workers
The news that the U.S. Forest Service would slash almost all of its seasonal jobs except for firefighters left mountain towns wondering what that would mean for their trail networks and hiking organizations trying to figure out how much of the slack they could pick up. As Nathan Pipenberg reported in this story, the Forest Service “has had a maintenance backlog for more than a decade, and oversees more miles of trail than it can maintain.” What effect will slashing its staff have on a trail network that’s already hurting for lack of help?
Mt. Katahdin is a Logistical Nightmare. Is it Time to Move the AT’s Northern Terminus?
It’s unlikely that the Appalachian Trail’s northern terminus is moving any time soon. But that hasn’t stopped some hikers, fed up with the rules and restrictions around summiting Katahdin, from floating the idea of moving the extreme point of the AT out of Baxter State Park. Mary Beth “Mouse” Skylis took a serious look at proposals for rerouting the AT to a new terminus, and tried to explain: What is it about this idea that people find compelling?
Grizzly No. 399’s Death Was Preventable. Here’s What Went Wrong
For years, Grizzly No. 399 was one of the most famous bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Her trips into Jackson, Wyoming, where she would draw onlookers and occasionally raid chicken coops and trash, left her with a level of notoriety few bruins could match. But that life came to a tragic end in October, when a car fatally struck her. Emma Veidt spoke with Wes Larson, host of Tooth and Claw podcast and formerly one of the biologists hired to keep 399 from getting into trouble in town, about what led to the bear’s fatal encounter, and what we can learn from it.
These Hikers Were on the Appalachian Trail When Hurricane Helene Hit
In late September, Hurricane Helene slammed into the southeastern United States, killing more than 200 people and becoming the deadliest hurricane in almost 20 years. Towns along the Appalachian Trail were some of the hardest-hit, with residents displaced and longstanding outdoor businesses shuttered. The trail itself suffered significant damage, with downed trees and flooding rendering stretches of it impassable, or negotiable only with extreme difficulty. With emergency services stretched thin and resources limited, when hikers should return to the AT immediately became a hot-button question, with some locals encouraging visitors to let the trail heal and others opining that there was no reason to stay away. As the recovery began in October, Mary Beth “Mouse” Skylis asked trail angels what they thought.
From 2024