50th Anniversary

Food trends and tastes have changed over the last 50 years—and backpacking fare is no exception.

Personal air conditioning, new trails, a dozen new Leave No Trace principles: For Backpacker's 50th anniversary, we asked Triple Crowner and columnist Liz "Snorkel" Thomas to speculate about what thru-hiking could look like a half-century from now.

Ultra-super-megalight gear and universal sat phones might be standard in 50 years—if the backpackers of the future even want them, that is.

All trails have changed quite a bit in the past 5 decades. Here are the trails that changed the most.