Season 4 of Our State Magazine’s Away Message podcast was all about the MST!
Listen as host Jeremy Markovich learns about the MST and gets to know several hikers as they tackle the trail. Follow the continuing adventures of MST Completers, Aaron and Lexi, and MST adventurers, Erin and Thomas. Hear how each crew utilized the trail – two in the traditional path to completion and two as part of a “choose your own adventure” style path across the state.
Thanks Great Outdoor Provision Co. for sponsoring this series of podcasts.
S4 E1: 1,175 Miles
The new season of our award-winning podcast begins with some fairly basic questions. What is the Mountains-to-Sea Trail? How was it created? Who were the first people to hike the whole thing? And who would hike all 1,175 miles of it today? In this premiere episode, host Jeremy Markovich talks to the man who (accidentally) created it, as well as a llama wrangler who ended up doing something no one else had done before. We also meet several hikers, who are about to set out on their own journeys across the entire state of North Carolina: by foot, by bike, and by kayak. (Apr 14, 2020)
S4 E2: The Warriors on the Trail
On the first day of her trip across North Carolina on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, veteran Erin Brennan is making sense of new gear, new routines, and a new beginning with the help of Warrior Expeditions, a group that treats hiking like therapy. (May 1, 2020)
S4 E3: The Newlywed Game
What’s it like to be with the one you love 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? In this episode, host Jeremy Markovich meets Aaron and Lexi Harris, a pair of newlyweds who experienced the highs and lows of hiking the Mountains-to-Sea Trail across western North Carolina. (May 25, 2020)
S4 E4: Elkin
When it comes to trail towns along the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, Elkin stands out. So how did a quiet place in the North Carolina foothills go trail crazy? We find out, thanks to the men who are building footpaths as fast as they can. (Jul 2, 2020)
S4 E5: The Long Road
As Erin Brennan and Aaron and Lexi Harris pass the halfway point on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail, the path undergoes a dramatic shift from footpath to roadside. In this episode, we take a closer look at the parts of the MST that only attract the most intrepid hikers, and discover what it takes to bike and hike your way through a world built for cars. (Jul 24, 2020)
S4 E6: A Trail Town Without A Trail
In this episode, we travel to Roseboro, a small eastern North Carolina town that sits on the route of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail but doesn’t actually have any good places to hike. Yet. We also meet the trail angels that hikers depend on to get to the end, and talk to a woman who’s attempting to finish the MST in just 30 days. (Aug 20, 2020)
S4 Bonus: How to Hike, with Jennifer Pharr Davis
In this bonus episode, host Jeremy Markovich talks with long-time hiking guide Jennifer Pharr Davis about how anyone can prepare for and pull off a trip on a trail, from day-trippers to thru-hikers on North Carolina’s Mountains-to-Sea Trail. (Sep 4, 2020)
S4 E7: The F-Words
As our Mountains-to-Sea Trail thru-hikers approach the end, one final challenge remains: A kayak trip down two of North Carolina’s most well-known waterways. All will have to grapple with problems that could potentially stop them from reaching their final destination. (Sep 24, 2020)
S4 E8: Climbing Down From The Dune
In the season finale, our hikers reach the Outer Banks of North Carolina and end of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. Now, more than a year later, we see where they’ve ended up and how the trip has affected their lives. (Nov 3, 2020)
