Have you ever been hiking along an Adirondack trail and wondered who built the stone steps into a stretch of steep trail, or who cleared the blowdown from the path since your last visit? The answer is Adirondack Mountain trail crews.
In the summer of 2009 cultural anthropologist Carolyn Schwarz set out to learn more about Adirondack Mountain Club (ADK) professional trail crews—who these trail workers are, and how they get the job done. She discovered teams of strong, tough individuals who brave black flies, storms, and miles of hiking over difficult terrain with heavy backpacks to keep routes open for public use in both the Adirondack Park and the Catskill Mountains.
