Backpacker Radio

Dear Backpacker Radio, I’m a long-time listener and have had it in the back of my mind to write a five star review “someday” when I’m all caught up on episodes. Since I still haven’t caught up after years of loyal listening, I’m going to take this opportunity now, after feeling especially compelled after hearing Elise’s story about her brother. Elise, I can tell you that your story resonated with me and my own family experiences. I won’t get too deep into the similarities, but as someone who also lost a brother, I want to thank you for the bravery it took to talk about it so candidly. And thank you for telling the listeners about NAMI. Chaunce, I can’t believe I missed you at the 2025 Loudoun Appalachian Trail Festival! I was there working the Virginia State Parks table, and if I saw you, I had no idea. I didn’t know what you looked like, bc I hadn’t seen the YouTube yet. On the topic of Virginia State Parks, the AT passes through three of them! Of those 3, Sky Meadows State Park is my favorite, not just because I work there. It’s about midway between Harpers Ferry and Shenandoah National Park, and it’s a beautiful place to take a break or spend the night in the campground. It’s also famous for being an International Dark Sky Park. Thank you Backpacker Radio, and keep up the important work you’re doing!

I love this podcast! I’ve been listening since the very first episode , and it’s been part of my daily commute ever since (huge thanks to Jabba for putting it on my radar). I do have one suggestion now that you’re putting out so many different kinds of releases (Trail Goss, News, and the Thursday segments). Like other podcasts I listen to, it would really helpful to label each release type in the title so it’s easier to tell what’s what, and keep me from crashing my car while I’m scrolling for the next full episode… I love you guys, but I really don’t want to re-listen to segments I’ve already heard! Something like: - BPR Episode #377: Thru-Hiking the AT on a $2,000 Budget with Livvy “Stumbles” Weld - BPR Segments #377: Thru-Hiking the AT on a $2,000 Budget with Livvy “Stumbles” Weld - News (Date): - Goss (Date): Keep up the awesome work, and thanks for all the laughs and trail knowledge. Mike Poisel

I love this podcast, but I hate that they now post the same content over and over but in different lengths and configurations. I regularly end up listening to repeated content that my phone chooses. Can you please title the episodes something different to distinguish between the shorts and the full episodes? I also want to hear the trail gossip but it’s not included in the normal episodes.

I really wanted to rate it higher but there are two big problems that made me give it two stars instead. First, I deducted one star for the signal/noise ratio. In many episodes fully 1/3 of the time is on something totally unrelated to backpacking. I started listening in 2019 and it didn’t used to be that bad, but now a lot of time is wasted on non-hiking topics. Second, it loses two stars for the way Zach modulates his voice. I mostly listen while driving and I can almost never hear the end of his sentences over the road noise. He starts out at a hearable volume but after a few words he trails off to a low pitch and low volume, presumably for dramatic effect. That would be great if i were listening at a desk in an otherwise soundless environment, but in a car it’s just frustrating because I only hear about half of what he’s trying to say. None of the other regulars or guests have this problem, it’s specific to Zach’s speaking style. It’s still a worthwhile listen but it could be so much better than it is.