Whether it's for a day, a week, or even a month, what draws people to the Long Trail? For Nick Rushford of Essex, there've been many reasons to hike the trail from end to end.

Today, we have one man's story about personal challenge... and the effort to "live strong." It begins at the top of Vermont's highest peak, Mount Mansfield.

Charlie Nardozzi, host of VPR's Vermont Garden Journal, answers your questions about helping your garden thrive. Also, "weed dating" helps farmers and gardeners find kindred souls, and a story of how the Long Trail prompted one woman to move to Vermont.

A reminder of some of the challenges of being out on the Long Trail. Whether it's for a few days, or weeks at a time, there's bound to be encounters with bugs, bad food, and rain, rain, rain.

Andy and Chet Buchanan, sons of legendary Long Trail Patrol leader Roy Buchanan, talk about how their father got started on the Long Trail.

Thousands of us experience the Green Mountains up close every summer with a day on the Long Trail. Many hundreds more spend even more time on the trail, taking a few days to hike and spending the nights at a shelter along the way. Today, in our series, "The Long Trail: Vermont's Footpath Through History," we learn what it's like to overnight on the trail.

VPR's Jane Lidholm talks with Jonathan Wahl and Leah Hunt, known, on the trail, as Rough and Tumble, two retirees who spend winters in Florida and summers in Vermont, where they can often be found on The Long Trail.

VPR's Nina Keck catches up with Katie Block just as she began her Long Trail day hike at the trailhead on Route 4 in Killington.

VPR's Jane Lindholm talks with Ben Rose, Executive Director of the Green Mountain Club about the challenges of maintaining and protecting The Long Trail.

All this month, VPR is celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Long Trail through our series, "The Long Trail: Vermont's Footpath Through History." Today we hear from some of the people who spend time on the trail, to hike, camp or care for the historic footpath.

We talk with Green Mountain Club's Executive Director about the challenges of preserving the Long Trail experience.  We also hear from two "End-to-End Mentors" with advice about hiking the trail's length.  And we'll discover about the pleasures of day-hiking the Long Trail.

All this week we've been looking at the history of the Long Trail as it reaches its 100th anniversary. Today, we turn to the Green Mountain Club itself. Volunteer members of the club built the trail and they maintain it to this day. The club still thrives because of their efforts.

In our series "The Long Trail: Vermont's Footpath Through History," we're looking at some of the milestones in the trail's 100 year history. Today we return to the 1930s, when the Long Trail faced its biggest threat, and the Green Mountain Club was forced to reconsider its purpose.

In the 1920s, early hiking enthusiasts wanted to get attention for their creation of the Long Trail. Today we look at three young women who put the Long Trail on the map and made themselves quite famous in their day.

Two of the state's most famous summits are connected by the Long Trail. But as VPR Commentator Tom Slayton explains, the mountains couldn't be more different.

One-hundred years ago, the Green Mountain Club was founded and construction of the Long Trail began. VPR is looking back this month at how the hiking trail has influenced the history and culture of the state. Today, VPR Commentator Tom Slayton introduces the early leaders of the Green Mountain Club.

During his terms in office former Governor Howard Dean worked with legislators to conserve much of the Long Trail. He spoke to VPR's Mitch Wertlieb by phone from his home in Burlington, where he's been recovering from hip surgery.

We return now to "The Long Trail: Vermont's Footpath Through History," our series about the 100th anniversary of the trail. As nearly everyone knows, the trail runs 270 miles along the ridgeline of the Green Mountains. But a valuable part of the trail's history isn't in the mountains at all.

VPR's Mitch Wertlieb talks with  Annie Bellerose, one of the caretakers of the Long Trail who spend their summers advising hikers, and answering questions about the trail.

This month, VPR is airing "The Long Trail: Vermont's Footpath Through History." We'll explore a century on the trail, and its influence on the history and culture of Vermont. We begin in Killington at an intersection of the footpath and the highway, a spot where "end-to-enders" gather for rest and encouragement.

The commissioner of forest, parks and recreation wants hikers to stay away from high-elevation hiking trails for now.