BACKPACKER • September 16, 2024
For years, tensions have run high between AT thru-hikers and rangers in Baxter State Park. One hiker wonders, could moving the terminus solve the problem? Even if authorities decide that a change as drastic as moving the terminus is eventually necessary, that point would be years away at least. The number of hikers on the AT has held steady or even dropped since Covid, suggesting that nothing needs to change yet. But growing interest in one of America’s most beautiful and difficult trails could flip the narrative.