Crafting the Wild: Voices of the Trail Crew

Step behind the scenes of the Custer Gallatin National Forest, where the trails you hike don’t maintain themselves—they’re built, cleared, packed in, and protected by a community of people whose work is often invisible but always essential.In this episode of Forest in Focus, Public Affairs Specialist Morgan De Meyer sits down with three backcountry experts whose lives revolve around tread, tools, stock, storms, and the quiet miles in between.Trail specialist Josh Kinsel shares what it means to manage decades of erosion control, volunteer partnerships, chainsaw training, and the “search and repair” mission that keeps the Bozeman District’s trails open.Wilderness lead Rachel Crump brings us into the solitude of the Gardiner District—eight‑day hitches, hand tools only, days without seeing another person, and the type‑two fun that becomes unforgettable.And packer Trapper Osborne reveals how horses and mules make deep‑backcountry projects possible, from hauling bridge beams after historic floods to delivering the occasional root‑beer float 14 miles in.It’s gritty, quiet, powerful work—an ongoing tradition that ensures anyone seeking wild places can still reach them.