150 years is a long time to keep showing up for the outdoors, and the Appalachian Mountain Club has done it by mixing joy with responsibility. We sit down with Scarlet Batchelor, Chief Growth Officer of the AMC, to talk about what a 150th anniversary really means for New Hampshire hiking, White Mountains culture, and the future of trail stewardship. The story starts with AMC’s deep roots in the White Mountains, where a group of Boston mountain lovers first set out to explore in 1876, then expands across the organization’s Virginia-to-Maine footprint and back again to the places that feel like home: huts, notches, and the trails that shape our lives.

Scarlet shares how AMC chose to celebrate with a six-month, Olympic torch inspired relay instead of a gala, bringing partners, volunteers, and everyday hikers into the same moving “birthday party.” From Mount Washington to Crawford Notch and beyond, we talk about how community is built one shared mile at a time, and why the goal is always a “just right” outdoor experience that makes people want to return. We also get concrete about accessibility: the Cardigan All Persons Trail at Mount Cardigan, the Outdoor Journey Fund, and AMC gear libraries that help remove the cost and equipment barriers that keep too many people on the sidelines.

Then we zoom out to the work that keeps the White Mountains and other wild places resilient. You’ll hear about alpine zone research, conservation policy, land protection like the Maine Woods Initiative, and what it takes to rebuild heavily used trails for a changing climate, including lessons from the Franconia Ridge Loop Trail Restoration Project. If you care about conservation, outdoor inclusion, and the future of the Appalachian Trail corridor and the White Mountain National Forest, this conversation connects the dots in a way that feels real and local.

Send us Fan Mail

For more information about the 603podcast visit 603podcast.com