You can’t start a Florida Trail podcast without involving the Florida Trail founder, Jim Kern. I was grateful to have Jim agree to come on the podcast as my first guest to talk about founding the Florida Trail and what hiking was like in the state back in the 1960s. We covered other topics such as what he believes it will take to fully protect the Florida Trail as well as other National Scenic Trails that aren’t fully protected—read: that’s all of them other than the Appalachian and Arizona NSTs. Be sure to check out the links to the other organizations Jim has founded and to review some of the videos and YouTube channels in the show notes for more information about Jim and what he’s doing to work to protect the Florida Trail.
Music: “Breathing” by Lee Rosevere
- Jim Kern’s Website
- Florida Trail Association
- Big City Mountaineers
- American Hiking Society
- Friends of the Florida Trail & @friendsofthefloridatrail Instagram
- Hiking Trails for America & @hikingtrailsforamerica Instagram & Hiking Trails for America YouTube Channel
- Status of the NST Gaps via Hiking Trails for America
- Episode 64: Jim Kern on the Might Blue On the AT Podcast
- Jim Kern on Hiking along the Florida Black Bear Scenic Highway (video)
- Jim Kern Discusses Hiking in Florida (video)
- Jim Kern #6–Discussing favorite trails and travels around the world (video)