The Green Tunnel

The Green Tunnel

The Green Tunnel explores the history and culture of the United States’ most iconic long-distance hiking trail, the Appalachian Trail. Hosted by Mills Kelly, the show delves into topics including the quirky history of trail food, the shelters and structures built along the trail, and dangers you might encounter during a hike.

Recent Episodes

March 26, 2024

Trail Writing

The Appalachian Trail winds its way through Appalachia which is a place where people make sense of their world through stories. Stories of their lives in the mountains. Stories of the land and its riches. Stories, both ficti…
March 12, 2024

Iconic Location: Priest Mountain Shelter

Did you know a significant number of hikers confess their sins in the logbook in the shelter on Priest Mountain? Why do they do this and what do they confess? Find out on today’s Iconic Locations episode.
Feb. 27, 2024

Becoming a National Park

Benton MacKaye wanted to be sure that anyone who chose to spend a few hours, a few days, or a few weeks on the trail would have the opportunity to really get away from civilization. However, most of the lands MacKaye hoped t…
Feb. 13, 2024

Iconic Locations: Delaware Water Gap

The Delaware Water Gap is one of the most breathtaking spots along the entire Appalachian Trail and has been a favorite subject of landscape painters since at least the middle of the 19th century. It's an important marker fo…
Jan. 30, 2024

Wayfinding

There is no better way to turn a good hike into a bad hike than taking a wrong turn and hiking miles out of your way. Especially if that means you climbed an extra mountain or two. Today, we are exploring the history of blaz…
Jan. 16, 2024

Iconic Locations: Bear Mountain Bridge

Bear Mountain Bridge sits just north of the oldest section of the entire Appalachian Trail and on today's Iconic Location episode we are what was once the world’s longest suspension bridge.
Dec. 12, 2023

Constructing the Trail

Today we’re going back to the earliest days of the Appalachian Trail to learn more about the critical role that the Civilian Conservation Corps played in making the trail a reality.
Nov. 28, 2023

Iconic Locations: Charlies Bunion

Have you ever wondered who Charlies Bunion was named after or why there are two balds with the same name? On today’s Iconic Location episode, we are exploring the mystery of Charlies Bunion.
Nov. 14, 2023

The Perfect Tree

The American Chestnut was one of the most magnificent trees in North America. On today’s episode of The Green Tunnel, we’re going to explore how it lived, how it died, and how – with the help of scientists, non-profit organi…
Oct. 31, 2023

Iconic Locations: Dragon's Tooth

While no one has ever seen a dragon along the Appalachian Trail, hundreds of thousands of hikers have seen a dragon’s tooth. Viewed from a distance this geological formation looks like one very large, very snaggly fang stick…
Oct. 17, 2023

Geological Time

This season the history we’re starting with is really, really old. We are exploring the geological history of the rocks and mountains the Appalachian Trail runs through. We will also answer the age-old question, are the moun…
Oct. 3, 2023

Season Three: The Natural History of the Trail

On Tuesday, October 17th, The Green Tunnel will be back with Season Three! This season we’re exploring the natural history of the Appalachian Trail. We’ll dig deep into the trail’s geological past, climb chestnut trees, foll…

About the Hosts

Mills KellyProfile Photo

Mills Kelly

Mills Kelly is the host of The Green Tunnel. Known on the AT by his trail name “Grandaddy Spartan,” he has been hiking on trail since 1971 and researching its history since 2016. He is the author of Virginia's Lost Appalachian Trail. Off trail, Mills is a professor of history at George Mason University and the Director of the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media.

Bridget BukovichProfile Photo

Bridget Bukovich

Bridget Bukovich is the marketing and social media manager for The Green Tunnel. She has also produced a couple of episodes. She has a MA in History from George Mason University. A self-proclaimed “indoor cat” and avid reader, she prefers to find outdoor adventures in the pages of her books. Though she hasn’t stepped foot on the AT (yet) working on this podcast might just get her on trail.

Update: Bridget has officially stepped foot on the AT!

Jeanette PatrickProfile Photo

Jeanette Patrick

Jeanette Patrick is an executive producer of The Green Tunnel. She is also the Head of R2 Studios, the studio where The Green Tunnel is mixed and made for your listening enjoyment. Jeanette loves spending time outdoors and grew up hiking and camping in the Ozark Mountains.

Alison LangfordProfile Photo

Alison Langford

Alison Langford is the administrative associate for R2 Studios, the podcast studio that produces The Green Tunnel. Alison keeps things running smoothly for The Green Tunnel team, especially in the swag department.

Jim AmbuskeProfile Photo

Jim Ambuske

Jim Ambuske is an executive producer of The Green Tunnel. He is also the Historian and Senior Producer of R2 Studios. When he is not working on The Green Tunnel, Jim is an historian of the American Revolution and spends his days reading about emigrant Scots who resettled in American colonies before the outbreak of the War for Independence. Jim enjoys the great outdoors and loves hiking through the Mirkwood.

Hayley MadlProfile Photo

Hayley Madl

Hayley Madl is a producer on The Green Tunnel. She is also a PhD student at George Mason University focusing on Indigenous history in Early America and digital history. Her family has long been into all things outdoors, and she had two brothers complete thru-hikes of the AT as part of the Class of 2021. While her own thru-hike is still in the works, Hayley is settling for diving into the history of the trail and disappearing into the woods whenever she can.

Ashley PalazzoProfile Photo

Ashley Palazzo

Ashley Palazzo is a producer on The Green Tunnel podcast. She has a MA in history from George Mason University. Ashley grew up camping in the Great Smokey Mountains with her family and has fond memories of hiking portions of the Appalachian Trail.

Scott MillerProfile Photo

Scott Miller

Scott Miller is an acclaimed musician from Stanton, Virginia. He was recently inducted to the East Tennessee Writers Hall of Fame. He resides in his native Virginia, tending to the family farm while also continuing to release and perform new music informed by that rural area, history, and Appalachia. Learn more about his music, performance schedule, and more at thescottmiller.com.

Ashlee Watkins and Andrew SmallProfile Photo

Ashlee Watkins and Andrew Small

Ashlee Watkins and Andrew Small are award-winning musicians located in Floyd, Virginia. Ashlee is originally from New South Wales, Australia and Andrew is from North Carolina. Specializing in traditional music styles of Southwest Virginia, Ashlee and Andrew have won numerous prizes including the coveted award for First Place Old Time Band at the 2021 Old Fiddler’s Convention in Galax, VA. Their music is also featured in the PBS documentary film Rock Castle Home. Learn more about their music, performance schedule, and teaching at watkinsandsmall.com.

Abby MullenProfile Photo

Abby Mullen

Abby Mullen is the founder of R2 Studios and served as the first head of studio. Abby was the executive producer of The Green Tunnel for the first season. She also produced and hosted Consolation Prize, a podcast about the history of the United States in the world. When she’s not podcasting, Abby works as an assistant professor at the U.S. Naval Academy. She is an aspirational hiker, which is to say, she thinks hiking is cool, but she doesn’t do it all that much herself. She has hiked approximately .1% of the AT.

Eleanor MagnessProfile Photo

Eleanor Magness

Eleanor Magness is an intern producer on The Green Tunnel and an undergraduate student at George Mason University, majoring in history. She is a moderately seasoned hiker and enjoys camping and anything to do with the outdoors.

Jess Pritchard-RitterProfile Photo

Jess Pritchard-Ritter

Jess Pritchard-Ritter was a producer on The Green Tunnel. She is by no means a seasoned hiker, but she lives near the AT and has hiked local stretches of the trail many times. Outside of this podcast, Jess is also a lead educator at a local museum and runs a consulting business that helps cultural institutions go digital. Most days you’ll find her covered from head to toe in paint and plaster as she renovates her 250-year-old house.

Rachel WhyteProfile Photo

Rachel Whyte

My name is Rachel Whyte. I am a second-year Ph.D. student at George Mason University focusing on Public History, Museum Studies, and Indigenous Studies. Prior to attending GMU, I received my BA from Coastal Carolina University in Anthropology and Geography, and History. My MA is from the University of Central Florida in Anthropology with a concentration in Archaeology. My area of interest focuses on finding new ways to present information to the public and finding analytical techniques that do not damage museum artifacts. Currently, I am a research assistant on the Religious Ecologies project at RRCHNM.

Amber PelhamProfile Photo

Amber Pelham

Amber Pelham is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in History at George Mason University. She holds an M.A. in Public History from New York University, with a specialized focus on the preservation of local communities in the Carolinas. Amber’s research is dedicated to exploring migration patterns of African Americans within the Carolinas. Beyond her academic pursuits, Amber is deeply committed to community engagement. She actively participates in the creation of resources aimed at fostering digital interaction within rural communities.

Related Shows

The Green Tunnel

The Green Tunnel explores the history and culture of the United States’ most iconic long-…

Visit Page

Your Most Obedient & Humble Servant

Your Most Obedient & Humble Servant is a podcast that showcases 18th and early 19th-centu…

Visit Page

Worlds Turned Upside Down

Worlds Turned Upside Down tells the story of the American Revolution as a transatlantic c…

Visit Page

Consolation Prize

Consolation Prize is a podcast about the history of the United States in the world throug…

Visit Page

Antisemitism, U.S.A.

How can Americans overcome a problem that they can’t define, a bigotry whose particulars …

Visit Page

Revolutions Reconsidered

A bi-weekly companion piece to the podcast Worlds Turned Upside Down. Join R2 Studios' Dr…

Visit Page