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Rumble Strip: A Conversation With Carl Blaisdell, Self-Described 'Mountain Man'

Carl Blaisdell sits in the drivers seat of a vehicle.
Erica Heilman
/
Rumble Strip
Earlier this year, Carl Blaisdell sat with Rumble Strip's Erica Heilman in his truck and talked about his life, with topics ranging from hunting to farming to dogs.

Carl Blaisdell's trailer looks out over the farm he ran for most of his life, then sold. After farming, Carl seemed to make a smooth transition to being a "mountain man," which is how he described himself — and the name pretty much fits.

He’s private. He only goes to town to get something he needs. His life is close to the ground, to his dogs and to the outside.

Carl lives near a pond, and his trailer sits way up in a field at the top of a hill. There’s a lot of pipes. And a lot of cars and trucks. And lots and lots of hounds.

While he wasn't home the first day I stopped by, when I went back the next day, we sat in his truck and talked. Listen to the full episode here.

Broadcast on VPR on May 9 and 10, 2018.

A thin grey line.

Music in this episode by Emily Kueppers.

This Rumble Strip interview was conducted while reporting for a Brave Little State episode about the Northeast Kingdom.

Listen to that episode here: Is The Northeast Kingdom Really So 'Different'?

Erica Heilman produces a podcast called Rumble Strip. Her shows have aired on NPR’s Day to Day, Hearing Voices, SOUNDPRINT, KCRW’s UnFictional, BBC Podcast Radio Hour, CBC Podcast Playlist and on public radio affiliates across the country. Rumble Strip airs monthly on Vermont Public. She lives in East Calais, Vermont.
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