If you are interested in reading about the benefits and rewards of being a trail maintainer on the AT, try John Hartigan's piece on the subject. I was on in shape for me to hike. I usually surmised that some government agency kept a cadre of workers around to take care of the occasional downed tree that blocked the trail. The weeds I simply ignored. Especially when the water bars were constructed of stone.
Ignorance is truly bliss.
The steps were what finally did me in. I was enough of an engineer to understand that stone steps in a woodland trail were not natural. Someone put those stones in place for my benefit, to make my passage through these woods a more pleasurable experience. Not only did someone haul those stones, but someone selected stones of a rather precise fit. Whoever it was also took the trouble to hew out the hillside so each stone would fit.