Hiking Thru

Socked In, known off trail as Rebecca Sperry, was focused last year on her goal of Red-Lining, or Tracing, all the trails of The Whites within 12 months. And then in August, she received a breast cancer diagnosis and life as she knew it completely changed. In this episode, we talk about those months of diagnosis and early treatment, how hiking prepared her for cancer treatment and how cancer has taught her to stay present with everything in her life, coming home to the trails again and doing what makes you happy.

YardSale, known off trail as Ashley Manning, has been chasing adventure for a long time. Whether its white water raft guiding or hiking the AT, she's ready for it whether you think she should or not. In this episode, we talk about the importance of normalizing all body-types on the trail and how @UnlikelyHikers has helped, how her habit of dumping out her backpack led to her trail name, the early struggle to get on and stay on the trail and the difficulty of finding safety gear and apparel that fits.

Emily On Trail, known off trail as Emily Ford, with her trusty companion Diggins just finished a winter hike on the Ice Age Trail. It started out as a way to get her hike on without leaving her job, but became so much bigger as people began to follow her journey. In this episode, we talk about that crazy, beautiful adventure, advice for any future Ice Age Trail winter hikers, the documentary being done about her hike called "Breaking Trail", and just how loud nature can be.

Money Maker, known off trail as Jonathan Maidment, has raised $250k through Hikes For a Cure for the Alpha-1 Foundation. Along the path to his Triple Crown he lost the trail many times, started way too early and even took a couple unwelcome helicopter rides. But he also grew up on the trail, learned to make hard decisions and trust his gut. In this episode, we dig into adulting trail style, why the PCT might be holding a grudge, showing that a slow guy can hike the AT, and the old adage "do as I say not as I do".

Tails, known off trail as Daniel Vorster, came from South Africa to hike the PCT last year. Having started in mid-March, he was already on the trail when the lockdown happened. In this episode, we talk about how the experience of thru hiking changed because of the pandemic, from an easier time finding camp sites to the way he chose to share the experience on social media and along the way he regales me with a few trail stories and what was lost, and found during those 6 months and three days.

Frosty, known off trail as Jess Raechelle, spent 6 years dreaming and planning about hiking the Pacific Crest Trail before she got her 2020 permit. And then, well, 2020 happened but she scrambled and found herself at the southern terminus on March 18th. And it was all going fine until she hit Northern California and "Elliot" pushed her off trail, but that's a story I'll let her tell you. So in this episode, we talk about how the people she hiked with changed her, notes in the sand, hating Lucifer, and of course the Elliot of it all.

Dignity, known off trail as Csaba Winters, took quite the twisted trail on his journey from Mexico to Canada. In 2019, he found himself at the southern terminus of the PCT really only expecting to hike for a short time, cause he had quit every other similar adventure. But one day turned into two turned into a week then a month and even after dislocating his shoulder, he continued North. In this episode, we talk about his "whatever it takes" trail to finish the hike, going through the Sierras alone, the challenges of hiking under a visa time limit, and how he discovered the Pacific Crest Trail in the first place.

Lady Unicorn, known off trail as Christine Reed, in her new book "Alone in Wonderland" explores the longer journey we're all on when we come to thru hiking. In 2014, she started the Appalachian Trail only to be pulled off trail by the death of her mother. Four years later, she hit the Wonderland Trail, hiking back into herself. In this episode, we talk about her new book, about the inner conflict she battled while on the Appalachian Trail, her changing relationship with her body as she has fallen more and more in love with the hiker life, and the reciprocity of accepting help.

Cookie Monster & Morningstar, known off trail as Lian & Andre De Jel, have covered a lot of miles in their 30+ years of hiking. But even with all those miles on their legs, the Pacific Crest Trail tested them. In their new book "Six Months with Three Pair of Undies" they tell the story of that adventure. In this episode, we dig into the book, of course talking about those 3 pair of undies, the yin and yang of hiking as a couple, how heatstroke led them to hike differently in the desert and the importance of hearing aids in rattlesnake country.

Kickstand, known off trail as Mike Papadatos, needed something to shake up his life. So of course, he decided to do a thru hike. But not just any thru hike - A Calendar Year Triple Crown. On January 31, 2018 he started at Springer Mountain and the rest as they say is history. In this episode, we talk about those that came before, the planning and logistics, struggles with feeling like a failure, finally finishing a trail...and a few Breaking Bad moments in New Mexico.

Quetzal, known off trail as Zelzin Aketzalli, is the first and only known person from Mexico to complete the Triple Crown. Sneaking in the Hayduke Trail along the way. She treated the hikes like a sport, purposely pushing herself to go as fast as possible. In 2017, the PCT was her first trail and when she arrived at Campo, her English was very limited which made communication very interesting. Fast forward to this year, struggling with her mental health, she returned to the Arizona Trail with a very different purpose in mind. Listening to her mind and body to guide her pace. In this episode, we talk about that transition from "I want to be the first" to hiking the trail to heal, the irony of becoming the universal translator, leaving notes in the Muir shelter, and her next big project.

Good Flow, known off trail as Aliza Goldberg, purposely planned not to plan her 2019 thru hike of the PCT, wanting to experience the trail as she found it. In this episode, we talk about how she managed the overwhelming idea of 2650 miles, the struggle to stay on schedule when the weather wouldn't cooperate, exit strategies, her very pit toilet story and why Old Station means so much.

This episode of Hiking Thru Podcast is a little different and it's because of all of you! Your excitement for the trails, your sharing of the agony and the ecstasy... your stories are infectious, and have inspired my next guest to focus his attention on creating a new National Scenic Trail. John, known off trail as John Sprankel, has set his heart on establishing the Oahu Coastline Trail, which would be a brand new trail that encircles the 227 miles of Oahu's coastline. He will be doing the exploratory hike the beginning of December and he is documenting this entire process of learning how to establish a national scenic trail as well as the hike itself. In this episode, we talk about how the AT inspired him to create this trail, what he hopes his young daughters will take away from this challenge and his excitement over the adventure and father/son bonding to come.