Hiking Thru

Fiddlehead, known off trail as Paige Pasquini, earned her thru hiking cred on the Appalachian Trail, Colorado Trail, and Long Trail before hitting the Pacific Crest Trail in 2019. In this episode, we have fun talking about a jolly man with a beer belly, the Ultimate Girl Gang, how ambling up the AT turned into a go-go, get it done PCT, and the gear she always brings without compromise.

BB, known off trail as Nathan Hankes, came back from Iraq heart set on thru hiking.
Convincing his brother to join him, they SOBO’d the AT in 2009 from which sprang his book “Waking Up On The Appalachian Trail.” In this episode, we talk about how the trail helped him process his experiences in Iraq, the dichotomy of being a slave to the mileage versus taking breaks to be present, and the importance of finding your nutritional sweet spot.

Purple Rain, known off trail as Mandy Bland, began her thru hiking career on the AT. Then moved to the Grand Enchantment Trail and section hikes of the PCT. Along the way she found her passion, in the process creating Purple Rain Adventure Skirts. In this episode we talk about the evolution of her rain skirts and how putting a pocket on it makes life so much better, navigation challenges on the Grand Enchantment Trail and staying a solo hiker.

Layzer GOAT, known off trail as Anthony Earl, has completed the distance of the Appalachian and Colorado Trails. On the AT, he started out with a 55 pound pack which included a different hat for each day of the week. Suffice it to say, things have changed since then and in this episode we talk about the other side of the dilemma with whether to cut your toothbrush or not, thunderstorms in Colorado, peanut butter trail magic, and Purple Rain Skirts.

PCP, known off trail as Chelsea Fisher, knocked out the Appalachian Trail in 2017, the Long Trail in 2018 and the
Pacific Crest Trail in 2019. So in this episode we compare and contrast each of the trails. We then dig into frost nip,
jade necklaces, and the night a bear came to visit… and what the heck PCP stands for.

Tiger, known as Sam Lleva, did two life changing things in 2019. He thru hiked the Pacific Crest Trail and left trail for awhile to get married. In this episode, of course we have to talk about how he convinced his fiancé that being on the trail before and after the wedding was a great idea, the difficulty of visiting home while thru hiking and the Sierra curve balls.

Snazzy, known off trail as Mike Stone, was also part of IB TAT’s late October PCT push to the border last year.  So, of course, we have to talk about it. Along the way, we also get to reminisce about being a tent dweller, the Bend beer tour, the kindness of strangers and the Snazzy straw.

Head Trauma, known off trail as Caesar Sangalang, fell into thru hiking quite by accident.  In New Zealand on a work visa, he was lured onto the Te Araroa.  Okay maybe it was more of a “That sounds cool! Let’s do it!”  kinda thing.  Either way, in this episode we deep dive into the TA. With a few detours for pontoon party boats, 5 hour road walks and tea bag toilet paper.

Griz, known off trail as Grizel Williams, is a strong, fierce LatinX woman one trail away from completing her Triple Crown.  She found in hiking a space to find herself.  And in this episode, we talk about hiking with a dog, building a safe place for people to share their stories, creating a bridge between mental health, and hiking and the trekking pole ninja.

Cheer, known off trail as Carol Coyne, has 267 miles left to complete her thru hike of the PCT.  Many things factored into her decision to leave trail and in this episode we talk about the “Whys”.  How asking yourself the tough questions and being clear about what’s most important to you helps when you are facing the moment your hike could be over.