The Dirtbag Diaries

By Duct Tape Then Beer

What's The Dirtbag Diaries about?

This is what adventure sounds like. Climb. Ski. Hike. Bike. Paddle. Run. Travel. Whatever your passion, we are all dirtbags. Outdoor writer Fitz Cahall and the Duct Tape Then Beer team present stories about the dreamers, athletes and wanderers.

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Endangered Spaces--Castner ...

09.22.2023

Gabaccia Moreno is our guide to one of our newest National Monuments– The Castner Range in El Paso, Texas. She talks with some of the people who worked over decades to make the designation a reality, gives us a window ...

The Dirtbag Diaries episodes:

09.22.2023 Endangered Spaces--Castner Range Gabaccia Moreno is our guide to one of our newest National Monuments– The Castner Range in El Paso, Texas. She talks with some of the people who worked over decades to make the designation a reality, gives us a window ...
09.15.2023 Diaries+ Preview: Yes To Never A Campfire Chat about the silly things we've done and that we would never do again. (Well, almost never.) Got a story you want to share? Call the Dirtbag Hotline at 206- 705-3006 Want to hear more? Join Dirtbag Diaries+ ...
09.08.2023 The Shorts -- Walking Tall Lance Garland and Eileen Hall grappled with their identities in different ways and at different stages of their lives. In this episode, we hear how they started to how to walk tall and embrace who they are at sea and ...
08.25.2023 Mayor of Eldo When Aubrey Runyon first climbed in Colorado’s Eldorado Canyon State Park, it was for fun. When she returned several years later, Aubrey was needing a place to call home. Over the years, her relationship with Eldo has weaved between recreation ...
08.18.2023 Diaries+ Preview: Ask Me Anything You ask, we answer with anecdotes, stories and advice. Today's Q-- If you could be part of any historical expedition, which would it be and why? Want to hear more? Join the Diaries+ community.
08.11.2023 The Shorts -- Suddenly Solo When Laura Buchan’s cycling partner bails a month before their bikepacking trip along the West Coast, she decides to go anyway. In that 1500-mile journey, she learns that she has everything she needs within her. Support comes from Patagonia Athletic ...
08.04.2023 Diaries+ Preview: Will To Wild with Shelby Stanger Talking to people makes Shelby Stanger sparkle. As the host of the podcast, Wild Ideas Worth Living, Shelby dives into her guests motivations for making and taking the leap to try something unexpected. She stopped by to talk about the ...
07.28.2023 Endangered Spaces: Eastern Sierra California’s legacy of gold mining goes back generations, but as the world of mining has evolved, so too have our ideas about public lands. Today’s mining projects are still dictated by the 1872 Mining Law, leaving land managers little recourse ...
07.21.2023 Diaries+Preview: Forbidden Ring Producer Andrew Burton brings us the story of his wild hunt for a wedding ring he lost while climbing Forbidden Peak. And, we have our first Ask Me Anything, from a listener submitted question. Want to hear more? Subscribe to ...
07.14.2023 The Shorts—One Paddle At A Time When Jayme Vance and her husband set out on a packrafting honeymoon deep in Denali National Park, her worries about the trip were exacerbated by her father’s illness at home. As she welcomes Luke’s new role in her life, she ...
06.30.2023 Diaries+ Preview: Bonk! Listener Edition We put out a call for your best bonk stories, and you answered. Stories from listeners who miscalculated just how many calories they needed to get through the day. Thanks to everyone who called in! Want to hear more? Subscribe ...
06.23.2023 Take The Wheel Drew and Sarah embark on a once-in-a-lifetime roadtrip across the country to see the places they’ve always dreamed of seeing. In doing so, they pave a path for other people who, like them, haven’t always seen themselves represented in the ...
06.09.2023 Thin Green Line Chandra Brown, a veteran river guide, led a five day writers retreat for a group of authors along the U.S Mexico border. While canoeing the Rio Grande they navigate physical challenges, and see the effects of government policies first hand. ...
06.02.2023 Diaries+ Preview: Bonk! We've all been down that odd, potentially hallucinogenic path of calorie miscalculation. A campfire conversation about the moments when we bonked. Got a bonk story? Leave us a message at 206-705-3006 and your story might be included in one of ...
05.26.2023 The Shorts--In My Heart All Along After years of turning to nature for relief from his inner turmoil, Andrew Shults finally reached his breaking point and faced it head-on. This decision forced him to reckon with identity, spirituality, and relationship to the outdoors. Support comes from ...
05.12.2023 Alpine Classroom A young man hungry to learn how to recreate in the mountains, and a veteran guide leading the NOLS course in the Waddington Range of British Columbia. Their recollections of the trip, the challenges they face and the moments they ...
05.05.2023 Diaries+ Preview: Beyond The Wall How has being an adaptive athlete changed and evolved over the years? Fitz talks with climber Craig DeMartino, a leader not just in the adaptive sports community, but the greater outdoor community. Want to hear more? Subscribe to Dirtbag Diaries+
04.28.2023 The Confluence Kate and Ani Williams have been adventuring together for more than two decades. Last year, they leveled up on a backpacking trip to Argentine Patagonia, where a challenging river crossing marked a shift in their relationship as mother and daughter. ...
04.14.2023 The Shorts--Esker Calling When Kari Hedin’s life is turned upside down, she found solace on her habitual lunchtime trail runs in the wooded eskers of Minnesota. Support comes from Patagonia Athletic Greens Kuat Racks Global Rescue
04.07.2023 Diaries+ Preview: More with Majka Burhardt How many things can you balance being really good at in your life? Fitz and Majka Burhardt discuss ice climbing, entrepreneurship, risk, parenting twins and her new book More: Life on the Edge of Motherhood and Adventure. Want to hear ...
03.24.2023 Mt. Doom Magic For 12-year-old Rory Rielly and 77-year-old James Niehues, the ski map is an object of wonder and a portal to adventure. Their love for depicting mountain landscapes enriches their passion for skiing and demonstrates the importance of having someone to ...
03.10.2023 The Elk In 2018, backcountry skier Kjell Redal decided he wanted to try his hand at bowhunting for elk. The only trouble is, he had no prior experience or mentors and was living in Miami, FL. Over the course of four years ...
03.01.2023 More Type II Fun What if we invested more in the things that brought us joy? The outdoors. Community. Creativity. This is what gets us out of bed in the morning. For years, you’ve been asking for more – more stories and more ways ...
02.24.2023 The Shorts--Two Nudes and a Newb When Amanda Hayley set out on her first solo travel adventure in Olympic National Park, she felt ready to take on whatever challenges could come her way. But when she loses her way on an audacious day hike, she needs ...
02.10.2023 Endangered Spaces--Colorado River After two decades of drought, the Colorado River, which supplies water for drinking, power, and agriculture to over 40 million people, was named America’s most endangered river. In 2018, river advocates and paddlers Mike and Jenny Fiebig spent five months ...
01.27.2023 Last Skier Standing “At the end of the 24 hours, I looked around and pretty much everyone was still there,” says Brody Leven. “And I'm like, ‘What is wrong with these people?’” In 2022, Brody and Ben Eck were two of nearly 100 ...
01.13.2023 The Year of Big Ideas 2023 In 2021, Dirtbag Diaries producer Cordelia Zars launched a theater company. For two years it was a side hustle where she used her strengths as an artist, storyteller and songwriter. Now, she’s taking the leap to directing full time with ...
12.23.2022 The Zars Brothers 5 years apart, Levin and Tilden Zars are wiry, rugged, and maddeningly strong on mountain bikes. They have scars to prove a childhood of egging each other on, and finesse to prove they've never let each other stay down after ...
12.16.2022 Dope Lake Chapter 1: Misfits We're sharing the first episode of our Dope Lake series that we're running on our show Climbing Gold. In 1976, a plane carrying four million dollars in marijuana crashed into a small alpine lake in the Yosemite high country. Broke ...
12.09.2022 The Shorts--Finding Footing This week, Autumn Ellingford Rhodes and Nikki LaRochelle find their footing in the mountains after challenging moments in their lives. We hear how pushing themselves in the outdoors helped Autumn and Nikki feel empowered as female athletes.
11.25.2022 Door To Door In the Pacific Northwest, Jenny Abegg is a renowned local mountain person. She fell in love with climbing and the lifestyle, traveling around the west and making several trips to Patagonia. Over time, her relationship with climbing changed and she ...
11.15.2022 Dirtbag Movie Night: Director's Q&A Fitz talks with the directors of BURIED, Jared Drake and Steven Siig. In 1982 a massive avalanche descended on Alpine Meadows in Lake Tahoe, CA that triggered a five day search for eight missing people. BURIED chronicles the third deadliest ...
11.11.2022 The Shorts--I Got You Tressa had always used movement to cope with life’s complexities. When she found a partner that could keep up with her, she knew he was a keeper. Until one fateful day when she knew she’d need to rely on mountain ...
10.28.2022 Tales of Terror Vol. 13 In our annual Tales of Terror episode, we've got creepy sounds in the woods, mysterious, disembodied hands in the night, and hooded figures bearing axes in the desert. Mua ha ha.
10.14.2022 Gear Love A campfire conversation with the Dirtbag Diaries staff about their favorite pieces of gear - from surfboards to secret potions - and whether a brand new pair of socks is better than a beloved, threadbare set.
09.23.2022 The Shorts -Senditude “I didn’t need the phrase ‘send it’ explained to me the first time I heard it. I knew what it meant.” In their early 20’s, Forrest Wood sent everything they did. Skateboarding tricks. Dishes. Group projects. But after a series ...
09.09.2022 Beyond Mountains In 2016, Danika Gilbert, started teaching leadership and climbing skills to girls in Afghanistan. Beyond the technical skills, Danika hoped the experiences would translate to strength and confidence in their complicated lives. She met Shogufa Bayat, who joined the climbing ...
08.26.2022 Flip Trip 25-year-old raft guides Tony Martin and Martin Lenz meet their clients for the week: 24 retired corporate oil and gas execs, who want their fancy river trip to go– Just. As. Planned. Ever had that adventure where nothing seems to ...
08.12.2022 The Shorts-- Look For Butterflies For Sierra Meggitt, trail running was a way to heal from the trauma of sexual assault. On her biggest run yet, she embraces both pain and beauty.
07.22.2022 ¡Con Ganas! Colorado is a mountain biking mecca. Yet some mountain-town locals have never experienced the wonders of singletrack trails. Today, we travel to Dillon, Colorado where one cycling nonprofit helps a gregarious group of bilingual chicas oil their chains, clip their ...
07.08.2022 Ask Us, We’ve Been There “I definitely did not want to become a businessman,” remembers Rod Johnson, founder of Midwest Mountaineering. In the 1960’s, no Minneapolis outdoor shop sold climbing gear. So, Rod set up an impromptu gear shop in his apartment kitchen. Now, after ...
06.24.2022 The Shorts--Roundabout River The Colorado River is supposed to be chocolatey brown, not a vibrant blue-green like it is just below the Glen Canyon Dam. Chris Kalman had written off spending any time in those unnatural, human-affected waters– until a friend towed him ...
06.10.2022 Bananas and Peanut Butter Quinn Brett has been an endurance athlete for most of her adult life. From first ascents in Patagonia and Greenland to running across Zion and the Grand Canyon, her life revolved around putting one foot in front of the other. ...
05.27.2022 You Slept Where? Inspired by a pitch from a listener, we rounded up the Dirtbag Diaries team to chat about the most ridiculous places we’ve ever slept. Want to share an amusing story about where you’ve slept? Tag us on Instagram or send ...
05.13.2022 The Shorts--Long Walk to Happiness With dirt under her fingernails and sun on her cheeks, Emily Benington’s thru-hike of the PCT eased the mental health struggles she’d had in London. But when she returned to the city, her anxiety and depression came back worse than ...
04.22.2022 Crash And Burn Drive it until it dies. That’s the motto Fitz lived by as he crisscrossed the West in his truck, Crash. Family members would doubtfully ask, “Are you sure you want to drive there?” Friends asked about Crash’s well being as ...
04.08.2022 Rick's Rickshaw Steven Walker has spent a lifetime canoeing and kayaking wild rivers throughout Canada. His idea of adventure consisted of a healthy dose of fear and first descents. In 2020, he had the opportunity to guide on Manitoba’s remote Bloodvein River. ...
03.25.2022 The Shorts--Take The Bike Patrick Davison grew up on a bike, exploring his neighborhood with family and friends. But as he grew older, he began to forget the simple joy of seeing the world on two wheels. Years later, he rediscovers a lost love ...
03.11.2022 Close Quarters Nineteen year old Kiko Lopez had never set foot on a boat when he accepted an invitation to sail from Maine to the Bahamas with three friends. Choosing to leave the world of virtual classrooms behind, Kiko spent the next ...
02.25.2022 Out of Bounds When Gary Lacy heard his boss’s daughter was joining their company ski trip, he tried to bail. “She’s probably 13, and from Boulder so she'll be a wacko,” Gary remembers thinking. Leslie turned out to be a 20-year-old who skied ...

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