In this episode, we talk with Anna Dutke. She grew up with a love for the outdoors, always getting outside as a child which shaped her career path later on in life. With a passion for the outdoors and a background in early childhood education, she is a leader and advocate. Anna pursued her passion and helped develop the Jeffers Pond Nature Preschool in Prior Lake, MN. A nature-based school is focused on providing children with an opportunity to interact with their environ...
Aug 08, 2020•56 min
In this episode, we talk with Sarah Histand. Sarah is an Alaskan who spends a lot of time adventuring in the beautiful backcountry that Alaska has to offer. With adventure can come the risk of injury and many mental hurdles to overcome. Sarah is passionate about helping people connect to their mind, body, and spirit as they move into living their best lives possible. We talk about her work as a mental health therapist and dive into her own business SMH training where she ...
Aug 04, 2020•1 hr 15 min
In this episode, we host fire talk chats with a group of friends in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Each trip to the BWCAW is different, even with the same group of people! We took the same group out last summer (2019) for their very first time and did a fire talk chat with them in episode #3. Each trip to the BWCAW brings challenges, lessons learned, and things you can apply to your everyday life. We take time to reflect around the campfire on the d...
Jul 26, 2020•22 min
In this episode, we talk with Laura Larson who is the author of Wild Mindfulness . Laura spends a lot of time camping around Minnesota in the summers with her family. She wrote Wild Mindfulness as a tool for parents and educators to teach mindfulness practices to children. Teaching young minds mindfulness is a journey not to be perfected in one day. It comes with time and practice and this book is an awesome tool for that. We dive into how her camping and outdoor ex...
Jul 19, 2020•58 min
In this episode, we take our annual trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. This was our 4th time to the Boundary Waters and our second time bringing first-timers into this wilderness. We love sharing this space and gifting the experience of the Boundary Waters to people because it's a place that has become special and memorable to us. We want to pass on the joy of this wilderness area to anyone who is willing and open-minded to the experience. It's even ...
Jul 13, 2020•42 min
The Hiking Thru Life podcast is celebrating our one year anniversary! The podcast started as a collection of daily recordings from our day's activities on a road trip and slowly turned into conversations with people we met along the way. It's been inspiring to connect with all the awesome humans who are in some way inspired by the outdoors. Hiking Thru Life aims to inspire people from all walks of life and it's no doubt that the opportunities we've had to connect with the ...
Jun 27, 2020•22 min
In this episode, we talk to Clay Bonnyman Evans. Better known on the trail as Pony, he has quite an extensive list of thru-hikes. He’s completed the Colorado Trail (2015), AT (2016), Foothills Trail, Alabama Pinhoti Trail (2018), Great Plains Trail pilot trail (2019), and most recently is working on plans for a PCT thru-hike. We talk about his hiking experiences and highlight the pilot section of the Great Plains Trail which he completed last year. He shares a handf...
Jun 20, 2020•1 hr 17 min
In this episode, we talk with Berty and Emily Mandagie. They are an outdoor adventure team who are also partners in life! Together they are a dynamic duo living the travel blogger life full time. They travel to beautiful places mostly in the Pacific Northwest, share insider tips from off the beaten path places, and share fresh perspectives on living an authentic life of adventure. Emily does the blogging while Berty captures experiences through his camera lens. We dive in...
Jun 13, 2020•1 hr 20 min
In this episode, we talk with Elsa Litecky from EcoElsa. We had her on last fall in episode #12 to talk about environmental education. We highly recommend listening to the episode with Elsa to hear in-depth about what she does to support and teach outdoor education for children. We asked Elsa to come back on the podcast to talk about the one thing everyone dislikes and often fears when adventuring outdoors, especially in MN in the summer… ticks! We talk about the basics o...
Jun 06, 2020•47 min
In this episode, we talk with Jo Swanson who is part of the Superior Hiking Trail Association team of staff members. Jo has been a trail volunteer since 2007 and staff since 2015. She coordinates volunteers and trail work and manages trail data and mapping. We cover how Jo got involved in trail work and talk about her hiking background. The Superior Hiking Trail is a well-loved trail covering 310 miles of northern Minnesota. Stretching from lakeshores to cliff overl...
May 31, 2020•1 hr 6 min
In this episode, we talk with Linda Akeson McGurk. She is an author, journalist, outdoor advocate, and mother of 2 who lives in Sweden. Linda is passionate about promoting the benefits of outdoor experiences for families and children. She has a blog Rain Or Shine Mama and wrote the book There's No Such Thing As Bad Weather . As she puts it in her book, Scandinavia’s nature-centric culture embodied in the term of friluftsliv is not just the sum of all outdoor activities people ...
May 23, 2020•56 min
In this episode, we talk with Barbara and Stephanie of Backpacking Moms. When you enter the world of parenting, it’s no doubt that hiking or any hobby for that matter will look different. It’s key during the early childhood stages that you introduce your children to your passions and your world, then adapt that passion to fit you and your little ones. That is exactly what Stephanie and Barbara are doing. We talk about how their friendship started and how Backpacking Moms ...
May 16, 2020•1 hr 29 min
In this episode, we talk with Matt and Karen Smith. As they were nearing age 50 in 2010, they decided to take a break from the regular grind of life and set a goal to visit all of America's National Parks. They were able to do this in two years and have had the adventure bug since. Matt and Karen are the authors of the Dear Bob and Sue series of books which chronicles their National Park travels and progresses into other epic adventures. They also have a website where the...
May 09, 2020•1 hr 35 min
In this episode, we talk with Luke Jordan better known on the trail as “Strider”. Strider is known for being amongst the small number of people (8) to thru-hike the North Country Trail (NCT) and the first person to thru-hike the Great Plains Trail. He hiked the NCT in 2013 with a goal to raise awareness about the trail. While on the trail, he had many positive experiences and wrote about them eventually publishing a book Thru And Back Again which covers his time on the NC...
May 02, 2020•1 hr 32 min
In this episode, we talk with Frank Hintz who is a seasoned traveler and outdoorsman himself. He is the founder of American Backcountry which specializes in t-shirt designs for National Parks and Forests for all types of outdoor enthusiasts! We discuss how American Backcountry got started, how it has evolved, and how they connect with the hiking community. We also discuss some of Frank's hiking experiences and his favorite hiking memories. If you are a hiker and outdoor enthusi...
Apr 25, 2020•59 min
In this episode, we talk with Britany Freeman who is an adventurer, traveler, and advocate for leaving our lands better than we found them. She started the nonprofit The 11th Essential with the goal in mind to make stewardship a priority on every adventure. Most outdoor adventurers have heard of the 10 essentials. Brittany is introducing the 11th essential to people: adding a trash bag to your essentials! We talk about the goals of The 11th Essential and plans for the fut...
Apr 18, 2020•1 hr 31 min
In this episode, we talk with Ashley Sondergaard who is the founder of Wedded Wellness. Although not directly tied to outdoor inspiration, we connected with Ashley because of the mindful way of life she practices and promotes that is equally as important as getting outdoors. It’s especially important to be mindful within the “new normal” we are navigating with COVID-19. As you enter a new life with a partner, a mindful practice is an important foundation to have. We...
Apr 11, 2020•1 hr 6 min
In this episode, we talk with Erin Egan who is the host of the Hiking Thru podcast. She started the podcast as a way to share experiences from other thru-hikers with an end goal of her own thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail. Erin's plan was to set out for her thru-hike of the PCT on April 4th. However, the world has changed with the recent COVID-19 pandemic which has affected many people’s plans, including thru-hikers. The original interview with Erin was recorded on Ma...
Apr 05, 2020•2 hr 5 min
In this episode, we talk with Phill Monson an advocate for cleaning up our lands, founder of Adventure Responsibly, and most recently author of the children’s book Nigel The Litter Hunter. Phil shares his background about how the principal for Leave It Better was taught to him at a young age. He also shares some of the most significant moments that encouraged him to advocate for our lands further. Advocating for our lands also means educating people about the lands and the places we travel. We d...
Mar 28, 2020•1 hr 23 min
With the world facing the current COVID-19 pandemic, this podcast is a must listen and may bring you a fresh perspective. In this episode, we talk with Pilar Gerasimo an award-winning health journalist and best known for her work as the founding editor of Experience Life magazine. She also co-hosts a top-rated podcast called The Living Experiment. We dive into her new book, The Healthy Deviant: A Rule-Breaker's Guide to Being Healthy in an Unhealthy World . We talk about what it mean...
Mar 21, 2020•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 31
In this episode, we talk with Victoria Livschitz one of the founders of Right On Trek. Victoria is a lifelong entrepreneur which means work has always been at the forefront of her lifestyle and there really wasn’t much balance to work and life. When she was introduced to the world of hiking and the outdoors a few years ago, everything changed. Suddenly her weekends became focused on backpacking trips instead of a work deadline. Right On Trek is a new resource where hikers...
Mar 14, 2020•1 hr 15 min
In this episode, we talk with a father-daughter team, Ashley and Dan Bredumus. They live off the grid on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Family owned and operated, Birchwood Wilderness Camp, has been in the Bredumus family since 1958. We talk about what it’s like to attend camp, work at camp, and work together as family members. Campers gain a meaningful experience each summer and come back year after year to create memories, connections, and even work at camp when they ar...
Mar 07, 2020•1 hr 5 min
In this episode, we talk with Kyce Bello. We dive into her story of moving to New Mexico at age 10, how she started to connect with the natural world through literature to better understand the land and its rich history, and where it has led her to today. Her background of being a certified clinical herbalist also ties into her story and writing. Kyce writes poetry to connect with the natural world in her recent book Refugia and talks about many natural happenings on the earth through her ...
Feb 29, 2020•56 min
In this episode, we talk with Ruth Wikoff-Jones. Ruth is a person who discovered backpacking later in life. Her story is an important reminder that getting into the outdoors at any stage in life is possible! Ruth has fully embraced the lifestyle as a solo backpacker, but also as a leader in the hiking community. We dive into how she first got involved in backpacking when she volunteered to be an adult advisor on her son’s 10-day Boy Scout trip in 2015. This experience opened the door to endless ...
Feb 22, 2020•1 hr 36 min
In this episode, we talk with Hannah Eaton. After years of experience leading wilderness retreats and working in various therapy settings, it was time to dive into her passion. She is a licensed marriage and family therapist and the founder of Sequoia Immersions based in Seattle, WA. We discuss what brought her two passions together to create Sequoia Immersions. The company has many aspects but our interview with her focuses mostly on the wilderness immersion retreats. Through ...
Feb 16, 2020•1 hr 10 min
In this episode, we talk with Tom Gable who is working on his PhD at the University of Minnesota and Project Lead for the Voyageurs Wolf Project. The Voyageurs Wolf Project is a wildlife research collaboration between Voyageurs National Park in northern MN and the University of Minnesota. Tom discusses this research project, what led him to design the project, and some fun facts learned about wolves over the course of the project. He also talks about life as a wildlife research...
Feb 08, 2020•1 hr 9 min
In this episode, we talk with Kim Dinan who is an author, traveler, blogger, wife, and mother of two. Kim is the author of The Yellow Envelope , a travel memoir about her world travels with her husband. She had a 9 to 5 job, a house, and a good life in Oregon, but something deep down wasn’t being fulfilled. We discuss the meaning behind the book, world travel experiences, lessoned learned while traveling, and how it changed her lifestyle perspective. She supports people pursuing passions a...
Feb 01, 2020•53 min
In this episode, we talk with Alex Messenger. Alex is an author, photographer, and outdoor enthusiast who lives in Duluth, MN. We talk about his 600-mile canoe trip through Canada the summer before his senior year of high school. It was a trip that would be life-changing in an instant. On day 29 of his trip, he was mauled by a grizzly bear. We dive deep into the trip, the day of the attack, and how it influenced him later in life to work on search and rescue teams and wilderness guide. We also d...
Jan 25, 2020•58 min
In this episode, we talk with two long-time trail volunteers about the North Country Trail (NCT). The trails are a place many of us have grown to love. Have you ever thought of the work that goes into creating and maintaining a long-distance trail? We are joined by Matt Davis who is the North Country Trail Regional Trail Coordinator for ND, MN, and WI. We are also joined by Zach who is a hiking advocate and long-time volunteer on the Superior Hiking Trail and now the NCT. We discuss ...
Jan 18, 2020•1 hr 14 min
In this episode, we talk to Mel and Tony, otherwise known as Hippie and the Tech. For the past 2 years, they have lived an “untraditional” lifestyle in an RV full time with their 2 daughters, cat, and dog. We dive deep into why they decided to sell their home and almost everything in it and cover the many details that it takes to go down this path. They are passionate about sharing their knowledge and building community around RV life, through their Facebook page “RV life,” website, youtub...
Jan 11, 2020•50 min
