Growing up in the northwest in a family that camped every summer, Colleen Drake, also known as Teacup, has been hiking for more than 60 years, since she was old enough to walk. Her hiking accomplishments include the Wonderland Trail around Mt. Rainier, the Washington section of the PCT, most of the Washington section of the PNT, the southern Oregon section of the PCT, the Wind River Mountains and Bighorns of Wyoming, many of the National Parks of the southwest, and all the trails of Olympic Nati...
Jul 06, 2021•12 min
Lindsay Wenndt is a nationally certified health coach and fitness instructor, with specialty certifications in weight management and orthopedic health (a.k.a. joint pain). She’s the founder of Break Free Fitness, a curvy women’s health and fitness company that reserves 10% of its membership and coaching packages as scholarships for low-income women. Lindsay has taught more than 10,000 classes to women on topics such as reversing arthritis, exercise modifications for curvy women, and staying heal...
Jun 29, 2021•55 min
Collin Chambers is the founder of WildWood Magic and is widely recognized for encouraging people to take walks in nature. After losing 100 pounds by adding a daily walk to her life, she now inspires people to find health and happiness through the simple act of walking. She teaches personal transformation through enchanted journeys in a magical union of Walking as a Sacred Practice, Rituals & Ceremony, and Self-Empowering Hiking & Backpacking Programs. Since beginning her career as a hiki...
Jun 22, 2021•54 min
Shadi Ganjavian-Connor has an extraordinary talent for inspiring others, fueled quite simply by her sole desire to help the world in any way she can. Shadi has extensive and diverse marketing experience working with companies such as Marks & Spencer, Harrods, B&Q and ID Technology Group leading the marketing strategy, communication and project management for several successful high-profile campaigns. Shadi is also co-founder of the community interest company, SHAPE Hampshire, which has b...
Jun 15, 2021•10 min
We've all had to do it. Our very first time, by ourselves, in the middle of the woods. Lisa Best decided it was time that she got out there and tested herself. In this month's Lagniappe, she tells Anna the impact it had on her and why her trail name is now "Savor Life." Lisa has been in education for over 30 years serving in private schools and public schools in the roles of teacher, administrator, and consultant. In October 2020, she was named a Postulant for Holy Orders to the Priesthood in th...
Jun 08, 2021•48 min
Miranda was burnt out from a successful yet stressful corporate career, ending a toxic long-term relationship and struggling with an autoimmune disease when she quit her job in 2015. She spent the rest of that year living out of a backpack while: • completing her yoga teacher training in India, • meditating with Buddhist monks in Thailand/Myanmar and • hiking through the Himalayas, Alps and Andes mountains. After that, she felt drawn to Asheville, NC; about an hour from where she grew up. Becaus...
Jun 01, 2021•9 min
Miranda Peterson was burnt out from a successful, yet stressful, corporate career, ending a toxic long-term relationship, and struggling with an autoimmune disease when she quit her job in 2015. She spent the rest of that year living out of a backpack while: • completing her yoga teacher training in India • meditating with Buddhist monks in Thailand/Myanmar • hiking through the Himalayas, Alps, and Andes mountains. After that, she felt drawn to Asheville, NC; about an hour from where she grew up...
May 25, 2021•53 min
Lauralee Bliss, trail name "Blissful," is a two-time Appalachian Trail long-distance hiker north and south including a thru hike with her teen son, and is currently section hiking the trail for a third time. She has completed other long-distance trails in multiple states including the Florida Trail, the Colorado Trail, the Foothills Trail, the Long Trail, and the Allegheny Trail. She also served six years as the ridgerunner in Maryland and Shenandoah National Park. Lauralee is a published author...
May 18, 2021•14 min
Your host, Anna aka Mud Butt, shares some important campground etiquette for the next time you head out to do some camping! Guest Links- Basic Camping Etiquitte- https://www.theoutbound.com/tara-schatz/basic-campground-etiquette-for-camping-beginners KOA Guide to Campground Etiquitte- https://koa.com/blog/guide-to-camping-ettiquette/ Connect with Anna, aka Mud Butt, at info@traildames.com You can find the Trail Dames at: Our website: https://www.traildames.com The Summit: https://www.traildamess...
May 11, 2021•18 min
Christine Reed discovered long-distance backpacking while surfing the internet at work. She decided that day to attempt to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. One adventure led to another, and a few years later she set out on the Wonderland Trail in Mt Rainier National Park. Her Rugged Outdoors Woman persona started as a joke, a nod to the outdoor adventurer that she wished to be. But in the years since, she has come into her own as a backpacker, rock climber, and trail runner. Her debut memoir, Al...
May 04, 2021•12 min
Shadi Ganjavian-Connor has an extraordinary talent for inspiring others, fueled quite simply by her sole desire to help the world in any way she can. Shadi has extensive and diverse marketing experience working with companies such as Marks & Spencer, Harrods, B&Q, and ID Technology Group, leading the marketing strategy, communication and project management for several successful high-profile campaigns. Shadi is also co-founder of the community interest company, SHAPE Hampshire, which has...
Apr 27, 2021•44 min
Shadi Ganjavian-Connor has an extraordinary talent for inspiring others, fueled quite simply by her sole desire to help the world in any way she can. Shadi has extensive and diverse marketing experience working with companies such as Marks & Spencer, Harrods, B&Q and ID Technology Group leading the marketing strategy, communication, and project management for several successful high-profile campaigns. Shadi is also co-founder of the community interest company, SHAPE Hampshire, which has ...
Apr 20, 2021•11 min
Your host, Anna aka Mud Butt, shares some of the best You Tube channels to follow. Guest Links- Jessica “Dixie” Mills Homemade Wanderlust- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQhqmV26773qZhzqJz4VFcw Hike Oregon- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClmtRlQX9GvG6vQohRcRoSg Daisy Hikes- https://www.youtube. com/user/kirbsidex Lostgirl Hikes- https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCswSlpI_JvSK9C-3p-NnNsg/featured Namaste in Nature- Miranda Peterson- https://www.youtube.com/user/mirandomology Old Ladies Hiking N...
Apr 13, 2021•16 min
Lauralee Bliss–trail name "Blissful"–is a two-time Appalachian Trail long-distance hiker, north and south, including a thru hike with her teen son. She is currently section hiking the trail for a third time. She has completed other long-distance trails in multiple states, including the Florida Trail, the Colorado Trail, the Foothills Trail, the Long Trail, and the Allegheny Trail. She also served six years as the ridgerunner in Maryland and Shenandoah National Park. Lauralee is a published autho...
Apr 06, 2021•15 min
Judy “HeartFire” Gross is the owner of LightHeart Gear. She lives in the Beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina (a few feet south of the city of Asheville). Judy has been making tents and other ultralight backpacking gear since 2009. She started out just planning on making a tent for herself, but a friend suggested she make kits and sell them. ‘After all, hikers like to make their own gear’. Well, she decided to make the tent and sell it- and thus a business was born. Now her b...
Mar 30, 2021•37 min
Lisa Work: Lisa has been in education for over 30 years serving in private schools and public schools in theroles of teacher, administrator, and consultant. In October 2020, she was named a Postulant for Holy Orders to the Priesthood in the Diocese of Central Pennsylvania. Lisa has always loved doing things in nature. Growing up, her family spent vacations car camping. That tradition continued as her daughters were born and grew up and, as a single mom, she continued car-camping and day hiking l...
Mar 23, 2021•56 min
Anna is the host of the Trail Dames Podcast, and when not interviewing amazing women for the podcast, can be found running her family violins shop, Huthmaker Violins, in Atlanta, GA, as well as running Trail Dames, Inc, and the Trail Dames Charitable Foundation. Guest Links: http://bettleslodge.com/ Time Lapse video of Lights at Bettles Lodge - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RemFI0G1kCU Connect with Anna, aka Mud Butt, at info@traildames.com You can find the Trail Dames at: Our website: https:/...
Mar 16, 2021•13 min
Zoe describes herself as a mid-life blogger, speaker, and adventure seeker. She set off to walk the UK's longest national trail in 2011–solo–and soon realised that despite her many fears of going alone or not being fit enough, she had, in fact, left it way too long. Realising that many women experience the same anxieties and doubts as her, Zoe is now on a mission to encourage more women to head out of their comfort zone and do something that scares them every day. Zoe has written about her first...
Mar 09, 2021•34 min
Audrey Scanlan: Audrey serves as the Bishop of the Episcopal Church in Central Pennsylvania - an elected position that gives her oversight of 60 churches and 11,000 folks who belong to the Episcopal Church in the region. Conveniently, the AT runs right through the middle of the area that she oversees! She lives just 4 miles from a trailhead in the middle of the Cumberland Valley (PA) which is one of the most gentle (read: flat) sections of the entire AT! Audrey tries to get out on the trail at l...
Mar 02, 2021•12 min
Jan (aka BeeKeeper aka Jaunting Jan) adopted an unconventional lifestyle when she "retired." She'd rediscovered hiking around age 50, was deep into backpacking by the time she turned 55 and began her nomadic chapter. Hiking is her life! She likes to say she visits her home in far Northern California occasionally, but spends as much time as possible traveling between trailheads. Jan prefers cherry-picking highlight sections of trails but has hiked large chunks of the PCT and AZT, smaller sections...
Feb 23, 2021•56 min
Anna is the host of the Trail Dames Podcast and when not interviewing amazing women for the podcast, can be found running her family violins shop, Huthmaker Violins, in Atlanta, GA, as well as running Trail Dames, Inc, and the Trail Dames Charitable Foundation. Guest Links: http://bettleslodge.com/ Connect with Anna, aka Mud Butt, at info@traildames.com You can find the Trail Dames at: Our website: https://www.traildames.com The Summit: https://www.traildamessummit.com The Trail Dames Foundation...
Feb 16, 2021•14 min
Patti Shales Lefkos is a Canadian writer and journalist. Her Himalayan adventure travel memoir, Nepal One Day at a Time, celebrates her creative non-fiction debut. Patti’s articles, profiles, columns, and travel writing have appeared in a range of Canadian and international publications. She was part of the San Francisco Chronicle team that won the Lowell Thomas Award for the best newspaper travel section in 2014. Nepal One Day at a Time is the story of her first trekking trip on her own. Born a...
Feb 09, 2021•25 min
Zoe describes herself as a mid-life blogger, speaker, and adventure seeker. She set off to walk the UK's longest national trail in 2011, solo and soon realized that despite her many fears of going alone or not being fit enough, she had, in fact, left it way too long. Recognizing that many women experience the same anxieties and doubts as her, Zoe is now on a mission to encourage more women to head out of their comfort zone and do something that scares them every day. Zoe has written about her fi...
Feb 02, 2021•17 min
Patti Shales Lefkos is a Canadian writer and journalist. Her Himalayan adventure travel memoir Nepal One Day at a Time celebrates her creative non-fiction debut. Patti’s articles, profiles, columns, and travel writing have appeared in a range of Canadian and international publications. She was part of the San Francisco Chronicle team that won the Lowell Thomas Award for the best newspaper travel section in 2014. Nepal One Day at a Time is the story of her first trekking trip on her own. Born and...
Jan 26, 2021•57 min
Laura is 57 years old, works in the insurance industry, and is the Head Dame of the Chattanooga Trail Dames chapter. Of self-professed "average build and strength" she has been hiking her entire life. She had a brief, three-trip foray into the world of backpacking while in college and decided to pick it back up again about 5 years ago. She trains five days a week with her 35 lb pack and 2 dogs and is always looking forward to her next trip. Connect with Anna, aka Mud Butt, at info@traildames.com...
Jan 19, 2021•9 min
Kylena Cross is a long-time hiker and the Head Dame of the Maryland Trail Dames. When not teaching, she can be found leading the Maryland Dames on hikes year-round, with her positive, sunny nature and warm, welcoming attitude. Guest Links - https://www.traildames.com/blog/page/3/ Connect with Anna, aka Mud Butt, at info@traildames.com You can find the Trail Dames at: Our website: https://www.traildames.com The Summit: https://www.traildamessummit.com The Trail Dames Foundation: https://www.tdcha...
Jan 12, 2021•9 min
Jan is a freelance writer, award-winning author and journalist, columnist, professional horse trainer, judge, long-distance hiker, and Appalachian Trail thru-hiker. Currently, Jan is the co-founder and recently retired director of the Sandhills Farm to Table Cooperative. She spent the summer of 2019 as a wrangler on a guest ranch in Montana, and her earlier thru-hike of the Long Trail produced an award-winning book entitled "The Ordinary Adventurer". Liteshoe was also a guest on the Mighty Blue ...
Jan 05, 2021•10 min
Sue Turner started camping as a child. She became very involved in camping with her children and then became the Outdoor Specialist for the Palm Glades GS Council. As her daughters grew up she moved over to the Florida Trail, working as a Trail Master. Her next path went up to the Adirondack Mountains, where she was the Lead Backpack Instructor for 8 years. Once the children were grown and out of the house, she was free to wander up the Appalachian Trail, and this is where her hiking passion bec...
Dec 29, 2020•1 hr 1 min
Kathy Sibbald is 60 years old and originally from NW Pennsylvania. She has lived in Baltimore, Maryland for the last 30 years where she works as a paralegal and law office manager. Kathy is an empty nester with two adult daughters and a 13-year-old dog who, despite her age, still loves to hike. An animal lover, she also has two cats....who do not hike. :) Kathy loves solo hiking and camping, as well as hiking with others, and throughout the last few years, has overcome a myriad of physical probl...
Dec 22, 2020•56 min
Jan is a freelance writer, award-winning author and journalist, columnist, professional horse trainer, judge, long-distance hiker, and Appalachian Trail thru-hiker. Currently, Jan is the co-founder and recently retired director of the Sandhills Farm to Table Cooperative. She spent the summer of 2019 as a wrangler on a guest ranch in Montana, and her earlier thru-hike of the Long Trail, produced an award-winning book entitled "The Ordinary Adventurer". Liteshoe was also a guest on the Mighty Blue...
Dec 15, 2020•12 min
