The Hiker Podcast

This week on The Hiker Podcast Andy talks with the founders of CNOC Outdoors (pronounced K'nock, who are also a sponsors of the Hiker Podcast) Gilad and Mika Nachmani.    Gilad Nachmani founded CNOC Outdoors in 2016 upon moving to Portland, OR with his wife, Mika and two small children. An avid outdoorsman and outdoor retail industry professional of over 17 years, Gilad used, tested, broke, tinkered and played with gear in both personal and professional capacities. Throughout this time, he was developing new product ideas and improvements to items already in the market. Together, Gilad and his wife Mika scraped together enough resources for Gilad to place an order of redesigned trekking poles.  Gilad designed and made his first truly unique product with the profits from the pole sales, and CNOC quickly became known for the Vecto, as well as for our commitment to doing the right thing – for our customers, our community, and the environment.  CNOC is also offering, STARTING FEBRUARY 3, 2021, a 10% discount on new trekking poles with discount code “Hiker Podcast” or use of the following link: https://cnocoutdoors.com/discount/Hiker%2520Podcast The trekking poles, handmade in PORTLAND, OREGON will likely be the last pair you need to buy. FOR MORE ABOUT CNOC GO TO:  https://cnocoutdoors.com  We'd like to thank our sponsors:  CNOC Outdoors making our adventures the best possible, simple, enjoyable, fulfilling and sustainable. Go to https://cnocoutdoors.com and be sure to use coupon code 'Hiker Podcast' for 10% off trekking poles.  Or is this link: https://cnocoutdoors.com/discount/Hiker%2520Podcast  CS Instant Coffee makers of environmentally sustainable and great tasting instant coffee for the trail. Use our affiliate link to get yours and help the show: https://cs-instant-coffee.peachs.co/a/andy-neal  Each week new hiker Andy Neal, takes you along on the trail, reviewing gear, exploring hiking trends and most importantly talking with voices in the outdoor and hiking community finding stories of how hiking has inspired them to grow, create, and better the world and environment around them. A show for those first starting out on the trail and for experienced thru-hikers!  Follow Host Andy Neal on Instagram: www.instagram.com/andyfilmsandhikes Email Andy andy@hikerpodcast.com  Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all our social media accounts, email, and all the ways to listen to The Hiker Podcast! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/support

On this weeks episode Andy talks with Hiker and Writer Maggie Slepian about her experience on the trail, social media, and the outdoor industry.  Maggie Slepian is an Appalachian Trail thru-hiker, a full-time writer, and the co-founder of BackpackingRoutes.com. She lives in Bozeman, Montana, and is loosely putting together a plan for four thru-hikes in 2021... but we all know plans are very loose right now.  Get in touch at MaggieSlepian.com. Follow Maggie on IG: https://www.instagram.com/maggie_slepian We'd like to thank our sponsor CS Instant Coffee makers of environmentally sustainable and great tasting instant coffee for the trail. Use our affiliate link to get yours and help the show: https://cs-instant-coffee.peachs.co/a/andy-neal For more information about Unlikley Hikers go to https://jennybruso.com/unlikelyhikers/  Check out CNOC Outdoors: https://cnocoutdoors.com Each week new hiker Andy Neal, takes you along on the trail, reviewing gear, exploring hiking trends and most importantly talking with voices in the outdoor and hiking community finding stories of how hiking has inspired them to grow, create, and better the world and environment around them. A show for those first starting out on the trail and for experienced thru-hikers! Follow Host Andy Neal on Instagram: www.instagram.com/andyfilmsandhikes Email Andy andy@hikerpodcast.com Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all our social media accounts, email, and all the ways to listen to The Hiker Podcast! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/support

On this weeks episode Andy talks with Hiker and Vlogger Becca “Little Skittle” Bergstrom about her hike of the PCT, canceling hikes because of covid, vulnerability, and her YouTube channel. Becca Bergstrom had a single-night's experience of backpacking before she embarked on her solo thru-hike of the 2,650-mile-long Pacific Crest Trail in 2019. In the span of 135 days, she walked from Campo to Manning Park carrying everything she needed to make the long journey, including a newfound sense of happiness, confidence and self-worth. She earned her trail name Little Skittle very early on, powered through the Sierra during one of the highest snow years on record and unfortunately spent the final 1,000 miles processing grief and honoring her grandma, documenting it all and more on cell phone videos she would upload to YouTube. In 2020, Becca had plans, like many of us did. She had hopes of thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in March, and when those plans fell through, she attempted to thru-hike the Continental Divide Trail in July, but called it after only eight miles because Coronavirus cases had recently spiked and it just didn't feel like the right thing to do. She still has her sights set on hiking those two trails, earning her the Triple Crown title, but until then, she's using her voice to share her struggles with eating disorders and bringing awareness to mental health, all while prioritizing the management of her own in the best way she knows how, getting outside and moving through the mountains. Follow Becca on IG: https://www.instagram.com/ms_rebecca_ann/ Subscribe to Becca’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCa_pWpSu7iVSKQlYd_tQAgQ We'd like to thank our sponsor CS Instant Coffee makers of environmentally sustainable and great tasting instant coffee for the trail. Use our affiliate link to get yours and help the show! Get some CS Instant Coffee: https://cs-instant-coffee.peachs.co/a/andy-neal Check out CNOC Outdoors: https://cnocoutdoors.com Each week new hiker Andy Neal, takes you along on the trail, reviewing gear, exploring hiking trends and most importantly talking with voices in the outdoor and hiking community finding stories of how hiking has inspired them to grow, create, and better the world and environment around them. A show for those first starting out on the trail and for experienced thru-hikers! Follow Host Andy Neal on Instagram: @andyfilmsandhikes Email Andy andy@hikerpodcast.com Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all our social media accounts, email, and all the ways to listen to The Hiker Podcast! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/support

On this weeks episode Andy talks with Hiker and Vlogger Julia "Rocket" Sheehan.  After thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2019, Julia Sheehan, aka Rocket has never looked back. Julia is a air force veteran, registered emergency medicine nurse and an avid backpacker. She vlogs, writes and hopes to inspire personal connection in the hiking community. Follow Rocket on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juliasheehan/?hl=en Subscriber to Julia "Rocket" Sheehan's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/jls935  We'd like to thank our sponsor CS Instant Coffee makers of environmentally sustainable and great tasting instant coffee for the trail. Use our affiliate link to get yours and help the show!  Get some CS Instant Coffee: https://cs-instant-coffee.peachs.co/a/andy-neal Each week new hiker Andy Neal, takes you along on the trail, reviewing gear, exploring hiking trends and most importantly talking with voices in the outdoor and hiking community finding stories of how hiking has inspired them to grow, create, and better the world and environment around them. A show for those first starting out on the trail and for experienced thru-hikers! Email Andy andy@hikerpodcast.com Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all our social media accounts, email, and all the ways to listen to The Hiker Podcast Follow Host Andy Neal on Instagram: @andyfilmsandhikes --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/support

We are opening up Season 2 with an amazing conversation with advocate and hiker Darrah Blackwater!  We talk about her story, hiking on Indigenous Lands, spectrum sovereignty and her work as an advocate.  Darrah Blackwater is from Farmington, NM and is a citizen of the Navajo Nation. She is a recent graduate of the University of Arizona, where she earned her law degree studying Indigenous law and telecommunications law. She spent a year of law school working on tribal issues in Washington D.C. for the Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs, the Inspector General of the Department of Interior. This summer she hiked the 486-mile Colorado Trail to raise awareness about the digital divide in Indigenous communities. For more from Darrah Blackwater: https://blackwatersoul.org Follow Darrah on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackwatersoul/ Find out who’s land you’re hiking on by texting 907.312.5085 Each week new hiker Andy Neal, takes you along on the trail, reviewing gear, exploring hiking trends and most importantly talking with voices in the outdoor and hiking community finding stories of how hiking has inspired them to grow, create, and better the world and environment around them. A show for those first starting out on the trail and for experienced thru-hikers! Email Andy andy@hikerpodcast.com Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all our social media accounts, email, and all the ways to listen to The Hiker Podcast Follow Host Andy Neal on Instagram: @andyfilmsandhikes --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/support

For the final episode of 2020 and of Season1 Andy reflects on the last 21 episodes and the last year of hiking while answering your questions. Season 2 begins Monday January 4, 2021. Each week new hiker Andy Neal, takes you along on the trail, reviewing gear, exploring hiking trends and most importantly talking with voices in the outdoor and hiking community finding stories of how hiking has inspired them to grow, create, and better the world and environment around them. A show for those first starting out on the trail and for experienced thru-hikers! Email Andy andy@hikerpodcast.com Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all our social media accounts, email, and all the ways to listen to The Hiker Podcast Follow Host Andy Neal on Instagram: @andyfilmsandhikes --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/support

This week, Andy is talking with Writer, Redliner, & Hiker Rebecca “Socked In” Sperry. Rebecca "Socked In" Sperry is an avid hiker based out of New Hampshire. She is a big proponent for encouraging women to get outdoors, with or without someone else, and has done hundreds of hikes solo herself. After finishing the NH48 4000'ers in 2018, she went on to hike the NE67 4000'ers in thirty-six days. In 2019 she focused her attention on backpacking and has done a small handful of backpacking trips including the Monadnock-Sunapee Greenway in New Hampshire. In 2020, she began an attempt at redlining all of The White Mountains in a year, something no female has accomplished. She was sidelined in her attempt, first by COVID, and then was diagnosed with Breast Cancer in August, 2020. She has continued to hike throughout her cancer treatment and hopes that she can inspire other people who are going through treatment to remain active. She uses her social media platforms to educate people about what cancer treatment is really like as well as to share her own journeys both in cancer treatment and hiking. Follow Rebecca on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sockedinhikes Rebecca's Blog: https://sockedinhikes.com  Each week new hiker Andy Neal, takes you along on the trail, reviewing gear, exploring hiking trends and most importantly talking with voices in the outdoor and hiking community finding stories of how hiking has inspired them to grow, create, and better the world and environment around them. A show for those first starting out on the trail and for experienced thru-hikers! Email Andy andy@hikerpodcast.com Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all our social media accounts, email, and all the ways to listen to The Hiker Podcast Follow Host Andy Neal on Instagram: @andyfilmsandhikes --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/support

This week, Andy is very excited to talk with Creative Professional and Hiker, Luke Pearsall. Luke Pearsall is a graduate of the Rochester Institute of Technology’s School of Photographic Arts and Sciences.  His career in media has spanned over 19 years including work on large scale Television and Film Productions in Los Angeles as well as Print Advertising Photography work with clients including Samsung Mobile USA and Bridgestone Tires among others. In 2006, Luke took a hiatus from film to work as an Adventure Guide in South America where his love for the outdoors grew in to a love for travel and adventure. Luke credits this period of time sparking what would become a lifelong pursuit of working creatively as a creative professional working primarily in the adventure lifestyle and outdoors industry genre of work. In 2015 Luke hiked 550 miles across Spain on the Camino de Santiago and after a 2020 NO GO of the PCT, Luke hiked 495 miles completing the Colorado Trail in the state that he has been a resident of since 2016. Follow Luke on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukepearsallphoto. Subscribe to Luke on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5p3HvKpH0vrmqtmpn9qc4A Luke’s Profession Website: http://www.lukepearsall.com/ Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all the ways to listen or to follow us on social media. Each week new hiker Andy Neal, takes you along on the trail, reviewing gear, exploring hiking trends and most importantly talking with voices in the outdoor and hiking community finding stories of how hiking has inspired them to grow, create, and better the world and environment around them. A show for those first starting out on the trail and for experienced thru-hikers! Email Andy andy@hikerpodcast.com Go to www.hikerpodcast.com for all our social media accounts, email, and all the ways to listen to The Hiker Podcast Follow Host Andy Neal on Instagram: @andyfilmsandhikes --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/hikerpodcast/support