Clara Hatcher

My name is Clara, trail name “Pulitzer,” and I am flip-flop hiking the Appalachian Trail starting May 2018. I am from Duluth, Minnesota, but grew up in Canandaigua, New York, and went to school in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This trail runs deep in my family so I am excited to be able to link together the small sections I have hiked already. From Harpers Ferry, I am flip-flop hiking first NOBO, then SOBO.

Posts

Gear That Made It, and My Reasons Why

Gear That Made It, and My Reasons Why

Everyone starts the same way: unknowing, feeling their way through the dark. And everyone's start and end photos are remarkably similar to other

Feb 26, 2019 : Clara Hatcher
In the Woods, I Know that I Am Safe

In the Woods, I Know that I Am Safe

Sarah Grothjan recently wrote an article for Outside detailing some of her experience with sexual harassment and solo adventuring. Not for the

Oct 20, 2018 : Clara Hatcher
19 Days of Intermission Featuring Florence

19 Days of Intermission Featuring Florence

On the list of displaced people from Florence, it is unlikely that Appalachian Trail thru-hiker might pop up. Yet, we are here. The trail, our home,

Sep 16, 2018 : Clara Hatcher
A day on the Appalachian Trail

A day on the Appalachian Trail

The best mornings are when I wake up in my tent after a night without my rain fly. I can see birds fly in the canopied trees above my sleeping spot

Jul 30, 2018 : Clara Hatcher
Hiker Stink, and My Almost Trail Name

Hiker Stink, and My Almost Trail Name

I rang in one month of hiking with a day at the beach. Specifically, Coney Island. It’s just 56 miles from the trail, as the crow flies, according to

Jun 28, 2018 : Clara Hatcher
The First 100 Miles: Hiking My Own Hike

The First 100 Miles: Hiking My Own Hike

I have walked 138 miles. That's six percent of the Appalachian Trail if you're doing the math. It's just fine if you're not. I'm trying not

Jun 6, 2018 : Clara Hatcher
Transitioning to the AT, and Why I’m Walking

Transitioning to the AT, and Why I’m Walking

I spent the day crying. That is, I spent the day crying while packing my apartment, crying while hugging my friends and boyfriend goodbye, crying

May 24, 2018 : Clara Hatcher
Pipsissewa, Trillium, and Shaffer: Histories and Personal Heroes

Pipsissewa, Trillium, and Shaffer: Histories and Personal Heroes

Shaffer and the trail In 1948 Earl Shaffer put on a backpack. He laced up his boots and started walking step-by-step out of Mount Oglethorpe in

Oct 9, 2017 : Clara Hatcher
Get the Gear

Get the Gear

At 22 years old I have been able to acquire most of the gear I need to be able to get up on any given morning and hop on a trail for a backpacking

Oct 8, 2017 : Clara Hatcher
The Where’s and Why’s

The Where’s and Why’s

Well, this is it. Let’s get acquainted. Not too long ago my friend Galen and I were taking a walk to Devil’s Kettle Falls in northern Minnesota,

Oct 7, 2017 : Clara Hatcher