Hey there! I’m Anna, a west coast native with a passion for long trails and type 2 fun. My husband and I are lacing up our trail runners to attempt to thru-hike the Pacific Crest Trail. I’ve spent years exploring the Pacific Northwest, including the Wonderland Trail ('22). My blog will share daily stories from the trail, reflections on what fuels my journey, and the realities of thru-hiking with celiac disease. Whether you’re fellow hiker trash, an armchair adventurer, or someone curious about gluten-free trail life, follow along!

Anna is from western North Carolina and grew up romping through hollers and hills. Her love of the Appalachian mountains drew her onto the Appalachian Trail in 2021 where she became "Magic". The AT was her first thru hike and the place where she would meet her future husband, Truffles. After completing the AT, the pair moved to east Tennessee to work as backpacking guides in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Between guiding gigs, Magic hiked the Arizona Trail in 2023 and the West Highland Way in 2024. In 2025, Magic will travel west to thru hike the Pacific Crest Trail. When she isn't in the woods, Magic enjoys writing, playing disc golf, and teaching yoga. You can follow along with all of Magic's adventures on her Instagram (@annamckinney22) or by checking out her blog, magicinthemountains.blog.

My name is Platinum (or Annie) and I am an AT 2022 thru-hiker and PCT 2023 thru-hiker! I am currently prepping and planning for a SOBO Direttissima for summer of 2025 and the CDT for a SOBO start in 2026! With lots of little adventures in between!

I choose a word to inspire my growth each year. This year my word is adventure. From 2019 to 2021, my word was brave. Clearly, I struggled to grow into THAT word. Since I was a child, I dreamed of sailing. But I had been living in the grip of fear. In 2021, I wriggled painfully out of fear's grip by learning to sail a Hobie 14. I was brave in many other ways in 2021, but bravery was fun on the days I learned to sail. Pain and fun can walk hand it hand. Hikers know this, ask our feet. I came to hiking via hunting as a child with my dad, granddad and great-granddad. I had no idea it was hiking until I went on my first hike in Amicalola Falls, Georgia with Bill. I dropped him off at the start of the Appalachian Trail, and his plan was to hike the full trail. My take away from that momentous hike: hiking is hunting without the guns. Two weeks later, I went from hike one to hike two up Blood Mountain with gusto. At the top of Blood Mountain on a wide, flat rock overlooking the most beautiful view I had seen in my life, I decided I was going to hike the Appalachian Trail. From that moment until now, Bill and I have been rearranging the pieces of our life to accommodate this commitment. And now, we are ready for the joy and the pain of hiking the entire 2,197.4 miles of the AT.

Mom in an empty nest, ex-science technician, translator to be, the trail will help me make the transition real. Walking home to my cute little house on the stream. Vous voulez lire mes aventures en français? walkthewoods.net

Hey y'all! My name is Carson (they/them), and I'll be thru hiking the PCT in 2025. I also thru hiked the AT in 2021. I'm super into ultrarunning, caving, hiking (duh), and writing, and I'm excited to share some of my PCT adventures, preparations, and general trail thoughts with you.

My name is Elayna (no trail name yet!), and hiking the AT in 2025 will be my first experience thru-hiking! You can blame all the other bloggers on the Trek for making me think this was a good idea... Follow along on by subscribing to my blog and my YouTube channel! https://www.youtube.com/@OriginalSpacewhale

I am an aspiring Thru Hiker for the 2025 hiking season. I am looking to hike the Appalachian Trail from the Southern Terminus to the Northern Terminus.

I just graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and am thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2025! I decided to thru-hike the AT in 11th grade and have been planning this for seven years. I did my time in school and now have my Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Mechanical Engineering from one of the most rigorous technical universities in the country. I am stoked to spend five months of my life outdoors traversing the Appalachian mountains this year! Follow me on Instagram @themountainengineer

Hi, I’m John Kriz (AlphaGal). Some just call me Kriz. 2024/25 will finally be my time to attempt a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. Starting SoBo late 2024, I made it 220 miles before the weather stopped me. I’ll resume my journey in February, this time NoBo. Eight years ago, for our 25th wedding anniversary, my wife and I decided it would be fun to summit Mount Washington. Afterwards, we continued to hike different sections of the AT and since then, I’ve become serious about completing the whole thing. I’ve completed just over half…but I CRAVE the day I can just keep hiking. 2024 coincided with my retirement, and the opportunity to just keep hiking until I’m done. Somewhere along the way, I was bitten by a Lone Star tick and I became severely allergic to red meat and dairy, a condition known as Alpha-Gal allergy. Seven years later, I believe I’ve finally grown out of it. So, 2024 was also a celebration of recovery…and with it, opportunity for a new trail name. Looking forward so much to the journey and sharing it with you.

Canadian mountain goat ultra runner now embracing the #disconnecttoreconnect of the backpacking/thru hiking world!! Excited to see where this journey takes me including the beautiful spaces, shenanigans, and the cool people I meet along the way!!

Hey there! My name is Megan/T-Rex. I'll be attempting a thru-hike of the PCT in May. My Hiker Trash journey began in 2020 when I completed the Colorado Trail. I have The ADHD, which is why I thrive when I'm long-distance hiking. When I’m not on a trail, I’m a traveling Speech Language Pathologist with a special interest in NeuroDiversity-affirming therapy and Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). I’m also a proud cat mom of two lovely ladies - Izzmund the 3rd (Izzy) and Rizozos (Zoey). I can't wait to hit the trail and take you along for the ride!

My name is Shan and I began spending more time outdoors after a mastectomy and retinal issues radically changed my outlook on life. After 2020 (we all know what happened there) derailed my plans to hike the Pacific Crest Trail, I set my sights on Scotland. That first trip—hiking the West Highland Way and Great Glen Way—marked a shift in the way I would live my life going forward. Since then I’ve returned several times, hiking multiple trails in the United Kingdom and even dipping my toes into bike packing with a 10-day 10 island traverse of the Hebridean Way in the remote and wild Outer Hebrides. In 2025 I will be embarking on the biggest adventure I have yet undertaken (other than parenthood)—the 2,650 mile Pacific Crest Trail.

Hey-oo!! Trail name Near-miss here. AT ‘23 alum, CDT ‘24 alum, 29/58 Colorado 14ers and 2/7 Summits. I’m thru hiking the AZT in prep for an unguided (and possibly solo) attempt at Denali in the summer. I’m also on a quest to finish the rest of the Colorado 14ers before the end of the year. I’ll be writing all about these experiences/attempts. Follow along if interested! 😁🎿🥾🏔️

Howdy 👋! I’m Steve- a husband, Dad, Grandpa, Ultrarunner, Hiker, Fisherman and lover of the outdoors from Central VA! I’ll be thru-hiking the A.T., the Lord willin’, in ‘25! Come along with me on my journey as I prepare, set off and write about my 2198 mile walkabout! Keep smilin’!

Hi All! My trail name is Stevie Wonder (he/him) and am excited you´ve found your way to my page on The Trek! I'm a 36-year old hiker and explorer of wild places. Prior to 2019, I lived my entire life in West Michigan when, after going through a divorce and needing a change, I stumbled on to the Pacific Crest Trail. Since that first thru-hike, I have found my trail legs and have lived a somewhat nomadic life, altering my career path to include seasonal land stewardship jobs working on public lands in Southwest Utah, Southwest Alaska, and in Yosemite National Park! I also completed the Continental Divide Trail in 2022 and have snuck in some smaller treks throughout the years too. I love documenting adventures through journals and photos feeling it creates a connection I wouldn't otherwise have with folks living all over the world. My past stories are posted at wanderingstevie.com and I just started a YouTube channel (@stevie.g.wonder) with a few videos too. I'm excited to join The Trek to bring y'all along on my biggest journey yet... The Eastern Continental Trail!!!