#19 | Walking Toward Peace ft. Cindy Ross & Travis Johnston

In this episode of Walking Distance presented by The Trek and hosted by Blissful Hiker (Alison Young), we are joined by Cindy Ross, a Triple-Crowner, writer, artist and speaker, and Travis Johnston, a Triple-Crowner and veteran. Cindy Ross has authored books about her own adventures on the trail, but her newest, Walking Toward Peace, highlights 25 veterans and their stories of the trail. Cindy and her husband run a nonprofit called River House PA that helps veterans suffering from trauma. Travis is a veteran who became a Triple-Crowner after serving in Afghanistan, starting with hiking the Appalachian Trail in the memory of Zach Adamson, his friend and assistant gunner.

Blissful Hiker covers the stories of veterans in Cindy’s book Walking Toward Peace, Travis’s experience hiking as a veteran, and how healing the outdoors can be.

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Interview with Cindy Ross

1:38 - Background on Cindy Ross

2:50 - How did you get started in working with veterans outdoors?

3:57 - How did you go about chronicling the stories of these veterans?

4:45 - Was trusting each other an issue?

6:40 - You introduce several ideas in the book Walking Toward Peace, from veterans about hyper-engagement while walking trails in particular. Can you talk about that?

8:20 - In the book you introduce us one by one to these people using the trails, and one person is Earl Shaffer, the first person to hike the AT, who made mindfulness a thing before it was a thing. One thing you talk about that I found interesting, is that people go outdoors to heal and accept the past, not to forget.

9:50 - I also found Eileen’s story interesting in your book. She didn’t need to get away from her combat experience necessarily, she needed to recreate the sense of being focused and purposeful. I found that surprising, that she needed the trail for some type of reason to be.

11:17 - I know I’ve quoted you saying that “the puzzle pieces don’t fit coming back,” as after doing two thru-hikes, I know I’ve felt very strange coming home, like everything else has stayed the same, but you’ve changed.

11:38 - You bring up the idea that nature instills awe in us, in a manner that disallows arrogance and entitlement. Do you think that kind of awe helps vets who are suffering from PTSD or guilt?

13:19 - How have the vets changed you and your attitude towards trails?

Interview with Travis Johnston

17:45 - Background on Travis Johnston

18:26 - Can you talk about Zach Adamson?

21:33 - You said there are differences between military veterans and thru-hikers, in what ways?

22:30 - Would you say it was the people you met that led you to hike the Appalachian Trail y