#01 | "Getting Started" ft. Dr. Alan Carpenter & Heather Balogh Rochfort

In the first episode of Walking Distance presented by The Trek and hosted by Blissful Hiker (Alison Young), we are joined by Dr. Alan Carpenter and Heather Balogh Rochfort. Carpenter is the author of Choose Better, Live Better, and a veteran long distance hiker and cyclist. Carpenter has over 11,000 trail miles logged, most of them hiked in his 60s, and now 70s. He’s completed the John Muir trail and the Colorado trail twice, as well as the PCT, AT, and Continental Divide trail. Heather Balogh Rochfort is the author of Backpacking 101 and the blog Just a Colorado Gal. Balogh Rochfort spent the first 20 years of her life as a ballerina, and discovered her love of the outdoors as a college student at the University of Colorado- Boulder.

Blissful Hiker covers how to transition from day hiker to backpacker, from preparing mentally and physically, learning about gear and building camaraderie, and how to get over beginners’ perfectionism. 

00:01:30 - Welcome to Walking Distance!

Interview with Dr. Alan Carpenter

03:30 - Carpenter’s introduction to backpacking and hiking was his boy scout troop as a child.

05:30 - What inspired you to start your first solo backpacking trip on the John Muir trail?

07:25 - As a beginner backpacker, how did you find out what gear worked for you?

09:25 - Another one of the struggles of beginning backpacking is bolstering confidence. How did you mentally prepare?

11:30 - You’ve written a book about healthy living. Many beginning backpackers are concerned about being in shape in order to hike. What’s your opinion on that, and did you have a routine when you were beginning?

12:57 - A lot of fears about backpacking become our reasons for backpackin