blissful hiker ❤︎ inspiring you to hike your own hike

Send us Fan Mail The son of a friend of an acquaintance helps ground Blissful and on her way continuing north towards the Grand Canyon, putting the bed bug nightmare in the rearview mirror.  In this episode: Sam drives Blissful past the "Arizona Snow Bowl" still deep in snow, to meet dry trail on a high plateau. All alone, it's easy hiking, but dry and windy like Mongolia as Humphre...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful is covered in itchy, oozing, painful bites and realizes her gear is infested by bedbugs picked up on her last zero at the motel.  In this episode: It's a short walk under the interstate and along the "Urban Trail" to Flagstaff with views of snow-frosted Humphrey's Peak .  In town, once people see the swollen bites on her face , she's shunned.  Aft...

Send us Fan Mail Unbeknownst to him, a camper becomes trail angel and helps Blissful find a perfect campsite after a long day of relentless forest and a glimpse of a fairytale mountain. In this episode: The ponderosa pine forest of the Mogollon Rim goes on though signs appear to describe life of lumberjacks from the past, burning 9,000 calories per day and working for food. Blissful is losing weig...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful wakes to a soaking wet tent, gets lost and walks through deep snow and mud, but trail-angel beer and a lovely hiking partner make it a joy .  In this episode: It's a new day, a better one, where Blissful can place her feet in someone's else's posthole through deep drifts.  Walking with Joey, they come to a road where a trail angel offers a few beers to quen...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful becomes so frustrated trying to walk through the deep, sticky mud , she creates a game to keep moving forward – and is rewarded with a surprise.. In this episode: Blissful walks on a frustrating trail of mud making high-heels of her shoes and clinging to her walking sticks.  Panicky and frustrated, Blissful realizes anyone can do anything for one hour , so she sets her ti...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful climbs up the Mogollon Rim and it’s filled with pines, snow, and melting snow. In this episode: Blissful is reminded that if you sleep right next to a river, your tent will be soaking wet . It's an easy rise through deeply shaded Ponderosa Pine next to the rushing E ast Verde River , the same one crossed in the deserty Mazatzals .  After a rocky rise, the Mogollon Ri...

Send us Fan Mail After Blissful takes a forced break due to snowy weather , it's a sparkly day of gorgeous skies and sticky mud.  In this episode: Blissful rides with a trail angel and three hikers to the Early Bird Cafe where someone pays for her breakfast.  Her second hitch moves on before the door is closed, but gets her to the Highline Trail in Ponderosa Pine. The air is clear and fresh ,...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful discovers more rocks than she thought possible on the Arizona Trail. In this episode: It's a beautiful morning with an orange sky, but straight up to weird skull-looking limestone, then pumice .  The trail is hard and repetitive, not steep, just rocky and relentless . The trail is remote and feels lonely , harder than walking alone before.  Making things more difficu...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful works here way through the Mazatzals, overwhelmed by the enormous, staggering and disorienting size and remoteness.  In this episode: Things begin on the aptly named Rocky Ridge opening to huge views that overwhelm , even causing a bit a panic .  There's plenty of water and plenty of steep ups and downs to Bull Frog Ridge.   Blissful makes the mistake of skipping wat...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful hikes mostly alone in the Mazatzals with huge distances between water sources and is treated to a glorious sunset from my tent. In this episode: Blissful hikes in stunning and steep mountains of sandstone from the period known as the Great Unconformity , a gap of missing geologic time.  Steep walking takes hikers from one exceptional water source to the next.  The views a...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful heads up to the beautiful Mazatzal Mountains filled with flowers, birds, streams and amazing views.  In this episode: Margaret of the trail magic new sleeping mat drives Blissful to the trail head.  More magic happens immediately when Joey walks by just as Blissful gets lost. It's a race against bad weather on the way to walk 70 miles to Pine, Arizona . The trail is...

Send us Fan Mail After Blissful punctures her sleeping pad , she meets a trail angel who manifests her own magic and gets her replacement In this episode: It's an extraordinary night on the edge of a ridge in the Four Peaks Wilderness with wind like a jet engine in the towering pine above her tent.  After gorgeous streams , the trail meets a road , dull and long.  A trail heads steeply down o...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful climbs steeply up into the Four Peaks Wilderness , where she camps right on the edge of a cliff.   In this episode: After sleeping on a wee bit of astroturf at Roosevelt Lake Marina next to the highway, Blissful hitches to the Vineyard Trail.  The wide open trail climbs up past Saguaro and myriad wildflowers, including thousands of Mexican Poppies .  Water sources are far...

Send us Fan Mail It's rough trail for Blissful as she works her way towards Roosevelt Lake mostly on rocky road, far harder going down than up.  In this episode: From a camp above Walnut Spring in the Superstition Mountains , it's slippery and steep 1,000 feet straight down and 1,000 feet straight back up.  The views are towards ancient seabeds , lifted up as mesas, the trail covered wit...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful sees her first cactus bloom and has a magical day of steep climbs and a little bit of thunder and rain.  In this episode: After a brilliant night camped by a stream, Blissful sees her first bloom on a cane cholla .  When she reaches a road, a couple of ATVers offer a beer at 9 a.m.  It's a nice group of thru-hikers including "Clothesline" and "John the...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful meets a trail angel (who never knew he was a trail angel) and he advances her past the low desert to big mountains. In this episode: It's a very hard day up and down on rocky trail in hot sun with no water over Oracle Ridge with Holly Hobbit. When they reach American Flag Ranch , she's exhausted and has nowhere to stay in town. At the post office picking up a re...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful bumps into Holly "Hobbit" who steps right into the trail behind her for the steepest of all sky islands.   In this episode: We're warned that we'll need to use our hands on the exposed rock up Mount Lemmon . It's hard but fun with a companion, exactly the same age and speed, who talks non-stop. The views to the desert are glorious, but nothing com...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful heads into stunning Sycamore Canyon , where the mountains seems to part and reveal the final sky island.  In this episode: Blissful awakens as the moon sets, sleeping out in the open between two mountain ranges – the Rincon and Santa Catalina .  It's a winding trail, up and down and after such a long and hard day before, she's tired and her heart skips a beat be...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful climbs up and over the glorious sky island Mica Mountain , finding the descent far more difficult than the ascent.  In this episode: It was a great decision to stop early in cool oak forest right next to a stream at Grass Shack , but it leaves a long up of 3,500 feet in four miles.  Manning Camp is lovely under towering ponderosa pine, but cold still in snow.  Plenty of w...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful is fueled by trail angels to climb steeply up into Saguaro National Park.   In this episode: In only a few miles in the early morning cool, Blissful arrives at Magic Camp for a full breakfast on their very last day helping AZT hikers.  She joins Jeff and "King Arthur" into beautiful Saguaro National Park , where the cacti crack her up in odd shaped and human-lik...

Send us Fan Mail As Blissful crosses the desert between mountain ranges, she's cared for by five trail angels .  In this episode: After her amazing cowgirl camp looking out to the next mountain range, Blissful walks on winding bike trails meeting lots of happy bikers in long rows.  It's hot and water is limited beginning with "The Lake" where she's serenaded by hundreds of...

Send us Fan Mail Fueled by trail angel goodies, Blissful hikes to a spectacular cowgirl site looking towards her next climb in high mountains above the desert. In this episode: Blissful starts her day at her own private sky island looking at huge mountains. The day's hike is long, up and down, but easy and she moves while she can in good weather and on strong legs.  A trail angel leaves sever...

Send us Fan Mail An exhausted and sore Blissful Hiker takes a "nero" in Patagonia , then changes her rules on accepting rides on the trail .    In this episode: Blissful awakes form cowgirl camping only seven hilly miles outside Patagonia , where she takes her first half-day off called a "nero" since it's not a full day like a "zero" and sleeps in a cozy bed.  It...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful Hiker hikes from cowgirl camp to cowgirl camp in the Canelo Hills on the Arizona Trail .   In this episode: Blissful awakes to mourning doves and begins Passage Two of the AZT on a roller coaster of hills, finally running into other hikers. Happily she didn't camp near the creek that feeds Parker Lake because it's always colder in canyons near water.  It's...

Send us Fan Mail Blissful Hiker encounters icy snow on the Huachuca Mountains of the Arizona Trail , then sleeps out under the stars in the high desert.    In this episode: Blissful climbs nearly 4,000 feet over Miller Peak and carefully crosses a sharp ridge with a steep fall line.  At Bathtub Spring (literally a bathtub) she collects water and eats lunch in the sun.  It's more up and down,...