In this episode of the Tough Girl Podcast, we're joined by Christine Reed—an American long-distance backpacker and award-winning author—whose life changed when she took her first steps on the Appalachian Trail in 2015. With no prior backpacking experience, Christine dove headfirst into the unknown, seeking healing, purpose, and a sense of identity.
Since then, Christine has hiked thousands of miles, lived out of a van, and carved a creative path through storytelling. Her debut memoir, Alone in Wonderland, captured her raw and powerful journey of self-discovery, while her latest anthology Blood Sweat Tears amplifies the voices of women+ on trail—sharing unfiltered stories about periods, pain, perseverance, and everything in between.
We talk about grief, growth, writing through discomfort, and the courage it takes to follow your passions even when they feel far outside your comfort zone. Christine's story reminds us that you don't have to be outdoorsy, athletic, or fearless to start—you just have to begin.
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Show notes
- Who is Christine
- Thru-hike and trail runners
- Being based in New Mexico, America
- Her early years and not growing up outdoorsy
- Reading blogs about the Appalachian Trail in the fall of 2013
- Graduating from college and working in health insurance
- Being pretty unhappy and not knowing what to do with her life
- Why the Appalachian Trail (AT) was so appealing
- Taking the first step and commitment to the hike
- Everyone on the trail being in a phase of transition
- Being possible for her to leave her life
- Taking a year to plan and research the trail
- Planning to hike the AT in 2015
- The importance of finding something that you are excited about
- Never backpacking before and just going on a few day hikes
- Not being a fit or athletic person
- Doing her research - whiteblaze.net - an old school pin board forum
- Doing zero physical preparation
- The feelings at the start of the Appalachian Trail
- Riding greyhound buses to the start (16+ hours)
- The steps up to Amicalola Falls
- First night camping at a shelter
- Personal goals - find herself?
- 24 and turning 25 on the trail
- Doing hard things
- HIking pre social media
- Lessons and learning from thru-hiking
- Losing her mum just after starting the trail
- Spending time at home and deciding to get back on the trail
- Grieving while on the trail
- Feeling her feeling and talking about them
- Having wonderful encounters with other hikers and being able to share
- 650 miles feeling ready to leave the trail
- Having a closer relationship with her dad
- Moving to Denver, Colorado
- Struggling to reengage with the capitalist system
- Living in a van, travelling around and living a more adventurous lifestyle
- Thru-hikers making great van lifers
- Feeling lonely while on the road
- The community aspect of the trail experience
- Finding her way
- Being in a new phase of transition
- Moving into a little house in New Mexico
- Being an author from 2018 - mostly as a full time worker
- 1st book came out in 2021 - Alone in Wonderland
- Trying to write a 2nd memoir, but struggling to write and feeling frustrated
- Wanting to write a collection of stories about women
- Putting out a call for pitches/submissions - women's relationships to our bodies, using the trail as a link
- Wanting to put out 15 stories
- Receiving over 200 submissions
- Book: Blood, Sweat Tears
- The importance of sharing women's stories that haven't been shared
- Narrowing down the selection of stories
- The editing process
- Can I work with this writer to get this story where it needs to be?
- Talking about blood, periods and menstruation
- Being in women only spaces
- Speaking about periods
- Jolly Gear Hiking Dress
- Anna McNuff
- Hygiene and menstral cups
- Tampons and pads - everything has it's plus and minus
- Everybody is different
- Taking the pill?
- Wanting to celebrate our bodies and not be manipulating it
- Allowing our bodies to go through natural cycles
- What's next for Christine
- Publishing a memoir with Bethany Adams
- FKT
- Gardening, art and being more creative
- How to connect with Christine online
- Final words of advice
- Advice for following your creative passions which are outside your comfort zone
- Don't get stuck in the ideas of who we are and what we are suppose to be doing
Social Media
Instagram: @ruggedoutdoorswoman
Book: Blood Sweat Tears
Blood Sweat Tears is a short story collection from 26 women+ hikers and runners about the experience of being in a female body on trail. This group of intrepid and vulnerable athletes/writers talk periods, boob sweat, and ugly crying. The trail is a place for healing, and can show us what we are made of---but it's always us doing the hard work.
Book: Alone in Wonderland