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connecting women with nature, confidence & camaraderie
Recent Podcast Episodes
Follow along with Girl Gotta Hike Founder Melissa and five fellow NYC-based photographers to Mount Everest Base Camp in Nepal! This episode covers days 8 through 18, as we continue up and across the Sagarmatha National Forest, all the way to Base Camp, and back down, stopping in different villages and teahouses along the way.
In 2018, Girl Gotta Hike Founder Melissa and five fellow NYC-based photographers trekked up to Mount Everest Base Camp in Nepal, and dang was it epic! This episode covers the first 7 days of the trip from Katmandu, to Namche Bazaar.
It’s an all things thru-hiking super special Q&A episode featuring six New York City-based hikers -- three of whom who are aspiring to hike the Appalachian Trail this season, and three who have thru-hiked the big trails before! Grab a brew, settle in, and laugh (and learn) along with us!
On Episode 25, I go for a hike in the Catskills, with local artist and ceramicist extraordinaire, Cheyenne Mallo. Cheyenne’s pottery features topographic map-imagery of mountains, hiking trails and rivers! We talk all about her process, her business, and about what inspires her to make such lovely work.
Girl Gotta Hike checks in with Kelley “NoSeeUm” Blosser at the halfway point of her 2,650-mile journey on The Pacific Crest Trail! She talks about the challenges and the rewards of what it’s like to be on a trip that was over two years in the making! Wahoo!!
Guest host Alexandra Kenin of Urban Hiker SF interviews me, Melissa “Click” Goodwin! We go way back to beginning, dive deep on my time thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail, discuss the origins of Girl Gotta Hike, as well as chat about my photography career and future plans for my upstate base in the Catskills!
Alex McClain is a sock designer for Darn Tough, Long Path End-to-Ender, Catskills 3500 completionist and all around amazing explorer! Listen to find out how she has crafted her life and career around her dual passions of fashion design and the outdoors!
On the 21st episode I head up to East Harlem for a chat with Jasmine Guadalupe, founder of The Hood Hikers, a hiking and outdoor adventure company based right here in NYC! The Hood Hikers creates a safe space in nature for all Black and Brown folks, regardless of gender, income bracket or any other divider. Not only to they crush mountains, but they have fun while doing it too - dancing, singing, and doing yoga on the way!
It’s the 20th episode, ya’ll, and it features none other than, Juliana Chauncey, author and co-host of Backpacker Radio, the the crème-de-la-crème of backpacking podcasts! Melissa talks with Juliana about she got interested in the outdoors, what brought her to Denver, how she wrote a guide book at a Starbucks in just one month, and a new podcast project she’s got coming our way!
Portsmouth, NH based fitness coach Liz Forkel has been dreaming of thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail for nearly 30 years and she just completed her first section — all 52 miles of trail in Connecticut! Wahoooo! Hear all about her guided journey with Melissa in this in-the-moment episode.
Kate Rhodes is unstoppable! She's an Adirondack Guide, Fastest Known Time Record Holder, Adirondack 46’er, President of Adirondack Mountain Rescue, and co-owner of TogaNola Snack Company -- all while holding down a 9 to 5 as an Industrial Hygienist, and is absolutely crushing it at her latest pursuit - ultra-running.
Whoo-hoo! Episode 17 (aka the first of the Slackpack Series) is an entire episode dedicated to doling out some down and dirty of advice from four female thru-hikers, who love nothing more than discovering the joys of getting deeper into the backcountry.
Girl Gotta Hike the podcast celebrates it’s Sweet Sixteenth episode with Kahmil and Amanda, two amazing 16-year-old Junior Urban Ecologists with the Seneca Park Zoo Society’s Rochester Urban Ecology Program! They’re all about engaging their community with the outdoor world right around them!
Episode 15 is with Melodie Mendez, outdoors advocate, NYC Chapter Leader of Latino Outdoors, and all around lovely human being! Mel(odie) takes Mel(issa) on a meandering walk all around the beautiful North Woods and Ravine in Manhattan’s Central Park, where they talk about all things DEI and how representation matters.
Mariah Reading — Eco Artist, Interpretive Park Ranger & NPS Artist in Residence talks all about process, inspiration, nature and landscape painting with a purpose! Also her dedication to cold water swimming (in the winter!) in her home state of Maine.
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Blog Posts
Overwhelmed by all of the Black Friday / Small Biz Saturday / Cyber Monday deals on Outdoor Gear out there? Have no fear, Girl Gotta Hike is here to help you snag a few staples, and save a few bucks this weekend!
Bucket lists, intentions and New Year’s resolutions were an exercise in anxiety for a previously-undiagnosed-ADHD-me — but I’m learning how to lean into accountability, and holy smokes, how it helps!
In 2022, Girl Gotta Hike hikers hiked a total of 2,520 miles, introduced a bunch of hikers to the local trails, earned a ton of new podcast listens, and was even on the TODAY show, wowzers!
Over 178 days, from March 12th to September 5th, 2011, I hiked a total of 2,181 miles, across 14 states on The Appalachian Trail with my dad. It was an unbelievable experience and one that continues to inspire. This is the first in what I hope to be a series of posts commemorating our 10-year Trailversary!
I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to be someone who introduces people to spending time in the outdoors, especially for hikers whose acceptance into the outdoors community hasn’t been as easily handed down to them like mine. Heading off into the unknown is fraught not just with the with potential danger of misstep, but for Black Americans, a history of violence as well.
I’m not a thru-hiker. Not yet, anyway. I’ve set a goal to hike the 2,660-mile Pacific Crest Trail in 2022. It's an understatement to say this is quite a lofty goal for a relatively new backpacker. So, what have I been doing to get more knowledgeable about this crazy task?
2020 was a bit of a bust… but for the fact that so many more people started hitting their local trails and found out about the healing powers of nature! Wahoo for hiking!
The ending of Daylight Savings time means less time enjoying the outdoors and more time inside (with more time to think). So how does one strike the right balance?
After a long hiatus, Girl Gotta Hike is heading back to trail. Yaaaayyyy!!!! Hiking events now feature smaller group sizes, visits to less travelled trails and weekday hikes to thin the crowds and keep us all safe!
With no sense of urgency, I'm able to take the time to take in all the little details of the meandering paths, the perfectly placed stone walls, the statues of long-dead composers and the commemorative trees …There's a certain sense of solidarity with my fellow outdoor space seeking New Yorkers…
All of our best laid plans have gone amuck in this strange moment that we’re living in. In our best moments, we can seize this as an opportunity and in our worst, we feel utterly defeated. Melissa share a lesson she’s reminded of from the Appalachian Trail…
We’re all cooped up inside, doing our best to stop the spread & flatten the curve. But what does that mean for hiking? Is it safe to get out and go? Generally yes, but it depends …
Want to get outside and away from it all (and everyone else too)? Girl Gotta Hike is here to help you or your small group navigate your escape from the city streets to the forested footpaths. Privately guided hiking and backpacking trips are open to all ages and genders, families, friends and co-workers!