blissful hiker ❤︎ inspiring you to hike your own hike
Long-distance backpacker Alison "Blissful Hiker" Young has walked over 13,000 miles on six continents including New Zealand's Te Araroa, Europe's Pyrenean Haute Route, Africa's Drakensberg Traverse and the Pacific Crest Trail in the United States.
In a series of personal essays coupled with found sound, this podcast explores her journey of self-discovery as a middle-aged titanium-reinforced cancer thriver, sharing the sometimes unglamorous but vital truth about empowerment, inspiring others to blaze their own trails in this journey we call life.
- Update frequency
- every 7 days
- Average duration
- 14 minutes
- Episodes
- 150
- Years Active
- 2020 - 2025
Aliveness
“The goal of life … is not happiness, peace, or fulfillment, but aliveness.” —Hubert Dreyfuss
1. Sometimes curiosity about what’s around the next corner is enough to keep us exploring an…
Mindset in Motion
"You can think your way into a new way of acting, or act your way into a new way of thinking."
- Sometimes we can’t wait for the right mindset to show up. Sometimes we have to step into th…
Embrace the Suck
The trail—like life—may not always be what we want it to be, but it offers us the opportunity to choose how we respond to whatever it doles out.
- In the hiking world we have a saying, "Em…
Open to Awe
Hoping for the best, prepared for the worst, and unsurprised by anything in between is a great mindset when planning a major thru-hike – or any major life endeavor.
- Blissful is planning …
Freak Show
I didn’t expect much when someone asked to closely examine my deformed fingers—but the moment ended up teaching me about what truly matters – and what doesn’t.
- I may be a Blissful Hiker,…
Let the Day Unfold
Let the Day Unfold! Let its gentle voice guide you toward unexpected surprises and open your heart to the lessons it holds.
- The lowly New Zealand sandfly teaches us about impermanence, t…
Life is Wide
Blissful's Great-grandma Emma used to say, "Life may be short, but it’s also wide."
- It’s a shift in perspective – from focusing on limitations to exploring possibilities, from dwelling o…
Never Quit on a Bad Day
When everything goes sideways and you’re having a bad day, repeat the mantra to not quit today but instead give yourself the self-love, the break, the reset to get back on track.
- We have…
Be Where Your Feet Are
Walking through woodland ephemerals in early spring reminds us to embrace impermanence and stay present in the here and now.
- We have a saying in the hiker community, “Be Where Your Feet…
The Trail Will Provide
Hiking has a way of making us more resilient, not so much manifested as strength and persistence, but in developing trust and embracing the unknown.
- We have a saying in the hiker communi…
TEDx excerpts: “How do you find your bliss? Take the long trail!”
blissful TEDx speaker
WATCH TEDx
On October 10, Blissful gave her first TEDx talk about Resilience as part of TEDX AmoskeagMillyard in Manchester, New Hampshire.
What is a TED talk??
- TED stands for Technolog…
The Grace of a Good Teacher
Taking a class this weekend, Blissful learns about the key skills of a good teacher.
This was especially important when she needed to face down an irrational fear of falling out of her…
Life is Too Short to Waste on Speed
On the Teton Crest Trail in Wyoming, Blissful decides to go for an "SKT" (Slowest Known Time) and surprises abound.
1. John Muir (and Henry David Thoreau) hated the word "hike" and pref…
Hiking While Old
On the Pyrenean Haute Route, an oafish American hiker questioned Blissful's ability to manage a route of this difficulty.
“Even YOU?” he asked, his lip curling in disdain. “I haven’t se…
Don't Dream. Do.
Have you been wanting to do something a little wild and out-of-your-comfort-zone but were afraid to take the first step?
When it comes to dreams, don't let them become a broken record o…
The Fear Factor
Blissful feels plenty of fear and anxiety before a thru-hike, but she manages her fears by asking, “If the worst happens, then what?”
The answers to those questions helps us think more…
Breast Cancer Trail: You're done!
Blissful is given the "all clear" by her surgeon and gets ready to step into the rest of her life.
- Surgery for breast cancer has completely changed Blissful's body, but has given her a…
cancer thriver
Blissful takes her first hike on a trail after surgery for breast cancer and decides she prefers to be described as a "thriver" – or even "aliver" – rather than survivor.
- It's a hot, h…
Inhabiting the Vulnerable Space
As Blissful heals from a bilateral mastectomy due to breast cancer, she reflects on the person she wants to be going forward.
- Blissful is incredibly lucky in only having to undergo a ra…