Andrew Skurka & Katie Gerber: Vapor Barrier Layers, Beginner Backpacking Mistakes, and Off-Trail Route Ethics (BPR #341)
Release Date: 01/19/2026
The Santa Fe to Taos Trail, Backpacking with Your Dad + Brother, and the Transcaucasian Trail with Lauren Roerick 2.0 (BPR #244)
Backpacker Radio
In today's episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, brought to you by LMNT, we are joined once again by outdoor filmmaker and long-distance backpacker, Lauren "Longway" Roerick. Lauren shares the highs and lows of a massive year of international backpacking and adventure, including dragging her "indoor cat" brother along on the 88 Temple Pilgrimage in Japan and her not in such great shape dad on the Camino del Norte in Spain, her less than stellar experience on the Via Dinarica and how one especially unfortunate stretch in Montenegro ultimately forced her off trail, quickly...
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Hookups, Trail Grooming, and Chafing: Guy Stuff with The Real Hiking Viking and Lt Cookoo Bird (BPR #343)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, brought to you by Topo Athletic…today’s episode is pure chaos. If you’ve listened to any of our Hiking Viking episodes, you already know what I’m talking about. After four “Girl Stuff” episodes, Chaunce figured it was only fair to balance the scales with what we’re officially calling the Guy Stuff episode, a panel-style conversation that goes off the rails almost immediately, featuring Jabba and Lt Cookoo Bird. We cover everything from trail grooming strategy (aka pube management), to whether you’d rather...
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Fancy Feast 2.0: Drinking “Pig Water”, Hiking Through Poodle-Dog Bush, and Trail Work with the PNTA (BPR #342)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, brought to you by LMNT, we are joined yet again by our pal and Hall of Fame trail name holder Marla Davidson, better known as “Fancy Feast”. Fancy Feast is a wealth of knowledge and unfortunate and embarrassing stories. She shares a nasty medical mishap involving poodle dog bush on the PCT, we look back at her time with the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps, where she and other "malnourished minors" subsisted on moldy bread and Sriracha, which was presented as a vegetable. Fancy Feast gives us an overview of her...
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Andrew Skurka & Katie Gerber: Vapor Barrier Layers, Beginner Backpacking Mistakes, and Off-Trail Route Ethics (BPR #341)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, brought to you by Topo Athletic, we are joined yet again by our pal Andrew Skurka and wayyyyy back former guest and now co-director of Skurka Adventures, Katie Gerber aka “Salty”. Today's episode covers a lot of ground. Today’s conversation is part backpacking advice, part gear nerd chat, part a glimpse inside the operation at Skurka Adventures. We first dive into Katie’s list of the five biggest mistakes she made as a beginner backpacker and her take on why she loves her alcohol stove- after a decade of use....
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How to Start Off-Trail Hiking and Routes with Eric Volk (BPR #340)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio, presented by The Trek, brought to you by LMNT, we are joined by Eric Volk, who we attempt to trail name “5-16.” In just six years, Eric went from novice hiker to expert off-trail adventurer, completing his own custom routes across the Sierra, Grand Canyon, North Cascades, and Alaska, including his Brooks Range Traverse and Arctic thru-hike. He is believed to be the first or second person to hike from the Canadian border to the Arctic Ocean entirely on foot. Today, we’re getting an in-depth tutorial on all things off-trail and route-based...
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8 Epic Shorter Thru-Hikes: the Long Trail, Teton Crest Trail, and More (BPR #339)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek brought to you by Topo Athletic, we are talking “shorter” thru-hikes. We’re joined again by our guy, Michael Grizzly Ivey, to give you an overview of eight standout US thru-hikes that you can hike in four weeks or less. We cover the Long Trail, Teton Crest Trail, Superior HIking Trail, Timberline Trail, Tahoe Rim Trail, Foothills Trail, and Uinta Highline, give you the trail overviews, relative difficulty, resupply strategy, the best time to hike, which direction, travel logistics, permit requirements, resupply strategy,...
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Adventure Alan on High Routes, the Evolution of Ultralight, and Maintaining Health & Fitness (BPR #338)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, we are joined by Alan Dixon, better known in the backpacking world as Adventure Alan. Alan is a literal rocket scientist, a lifelong adventure junkie, and a foundational figure in the early days of ultralight backpacking, having co-founded Backpacking Light. Alan shares some jaw dropping stories from his many routes, including a near-death experience in the Tetons, his philosophy for developing routes—most notably his popular Wind River High Route, the South Sierra High Route, and the Escalante Overland Route. We dig into...
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Girl Stuff 4.0: Disordered Eating, Chronic Illness, PCOS, and Waxing (BPR #337)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio, presented by The Trek, I’m sitting this one out because it’s the fourth edition of Girl’s Stuff. Chaunce is joined by former guest Christine Reed and BPR first-timer Maggie Schoemann. The three cover hiking with a partner, where to get a vag wax on trail, birth control, weird body changes, including managing a beard on trail as a woman, eating disorders and how thru-hiking can trigger or resurface disordered eating (trigger warning), and much more. These are Chaunce’s notes, so I’m just going to assume they’re all accurate. We wrap...
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Jess "Stitches" Guo, the First Woman to Connect the CDT and GDT in a Calendar Year (BPR #336)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, brought to you by LMNT, we are joined by Jessica Guo known on trail as Stitches. This year, Stitches became the first woman on record to connect both the Continental Divide Trail and Great Divide Trail northbound in one calendar year. We talk all about this logistically and physically impressive feat, hiking through the Sierra during a record snow year, how she earned her trail name the hard way, her unconventional relationship with pain, how 10 her day silent meditations better prepare her for thru-hiking and gives us a sample 2...
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Walking the Length of the Americas: Culture Shocks, Risk Mitigation, and Her Security Dog with Lucy Barnard (BPR #335)
Backpacker Radio
In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, we’re joined by Lucy Barnard. Lucy, along with her pup Wombat, has walked from the southern tip of Argentina all the way through the Great Divide Trail in Canada, and she’ll be picking up the final leg of this monster journey — through northern Canada and into Alaska — later this winter. We get into what compelled Lucy to take on such an audacious mission, especially given that she had virtually zero long-distance hiking experience beforehand. She shares some truly wild stories from the trail, including being held at...
info_outlineIn today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, brought to you by Topo Athletic, we are joined yet again by our pal Andrew Skurka and wayyyyy back former guest and now co-director of Skurka Adventures, Katie Gerber aka “Salty”. Today's episode covers a lot of ground.
Today’s conversation is part backpacking advice, part gear nerd chat, part a glimpse inside the operation at Skurka Adventures.
We first dive into Katie’s list of the five biggest mistakes she made as a beginner backpacker and her take on why she loves her alcohol stove- after a decade of use.
Andrew gives us an overview of vapor barrier layers and moisture management for cold-weather backpacking, the Ursack versus bear canister debate, he gives a framework for deciding exactly when it’s time to hit the SOS button on your satellite communicator, the ethics of publicizing GPS tracks in these high consequence and fragile regions, and he shares his two cents on one of the most detailed bear-safety questions we've ever received.
The duo also give us some standout stories from their years of working together, including a nightmarish and somehow hilarious story of surviving a Mojave Desert traffic jam in triple-digit heat.
We wrap the show with a call for Trail Correspondents, if setting up your tent in the airport makes you a genius or an A-hole, the triple crown of winter drinks, and some fun Ibex facts from a listener.
Topo Athletic: Use code “TREKWINTER15” at topoathletic.com.
[divider]
Interview with Andrew Skurka & Katie Gerber
Time stamps & Questions
00:05:05 - Reminders: Apply to vlog or blog for the Trek, apply to be a Trail Correspondent, listen to our episodes ad-free on Patreon, and subscribe to The Trek's Youtube!
00:10:00 - Introducing Andrew and Katie
00:13:10 - Are you still passionate about nutrition?
00:19:40 - Tell us about your recent Grand Canyon trip with Eric
00:22:45 - How did you get started on off trail routes?
00:24:10 - How did you two start working together?
00:30:50 - Describe your current role
00:33:25 - What are some things people don’t know about Skurka?
00:36:40 - Discussion about beginner backpacking mistakes
00:53:20 - What are some new things you’ve been thinking about?
00:56:50 - What trip is in the highest demand, and what’s the most underrated?
00:58:50 - How do you balance protecting sensitive environments with leading trips for your business?
01:08:35 - How do you pick who guides each route?
01:10:35 - Do you have any new guides you’re really excited about?
01:12:40 - What are some tips for someone who wants to get into guiding?
01:20:45 - Grand Canyon or Escalante?
01:23:00 - Tell us your thoughts on vapor barrier layers
01:27:55 - Discussion about the backcountry bidet
01:30:30 - How many cats until you’re a crazy cat dude?
01:33:14 - How do you like using an alcohol stove and how did you like the Great Basin Trail?
01:35:23 - What are the biggest differences between hiking with Dirtmonger and Andrew?
01:40:15 - Have you used AI in your business?
01:44:14 - How should a campsite be set up?
01:50:00 - What are the pros and cons of hard sided bear canisters and Ursacks?
01:52:20 - Is there a new piece of gear you’re excited about?
01:56:00 - Discussion about phone technology in the backcountry
02:01:18 - What are your thoughts on plastic water bottles?
02:03:40 - How far do you need to pee from your campsite?
02:04:45 - How do you decide to press the SOS button?
02:08:20 - What are your thoughts on polartech?
02:09:50 - Are broth cubes a thing?
02:13:54 - What should people know about the upcoming guiding season?
02:20:20 - Peak Performance Question: What is your top performance-enhancing or backpacking hack?
Segments
Trek Propaganda:
- Colorado Trail vs. John Muir Trail vs. Long Trail: Which Trail is the Best? By Katie Jackson
- 25 More Stunning Thru-Hiking–Inspired Tattoos by Anna McKinney Smith
QOTD: Is it cringe or genius to set up your tent in the airport?
Triple Crown of winter drinks
Mail Bag
5 Star Review
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