In Part 2, Carolyn Highland gets into the adventures, the essays, and the through-line that ties them together. She runs 40-mile loops solo in the Eastern Sierra when her crew cancels. She has sat in a backcountry creek at golden hour with seized legs, chips, and sparkling water, knowing she would have to stand up alone because there was no one else to do it, and found in that moment a kind of freedom she would not trade. She has spent years noticing that the thing a 50K teaches you — keep going when you're cold and exhausted and it would be easier to stop — is exactly the same skill that a heartbreak requires. Her book tracks both, side by side. This half of the conversation also covers the opening essay in The Full Range (a 48-hour goodbye ski weekend with a former partner, knowing the whole time this was the end), the most striking line in the book ('Sam wasn't my person, but he was my people'), the mental game and what negative self-talk does to your body, two hiking hacks, a Jeff Pelletier YouTube recommendation, and a recently honeymooned-in-the-Dolomites aside.

If you haven't listened to Part 1 yet, start there — it dropped 10 minutes ago.

Show Notes

About the Guest


Carolyn Highland is a writer, outdoor educator, and endurance athlete based in Anchorage, Alaska. Her second essay collection, The Full Range: Essays from a Life Outside, is published by Rocky Mountain Books. Her first collection, Out Here, was published during COVID. She writes primarily about skiing and the outdoors for magazines including Backcountry Magazine, and has been keeping a journal since age seven. She taught fourth and seventh grade at an outdoor school in Truckee, California before moving to Anchorage, where she and her husband recently honeymooned by fastpacking the Alta Via 1 in the Dolomites.

What's Covered in Part 2


Running 50Ks and 40-Mile Loops Instead of Races

The Opening Essay — 48 Hours


Ultras and Heartbreak — The Through-Line


The Rae Lakes Run — Standing Up Alone


Sam Wasn't My Person, But He Was My People


Backcountry Skiing — The Winter Version


The Full Range — What It Is and What She Wants Readers to Take Away


The Mental Game


Hiking Hack — Two Pieces


Off the Beaten Path — Two Recommendations


Honeymoon Note


Pay It Forward — Protect Our Winters


Links & Resources



  • Carolyn Highland — Website: https://www.carolynhighland.com

  • Instagram: Verify handle before publishing (transcript shows C_Hyland — confirm correct spelling)

  • Substack: Verify handle before publishing (transcript shows Carolyn Hyland — confirm correct spelling)

  • The Full Range — Rocky Mountain Books: https://www.rmbooks.com

  • Fierce Country — Heather Hansman: https://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com

  • Jeff Pelletier — Ultra-runner and fastpacker with a YouTube channel featuring trail running and fastpacking content. Inspired Carolyn and her husband's Dolomites honeymoon run.

  • Protect Our Winters: https://www.protectourwinters.org


Connect with Hiker Trash Radio



  • Email: mailto:hikertashradio@gmail.com

  • Social: Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok — search Hiker Trash Radio.


Leave a review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 60 seconds and makes a real difference.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Comments & Upvotes

Listen On

Also In Season 11