He spent 22 years in the Navy knowing exactly what came next. Then he retired, chased the money for a while in government contracting, and eventually stood at the top of a ridge in New Hampshire realizing that the smelly guys with the tiny packs who had just hiked from Georgia were living something he had read about on deployment and never forgotten. That was 2018. He was 49. He showed up to the Appalachian Trail with a 40-pound pack containing three of everything, met a 19-year-old who had already done two of the three long trails, and gradually got rid of everything he didn't need. Three consecutive years, three trails: AT, PCT, CDT. One Triple Crown, one gas station tent, one six-pack, no finish line medal. Then the Hayduke — 800 miles of find-your-own-way through Utah and Arizona — came right after a job rejection that made him furious enough to do something harder instead. Then Alaska. Then dogs. Then mushing. Then glacier tours. Then whitewater rafting in one of the most remote towns in North America. Then operations manager for the most accomplished Iditarod racer of all time. In this Full Traverse episode, Doc draws from five conversations across four years with Ben "Ginger Ballz" Vaughan to trace the full arc: from Lieutenant Commander to hiker trash to the man who now puts sunscreen on dog balls at 5,000 feet every morning and calls it the best job he's ever had. The title comes from a sign he read on the CDT at the entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park. He has been living by it ever since.

Show Notes

The Full Traverse is HTR's long-form narrative format, drawing from multiple years of conversations with a single guest to tell the complete story. This is Episode 3.


Guest: Ben Vaughan, trail name Ginger Ballz — Navy Lieutenant Commander (retired), Triple Crowner, Hayduke thru-hiker, dog musher, Iditarod trainer, whitewater raft guide, and operations manager for Dallas Seavey's kennel operation.


Trail name origin: Earned on the AT hiking with a younger trail family who progressed from "Old Man" to "Old Man Ginger Balls" to "OMGB" to "Ginger Balls" over the course of approximately zero trail days. He accepts this. The story he prefers: a young woman from another country told him he was called that because he was brave and strong. He said yes, exactly.


Trails and routes featured in this episode:



  • Appalachian Trail (northbound, 2018)

  • Pacific Crest Trail (northbound, 2019) — including frostbite in the Sierra during a high snow year

  • Continental Divide Trail (northbound, 2020) — during the pandemic

  • Hayduke Trail (2021) — 800 miles through Utah and Arizona via six national parks; no trail markers; roughly 10–15 completions per year

  • Vermont's Long Trail (October 2021) — hiked with Scrapbook; 273 miles; Ben fell approximately 30 times

  • Superior Hiking Trail (2021)


Key people:



  • Scrapbook (Garrett Hernandez) — Ben's trail family member from day one on the AT, who had already completed the CDT and PCT at age 19. Has appeared on HTR separately. Now a backcountry firefighter.

  • Dallas Seavey — Ben's employer since 2022. Five-time Iditarod winner, son of a three-time winner, grandson of one of the race's founders. Generally considered the most accomplished musher in Iditarod history.


The Iditarod: 1,049 miles, Anchorage to Nome, Alaska. Considered one of the toughest endurance races in the world — the challenge falls primarily on the musher, not the dogs. The winning time is approximately nine days. Dogs run because they want to; the musher's job is navigation, dog care, and not letting go of the sled.


Ben's Alaska operation:



  • Summer: Glacier dog mushing tours for tourists at 5,000 feet, helicopter access only, five staff, fifty dogs, no cell signal

  • Winter: Racing dog training for Iditarod and other competitions at the kennel in Talkeetna and South Kenai

  • Company: AK Sled Dog Tours / Dallas Seavey Kennel


McCarthy, Alaska: Pop. ~30 year-round, 300+ seasonal workers. Located in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park — the largest national park in the United States, roughly seven times the size of Yellowstone. Accessible by 60-mile dirt road. No grocery store. The site of Ben's summer 2024 whitewater raft guide work with McCarthy River Tours.


Warrior Expeditions: Veterans organization that supports outdoor wilderness expeditions for vets with at least one combat tour. Provides gear and logistical support. Ben encountered them on the AT and hiked the PCT with a Warrior Expeditions cohort in 2019. Mentioned briefly: highly recommended for any veteran looking for a trail-based transition.


Follow Ben: Instagram: @hiking_ginger_b



The Full Traverse is produced by Hiker Trash Radio, a member of the BLEAV Podcast Network.


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