0:01

Hey everyone, welcome back

0:03

to National Park After

0:05

Dark. We

0:22

got another trail tales for you and I

0:24

feel like it's been a while. I hope

0:26

everyone liked the interview with Tyler last two

0:28

weeks ago. I thought it was really interesting.

0:31

I've never known someone who's gone through something

0:33

like that before. So to talk to someone

0:35

who was in one of those camps is

0:37

really cool. Or I say

0:39

one of those camps, I've met people who

0:41

have been to wilderness therapy and enjoyed it,

0:43

but to be in such a negative experience,

0:45

it was very interesting. Well, can I just

0:47

show you actually, this is so funny. Um,

0:50

so I was looking through pictures last

0:52

night to like, to schedule

0:54

a social media post for it. So when

0:56

this, by the time this comes out, the

0:58

decision has been made, but I haven't made

1:00

the decision yet. And I

1:02

was looking through old pictures and they're

1:04

of course, all college pictures. And I'm

1:06

like, Tyler, I can't post any of

1:08

these. And he's like,

1:10

okay, let me see. Like, okay, this is

1:12

Halloween. But like, no, Halloween is

1:15

always like, who is that? Who's that? I

1:17

can't even, it's not in the screen. You

1:19

can't see it. Oh no. Oh,

1:22

maybe you should text it to

1:24

me. Cause it's really blurry for

1:26

me. Like it comes off weird

1:28

cause I think it's on a

1:30

screen. So, okay. I'm sending these

1:32

to you right now because it's

1:35

so funny. And he's like Danielle, I can't

1:37

condone any of these being posted. I'm like,

1:39

okay, well we don't take pictures together. So

1:41

the most recent one we have is actually

1:43

on a hike. So I'll probably do that.

1:45

But that was also like four years ago.

1:48

So I don't know. I'm like, it's either

1:50

better than college was like 10 years ago

1:52

at this point. Oh my

1:54

God. Okay. First of all,

1:56

I needed to lay off the tanning booth. So

1:58

we all needed to. way off the tanning

2:01

booth, but yes. Those poses

2:03

also, hand on the hip. Your

2:05

hair's still great though. Thank you,

2:07

thanks. Very college photos. There's

2:10

like an entourage poster in the background of one.

2:12

It's like, oh my God, like please. Amazing.

2:16

Anyway. The longer you look

2:18

at the details, the better these photos are. The

2:21

first one is Halloween. I think I'm

2:23

a vampire. I would say a vampire.

2:25

There's blood all over me. Yeah, not

2:27

a clean vampire. I

2:29

just killed someone, obviously. Okay,

2:32

trail tales. Trail tales, we have stories today.

2:35

Yeah, we do. Okay,

2:38

so do you want to go first or? Sure,

2:40

I'll volunteer first. Mine is titled

2:43

Naked Ocean Rescue. Hi guys, I

2:45

absolutely love your podcast and share

2:47

it with everyone who will listen

2:49

to me rave about it. In

2:51

2018, my brand new husband

2:53

and I embarked on our honeymoon to Maui.

2:55

There are tons of places to find an adventure

2:57

on the island and as a Midwest native,

2:59

I was wanting to broaden my horizons.

3:01

We had toyed with the idea of

3:03

going to a nude beach while planning

3:05

our honeymoon. What better way to celebrate

3:07

our love than sitting naked with others

3:09

next to the ocean? We ultimately decided

3:12

on our last day there to just

3:14

do it. Little Beach is where we

3:16

resolved to display all our goods. It

3:18

was a quick hike to make it

3:20

there across a public beach known as

3:22

Big Beach, which was life guarded and

3:24

over what appeared to me as a

3:26

mountain, but would realistically be classified as

3:28

boulders, all while wearing sandals. All

3:30

the rock on slash in Maui is volcanic,

3:33

so very scratchy and rough. After about a

3:35

10 minute climb, we finally made it to

3:37

Little Beach. We picked a beach spot out

3:39

and settled in. Immediately my husband took his

3:41

swim trunks off and went for a swim.

3:43

I took more convincing. After half an hour

3:45

to 45 minutes of watching

3:48

him from the beach, I decided to

3:50

go all in. I got naked and

3:52

just basked in the rebellious choice to

3:54

be naked in public. My husband completely

3:56

enjoying the Naked Ocean. As I contemplated

3:58

going in, I heard a faint. I

4:01

looked around and couldn't find anyone who

4:03

seemed in distress. No one around me

4:05

seemed to need assistance. I heard it

4:07

faintly again, and my eyes were insistently

4:09

scanning for my person. As I started

4:11

to get worried, suddenly I see my

4:13

husband's surface and head to shore. Noticing

4:15

he was okay, I was breathing a

4:17

sigh of relief. When about

4:19

20 yards out into the ocean, I

4:22

see a man who was clearly concerned

4:24

but not panicked yelling at his partner

4:26

he needed help. I of course run

4:28

up and ask if she's okay. My

4:31

husband sidled up next to me as she

4:33

explained her significant other was caught in a

4:35

rip current. She herself was not

4:37

a strong swimmer and wanted someone to run

4:39

to the beach over, Big Beach. That would

4:41

include the climb and running in the sand

4:43

all the way to the lifeguard station, which

4:45

we just didn't have time to do. So

4:47

heartedly, my husband dove in to rescue the

4:49

man in distress. Looking back now, we

4:52

both realize this wasn't the best idea. He is

4:54

a stronger swimmer than I am, and I quickly

4:56

made it to the man as they tried to

4:58

figure out the best way to tow the stranded

5:00

man in. My husband kind of hoisted the

5:02

man onto his back and swam back to shore.

5:04

It's quite the sight to see a naked man

5:06

stand up, carrying another naked man out of the

5:08

ocean. Everything ended up being fine.

5:11

No one was hurt, and we went on

5:13

for another hour or so at the beach,

5:15

trying to not awkwardly make eye contact with

5:17

the other couple. Long story I know, so

5:19

thank you for reading. We have since decided

5:21

we would love to go back. Now with

5:23

two young children, that would be an adult-only

5:25

trip. Again, love the podcast and watch your

5:27

back. Love Holly. A naked rescue. I've

5:30

never seen anything like it. Hey.

5:33

I hope you guys are friends now, honestly.

5:36

You run into each other on the beach when

5:39

you're back there for the naked nude beach.

5:41

Like wait a minute. I recognize you. Didn't

5:43

I? Have you ever been

5:45

to a nude beach? I

5:48

have. Yeah. Have

5:51

you? Are you naked? Well, I

5:53

was... Okay, so Nataya and I

5:55

were in Ibiza, and we

5:57

went to, you know, obviously

5:59

think... are different in there anyways.

6:01

Like topless is normal.

6:04

So we went topless, but I

6:06

don't know if it was technically,

6:09

like there were people who were

6:11

nude, but it was so busy.

6:13

There was restaurants overlooking the beach,

6:16

and it was not a typical

6:18

secluded nude beach. So we went

6:20

topless, and Nitea got stung by

6:22

jellyfish when we were in there,

6:25

and we were naked. Ow,

6:28

that sounds awful. It was on her arm,

6:30

thankfully. Not her tits. Not

6:33

her tits. But I do have pictures

6:35

of like the before and after. Like

6:37

us like, oh, this is so fun.

6:39

So happy and carefree. Yeah,

6:41

and then we had to, she's like, what do we

6:43

do? What do we do? I'm like, I'm not peeing

6:46

on it because. I've heard that's false too. You're not

6:48

peeing on it. I feel like that's false. Yeah. Right,

6:50

and I couldn't muster up the courage to do that.

6:52

Like in front of like a bunch of other people.

6:54

You got a little peash eye. I got a little

6:56

peash eye. But so she went up to the restaurant,

6:58

and they gave her some like, I

7:00

want to say it was like oil and vinegar. So I don't

7:02

know what the hell they gave her, but it worked. Oh, cool.

7:04

Yeah. Much better than pee.

7:06

What was your nude beach? I've had

7:09

a couple experiences on nude beaches. So

7:11

my first one, I guess I've

7:13

been to quite a few nude beaches, but. Okay.

7:15

I'm like, should I settle in or? My

7:19

first one that I ever went to was

7:21

actually on Martha's Vineyard. And I

7:23

didn't, I was warned that it was

7:25

a nude beach and I was like

7:27

17, I think maybe 18. And

7:30

we went out there with a group of friends

7:32

and we were sitting and I was like, all

7:34

right, my first nude beach, like just prepare. You're

7:36

going to see naked people wandering around. There was

7:39

no one on the beach. No one. We

7:41

were the only ones there and we had clothes on

7:43

because we're 17, you know, like you're a little modest.

7:45

And we were with like other boys that were in

7:47

our high school. Like we're not going to take our

7:49

clothes off. No. And so we

7:52

get, we're there for like a few hours,

7:54

nothing. We were walking along the beach at

7:56

one point and we walked behind, we're coming

7:58

up. There's, it's a big. cliffside and

8:00

there's some big boulders on the beach

8:02

and stuff and we walk past the

8:04

boulders and right on the other side

8:07

is just this very large man standing

8:09

there taking advantage of it being a

8:12

nude beach and I was just

8:14

like 17 like oh my god

8:16

was not expecting that I had decided

8:18

we were alone I was not going

8:20

to see anyone so that

8:22

was my first experience there but then

8:25

another experience that was more recently was I

8:27

was up with Al and we were

8:30

in Lake Willoughby up in Vermont and

8:32

we didn't know that there's a nude

8:34

beach there there's actually a hiking trail

8:36

that goes up the cliffs of Lake

8:39

Willoughby and also that goes around the lake

8:41

itself so we were like let's just go

8:43

check out the hiking trail had no

8:45

intentions of swimming I don't even think we

8:47

had swimsuits with us and we're walking and pretty

8:49

close off the road I mean you're on

8:51

a public beach where everyone takes their kayaks and

8:54

boats and stuff out we were in the

8:56

woods for maybe like four minutes and we come

8:58

to this opening that's this big beach on

9:00

the side and beautiful views and I'm looking at

9:02

the views and like wow this is so beautiful

9:04

the water was so clear and I'm looking around

9:07

and I was like is everyone naked? Wait

9:09

a minute. I was like I like I had

9:11

to double take it I look around and

9:13

sure enough there's like a bunch of people standing

9:15

in the water none of them

9:17

have clothes on everyone's just carefree

9:20

you know jumping in the water

9:22

they were playing there was a

9:24

game of someone had a god

9:26

my college self would hate me for forgetting the

9:28

name of this beer pong and

9:30

jam no beer pong out on

9:35

the water and they were naked beer

9:37

pong playing and I was like where

9:39

did I just walk into it was

9:41

like a Tuesday afternoon that's so fun

9:43

and free I love that me too

9:46

I was like that's amazing and I

9:48

mean I I guess it

9:50

wasn't a nude beach but my first Europe

9:52

trip that I did where I kind of

9:54

went around all of Europe I visit 11

9:56

or 12 countries in a short of

10:00

time, but I discovered the topless beaches

10:02

there. And that was like the first

10:04

time where I went topless on a

10:06

beach. Like I remember I felt so

10:08

weird about it and insecure. And then

10:10

I was like, you know, this

10:12

is shitty that in the United States

10:14

were kind of felt to feel body

10:16

shame to not have our tops, like

10:18

to put your boobs away. Meanwhile, men,

10:20

they always have their they never have

10:22

a top on. And it just so

10:24

I remember sitting there and like, wow,

10:26

I feel embarrassed to be like this.

10:28

But no one no one even second

10:30

looked, you know, everyone had hairs. No

10:32

one gave a shit. And I say

10:34

that that's my first experience. But also

10:36

when I was like, this is like

10:39

a very, I was like,

10:41

wow, many nude places I've been.

10:44

I was in Italy when I was a

10:46

kid. And I did it. I actually did

10:48

it as so because I had kidney transplants

10:50

and problems growing up and stuff I for

10:53

I was eligible to do the Make a

10:55

Wish Foundation and I wish to go to

10:57

Italy and we went to beach and everyone

11:00

there was topless and I was like 14

11:02

at the time. I was just I was

11:04

not topless. But there were

11:06

kids my age that were topless running. Yeah, no

11:08

one cared. And I remember looking around like, Oh

11:10

my god, what is what is

11:12

this place? Like, what

11:14

is this magical place? Yeah, it's just a different

11:17

it's a cultural thing. And I

11:19

think it's so cool to be able to experience

11:21

that. If that's something you want

11:23

to do, because it is a freeing feeling. And

11:25

at first you are so like, just

11:27

you think that all eyes are on you.

11:30

Like there's like the spotlight on you. And

11:32

literally no one could give a shit. Like,

11:34

everyone's staring at my boobs, like your boobs

11:36

look just like everyone else's boobs. Calm down.

11:38

Calm down. I I stumbled

11:41

across a nudist camp

11:44

once on the way I think I've

11:46

told this like maybe a couple years

11:48

ago on the podcast. But when the

11:51

first time I lived in Colorado to

11:53

2014 2015, I went

11:55

to do a guided hike up to the

11:57

Mexican free tail bat colony in the

12:00

San Luis Valley. Oh, I think I remember this

12:02

story. Yeah, and the guided hike just went

12:05

through a nudist camp. So there was

12:07

people hiking that literally just had socks,

12:09

hiking shoes, and their poles, and a

12:11

backpack, and then they were just completely

12:13

naked. And I'm just, hi, you know,

12:15

when you like, walk by someone on

12:17

a trail either way, you're just like,

12:19

hi, how's it going? Like, just really

12:22

quick. Hey, hey, hi.

12:24

Yeah, so that was the only

12:26

time I've stumbled across like a

12:28

true nudist community. Yeah, like full

12:31

time. Okay. Anyway, I'm gonna

12:33

share my story. We like we

12:35

like nudist stories, apparently. Okay, apparently.

12:37

Yeah. Yeah. If

12:44

I had to name the number one thing I've

12:46

struggled with over the last year and a half,

12:49

well, that may be a little difficult, but easily

12:51

in the top three is my insomnia. But I'm

12:53

not alone. 25 million Americans

12:55

struggle with chronic insomnia, meaning that they

12:57

experience sleep problems three plus nights a

13:00

week for over three months. So if

13:02

you're like one of us, you should

13:04

try out Stellar Sleep. This podcast is

13:06

sponsored by Stellar Sleep, an app that

13:09

is unique due to their focus on

13:11

sleep psychology, which helps tackle insomnia at

13:13

the source rather than shorter term solutions

13:15

like different medications or cutting back on

13:17

caffeine. If you have sleep problems, big

13:20

or small, you need to try Stellar

13:22

Sleep because they've revolutionized how chronic insomnia

13:24

is treated, offering the very first digital

13:26

solution to all of your sleep issues.

13:29

For over a year, I tossed and

13:31

turned unable to stay asleep. I average

13:33

about four hours a night consistently. But

13:35

since starting with Stellar Sleep, I have

13:37

seen a huge improvement in my sleep

13:40

quality. And I really enjoyed that Stellar

13:42

Sleep was founded by people who actually

13:44

had the same problems. It all started at

13:46

Harvard by two best friends who were both

13:49

chronic insomnia sufferers and were pretty frustrated with

13:51

the lack of resources available to address their

13:53

condition. And Stellar Sleep isn't just working for

13:55

me. In a clinical assessment of 500 people,

13:58

80% of Stellar

14:00

Sleep users significantly improved their sleep, which

14:02

on average led to 74 minutes an

14:05

additional sleep time and 53 less

14:07

minutes to fall asleep. If you

14:09

got stress, anxiety, or burnout, it's

14:11

time to give Stellar Sleep a try.

14:13

Learn how to sleep again with

14:15

Stellar Sleep. Head to stellarsleep.com/npad for your

14:18

free 7-day trial and then just

14:20

$99 a year. Plus,

14:22

you can cancel at any time

14:24

within the first 30 days for

14:27

a full refund. Once again, that's

14:29

stellarsleep.com backslash npad for your free

14:31

7-day trial and then just $99 per

14:33

year. My

14:39

first one is titled Not a Trail Tale, but I

14:41

do work outside so maybe that counts lol. Howdy

14:45

y'all my name is Em and I go

14:47

by they them pronouns. I started a new

14:50

job at the beginning of the year and

14:52

it's been stressful. And for some cruddy unbalanced

14:54

karmic reason, my family has been dealing with

14:56

a shit storm after shit storm this year.

14:58

I moved away from home, Florida to Virginia

15:01

a couple years ago, which has made me

15:03

feel incredibly helpless as they are dealing with

15:05

historic flooding, the death of my grandma, being

15:07

displaced because of said flooding, financial struggles,

15:09

mental health issues, etc. I

15:12

landed a cool position at a university

15:14

here at the beginning of the year

15:16

as the plant health specialist for the

15:18

landscaping department taking care of all these

15:20

pests and diseases that may afflict the

15:22

landscape plants. Finally Big Kid

15:25

Career Shit. My commute sucks

15:27

which adds to the stress of work but

15:29

I've managed to listen my way through all

15:31

of your episodes in a couple of months.

15:33

While my job is awesome, it's incredibly stressful

15:35

because I work with an entire department of

15:37

ye ye county men who have no idea

15:39

what my job really is and expect me

15:41

to do all the same things that my

15:44

predecessor did. AKA destroying

15:46

the planet and its biodiversity with

15:48

dangerous poisonous chemicals. Not my style

15:50

and not on my watch motherfuckers.

15:56

I got to the sign slash

15:58

no such thing as coincidences. Trail

16:00

Tale episode a little bit ago and

16:02

I decided, frick it. Let me ask

16:04

all my dead relatives in this magnificent

16:06

universe of hours for a sign. So

16:08

I did. One morning, driving

16:10

to work and crying, and most likely

16:12

hearing some horrible breaking news headline on

16:14

NPR, I said, okay universe, I really

16:16

need a sign that everything will be

16:19

okay. And I waited all day long.

16:21

And the universe, well, she

16:23

said nothing. Thanks

16:25

a lot, I thought. I was feeling

16:27

desperate and really needed an immediate response.

16:30

I thought, okay, let me try again. Maybe she was

16:32

just sleepy because it was like 4.30am. So

16:35

the next day while driving home, I

16:37

said through tears again, okay universe, I

16:39

really need a sign that everything will

16:41

be okay. The whole wall, I'm thinking

16:44

I don't know what it is the

16:46

sign should or could be, but I'll

16:48

know it when I see it. So I

16:50

put on my best patient's pants and let

16:52

go. The next day I was scouting for

16:54

a certain kind of pest that attacks a

16:56

certain kind of plant because they've all been

16:58

declining and I can't figure out why. Most

17:01

likely just the changing climate and they're not

17:03

happy in Virginia anymore, but it's fine climate

17:05

change isn't real. My ass

17:07

off sarcasm. I

17:11

noticed a different species, same genus, different species

17:13

of plant that was doing just fine, but

17:15

figured I'd scout the crown of the plant

17:17

for the pest just in case. I made

17:19

my way down the row of overcrowded plants

17:22

and didn't see anything. I almost didn't check

17:24

the last one, but I decided whatever. I

17:26

can fit under there, let me just check.

17:28

I crouched down and looked under, saw a

17:30

post-it note under the bush and was like,

17:33

oh my god, yes, I love reading lost

17:35

notes like grocery lists and school notes. Like

17:37

I mentioned, I work at a university, so

17:39

lots of fun stuff to find. I flipped

17:41

it over and read it and just sat under

17:43

the bush for a hot second, taking it all

17:46

in. I have a handwritten

17:48

note that said, you got this, the

17:50

two exclamation points. While that sounds like enough

17:52

of a sign, I have the same exact

17:54

note written to myself at the base of

17:57

my computer screen at my desk as my

17:59

reminder to my myself that even when my

18:01

job sucks, I went to school for this.

18:03

I know my shit. I got this. I

18:05

said, okay, universe, thank you. And shoved it

18:08

in my pocket. I had a meeting later

18:10

that day with a student for the working

18:12

group we co chair together. And they confided

18:14

in me that they had a huge presentation

18:16

coming up and we're really worried about it.

18:19

They then said, I don't got this. And

18:21

I thought, huh, but you do. I whips

18:23

a note out of my pocket and handed

18:25

it to them. I told them I asked

18:27

the universe for this earlier and she delivered,

18:30

here's your sign now that you got this.

18:32

While it wasn't a sign that everything will

18:34

be okay. I do fully believe that I

18:36

got it. I'll be able to handle anything

18:39

thrown at me. And while that's scary, it's

18:41

still reassuring. I decided to leave a note

18:43

in one of the gardens for anyone else

18:45

wondering if everything will be okay. And I

18:48

really hope someone stumbles upon it. Anyways, that's

18:50

my story attaches the picture of the note

18:52

where I found it and my own note

18:54

to self that sits on my desk. Thanks

18:56

for reading. Thanks for the awesome podcast and

18:59

for keeping me company on my ridiculous

19:01

commute. Remember to enjoy the view and make

19:03

sure to check under all the lilacs for

19:05

signs from the universe. She may have hidden

19:07

it under the last one. M I love

19:10

that story. I just love that they shared

19:12

their message with someone else later on too.

19:14

It's all about passing it along. I felt

19:17

yeah. And like, that is such a good movie. Also,

19:19

and I was just thinking about that movie for you.

19:21

It's a movie I've seen and whoa, whoa, but I

19:23

haven't seen it in so long. It's in

19:32

what 90s or early to I

19:34

feel like it's early 2000s. But

19:37

I know maybe it's like right on that line. I

19:39

had to guess I would say 2005. Hmm. Good. Okay,

19:42

Google it right now. It has the

19:45

kid from the sixth sense, right?

19:47

Yeah. What's your guess? I

19:49

think it's Oh, two. You're 2000.

19:52

Oh, okay. So right on the line. Yeah. Yeah,

19:55

that's a good movie to watch. Everyone should go watch

19:57

it. Yeah, it's really nice and wholesome and won't make

19:59

you No. You won't

20:01

prime even want here, even when tear

20:03

Okay, you might that are. Hey. My.

20:08

Story is titled broken bones and jumping

20:10

cacti and shitty shell Hi ladies, my

20:12

name is now and I found your

20:14

podcast a few weeks ago and have

20:16

been hooked ever since. I listen every

20:18

morning all getting ready for work and

20:20

on the drive to school and during

20:22

my planning period. When and student free,

20:24

I'm a science teacher with a penchant

20:26

for hurting myself when breathing the outdoors.

20:29

My trail tell us more of a

20:31

series of unfortunate events out and Big

20:33

Ben State Park out in West Texas.

20:35

For some context, I was doing my

20:37

geology undergrad degree. At the University of

20:39

Houston. every spring break from freshman year to

20:41

junior year or classic allowed to big bang

20:43

for the week and map the area and

20:45

per our knowledge to the test. For.

20:47

More context. I am from the small

20:50

island of Trinidad and Tobago in the

20:52

Caribbean, and while I spent most of

20:54

my younger years moving from country to

20:57

country because of my dad's job, I

20:59

fondly call myself in Oil Brad. I

21:01

never experienced camping or hiking Or dirt.

21:04

So much dirt. I was thrilled to

21:06

experience my first camping/hiking adventure with my

21:08

classmates. We pitch ten said the campground

21:10

at Stillwater Ranch and were fed two

21:13

meals a day and had access to

21:15

the shittiest life I in the evenings.

21:17

Seventy people trying to use their phones at

21:20

the same time that no one ever got

21:22

to actually is the life. I unless you

21:24

are one of the brave few that hyped

21:26

up to one of the smaller hills nearby

21:29

in the dark while jumping cacti everywhere. I

21:31

was named one of those people. Furthermore, there

21:33

were only three showers and to my horror,

21:35

they asked us to wipe our asses and

21:38

toss the toilet paper into the pins in

21:40

the bathroom. A. Half

21:42

of you're Not you. Well, As him

21:44

Egypt's perfect or go on another

21:46

country is. Either was

21:49

a shot. I will say that was a shock

21:51

the first time that I encountered that in person.

21:53

You always. Remember your first time, use

21:55

each or do. At

21:59

this point I was. The thinking my entire

22:01

degree choice onto the first of three

22:03

unfortunate events: On the second day of

22:05

mapping an area of the park, my

22:07

group had found ourselves precariously navigating some

22:10

rather sketchy looking shell. For the record,

22:12

shell is not very sturdy and wheeler

22:14

in this the hard way. The out

22:16

crock was at roughly a forty five

22:18

degree incline, and we were trying to

22:21

get the bottom of it. On top

22:23

of that, there is cacti everywhere, especially

22:25

the ones that somehow always very itself

22:27

into the back of our knees. The

22:30

jumping cacti. Sought those to think.

22:34

About halfway down, I lost my sitting

22:36

on a part of the outcrop that

22:38

was more crumbly than I realized. I

22:40

went careening down the outcrops, sliding awkwardly.

22:42

About twenty feet. During this, I managed

22:44

to get my right breast and me

22:46

and at some point salt a sharpener

22:48

shoot up my arm. So friends quickly

22:50

made a down to me and I

22:52

was just a heap of tears. I

22:54

had also landed on a cactus patch.

22:56

It's here that I'm going to say

22:58

I'm rather uncoordinated and prone to hurting

23:00

myself for walking it's a talent of

23:02

mine. I also developed a good dose

23:04

of fear of the outdoors. Having not

23:06

ever been exposed to being in said

23:08

outdoors, I was incredibly cautious of every

23:10

step I took and would panic when

23:12

I lost my footing. I also have

23:14

a paralyzing fear of heights obviously. I

23:16

didn't think about the whole geology thing

23:18

now. so we made our way back

23:20

to the road where they answer. Parked

23:22

in, I had to be taken to

23:24

the Alpine where I found out that

23:26

I had fractured my wrist pretty badly

23:28

in four different spots. Spoof. needless

23:31

to say today's into a weeklong mapping

23:33

trip and and i had been decommissioned

23:36

for the rest of the trip i

23:38

was setting them bored out of my

23:40

mind and cursing myself for being the

23:42

one to hurt myself during my solitary

23:44

days i would venture out and follow

23:46

easy trails and dried out riverbed quite

23:48

literally kicking rocks the only entertaining thing

23:51

that happened during the time was stumbling

23:53

upon a group of wild pigs wars

23:55

let's just say that those little shirts

23:57

are quicker than they look because they

23:59

charge after me angrily. I heard

24:03

they're a big problem. Yeah, I've heard

24:05

that they're a huge problem too. I

24:07

took off and made it back to

24:09

the van, locking myself inside and returning

24:11

to boredom. The rest of the week

24:13

sucked. The next year we went back

24:15

to Big Bend and one of my

24:17

professors jokingly said, don't break anything this

24:19

time. Well, I did. Oh no.

24:23

This time around I made it four

24:25

days without injuring myself. On the second

24:27

to last day, we were mapping out

24:29

one of the ancient lava flows. Before

24:31

we had left the vans, one of

24:33

the guys passed around those Jolly Rancher

24:35

hard candies. At some point while mapping,

24:38

I popped one into my mouth and

24:40

enjoyed the sweetness. My group decided to

24:42

stop and take strikes and dips out

24:44

of one of the outcrops and it

24:46

was here that calamity erupted. I lost

24:48

my footing and I ended up biting

24:50

down on that hard candy. Shooting pain

24:52

blistered through the left side of my jaw.

24:54

I pulled out the Jolly Rancher from my

24:57

mouth and with it came half of my

24:59

wisdom tooth. I was blinded by the pain.

25:01

Second time around in Big Bend and another

25:03

broken bone. I bore that pain all day

25:06

until we got back to Stillwater. One of

25:08

the cowboys out there, a lovely old gentleman

25:10

called Doc, noticed that I was in pain.

25:12

At this point, I could barely talk. My

25:14

friend recounted my tale and as it turns

25:17

out, Doc was actually a doctor. He took

25:19

a flashlight and looked into my mouth, prodding

25:21

the remaining half of my wisdom tooth with

25:23

a gloved finger. I was in blinding pain.

25:26

He disappeared and moments later, he returned with

25:28

some of those good drugs. I was loopy

25:30

all the way back and that same professor

25:32

who told me not to break anything before

25:34

we had left told me, you're just a

25:37

magnet for breaking shit. Thankfully, the drugs worked

25:39

and I was able to get to the

25:41

dentist as soon as we got back. Fast

25:43

forward to our third and final trip to

25:45

Big Bend. Oh God, maybe don't go. Don't

25:48

go to Big Bend. Don't go. Don't

25:52

do it. I was extra careful each

25:54

day, playing it safe when climbing up

25:56

mountain faces and being hyper aware of

25:58

everything around me. On the last

26:01

day of mapping, we were faced with the

26:03

toughest terrain of the trip and even the

26:05

best hikers were a little nervous. I was

26:07

trailing in the back of the group, picking

26:09

the safest places for my feet and keeping

26:12

my eyes down on the ground. Well, looking

26:14

at the ground means I didn't see what

26:16

was in front of me. I found myself

26:18

on the edge of a trail on, you

26:20

guessed it, shitty shale. It gave way beneath

26:23

my feet and I tumbled down about 20

26:25

feet. For good measure, the universe threw in

26:27

a patch of cacti for me to land

26:30

in. A

26:32

few of the guys came after me only

26:34

to find me with a dislocated knee. Shut

26:36

up. No,

26:39

it's like it's funny, but it's not

26:41

funny. Like, it's not. Sorry, this happened,

26:43

but oh my God, you are.

26:45

You were, this

26:48

story reminds me so much of one of

26:50

my friends in college who we always made

26:52

fun of because wherever we went, she tripped

26:54

and fell and hurt herself like somewhere. There

26:56

is always one. Not to this extent. Not

26:58

to this extent. Oh,

27:01

in parentheses after this, it says, a few

27:04

of the guys came after me only to

27:06

find me with a dislocated knee. And then

27:08

they go on to write, I had dislocated

27:10

this knee a few months before as a

27:12

sex injury. No, no.

27:18

How do you dislocate your

27:20

knee during sex? Yeah. What

27:23

position were you trying to

27:25

maneuver? Yeah, we need details.

27:28

Yeah, it can be outside the podcast. Yeah,

27:30

no, yeah, we won't share. I

27:33

dislocated my knee. It's like people

27:35

over counting like old like war injuries.

27:38

It's like, ah, just an old Section

27:40

Sex Injury. An old sex injury. Don't

27:42

hang from the ceiling off that swing

27:44

by your little. There's got to be

27:46

some sort of like, yeah, suspension. How

27:48

do you dislocate? Don't you dislocate something

27:51

by it being like popped out? Like

27:53

Pulling the Yeah, who the fuck pulled

27:55

your leg that hard? I The first

27:57

thing I think of is like, Wait,

28:00

you know I'm in bondage instead. Know?

28:02

yeah, maybe I feel like that's not.

28:05

Oh yeah, maybe actually. Ah yeah, you're

28:07

right. My, the other wifi. I don't

28:09

you on a super slow down that

28:11

trail that were thinking about it to

28:13

see? Now say this. back to your

28:16

dislocated me. On. The trail on the

28:18

dry not enter your sex start. One of

28:20

the guys had me by down on a

28:22

bell and he part my knee back. It's

28:24

place I literally thought I would die from

28:26

the pain in that moment they carried mean

28:28

the rest of the way back to the

28:30

vans and I was greeted by that's but

28:32

professor who shook his head saying who wants

28:34

to go to alpine knelt down and again.

28:36

Thankfully we left big Then the next day

28:38

and I was able to take care of

28:40

my knee properly. I went back to Big

28:42

Band one more time after these mapping trips

28:44

and thankfully I sing a broken bones had

28:46

come. To an end, I was fortunate

28:49

enough to be part of the

28:51

volcanic research team that analyzed a

28:53

series of ancient lava flows in

28:55

the park. Maybe I had bad

28:57

luck with the mapping classes because

28:59

thankfully this last time I made

29:01

it the whole trip without breaking/fracturing/dislocating

29:03

Something sankey. Well fiddle after the

29:05

stories and the chance to share

29:07

my tell now Lol Now congrats

29:09

on you for just keep. You

29:11

just didn't give up. You really

29:13

didn't You persisted for it. Time's

29:15

the charm. You broke eight. He

29:17

and used to always say bad things

29:19

come in threes like it's always. It's

29:21

the wreath as hell you went through

29:23

it. He got tier three and now

29:25

you're free. You got two three and

29:27

now you're free like that and co.

29:30

Okay, my second story is titled Moose

29:32

are real. It might just take a

29:34

nine hour drive see plane and forty

29:36

plus miles of hiking to find them.

29:40

Both. But that was a sounds

29:42

not worth it by some. Give you a

29:44

shot. Hello you

29:46

as I may go to! Been listening podcast for

29:48

the past several months. I've talked it over with

29:51

my husband and after hearing a handful of tell

29:53

tales and to of the the two of you

29:55

mention moose aren't real it was time for us

29:57

to share our tail. My husband Kevin. been

30:00

obsessed with the idea of going to Isle

30:02

Royale for years. 2019 I, Lisa, decided to

30:06

plan a backpacking trip for his birthday.

30:09

We are Michiganders, but live in Grand

30:11

Rapids, which means Isle Royale is 500

30:14

plus miles away, so it's a pretty big

30:16

trip to plan. Now, at the time, I

30:18

had been on all of one backpacking trip

30:20

and he had been on none. We bought

30:23

our packs early and went hiking often with

30:25

our bags weighed down and our planned hiking

30:27

shoes on before the big trip. This trip

30:29

was much harder than either of

30:31

us expected. It rained almost the

30:33

entire time. The bugs were terrible.

30:35

I have asthma and type 1

30:37

diabetes. Luckily, I wear an insulin

30:39

pump and a continuous glucose monitor.

30:41

I ultimately had to stop my

30:43

insulin delivery altogether and constantly take

30:45

hits from the honey bear I

30:47

packed for sugar loads. Kevin grew

30:49

up with his family being very

30:51

into moose. What? They

30:57

are active members of a moose lodge and

31:00

have extensive decor throughout his childhood home. His

31:02

greatest wish was to see a moose in

31:04

real life and he was dedicated to the

31:06

cause. What is a moose lodge, do you

31:09

know? Is it like a hunting cabin? I

31:11

guess. It would be my first

31:13

thought. Like moose hunting.

31:15

Well, the first thing I type

31:17

in is moose lodge and loyal

31:19

order of moose comes up and

31:22

it's a fraternal and service organization

31:24

founded in the 1800s,

31:26

headquartered in Moose Heart, Illinois. There's

31:28

a lot of moose like charters

31:31

and organizations. People really believe

31:33

in moose. Yeah, I feel it. Okay,

31:35

I'm going to go down a rabbit hole, but okay.

31:38

I'm unsure of what the moose lodge is, but

31:40

we get that Kevin is like really into moose.

31:43

We Had planned to through hike Isle

31:45

Royale from Rock Harbor to Windigo on

31:47

the Greenstone Trail. With Our hopes high

31:49

for moose sightings. early on we were

31:51

spotting scat and antlers along the trail.

31:53

The Next day, Kevin spotted a moose

31:55

across one of the inland lakes that

31:57

was blurry to the eye and definitely

31:59

had Bigfoot vibes. I'm believability. I

32:03

love that I'm the next day I

32:05

saw hiking and told coming to stop

32:07

to saying something along the lines as

32:09

it sounds like a todos falling down

32:11

a hill and suddenly reins on of

32:13

us. A moose runs down a hill

32:15

full steam ahead and keeps on going.

32:17

We were in our and unable to

32:19

get a good picture, excited for the

32:21

first true move. Spotting our journey continued

32:23

the next night. after a lot of

32:25

rain we slept soundly as we could.

32:27

I'll Royal has designated can't areas and

32:29

there. Were a handful of other hikers

32:31

nearby The next morning send The hikers

32:34

greeted as enthusiastically asking if we heard

32:36

the news that is right outside of

32:38

her tent the previous night. Kevin was

32:40

floored. How could we have missed that?

32:42

The hackers took our contact info and

32:44

sent us the video when they got

32:47

phone service. I can't for the life

32:49

of me find that video nice. Well,

32:51

suspicious, suspicious, and same. Days.

32:54

I finally came and haven't was feeling to

32:56

see that about missing the closeness encounter. We

32:59

had finished the height but I could tell

33:01

he was feeling a little down and that's

33:03

when we heard a splash in the nearby

33:05

river of our campsite. Kevin ran to

33:07

see what it could have been and sure

33:10

enough a young moose is playing in the

33:12

water and splashing around. It could not have

33:14

then a more majestic feel. Happy, exhausted and

33:17

definitely smelly. The trip was finally coming to

33:19

an end. Thank you for all the work

33:21

you do, compiling your research and telling stories.

33:23

Best. Lisa and Kevin Pietersen.

33:26

His wish came true. His

33:28

moves dream came true. So

33:30

move allegedly. As. i should

33:32

get the video disappearing is like a

33:34

little a little isis but we are

33:37

happy for you regardless i know and

33:39

i will say that she did attach

33:41

some pictures of those the moves in

33:43

the lake so i'll post that anglo

33:46

yeah you can you guys meet the

33:48

judge i did you eat so up

33:50

at my house rate ah right near

33:53

us is this class for road and

33:55

i was walking tucker or dog on

33:57

it and i found these huge most

34:00

And they're very close to my house.

34:02

So maybe I'm one step closer to

34:04

seeing a moose in New England Maybe

34:06

you're so close And

34:09

it reminded me what in that story when

34:11

she was saying that like the other campers

34:14

got footage of the moose near their tent

34:16

Or whatever. Mm-hmm I mean, do you remember

34:18

when we were in Alaska and we're camping

34:20

and so there was the mother moose and

34:23

I think she had two Babies with her

34:25

but she laid down it she was right

34:27

in our campground and she laid down and

34:30

you couldn't see her Unless you had followed

34:32

her like when she was standing before she

34:34

laid down you had to really look Yeah

34:36

to really look and there was a I

34:38

think it was like a grandmother and a

34:40

grandson Oh my god

34:42

that we're running Literally directly towards

34:44

them and there was like a group of

34:46

maybe like seven or eight of us that

34:49

were watching from a distance And we're trying

34:51

to be like hey stop you're gonna just

34:53

run directly into this mother. Like I was

34:55

so I was like I have to look

34:57

away Like there's nothing I

34:59

can do anymore We were like talking as loudly

35:01

as we could waving our arms trying to get

35:03

their attention Because they were just coming

35:05

back from the bathrooms like going back to their

35:07

campsite or something like that. And we

35:10

were like There's

35:14

a good thing they're like trying yeah with

35:16

her babies This is scary and we're trying

35:18

to get her attention trying to get her

35:20

attention and we finally did There's

35:22

some moose right there and she turns around she

35:24

like grabs the kid and like they start like

35:26

running towards us Like oh good. You're now you're

35:29

running They

35:32

were fine nothing happened But the moose

35:34

seemed pretty unfazed that anyone was there

35:36

anyway But we just they were walking

35:38

so close to them that and it

35:41

was this little kid that was like Zigzagging

35:43

and like running back and forth and like

35:45

just so excited that we were just so

35:47

nervous that right next to a baby moose

35:50

And yeah, that was I that was a

35:52

moment that I thought it was gonna turn

35:54

bad Yeah, he was barreling right like almost

35:56

on top of her. Yeah, he was probably

35:58

like five feet from her her, but she

36:00

was in grass and he was like right outside

36:02

the grass. Yeah. Yeah. That was,

36:05

that was scary. We have like a personal

36:07

antidote for like every one of these stories.

36:09

I know this, all these are like written

36:11

for us. And this next one is also,

36:13

uh, we can also

36:15

relate to because it is titled

36:17

trail tales from South Africa. Why

36:20

I thought Americans were so dumb

36:22

and why you ladies have completely changed my

36:25

mind. Oh, well, hello

36:29

beautiful ladies. I have just listened to

36:31

trail tales 25 and was finally prompted to

36:33

put fingers on the keyboard to send

36:35

in my story. I hope it wets

36:37

your appetites for your upcoming trip to

36:39

South Africa. I'm Cindy and live on the

36:41

beautiful South coast of Australia and the

36:43

town called no raw, now raw. Sorry

36:45

if I mispronounce that now raw. However,

36:48

like NAR, like no, no, no,

36:51

no, it's no W R. Okay. Now

36:53

we're, however, I was born and grew

36:55

up in South Africa. So super envious

36:58

of your upcoming trip there. Wish I

37:00

could be there to join you. So

37:02

this is an older trail tale cause

37:04

our trips over, but it was a

37:06

lot of fun and we love being

37:08

there. When I was 19, I was

37:10

studying hospitality management and for the second

37:12

six months of the second year, we

37:14

were placed on a practical posting out

37:16

in a location for the on the

37:18

job experience. I was posted to tau

37:20

game lodge. Tau means lion, which

37:22

is a luxury safari lodge

37:24

located in Mad Coulee game

37:27

reserve, mad, Madically, game

37:29

reserve. Sorry if I'm mispronouncing all these, I'm trying

37:31

really hard. This is my

37:33

first time ever away from home on my

37:35

own. And when I say I was in

37:37

the absolute middle of nowhere, I'm not kidding.

37:39

It was over a four hour drive from

37:41

where I lived in Johannesburg. At a three

37:43

hour mark, you hit the last semblance of

37:45

civilization in a town called zerust

37:47

turn north and then head up a

37:49

straight road doing 120 kilometers per hour, which

37:51

is about 75 miles per hour for another hour. There is nothing

37:57

but African Bush all around you. Then

37:59

suddenly you see the South Africa-Buswana

38:01

border, posts coming up in front

38:04

of you and just before you

38:06

drive into the lane to show

38:08

your passport, there is a dirt

38:10

road to the right. Taking this

38:13

you drive another 30 minutes or

38:15

so before finally coming across the

38:17

Seningtow Main Camp. The Matically Game

38:19

Reserve in which TOW is located

38:22

is a 75,000 hectare protected wilderness

38:24

conservation area in South Africa's northwest

38:26

province, bordering Buswana. The reserves grasslands,

38:28

forests and rocky, Tushween I

38:30

think, hills are home to a variety

38:32

of wildlife such as elephants, lions, leopards

38:35

and rhinos, plus endangered wild dogs. While

38:37

I was working there if I was

38:39

not on shift, there was a lot

38:41

of downtime and really not much to

38:43

do at all. Being so isolated, I

38:45

took every opportunity to jump on a

38:47

game drive with guests if there was

38:49

a spare spot available. Such a perk

38:51

of the job. And aside, sometimes if

38:53

we wanted to treat ourselves, we'd get

38:55

take out run in Botswana. Yes, we'd

38:57

have to go across the border, get

38:59

our passports stamped, get the take out,

39:01

then come back and get them stamped again

39:04

before heading back. The take out was always

39:06

cold, but it was always worth it. During

39:08

those six months, I saw things that most

39:10

people never have the privilege of experiencing and

39:12

I will forever hold on to these as

39:15

some of the most cherished memories. I saw

39:17

leopards, lions, rhino and got charged by an

39:19

elephant. I watched as the curious juvenile hyena

39:21

came up to our spotter on the front

39:24

of the Land Rover and sniffed his hiking

39:26

boots. Experienced thunderstorms in the

39:28

pitch black African sky with lightning that

39:30

reached from the sky to the ground

39:32

and sat on the veranda of my

39:34

very basic staff accommodation, listening to the

39:37

raw of the massive male lion just

39:39

out of sight on the other side

39:41

of the electric fence as the sun

39:43

set. Unbelievable. Matically is one of the

39:45

very few places that the highly endangered

39:47

wild dog can roam free and safe.

39:49

And on one very special trip out,

39:52

we found their den. Mom and dad

39:54

were calmly lying at the entrance while

39:56

the litter of about 10 pups tousled

39:58

and played around them. When we

40:00

stopped the Land Rover to watch this spectacular

40:02

scene, the curious and playful pups came over,

40:05

one even lifting its leg and peeing on

40:07

the tire of the vehicle. And then, with

40:09

one yip from the mom, they all went

40:11

running back to safety of the den. Magical.

40:13

My then boyfriend, now husband, was able to

40:16

come up and spend a few days with

40:18

me at the lodge in the gorgeous guest

40:20

accommodation. Another amazing perk. We were able to

40:22

go out on a sunset game drive and

40:24

jump on with an American couple. The Land

40:27

Rover has three rows of seating that ascend

40:29

like the theater seating behind the driver,

40:31

so you can take up to about 12

40:33

people, but on this drive it was just

40:35

our guide, the American couple, and us. They

40:38

sat in the row directly behind the driver

40:40

and we sat at the back. All the

40:42

Land Rovers go out at the same time

40:44

but take different routes. However, they

40:46

are all in radio contacts so that if

40:48

something comes across something noteworthy, they can tell

40:50

the other drivers and let them know. There

40:53

was a lot of chatter on the radio

40:55

that evening as one of the group of

40:57

lions had been spotted in the area, so

40:59

everyone was on the lookout. A call came

41:02

over the radio to say the Chaba sisters,

41:04

two lionesses, sisters and their cubs, had been

41:06

spotted and so we were making our way

41:08

in that direction. Then we heard, they're on

41:11

the hunt, and my adrenaline really started to

41:13

kick in. My heart was pounding because I

41:15

knew we were getting close to where

41:17

they were. As we rounded a bend,

41:19

we heard loud crashing in the bush

41:22

in front of us, just out of

41:24

reach of where we could see through

41:26

the dense undergrowth and then seemingly out

41:28

of nowhere, an antelope came crashing out

41:30

of grass and trees with one of

41:32

the massive lionesses firmly attached, jaws clenched

41:34

tight around its throat. It was clearly

41:37

fighting a losing battle, but it was

41:39

fighting nonetheless. It was whining in high-pitched

41:41

squeals and the lioness was making loud

41:43

grunting and huffing noises in efforts to

41:45

subdue its prey. This had all happened in

41:47

front of us in a matter of seconds

41:49

and as we were trying to take it

41:52

all in, I realized that the American couple

41:54

were shouting at our guide, oh no, oh

41:56

no, do something, do something, and pushing at

41:58

his shoulders from behind in Encouraging and

42:00

imploring him to get out of the

42:02

vehicle to go and rescue the antelope

42:04

make it stop They cried well, I

42:07

was incredulous Here we were

42:09

witnessing Africa at its most raw and

42:11

primal its most authentic self the circle

42:13

of life Survival of the fittest in

42:15

front of our eyes and they want

42:17

it to stop for a Disney ending

42:19

I thought oh my goodness dumb Americans

42:22

our guide was very considerate Just moved

42:24

our vehicle on as obviously that well-being

42:26

of our guests is the most important

42:28

But my boyfriend and I were disappointed

42:30

to have such an amazing experience cut

42:33

short I have to say I've held

42:35

on to that Oh dumb Americans prejudice

42:37

for a long time with no interest whatsoever

42:40

To ever travel over there until I

42:42

discovered you incredible ladies I have learned

42:44

so much listening to NPA D expanding

42:46

my thinking in ways I didn't even

42:48

know I needed to have come to

42:50

love history and social activism And

42:53

now have the burning desire to come and

42:55

experience all of your incredible outdoors has to

42:57

offer. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you I

42:59

hope one day I'll get to show you

43:01

ladies around my neck of the woods. Love

43:03

you both Cindy. Well Cindy That's an honor

43:05

that is an honor because I get it.

43:08

Yeah, I mean I think that Americans

43:10

have a bad reputation for a lot of

43:12

reasons But I also think that there are

43:14

a lot of really good people here, too

43:17

And I think there's a lot of really

43:19

interesting things happening here and there's a lot

43:21

of history And of course one of the

43:24

really wonderful wonderful things about the United States

43:26

Is that it's a country where you can

43:28

see every type of terrain here, you know,

43:30

you can see you can go see tropical

43:33

Paradise places you can go up into

43:35

old-growth forests. You can go high into

43:38

alpine areas I mean, there's desert landscapes.

43:40

There's just so much that is here

43:42

So I definitely think it's worth the

43:44

visit and I'm glad that our podcast

43:46

has helped you see that We're not

43:48

just the people who are screaming. No,

43:51

don't kill the antelope and lions don't

43:53

eat, you know Yeah,

43:55

there's more that certainly certainly

43:58

happens and then of course if you fall Torons

44:00

for Yellowstone than you really

44:02

see. Some stuff on

44:05

there too, but I think for the most

44:07

part people are really trying to learn and

44:09

do their best and there's a lot of

44:11

adventurous people in the United States. It's

44:14

good and bad in every culture

44:16

I think. We're not

44:19

an exception to that. But I mean, just to

44:21

make it give you a different perspective, when Cassie

44:23

and I were on our, it was a sunrise

44:27

game drive, right? Yeah. It

44:30

wasn't the sunset one, it was the sunrise.

44:32

Sunrise. Yeah, we saw a cheetah in

44:34

a successful hunt and it was

44:36

a springbok and our entire Land

44:39

Rover was comprised of Americans because

44:41

it was one of our group

44:43

trips and we were all cheering

44:45

for the cheetah. We

44:49

were just so astounded to be able

44:51

to see nature in action and just

44:53

like you were saying, that it's most

44:55

primal and visceral and raw and that's why

44:58

we came to see wildlife and

45:00

nature in action. So there are people out

45:02

there that, I mean, it sucks. It is

45:04

sad to see something struggling for its life

45:07

and dying in front of you does. I

45:09

mean, if that doesn't affect you in some

45:11

sort of way, I think that's maybe a

45:14

little telling, but obviously we know,

45:16

circle of life. Everyone has to eat. If

45:19

the lion didn't get to eat, then if

45:21

that antelope lived, then the

45:23

lion wouldn't get to eat. Right.

45:26

I mean, why are we explaining

45:28

the circle of life to everyone that understands

45:30

it? We're like, just

45:33

so you know, this is how the

45:35

world works. We're just trying to prove

45:37

that we're not dumb and we understand

45:39

that that was a cool experience. We're

45:41

not dumb Americans. But there

45:43

is, I mean, we see it all the time also

45:46

with being in places that are

45:48

heavily tourist centered,

45:51

like big tourist destinations, not

45:54

just with Americans and foreigners

45:56

coming to our parks, but also vice

45:58

versa. often guests in

46:01

other countries and I think people

46:03

make weird decisions and judgment

46:05

calls no matter where you are. So you're

46:07

just kind of like, what is happening? What

46:09

is going on here? But

46:12

speaking of big tourist destinations,

46:14

my last story has to

46:16

do with my favorite park,

46:18

which is Yellowstone. Oh, okay.

46:20

Okay, it's titled a Yellowstone

46:22

employee trail tale, wolves, adventure,

46:24

danger. Oh, oh my. Hi

46:27

friends, I want to thank you so much for

46:29

your amazing show, which pulled me up out of

46:31

a hard place in my life and made me

46:33

remember who I am. I was really

46:35

fortunate to spend a six month season working

46:38

for the Yellowstone employee recreation co-op. The co-op

46:40

is funded by all the concession years and

46:42

the national park service within Yellowstone and our

46:44

whole job was to take employees out to

46:47

enjoy the park on their days off. It

46:50

was a tremendous gift. I have so many stories

46:52

from that summer that I want to share with

46:54

you all, but this one feels extra special. I

46:56

worked and lived in the canyon village in Yellowstone

46:58

right by the grand canyon of the Yellowstone river.

47:01

My coworkers love to fly fish and while that

47:03

wasn't my cup of tea, I always was

47:05

down for a hike and a trail beer.

47:07

So one day after work, we all set

47:09

off on a short hike, maybe a two

47:11

miler to a little pond near our office.

47:14

The trail twisted through thick pine trees, giving

47:16

me occasional peaks at the surrounding mountains and

47:18

the promise of the lake at the end.

47:20

The whole place smelled like a mixture of

47:22

pine and adventure. So there I am, soaking

47:24

it all in when we all see this

47:27

critter moseying down the trail ahead. At

47:29

first we figured it was your regular coyote,

47:31

nothing too out of the ordinary for Yellowstone.

47:33

The coloring and size seemed right and

47:36

usually coyotes would scamper off as humans

47:38

approached. I was enjoying the moment, you

47:40

know, just happy to share the path

47:42

with some wildlife. But as this four

47:44

legged friend got closer, something felt off.

47:46

It was bigger, beefier, and had this

47:49

swagger that said, I'm not your average

47:51

coyote. That's when it hit me. It

47:53

was a wolf, a wild Yellowstone wolf, and

47:56

I was just standing there, taking it all

47:58

in. We were standing on an trail

48:00

in the middle of a valley. There was no place to go,

48:02

no place to hide. Our best

48:04

bet was to be still and uninteresting.

48:07

As the wolf got closer, instead of bolting

48:10

into the woods like I expected, it started

48:12

circling us. I couldn't believe

48:14

it. A real-life wolf doing laps around me

48:16

on a hiking trail. It was like a

48:19

scene out of a nature documentary. We walked

48:21

eyes for a beat, and as she continued

48:23

around me, I just held my breath. She

48:25

was so beautiful and strong and so curious

48:28

and unbothered. After finishing its mysterious circle dance,

48:30

the wolf casually strolled past like our

48:32

encounter was just another day in the

48:34

office for her. There I was, left

48:36

standing, grinning like a fool, realizing once

48:38

again why Yellowstone is this untamed wonderland.

48:40

It was a wild reminder that in

48:42

these woods, you never know what kind

48:44

of awesome surprises Mother Nature's got up

48:46

her sleeve. Someday I'll write in again

48:49

to tell the story of a bison

48:51

running into my van, or me, drunkenly

48:53

running into a sleeping bison with my

48:55

body on the trail. But

48:57

for today, this is enough. Working in

48:59

these kinds of jobs isn't lucrative, but

49:01

I really encourage your listeners who are

49:03

young, single, and free to consider working

49:06

in the parks. Whether you're

49:08

in a job like mine or working as

49:10

a waiter or a housekeeper, getting to live

49:12

in a national park is something you'll cherish

49:15

for the rest of your life. Enjoy the

49:17

view, but it's not just a coyote candy.

49:19

I love that story. That's a really cool

49:21

story. And what an experience. I also love

49:23

the last message of just if you're able

49:26

to and you can just go try and

49:28

live in a national park. They're magical for

49:30

a reason. Yeah, just do it. I have

49:32

so many, I wouldn't say I have so

49:35

many regrets about that. But my two, two

49:37

of my regrets was number one when I

49:39

was in college not doing a study abroad

49:42

semester. That was such a

49:44

stupid mistake. I wish I did. I was

49:46

just caught up in other things I thought

49:48

I would be missing out on like life

49:50

on campus and my friends and looking back

49:52

it would have been a great opportunity. I

49:54

had a couple friends who did it and they

49:57

look back on that time like so fondly. is

50:00

when I first came out here and

50:02

I was working at the Wolf Center,

50:04

I also worked part time at a

50:06

local brewery in Woodland Park. And one

50:08

of my co workers had

50:11

come back like she was like in her 30s.

50:13

And she had always just kind of

50:15

come back and just worked when she

50:17

was back in Colorado. Yeah, but she

50:20

bounced around and she would do seasonal

50:22

jobs in the park. So in the

50:24

winters, she would go south. And then

50:26

in the summers, she'd go up into

50:28

the like, you know, out West areas

50:30

and just do like she had just done like,

50:33

like Candy said, like a housekeeper, she was

50:35

just like a housekeeper. And then she did a

50:37

waitressing job in another one and just like

50:39

whatever she could find, she was just there for

50:41

a few months. And she was young, she was

50:43

single, she had no attachments to anything at

50:45

the time. And now she's, you know,

50:48

from what I can tell on Facebook, she

50:50

has like a young family and she's

50:52

more rooted. But I, I

50:54

just know that that was like the coolest experience

50:56

for her. She did it for I think three

50:59

or four years. Sarah way.

51:24

And I think it's a it's a cool lifestyle.

51:26

And if you can, if you can afford to

51:28

do it that way, and you have figured

51:30

it out, then and I say afford, but

51:32

most people who do it are broke, but

51:35

have created a lifestyle where they can afford

51:37

to live that way. Right? Yeah. And even

51:39

if it's just for a season, you get

51:41

to have magical experiences like that. And I

51:44

guess to tie it because we've been telling

51:46

each of these stories, this is a very

51:48

loose tie. But um, I let's see, wolf

51:50

things on my vision board, I put a

51:53

picture of a wolf for this year, because

51:55

I really want to see one out in

51:57

the wild in Colorado now that they're here.

52:00

that. So I'm hoping to encounter one

52:02

on the trail or at

52:04

least here one. And I got my Wolf

52:06

plates license plates. Oh, yeah. For Colorado. Yeah,

52:08

I went to the DMV like I didn't

52:10

even need to register my car. I was

52:12

good for like another year. But I'm like,

52:14

I'm getting those I need those now.

52:19

Are my they need to register my

52:21

car? There you go. Good reminder. Yeah.

52:23

All right. Well, well, that's everything that

52:25

we have for today for our regular

52:27

newsfeed. But if you are on subscription,

52:31

what did I say? Our

52:33

newsfeed, our regular newsfeed. Oh, this is

52:36

kind of like the news, right? Our

52:38

regular podcast feed. I

52:40

don't know. Our regular feed. If

52:43

you are on Apple subscriptions or

52:45

Patreon, we have two more stories.

52:47

Yeah. All right. Let's go share

52:50

them. Everyone else. We love you.

52:52

Enjoy the view. But watch your

52:54

back. Bye. Bye. Thank

53:01

you so much for joining us

53:03

again this week. If you have

53:05

a trail tale or story suggestion,

53:07

send us an email at stories

53:09

at NP a D podcast.com. Follow

53:11

us on Instagram and Facebook at

53:13

National Park after dark and on

53:15

Twitter at NP a D podcast.

53:18

Join our outsiders only community on

53:20

Patreon or Apple subscriptions to listen

53:22

ad free, unlock monthly bonus episodes

53:24

and exclusive content. And remember, when

53:26

you support our sponsors, you're supporting

53:28

our show for our exclusive discount

53:30

codes and source information from today's

53:32

episode. Check out the show notes

53:34

for more information on our show,

53:36

our book recommendations, merch updates, and

53:39

more. Visit our website at NP

53:41

a D podcast.com. And please rate,

53:43

review and subscribe from wherever you

53:45

listen to podcasts.