Rocks and Roots

Ep. 90 TT: WERE RUNNING A 50K

As the title suggests, your esteemed hosts are attempting the Rat Race 50k in south Jersey.  Crazy?  Yes.  Especially when we’re prepared-ish-maybe-sorta?  Absolutely.  Weeks (yeah, not months) of training with gradually upping mileage at weekends plus injury and rest time puts some doubts in our plan, but we’re still going to give it a go. 
Come along for this unedited episode where we talk trail, running, trail running, injuries, history with Mrs. Cranky too!

The race is Saturday (3/18). Pray to your god for us. 

Ep. 89 Enjoying the Moment on Trail with Glowstick

We were thrilled to speak with Glowstick this week about her trail adventures on the AT, Foothills Trail, and the Colorado Trail!  Coming off of a back injury and surgery, Glowstick’s motivation along with a bit of encouragement from Bill Bryson had her complete the AT in 2018.  From there it was love as her move to Colorado afforded her peaks and trails to her heart’s content. 
We also dive into her 2022 Foothills and Colorado trail experiences which made Cranky and I thinking hard about our trail schedules this year. 

Thanks again, Glowstick, it was great to chat! 

Follow Glowstick on YouTube! youtube.com/@AudreyAdventures

and Insta! @audreysadventuresyt

Tumbles’ Treadmill Mental Fight: runtothefinish.com/survive-long-runs-treadmill/

Ep. 88 Hiking, Hunting, and History with Greg Calabrese

We once again welcome to the show Greg Calabrese, owner of Rip Van Winkle Adventure Guides in the Catskills!  (Tumbles apologizes for not getting this episode out last month).  
We were intrigued about Greg’s experience hiking the Catskill 9 and how it ranks with the notorious Devil’s Path.  Greg also talks about his deer and turkey hunting experiences as well as a run in with a very lazy bear!

Thank you, Greg, for taking your evening to chat with us and looking forward to catching up with you again soon!

Check out Greg’s business here! 
ripvanwinkleadventureguides.com

And check him out on Insta!  

Ep. 87 Happy New Year with Kyle O’Grady

Mr O’Grady is back and doing better than ever!  Always a pleasure to chat with him, Kyle dives into his Pacific Crest Trail thru hike and goes over the trials and tribulations of illnesses, fires, and (just one) video malfunction as well as meeting new friends and growing the bond with old friends. 
We also chat about what direction Kyle is going with his YouTube channel as well as talk about the return of the beloved podcast Trail Tales!

Follow Kyle on YouTube: YouTube.com/@kylehateshiking 

Everywhere you listen to Podcasts: Trail Tales 

and on Insta: kylehateshiking 

Ep. 86 Fireside Chat with IBTAT - Scottish Nat’l Trail

First off, forgive the background noise; Tumbles’ neighbors house was on fire.  Secondly, we had an excellent talk with IBTAT, discussing his experience on the Scottish National Trail.  Going 862 km from the England/Scotland border to Cape Wrath, he took in the castles, highlands, lochs, the ocean, and a good bit of rain.  We also get into his vlogging and his National Geographic-esque flair to these videos.  As usual it was truly great to chat with IBTAT again. 
Check out his website for his photography and his IBTAT merch. 
savedbymtnsphotography.com

He’s also on Instagram: savedbymtns and to see his vlogs head to YouTube: IB TAT. 

Ep. 85 A Response to Our Listener

Hey y’all, we opted outside or at least tried to this mild Black Friday. Alas it ended in a comedy of errors and a good meal in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 
Along with this, however, we are responding to a message we received from one of our listeners concerning our pandemic amnesty episode.  We will return to our regularly scheduled outdoors episodes, but we felt this response needed to be said. 
We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving (for those who celebrate) and we’ll “see” y’all next week!

Ep. 84 Trail Talk: Blown Away on the MacIntyre Range

You get a twofer from us this go around!  We’re back with some Trail Talk in the Adirondacks!  Cranky and Tumbles wanted to get in one last nice warm temp hike before the big freeze of winter set in and we were (mostly) successful!  
Tropical Storm Nicole was due to land in Northern New York State around 3pm that day so we were out at 4am to bag Algonquin, Iroquois, and Wright peaks.  Once we broke daylight and clearing tree-line, it was like being in the middle of a hurricane with no visibility, 60 mph winds and a drizzle or two. 
Tune in to hear all about it! 

Ep. 83 Should Hikers Accept Pandemic Amnesty?

Cranky and Tumbles get a bit political in this episode as they are not talking trail per se but discussing an Atlantic article written by a Brown University professor. 
Do you remember when we were told by the ATC, the AMC, our governments not to go outside or hike?  That we needed to stop our thru hikes because we would endanger the trail towns with our hiker stank?  Did they not realize that we were in the safest places on earth during a pandemic and that it was more likely us who would becoming infected by townspeople?  I do and now they want us to forgive and forget. 
Yeah, right.  Listen in to hear our take on a “Pandemic Amnesty”. 
More trail fun on the next episode!

theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/10/Covid-response-forgiveness/671879/

Ep. 82 ADK and the Love of the Hike with Tony Montana

We had the pleasure of speaking with Bionic Man Tony Montana!  Tony, or Tex, has been hiking the High Peaks, Low Peaks and all peaks in between for over 10 years and has no plans of stopping.  We talk about his Summer and Winter ADK 46s, the North East Ultra 8 and how an accident in between Marcy and Haystack resulted in an amazing helicopter tour of the Great Range. Tony, we look forward to your 2023 season of adventures and hanging with ya again soon!

Ep. 81 TT: Hike of Ice and Fire in the ADK

If you can imagine the sun hitting the vibrant foliage of the trees at dawn while you are standing encapsulated in snow and ice covered trees at elevation, that’s what we experienced in the Adirondacks.  
It was pure magic as we climbed Giant (of the Valley) Mountain and it topped the best hikes we’ve done.  Full after action report of Giant mountain along with questions and criticism about very young children doing these hiking challenges. all on today’s episode. Enjoy!

ps. Stay tuned to the end for an addendum to our episode!