10,000 Miles on Foot, Madison Blagden’s Biggest Year Yet

Madison Blagden joins me to break down one of the wildest hiking years I have ever heard of. In 2025, she completed a border-to-border Calendar Year Triple Crown, then kept going until she hit 10,071 miles on foot.We talk about how the goal evolved in real time, what it takes to hike that kind of mileage day after day, and how she handled injury, snow, isolation, grizzly country, and the mental toll of a full year spent moving forward. Madison also shares how she got into thru-hiking in the first place, from starting the PCT with almost no experience to building into one of the biggest hiking years ever.This one is about huge miles, trail life, identity, sacrifice, and what happens when you push so far that the whole experience starts to feel bigger than hiking.Chapters00:00 Introduction to Walker of the Year Nominee09:27 Transitioning from Trail to Everyday Life15:12 The Impact of the First Thru-Hike21:10 Living on the Road: Adventures and Challenges29:30 Navigating Trail Challenges36:20 Pushing Hiking Limits42:00 Starting the 2025 Journey48:44 The Journey Begins in Key West54:48 Transitioning to the PCT59:58 Navigating Challenges on the PCT01:04:45 Overcoming Injury and Setbacks01:15:35 Balancing Hiking with Content Creation01:20:41 Finding Spirituality in the WildernessSupport our Sponsors: Sawyer: https://sawyerdirect.net/Janji (code: Freeoutside): https://snp.link/a0bfb726CS Coffee: CSinstant.coffeeGarage Grown Gear: https://snp.link/db1ba8abSubscribe to Substack: http://freeoutside.substack.comSupport this content on patreon: HTTP://patreon.com/freeoutsideBuy my book "Free Outside" on Amazon: https://amzn.to/39LpoSFEmail me to buy a signed copy of my book, "Free Outside" at [email protected] the movie about setting the record on the Colorado Trail: https://tubitv.com/movies/100019916/free-outsideWebsite: www.Freeoutside.comInstagram: thefreeoutsidefacebook: www.facebook.com/freeoutside#Trailrunning #Runningnews #Outdoors #Outdooradventure