Wanderwach & Kaffee
Wanderwach & Kaffee erzählt Stories von unterwegs auf den langen Strecken! Mareike spricht mit unterschiedlichen Gästen über ihre Erfahrungen und Erlebnisse: Warum macht man „so was“? Was erlebt man unterwegs? Was macht das mit einem? Wie geht das Leben danach weiter? Der Podcast soll inspirieren, Mut machen, zum Nachdenken anregen und auch die Story hinter der Story erzählen. Folgt Wanderwach & Kaffee auch auf Instagram @wanderwach_kaffee_podcast Dort könnt ihr euch auch gern melden, wenn ihr selbst Lust habt, von den eigenen langen Wegen zu erzählen.
Wanderwach & Kaffee
Elina Osborne about thru-hiking and film making
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
Filmmaker and thru-hiker Elina Osborne is my guest today. If you’ve ever looked up trail vlogs on YouTube, chances are you’ve stumbled upon her cinematic stories of the PCT, Te Araroa, the Hayduke Trail, and the Michinoku Coastal Trail. I was absolutely thrilled to meet up with her in person over coffee in Auckland to chat about the intersection of film, writing, and long-distance walking.
Though many know her as an outdoor creator, Elina's true driving force is storytelling. For her, hiking serves as the ultimate backdrop for profound visual memoirs built on personal journaling. In this episode, we dive into how outdoor spaces become characters of their own, the magic behind her viral video "It is the People", and how she maintains the intrinsic motivation to document life on the trail.
We also chat about her next big adventure: navigating visa hurdles to join Jack Wolfskin as an athlete on the European Wolf Trail this July, and what she is looking forward to after her past experiences on the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB).
Whether you are a regular listener or joining Wanderwach & Kaffee for the very first time for this special English-speaking episode: Welcome to the show!
Yours truly,
Mareike
Her films on walking in Japan are wonderful, check them out too
Werde jetzt Mitglied der Wanderwach PLUS-Community. Unterstütze "Wanderwach & Kaffee" und erhalte Zugang zu Bonusfolgen, zum Community-Newsletter und triff dich mit anderen Weitwandernden im Wanderwach-Discord-Kanal.
Jetzt für den kostenlosen Newsletter anmelden und keine Neuigkeiten vom weiten Wandern verpassen.
Lust, mit Mareike bei "Wanderwach & Kaffee" über Deine eigenen Weitwanderungen zu sprechen?
Oder du möchtest einen kürzeren Trail, den du gegangen bist, in einer Sprachnachricht vorstellen?
Melde dich per WhatsApp, über Instagram oder ganz einfach per E-Mail unter podcast@wanderwach.net bei mir!
Auf meiner Website und auf Instagram gibt es auch noch viele Bilder und kleine Berichte zu den Episoden.
... und abonniert "Wanderwach & Kaffee" in eurer Podcast-App oder bei Spotify.
Übrigens kann man mein Buch über den Pacific Crest Trail "Wildnis, ich komme!" über ...
Welcome everyone to my podcast. My name is Mareike, and I love talking with people who are as passionate about long distance hiking as I am. Generally, this podcast isn't German, but sometimes I invite a guest to the podcast who does not speak German. And to everyone who don't normally listen to a German-speaking long-distance hiking podcast, welcome to my show. In German it is called Wanderbach und Kaffee, which means something along the lines of being awake for hiking and coffee. I am a vivid long-distance hiker myself and hiked many long-distance trails around the world. I am very happy that it worked out to welcome my today's guest in person. We met during my last days in Auckland, had coffee, and well just chatted about hiking and filmmaking. So Elina Osborne is my guest today, and she is truly an inspiring person as a hiker and as a filmmaker, and of course as a content creator. I hope you will enjoy the conversation as much as I did. So this is actually going to be, and I have to admit this, Elena. This is the last recording I will do in Auckland. So yay! And bittersweet. Sitting with me here in Auckland in my apartment. Hello, Eina. I'm very happy to have you here on the show today.
SPEAKER_00Oh my gosh, I'm honored to be here for your last recorded podcast in Altero, New Zealand, and in person. It's so good. I'm looking at you across the table in real life. I don't think I've ever done an in real life podcast, so this is exciting.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, for me, it's very rare to actually do face-to-face uh podcasts. And here actually sitting in this nice room, we're seeing the domain. If you look outside the window, there's the Auckland domain. It's a nice winter day and winter day in the southern hemisphere. It's like, my god, I don't know what what I could wish for.
SPEAKER_00Just had a loss, just had a little flat white. Yes, yes. We are Cabinet already.
SPEAKER_02Well, Elena, um, when I first came across you, well, I have to admit, that was actually in 2023. Um, this was when I eventually got to hike T A Rua on the North Island. So I came here to New Zealand in 2018, but I only hiked the South Island for reasons. And then I moved to New Zealand and was like, well, now I'm living here in Auckland. Now I actually have to finish TA. And I hiked it in 2023, um, 24. And I came across your name when I was staying overnight at the Krishna sanctuary with Abhay and Chai Yanti. Do you remember this place?
SPEAKER_00Of course, I remember almost they weren't open. He just moved there when I came across when I met him that day on Tear. I always remember him.
SPEAKER_02And he mentioned that um, whenever there's people either staying at the sanctuary, because it's one of these places where AT hikers like to stay overnight, because this is like just before the notorious riot air force that you're going to die or or or drown in the mud. Oh, yeah. Um, and he said at some point people started to say, Oh, you must be Apeh. And he was always wondering, why do people know me? And then he shared a story that he actually appears in a video on YouTube. And this video was filmed by you. And this was the first time when I heard about heard about you. And then, of course, I looked you up in YouTube. And yes, Upei is in one of your videos. And it um it turned out that you are a well-known hiker and filmmaker in the long-distance hiking scene or community, and um, that's why I'm very happy to have the opportunity today to to pick your brain. But Elena, at the at the beginning of each episode, so this is basically almost like a ritual in my podcast. I'm asking my guests to introduce themselves. So, who are you? Where are you based? And what are you doing when you're not sitting with me here recording a podcast episode?
SPEAKER_00Oh my gosh. It's funny how that feels like a difficult question. Um, I'm Elena. Uh, where am I based? That is also a great question. I know. This past year I was, or from the end of 2024 to the end of 2025. Um, I was living in Japan for about 14 months. That was my base. Uh, I've been back in New Zealand for the past six months, a little bit longer than I had intended. And I guess right now this is my base. Soon again, I will be based on a trail. And then after that, who knows? Who knows? But it is really nice to be back in Altiroa. It feels it does feel like a home base. Um, okay, and the last question was what am I doing? Okay, yes. What am I doing when I'm not sitting here? I guess it moves between um I guess projects primarily based outside. Uh, I've done a bunch of through hikes. Um, but when I think about work, it's I guess around yeah, outdoor spaces, filmmaking, storytelling in any kind of visual or written capacity. And uh I do love trail running as well. And many other things. But that's let's let's leave it at that for now.
SPEAKER_02That's that's super interesting to to hear because uh when when I came across your work at first, I was like, hmm. Elena is probably a through hiker who just films her hikes. Um, but now it I I get the I mean, the more I look into what you're doing, and the more I I watch your YouTube videos or your your films and movies that you make, and now hearing you about talking about your work, it appears that you are more like a filmmaker that also happens to hike, or or how would you maybe describe this?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, well, I think I I mean I discovered hiking, I think, or I kind of started getting more into hiking when I was 21. That's probably when I did my first ever multi-day hike. Was always interested in the outdoors, but it wasn't so accessible. Um, I guess. Even in New Zealand, you know, to be able to afford all the gear is a huge thing, and growing up in a big family, definitely like five kids, um, could not really get into hiking and get all the gear. Um, but yeah, when I think about who I am now, I think at the core of everything, um, I would see myself as an artist. Um, I kind of moved through the world in that way, and I think I just kind of came across the world of through hiking um after discovering more about the outdoors and um travel, kind of evolved into through hiking and spending extended periods of time outside. And now I view that as how it kind of like informs the art I create, um, and informs my worldview, which you know trickles out into what I put out in the world. And more recently, you know, it has been all about through hiking. Um yeah, I have so much more to say about that, but my train of thought is going a million miles an hour. Um, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um there's also some videos on your your YouTube channel or some movies that have that are not necessarily have through hiking as their focal point or center point, but they have for for example, last night I I watched a couple of of movies or films on your channel, and I came across all your movies that you recorded in Japan, and suddenly it fell to me that through hiking or hiking in general was not in the center anymore. Instead there was a layer of almost poetry um to it, like the different layers of human connection and being in nature hiking while being in nature like an overarching theme, but it's not necessarily all about hiking or through hiking, it's it's about a different thing, and it was like all this kind of combination of um pictures, filming music and your narration and what you wanna bring across was um it was not just through hiking.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, well, I think it's like hiking to me is kind of I guess when I've approached the more I've kind of developed as I guess developed my voice, I've recognized that you know, like I want to approach what I make also almost like a visual memoir. So I'm recording what I'm experiencing visually, but I'm also journaling and writing as I go. So when I come back to create whatever story I want to tell, it is based off the writing I've got, and that's kind of the initial reference um that I will go to to go and create from there. Um, I think for me, you know, like I got my start. Well, I did a degree in communications and I majored in video production, but it was still very, you know, the basics, but I just loved picking up picking up a camera. So my first job was at a startup. Um, and I was editing their videos. And then I told them, hey, I can also film. And then I told them, hey, you guys should start a YouTube channel. Essentially started, like launched this company's YouTube channel. It grew really big. Um and you know, that's what I recognized. Okay, I love storytelling. That's my kind of core or like the thing that drives me. And then the next, my next job after that was uh something similar. I worked for a different organization, also suggested, hey, we should create a YouTube channel and grew that really big, made a series with them. And I was always behind the camera, never wanted to be in front of it at all, never wanted my face. It was kind of like I just wanted to be behind, I wanted the control, you know, it's like all of that. And then when I kind of got to this point, as we all do, quarter life crisis, and you know, came, wanted a big change and shift. And after filming all these incredible people helping them tell their stories, I think there's a big part of me that just thought, I want to tell my own story and I want my own adventure and I want to be that person who has these stories to be able to tell. Um, and I guess for the first time it was me putting myself on camera. I think when I think about hiking, it kind of just came at that point, right? The like the perfect like confluence of things where I'd already had an interest in the outdoor space. Um, but then I could pair that with my love for storytelling. And uh hiking, I guess, became the backdrop to the stories I wanted to tell. But it just so happens that, you know, the world of hiking is so big and people are so drawn to it that they want to follow. So and it was a scary thing for me after like my PCT film kind of got a big audience, and because I'd had experience growing two other YouTube channels, I kind of at that point kind of knew the formula that if I created more videos, I could potentially build an audience. Um, but the scary thing about that was always am I pigeonholing myself into an outdoor space? You know, there are other kinds of stories I would like to tell or direct or write. Um, but at the same time, it's like right now, it's the confluence of two things I really enjoy. And but I yeah, again, I used to just think of through hiking or like hiking as the backdrop. And I think my thinking around that has evolved into being more about it's not just the backdrop, but uh these outdoor spaces are almost characters within themselves and they are a mirror, right? To yourself, your inner workings. Um so yeah, when I approach these videos now, they're not necessarily the I'm hiking from A to B. And I think because I'm driven also by wanting to I mean, is a big part of just like wanting to be seen and understood, but also um I don't necessarily watch a lot of hiking videos. Actually, I don't because because um I I think I watch some now when I'm really wanting inspiration, but in terms of leisurely, I won't just watch a hiking video because I don't know, I think there's a part of me that wants more than watching an adventure from A to B. It's either I'm kind of gaining information about a hike or I want to know the inner workings of the journey, um, which a lot of films do, um, but some don't. So I guess I'm driven by stories that driven to tell stories that I want to see that I want to see. Anyway, there's a big tangent. So I feel like I'm on a bloody soapbox right now.
SPEAKER_02No, no, okay. I mean I've I've thousand new questions now. But um, let's let's put filmmaking aside for a sec. I I know, I mean, everyone can feel how passionate you're about filmmaking, but let's put this aside for a sec because I'm also curious about how you got into hiking, actually. Because I think it's one thing to go for a day hike or to go specifically here on Aotearoa, New Zealand, go out with a backpack and stay in a hut overnight somewhere in these beautiful outdoors that we got here in the country. But then it's a whole different story to decide, okay, I'm going to take several weeks or even months off and I hike entire countries. As you did, you hiked the Pacific Rest Trail, you hiked T Agarua, you also did uh hikes uh in in Japan, you we we just had this chat before we started recording. You also hiked in Europe twice, the Tour de Montplan. Um, so this this um step into like through hiking or long-distance hiking, what did you inspire you or what did you make wanting to do this and actually do it?
SPEAKER_00Hmm, I think I think because I grew up in a pretty kind of like insulated environment, I would say. And uh when I I guess became old enough to be able to go travel, I did. And so I when I was gosh, how old was I? I was 20, oh, maybe just turned 23 when I decided to move to the US for a year. And and that time really made it a point to travel as much as I could as well. It's the first time I'd ever been so close to Mexico, even though people in the US are like, okay, it's still pretty far. You know, I was like in Colorado, I was like, oh my god, I've never been so close to Mexico, I've never been so close to South America. Like I wanted to go to Brazil and Peru and all these places that I'd never been, yeah, so close to. Um, so I made really made a point during that year to travel and see as much as I could. And I think through that year I discovered, you know, wow, there's so many different ways you can live your life by just staying with people and I could see how they were living their lives, the different kinds of cultural ways that influence how you live. Um, but then through travel, I recognized I don't want to just travel to do the touristy things or, you know, go to a restaurant or whatever. Um, okay, yes, that, but also I recognize that the ways I really felt connected to these places was to um go hiking, spend some time, not necessarily a through hike, but um a five-day hike in Peru, or um it was the first time I visited a bunch of like the national parks in the US, and I think I recognized when I go to a place, I want to be outside in the place, and that's how I get to know it. And so I think from there I knew that's how I wanted to travel and like move through the world, and then for through hiking, I came back to New Zealand after that year. Um, was in a relationship and in a job that I felt no longer settled. Yes, I was not growing in. Um, and then I think it was the year before, yeah, my mum had been diagnosed with blood cancer, and so it was kind of like this perfect storm of all these things where I felt very like trapped and like, oh, this is not the life I'm meant to be living. And so I wanted a drastic change, and it was kind of like, okay, I know I like hiking, and I know I like being in a different culture. Um, and somehow the PCT or through hiking kind of popped up again. I was like, oh, this is it, this is the time. I I mean I'd read about I'd read Wild, maybe of course, of course, of course, some years prior. But I remember reading it thinking, I'll never do that. Like that's what a crazy person does. And so I guess it was just yeah, that point of wanting a big change to be, to push myself to do the thing I didn't think I would do, slash I would have to be in a specific mental state to go to, and I guess I'd reach that point in some capacity.
SPEAKER_02Where where is New Zealand in this? I I have to admit, I'm I'm kind of surprised because then coming from Europe and um thinking about New Zealand or traveling to New Zealand for whatever reason, everyone thinks, oh my god, this is like the the paradise for everything outdoors, and every kiwi must be outdoorsy as beeping this out. And there's even a subject in school which is outdoor education, where kids go out and learn how to pitch a tent and light a fire and all these things. And um, I I also I I have to say, when I came to New Zealand, I thought it of course every kiwi goes hiking, peddling, trail running, hunting, cycling, like all the time and not at work. So it doesn't really seem to have sparked your love for hiking that much, if I got this correctly.
SPEAKER_00No, that's correct. I think it's it is funny when I think about it because I didn't take outdoor education that was offered at my school. I didn't have interest in maybe I just didn't have interest in studying that at school. I felt like I needed to study um, I guess more the other kinds of subjects. Um and uh I think yeah, there is that definite I think by nature we have the outdoors so accessible, right? So you can go on a little walk, a little bushwalk. But if you look at Auckland, Tamaki Makoto, it's not it's not the Lord of the Rings New Zealand you think of. You know the the mountains are not just around the corner. There are little ranges here and there, but it's not quite the hiking that you imagine from the films. So I feel like proximity was a big thing, you know, not growing up in the South Island, not having a family that hikes. I think your family definitely influences how, yeah, your hobbies and whatnot. Um, so it just wasn't a central focus for me. I always loved running, I was always into like cross-country and um moving my body and being outside, but um yeah, I guess I just hadn't really grasped the idea of hiking at a younger age.
SPEAKER_02And slashing the stereotypes about Kiwis here.
SPEAKER_00I love it. You heard it here first. Auckland is not the hiking picker.
SPEAKER_02We have other things, so that's that's very true. There's beaches and coasts and islands. Let me not get into it. Um but yeah, let's let's come back to um to your work, to to filmmaking and also in combination with hiking. And um a couple of minutes ago when you were um explaining or sharing your inspiration to make films and what drives you, you were saying something you want to make with your movies, you always or you almost want to create like a visual memoir about how you're walking through the world. And I'm convinced, like I'm personally convinced, that all of us humans, we want to be genuine and authentic. Specifically when it comes to connecting to each other and to the world and our surroundings. And I mean, I'm a long distance hiker myself, and whenever I'm on a trail, and I I'm not talking about multi-day hikes, I'm talking about the long stuff. After several weeks, I start to reconnect with myself again. So it feels like I'm the most me when I'm on a long trail. And I'm the most genuine, I'm the most approachable, I'm the most authentic, I'm the most emotional, balanced me when I'm actually out there hiking. And also ideally being out of cell reception for several days at a time, or maybe even weeks. Um Do you think that we're somewhat the most real when we're out there hiking?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it's a um Tricky one because there is just so much noise in the world, especially now, right? We are attacked every morning from our cellular device, the glow. Um so there's so much input. And I think now more so than ever, we're so much more aware of that. We're also aware of kind of um the impact that it has on our mental health. And I think I mean I I am definitely not a mental health professional, but I feel like a lot of the a lot of issues, or for me personally, things when I've struggled the most, it's kind of like when I've felt most disconnected from myself. And I think when you are out for, you know, days, weeks at a time, you are that noise is not as loud. You can m tune into yourself a lot more and um yeah, think through all the thoughts that you have been sitting in the brain way back there, just waiting. Um yeah, and because there's a lot of things we just unconsciously take on. So it's you're you're in this kind of meditative state, right? Where it's your unconscious self meets your conscious self and you're kind of putting them all together. But at the same time, at the same time, you're also sometimes the only thing you can think about is like food and water. Exactly. You're just shelter. You're forced to be so present. Like you're not actually actively thinking through these things, but in some kind of unconscious way, you're kind of paring everything down to the bare bare essentials, and you're reminded, oh, uh these are just the basic things I need to live and be excited about life. Um yeah, and so there is that sense of being your most authentic self, but I also think it's a um not dangerous but difficult like narrative to really continue to hold because and it's something I still struggle with. It's kind of like you can't live on the trail forever, no matter how much we tell ourselves, oh yeah, we can just go back. You do have to eventually reintegrate. I mean, you don't, but most of us will eventually reintegrate into regular society with the civilians of the world. Um, and so it's kind of like trying to grasp how you can integrate that version of yourself that feels like the best version of you, um, out in the wild into the version you are in a city, you know, sitting at a table, drinking coffee. Um and yeah, it's that's an ongoing thing to figure out, I think.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yeah, I think I can connect to this. Um and sometimes I even feel like when going out on a new hike, I need a couple of days to get back to this whole hiking me on a trail, like getting back to my routines and plending out all this noise that is still somehow in the background of my head. Um but then whenever coming back to a city, might it be just for resupply or maybe coming back to a city because you you finished a hike, it also takes some time, but it's surprisingly quick that you're adapting back to big city life. Um so recently when I came back from my last longer hike, just the very first shower after a hike, I saw all the dirt rinsing off my body. Like the dirt water going into the drainage and was like, okay, that's it. I'm back in the city now. But it was super, super quick, and I didn't like the quick transition. However, how much do you think we can, like in a in a more general through hiking or long distance hiking mindset, how much can we actually preserve with us and bring with us to back to our I do some air quotations here, normal lives.
SPEAKER_00Firstly, what's your trail name? Carefree. So it's like washing down the train. It's what's your trail name, by the way? Tip tap. Tip tap. All right, but I also had a different trail name on um the Heydrich trail in 23. What was it? Um actually only one person called me this, which was Russell. Do you know the character from Up is like the little boy? It's like, I am a wilderness explorer. Anyway, okay. This little half Asian kid. And anyway, my outfit looked completely like his. Um, anyway, okay, so how do we have that version of ourselves?
SPEAKER_02If I may interrupt for just very, very briefly, even this whole concept of trail names already tells an interesting story, doesn't it?
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Maybe we have a maybe even a totally different identity than being on trail or more using my my trail name here, being more carefree.
SPEAKER_00I don't know. Yeah, but I didn't want to interrupt. For sure. Maybe you should just trail change your tra your name like legally to care free. That's how we do it. Um yeah, I think German authorities might not like that. Just amazing. Uh I think so. Keeping that version, I mean, ultimately, it's just finding things that maybe bring us similar levels of joy. I think another reason we feel so good on trail is because we are getting the best kinds of dopamine. Yeah. You know, every day, it day in, day out. We wake up, we get to move our bodies, we're breathing the fresh air. It's like, and then you reset and you do it again and again. And it's the kind of um, it's a cheat code to this like great cycle of dopamine, right? Yeah. And so we're getting it in that incredible way. And so when we return, we don't get that as much. So I guess it's ultimately about figuring out how we can get those same levels. I know that like moving your body always helps. Um and because every day is novel, there's that element to it that you don't you that is more difficult to achieve in maybe city life where things become very routine, it's a lot easier. And repetitive, yeah. Yeah. So I think those elements of just moving your body and then finding ways to still have novelty and connection.
SPEAKER_02Thanks for the prompt.
SPEAKER_01Believe in.
SPEAKER_02Actually, connection. Um, but but yeah, first first of all, before we dive into this whole new topic of connection, um, yeah, I think it's also important to kind of try to carry over some things that we learned on trail. And if it's only, I don't know, um, getting up with the sun instead of sleeping in at the weekend, for example. I don't know how much tempting it might be. But anyway. Um, so speaking about connection, um, you made a film about your PCT experience, which is called It's All About the People. And um it had a lot of viewers. So um I looked it up last night. It's almost 800,000 views, which is crazy, exactly. And this only I mean, setting aside that the Pacific Rest Trail is super, super popular in a long-distance hiking scene anyway. However, still your movie um seemed to have hit a spot. Um and it's all about people and connection. Why do you think did your movie hit that spot? Why do you think that so many people um watched your video and apparently obviously also liked it for a good reason? And why why is connection so important on a trail?
SPEAKER_00I think you know, even going out there, I knew that the connections I would make would be the most important thing about the experience. Just from reading other people's like blogs and kind of or just having met one other or two other PCT hikers beforehand who were based in New Zealand and kind of hearing their experiences. Everyone, you know, loves to talk about the friends they made and they light eyes up and they're they're like their eyes light up and there's like sparkles and they're talking about all these experiences, but the ones that they talk about the most are the ones with other people. So I guess it was like uh it's a scent, it was a sentiment that was already held um that is held by so many people. And I think maybe the reason it hit was I was able to articulate it at that point in the internet world, um, especially at a point it was just before COVID. Um, but at a kind of maybe at a time I don't know, there were different elements to it, like the luck in timing, um, how I was maybe maybe able to articulate it. Um but I think the other question you asked was about why is it why it's important. I think because ultimately we can't we're saying, you know, we we become the most us versions, like the most authentic versions of ourselves when we're out there alone. But I don't think we can become um those kinds of people without meeting others. We can't do it in isolation. I don't think we ever can, right? Other people are a mirror to us. So the reason why connection and meeting other people is so important because you're also seeing yourself through their eyes and anyway. Maybe I'm going too going a little down like down the woo train, but ultimately it's like that's what brings us so much joy sharing experiences with others. Because like when you go do something, well, I know for me, and you do something crazy, you want to sit down and laugh about it with the person next to you and like retell that story. And I think about what motivated me to even make something was like, oh, I get to share the experience I had with the others I hiked with, and also not only that, maybe with others of that year who can then look at that experience and be like, oh, I understand that, you know, I connect with the experience you had, even though we never met or we were on completely different sections of the trail. We hiked the same thing, but um and had completely different personal experiences, but overall, like universally, that's just I think always going to be a concept and a theme that we all come back to. We all want friends.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, friends and and and social connection. I mean I really love hiking all by myself, um, to spend quality time with myself. However, if I think back on the PCT, I had the best times when I was hiking together with my two American hiking buddies that I I met um somewhere in Oregon because they helped me in so many ways. Not just human connection, but they were also pushing me and inspiring me. And this was like my first real long distance hike, and I was scared as shit. And not having to do this all by myself and and doing this with like-minded people, however, with people that I probably would never have befriended in another world outside of trail because we have so different concepts of how we are living. But um, we met on this trail, fate brought us together, the trail provides. The trail brought us together, the trail provides, and we are still friends uh many years later, and yeah, so it's it's so important. And I think we just don't want to be alone when it's getting uncomfortable, which is also part of it. And then we we leave the trail with many, many new friends that will hopefully last a lifetime. Yeah. And I also often think that making friends on a trail is different than making friends in another world, because we are also a tiny little bit different on a trail than we would be in our daily, I don't know, caught up in work routines or whatever.
SPEAKER_00And you're meeting them at such a specific time in your life with very, very vivid experiences. So you can't help, but I mean, sometimes it's a trauma bond, sometimes it's just like um you're vulnerable in a way. Yeah, but I mean, also if you're experiencing something, you know, like crazy out there together, you're like, right, well, we will forever share this.
SPEAKER_02Um and then Do you remember when the bear was just hiking into our campsite? Oh sure.
SPEAKER_00Oh yeah, it's it's um yeah, those connections are special, definitely. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um back to filming, and I also have some practical questions for you. So whenever I'm hiking and I try to take notes in the evenings, I try to journal about my hiking. At some point I gave up because I'm just so exhausted and tired in the evening to even take a pen and write down a couple of words. At some point, I started to record voice memos, and even this sometimes is just too much to ask of myself because I'm just so exhausted. And I'm always wondering when I'm following people who hike long distances on social media, on YouTube. There's these amazing almost daily blogs or daily vlogs or amazing videos with so many snippets from so many different occasions. Alina, how are you doing this? How are you filming and hiking at the same time and also have like a concept and a narrative and take probably notes because you always see yourself in the videos taking some notes? How are you doing this?
SPEAKER_00Share your secret. I mean, there's no secret for sure. Okay. But one, I will say, I will note that I've never, I think I tried to edit a video once on trail. I did it and I never did it again. The people that so like I cannot comprehend how they do it are the ones who are filming, editing, and then sharing their videos real time, well not real time, but like maybe a week delayed. They're still on trail. As they go daily videos, that to me is crazy, and I commend those people who can do it. Um, I'm definitely not one of those people. Um and I think and I think it's because it's like maybe it comes down to what motivates you or what excites you. Um because yeah, with the writing and the shooting, I think because shooting became so second nature to me, it wasn't so much of a lift. In terms of story and narrative, a lot of that I don't have figured out. Maybe I have a concept in my mind and a seat of an idea of something I want to focus on. Um and that's definitely true. I'll have a s actually I backtrack that. I usually have a seat of an idea or a concept, and maybe I'll be interviewing people and ask them specific questions that also, you know, adheres to that theme or idea. Um, but I'm also open to it changing because you don't really know what you're going to experience out there, right? Um, you have a pretty good idea and you know the confines of what it is. You're walking a trail, you're gonna be eating every day, you're gonna be pitching a tent every day, you're gonna be um walking. Um But yeah, and then it down to the writing. That actually on the PCT I didn't write so much. I think I took some notes on my phone like every almost every day. The thing that helped was I had another friend who was doing it who would always hold me accountable. Like at the end of every day, are you are you writing? You know, holding me accountable, which was good. Similar thing happened on the Heyjuk Trail. Tea da. Again, notes here and there, but Heyjuk was the first time I ever took handwritten notes. At the end of every single day, I wrote at least a page in my journal. Wow. And a physical notebook. Can you believe it? That extra reading. That extra reading. Um the thing is, a lot of the times I fell asleep halfway through writing it. Yeah, absolutely. Um, because I was absolutely exhausted. Uh but I guess it just became a habit or a practice. Um, but yeah, it definitely is not easy or like comes naturally because at the end of the day you just want to sleep. And when you're hiking, you just want to hike. Um so I think it's all about practice and maybe giving yourself a really good motivation to do it. And the whole filming.
SPEAKER_02I mean, does it always does it always turn out that your first shot you're doing is like the perfect one? Do you have to redo it and redo it? So how you're you're implementing and making making filming a habit while you're hiking?
SPEAKER_00I'm kind of I feel like I'm a very lazy filmmaker. Like so, if you if you do look at my PCT series, I didn't carry a tripod at all. I hardly, I never wanted to stop hiking. You know, I just wanted to keep moving. And so, except for when I met people in like filmed interviews, I had taken a camera that was this action camera that I could walk and hide.
SPEAKER_02Like a GoPro or something.
SPEAKER_00It was a DJI Osmo Pocket. It had just come out, and I was so excited about this thing because I could walk and had a little inbuilt gimbal. Um, so that's why I filmed a lot of my PCT film. Um, but I did have a bigger camera that I would use for interviews or kind of um maybe more scenic shots. Um and yeah, I feel like I was pretty lazy about that. As the years have gone by and I've kind of tried to challenge myself and push myself and maybe think of more interesting shots and set up actually set up a tripod. Um yeah, I definitely take a bit more time, but again, it's just practice and you know, continuing to try improve my craft because that's kind of what it is. I think when I feel stagnant in growth, that's when it's hardest. So it's kind of like, okay, how can I improve in some way? Um but yeah, it's it definitely is a thing to get used to. Like the tripod thing, I had only tried started trying on I think Tiara Dora. And that was a big thing to a big shift for me. Because I was like, oh, I gotta walk back and I gotta set this up and then I gotta walk back, and then you know, it you have to shift your mindset. It's kind of like, oh, I'm doing this because I want to share this kind of story, versus like, oh my god, like the extra miles, you know, like 4,000 kilometers instead of three.
SPEAKER_02Yeah. But then on the other hand, I mean, I always also try to force myself to make it a habit to um to journal about this because it's memories, it's it helps you. I mean, you're sharing this with an audience, and I would I mean, I'm also sharing stuff from trails with my audience in a podcast. So I'm also doing episodes about my own trails, which is also a good way to keep a memory of it, keep like a record or like keep the emotions of this very moment when you record something. Um so I think even the podcast helps me to actually force myself to do it and to to keep the memories. But it's so good to keep memories and um I guess um it's only something that we can probably recommend people doing to to write stuff down, to record some voice memos, to do some videos. You don't necessarily need to share it if you don't want it, but just do it for yourself, right?
SPEAKER_00Having that motivation will definitely keep you going, knowing that it's I think the the motivation has to definitely be to be able to hold yourself accountable and do it consistently, it needs to be intrinsic, right? Yeah. That internal motivation. I mean, extreme like having the external validation also can help. Yes, it can be maybe the the not the fuel. But anyway, the spark should be that internal motivation, and then maybe the fuel that keeps you going is some kind of accountability. But um, yeah, it's if you uh justify it for yourself, then it's a lot easier to do, probably. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Right. Um what's next, Alina? Um, do you have something planned for the next couple of months?
SPEAKER_00Well, when you ask, um yeah, I mean, okay, so in terms of things I've just finished, or like Raptor, three years ago I hiked a trail called Hey Duke through Utah and Arizona. 800 miles, the hardest trail I've ever done in my life. Three years later, we have finally reached Picture Lock. Um I hiked this with three others, and essentially we have made a four-part series that should be coming out uh in September uh on YouTube. And um, that was a very it has been and it still feels like a long, ongoing journey. Um, and then just last year I finished walking a trail in Japan called the Mitsinoko Trail. So a thousand kilometers along the northeast coast of Japan. Very young trail that was kind of built because of the tsunami earthquake that occurred in 2011, and they want to bring back people to this area and kind of experience the culture of the towns as well as you know the wilderness up there. But you do have to be careful of the bears, which I was warned of every day. Um did you ever see one then? I did not, but I saw a lot of fresh bear poop. I was singing very loudly every day because I was yeah, it was the longest solo trail I've ever done. Like I didn't hike with anybody else. Maybe one day I met an Odisan, like a grandpa, and hiked with him. Um but yeah, it was a lot of alone time on that trail for 40 days and 40 nights. Felt very uh biblical. Um but now, so after having you know wrapped those things up, now I am well, was meant to be in Europe already. Um hiking the newly established slash kind of like, yeah, this is the first year of it, Wolf Trail. And that's the trail that um starts in Poland and finishes actually. I still forget where it finishes. Slovenia? I think it finishes in Slovenia.
SPEAKER_02I think it's in Slovenia, the Mediterranean.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Um, as you can tell, I'm not on it right now and not adept to be able to speak on it exactly.
SPEAKER_02I mean, I'm kind of happy that you're here in Auckland because this gives us the the opportunity to talk in person.
SPEAKER_00I think this was meant to be.
SPEAKER_02It was meant to be, yes, exactly.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, but anyway. Yeah, I should be joining this. So there are um, I was kind of invited to work alongside um Jack Wolfskin, which is a German-founded company, still based in Germany, um, and was invited to be part of a crew of five through hiking quote unquote athletes. Um, so it's pretty cool being, you know, being labeled an athlete. Um and um so right now there are three of them out there on the trail, um, Ryan, Mark, and Lauren. And we're all from different parts of the world or all different countries. And uh because of visa issues, I have not been able to join. Um but I should be joining. I'm gonna say come July, and I'll be hiking from July till uh mid-September. So probably about two, just over two months on the trail. Yeah, um, which I'm super, super excited about. I mean, I spent um some time on Tour de Mont Blanc. Um did that very, very established trail, but this is more of kind of like, you know, a new route connecting pre-existing trails um and going through areas that maybe people wouldn't have thought to walk through, um, especially in Europe, um, or especially in like Germany and Poland and those areas um where it's maybe not so much wilderness, but still going through these kind of interesting places.
SPEAKER_02Um I think it also goes uh partially through France, Switzerland, Austria, I guess, and into Slovenia. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, exactly.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yeah. And so having this opportunity to spend more of an extended period of time in Europe is so, so exciting to me. So, so exciting.
SPEAKER_02Do you also get to try out um gear that Wolfskin is now um, well, um prototyping or or um yeah, developing for specifically through hikers or long distance hikers?
SPEAKER_00Do you get to try it out? Yeah, exactly. No, it's it is so exciting to see, I guess, a a company that maybe is more um mainstream, more accessible to a lot of people delve into this pretty niche but maybe more expanding world of through hiking. And it doesn't necessarily mean probably yeah, it doesn't necessarily confine it to through hiking, but just this kind of um I guess advancement in like the technology and the materials that are used for um lighter weight but still very, very high quality hiking gear. Um so it's very cool to see this. And I I mean being able to test out the new gear. Um I've seen, I've seen the uh the pitch decks on it all. I'm yet to try it on because I'm not in Germany yet, but not yet. Yeah, but I no, it's so exciting because I feel like I mean, as you've probably found in New Zealand, it's also kind of hard to get these kinds of pieces of equipment. You're either shipping them from um there are some more in Australia, but you're usually shipping them from the US. And so to see um like in Europe this happening made more accessible um within this region, that's very cool to be a part of and hopefully eventually like a similar model, or maybe Jack was gonna just come over to New Zealand as well. Yeah, right. Yeah, and like see the trickle down um in other places in the world too.
SPEAKER_02So I I have my fingers crossed that your visa gets um processed so that you can actually go over very soon.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02Um, and there is a lot of things happening in the outdoor industry right now, and I think COVID was probably one of those moments in history that kind of made it accelerating in in um developing, and there is much, much more people who are interested in not just going on a day hike but also into long distance hiking. And I think with having Czech Wolfskin um exploring or developing gear, specifically being European-based, would make it a little bit more easier um for European-based hikers to also get good gear. So um I'm also very excited to to hear what Czech Wolfskin is doing and and take a look um also on the wolf trail. Um, you said you hiked the Tour de Montplan, right? Twice, if I remember correctly. So do you have any more European hiking experience?
SPEAKER_00Oh, aside from that, I actually do not, not at all.
SPEAKER_02A lot of your expectations. How do you imagine being on the Wolf Trail and then doing some hiking in also in Germany? I mean, how excited. I'm German.
SPEAKER_00No, my expectations. Um, I don't I mean, I think because I know it's not all going to be, you know, pure wilderness trail. There is, but I think when I'm joining, I'm joining more in the sections in the Alps. So I figure the terrain is gonna be very similar, where it's probably just like a lot of big up and then maybe big down and then big up. I feel like it's gonna be a lot of that in terms of terrain. But I think um yeah, it'd be interesting to experience more of the I guess hiking culture. Um and the food, of course, is always fun to try everything. And when you're going into towns and trying the local cuisine, um yeah, I guess in terms of expectations, it's just uh I don't know, it's all new, so I'm just kind of like not really going in with huge expectations or just like specific ex expectations, just um going in with a very open mind. Also knowing that because it's a new trail, it's kind of like there's room to um for it to evolve and room for it to change as well. Um, same with the gear. It's kind of like this is all this these early stages of this thing. So it's exciting to just be a part of that kind of first wave of it and have um some kind of say in how it evolves and test it and yeah, and also um yeah, share about this.
SPEAKER_02And and speaking of sharing, will there be a movie, a film about it? Are you going to record while you're hiking on the wolf trail?
SPEAKER_00Yes, yeah, I will be making something. I still that's one I mean I've been kind of toying with different concepts or like themes or ideas, but again, it's kind of like you have an idea of what you think you're going to make at the same time, you don't really know what the actual experience is gonna be like. So um, no, but I will be filming, um, which is exciting. And um, yeah, we'll see what it turns out to be.
SPEAKER_02Amazing, can't wait, actually. Can't wait. Um two last questions for you, Alina. Um if you only have one trail left to hike, which one would it be?
SPEAKER_00What do you mean? Like in my life forever?
SPEAKER_02Yeah, let's let's say like this. If you can only choose one last trail, which one would you do?
SPEAKER_00Uh oh um I think I think if I was to answer that honestly, I'd probably, and because I would like to do something that I would know would be good, I would probably just go back to the Pacific Crest Trail.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00If that was like my last ever trail, knowing how good that experience was, um, I would probably go there because you know I'm a sucker for nostalgia, so that's where I'd go.
SPEAKER_02And if you would have unlimited budget to make a movie, what would it be?
SPEAKER_00Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_02Wow. Just just imagine. Oh my goodness, that is a huge anonymous donor or sponsor for a movie project or a film project. What would it be about?
SPEAKER_00What would the film be about?
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_00I mean it would be about people, not saying um, I think, I mean, I have a million movie ideas. If you want me to pull out my notes app and my docs. Um what it would be about. Okay, well, I would use the film as an excuse to travel all around the world. That's smart, yeah. And uh it would have to involve, you know, experiencing all these different kinds of trails, of course. Yeah. Whether that makes the cut of the film or whether it just informs my life experience to be able to write the film um is remains to be seen. But this is where a lot of the budget would go. Um, in terms of what the film would be about. The thing is, I do in some worlds, I'm like, ah, I would love to make a fictional film as well. Um but right now, um there has been a film project that I have been kind of like has been in my brain um for a long time that maybe it would have to be about that, which has nothing to do with hiking. Oh yeah, I mean, I guess I should say what um it feels like the obvious answer though. Um well essentially I think Okay If I could tell any kind of story, it would probably focus around, I would love to tell some kind of story maybe around um through hikers, but more specifically maybe through hikers who uh repeat through hikers, who continuously go back to the trail and almost kind of like revolve and shape their lives around the trail. And I would love to be able to explore the motivations of of these kinds of people and how they live their lives this way. And um ultimately I think I really love uh stories about where people have kind of like rewritten the narrative and changed their lives, which is you know, actually most people in the world probably every person in the world has changed their life in some way, you know, changed the course or the direction of what they thought their life was gonna be to what it is now. But so some story around that um would be an absolute dream. But the film project that I have been working on that is not about through hiking, um, kind of is around um the the maybe my personal story on that, which is um having grown up in a uh religious cult, uh Korean religious cult, and um the kind of experience of what it is to uh kind of like leave a very insular um world and kind of um create or understand what it means to leave that and yeah, create your whole new belief system and way of moving through the world. But again, unlimited budget, so maybe we just make several iterations as well. Or maybe just set up a sequel.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, yeah. All right, Alina. You know what? It would be great if you could be able to catch up in Europe. That would actually be amazing. That'd be a dream. Yeah. So you never know. You never know.
SPEAKER_00I mean, you're gonna be in Amsterdam.
SPEAKER_02I'm gonna be in Amsterdam soon.
SPEAKER_00You're gonna be in Europe on the on the Wolf Trail soon. Exactly. And I've never been to Amsterdam, always dreamed of it. I just want to ride a bike. Most welcome to visit.
SPEAKER_02All right. Thanks for thanks for chatting with me today for the podcast. And um, so um thank you and happy trails for whatever comes next for you.
SPEAKER_00Happy trails, you too.
SPEAKER_02Uh, that was much fun recording an episode with Elena. We laughed quite a bit, and um, well, time just flew by. Hearing how she uses her lens and her words to create visual memoirs really makes the look at the trail differently. I mean, yes, everyone who watched Elena's, it's all about the people knows. It's not just about the miles, it's about the art of storytelling, and of course, it's about the deep human connections that uh you experienced on trails. And I believe a lot of people who hike the long trail can absolutely connect to these ideas to Europe this July to step onto the wolf trail with Jack Wolfskin. I wish her smooth travels through those final visa hurdles, fingers crossed and clear skies ahead. I can't wait to see how she brings the European wilderness to life through her unique storytelling style and probably also in quite some uh videos she's gonna record. And maybe, hopefully, fingers crossed, it will work out to meet again, this time somewhere in Europe. And if you want to dive into Elena's stunning work, head over to the show notes where I've linked her YouTube channel and films. If you enjoyed today's show, please leave a five-star rating in the podcast app of your choice. Click the follow or subscribe button if you want to hear more about long distance hiking. Well, mostly in German though. However, from time to time there might be more English speaking episodes with interesting guests. But for today, thanks for listening, take good care, and as always, happy trails, yours truly, Maraike.