Hip Hiker Blog

Wild Wayfinding's blog can be found over at Hip Hiker!

Lea backpacking near Bishop Pass in California

Hip Hiker is dedicated to inspiring people to embrace walking, hiking, backpacking, and spending time in the outdoors as we age. Through engaging storytelling, trip suggestions, gear recommendations, and safety tips, Hip Hiker promotes exploration and adventure while embracing our own limits. With personal insights from hiking with friends and family (and a zirconium hip!), this site aims to create a supportive community for active and meaningful living that gains wisdom from the wilderness.

Plus, guest features, highlights from outdoor experiences that can be utilized in your workday, and a special gear hub for suggestions and recommendations of what to put in your pack.

Featured Posts

Walking & Wayfinding

An introduction to mindful walking. I’ve been thinking about walking and wayfinding for a few years now. I wrote a book about mindful walking (Walking & Wayfinding: Create Your Own Mindful Practice, One Step at a Time ISBN #979-8990113404) and I have been contemplating what that means on most of my walks since then! What I think is great about walking mindfully, is that I don’t believe it needs to be far, for a really long time, or even has to be in nature. Mindful walking ca

Mar 17

Lea's feet wear gray hiking shoes with bright aqua laces standing on cement next to gravel.

Why I like to walk

The best part of my (mostly) daily walks is getting outside. When I go out for a walk I am outside of my small office, which sometimes feels confining, and into a much larger, open expanse. Clouds, a breeze, trees, and sidewalks often feel more welcoming than my desk! Without walls and a roof, my walks themselves become the containers for my experience, finite in time and infinite in possibility. I imagine them like the Mason jars my mom and gramma used to make jam...they get

Oct 27, 2025

Lea standing the steps in front of the General Store in Kennedy Meadows.

The Story of My Hip

And how I had to learn some patience. Three and a half months after my total hip replacement surgery I found myself at the General Store in Kennedy Meadows, CA, a resupply place along the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) in the High Sierra mountain range in California. My first backpacking trip post-hip replacement surgery. While most everyone we met along the trail were headed to their next stop along the PCT, my husband I were hiking five miles and calling it a day. I was a little

Sep 4, 2025

Hip Hiker Blog

Featured Posts

Walking & Wayfinding

Why I like to walk

The Story of My Hip

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