Why I Started a Community for Women Who Didn't Want to Hike Alone

Grab a coffee. Settle in. This is the honest version of how Girls Gone Hiking began — not with a business plan, but with a woman who wanted people to hike with.

Girls Gone Hiking is now a community of more than 10,000 women across Utah, Minnesota, and our growing national network. Behind every event are safety procedures, waivers, leadership training, insurance, and a chapter model built to grow thoughtfully.

It began as an Instagram scrapbook among friends. Then careers, marriages, kids, homes, and travel made everyone's schedules harder to match. So I opened a hike to the public.

That first hike was Rattlesnake Gulch to the Salt Lake City Overlook. Women came. They talked. They exchanged numbers. Real friendships started forming before we were even back at the trailhead.

This was never about miles, speed, or summits. It is about community, friendship, confidence, and mental wellness. I want every woman to leave feeling a little more certain that she can do hard things.

You do not need experience, expensive gear, or someone to come with you. You belong here exactly as you are.

I want women to be able to move to a new city, find a local GGH chapter, and have an instant place to begin building community. Local ambassadors make that vision personal in every state.

Hiking is the excuse. Community is the reason women stay.

We hike together. We leave no one behind.