Molly-Anne Dameron had struggled with severe mental illness her whole life. And, after years of drug addiction, she had recently gotten sober. But — as she puts it — getting sober is "not always f*cking rainbows." She wasn’t sure she was going to make it in sobriety, with the added isolation of the pandemic. So she set out to skate from Maine to New Jersey. SHARE THIS PODCAST, WIN REWARDS: Get your personal referral link here. MERCH SALE: Get 30% off Out There merch with promo code FALL30. Now through Oct. 10, 2021.

Out There

Outskating Your Demons

Shannon Prince comes from a family with a rich relationship to the natural world. Her Cherokee ancestors were skilled at using plants as medicine. But her family’s eco-literacy had been stripped away over the generations. Yearning to rediscover forgotten knowledge, Shannon traveled across the world to Mongolia, where ancient traditions were more intact. On this episode, she explores the surprising things that can happen to you on a personal level, when you attempt to preserve a way of life that’s slowly disappearing. REFER FRIENDS, WIN REWARDS! Sign up for your personal referral link.

Forest as Pharmacy

Becky Jensen had given herself the perfect present for her 50th birthday: a two-week solo backpacking trip. But when she emerged from the trail, she learned that a wildfire had started near her home in northern Colorado. Her house might already be gone. On this episode, Becky shares her story. She takes us from the tranquility of the San Juan mountains to a cramped basement where she waited out her evacuation, and explores how you find serenity when a natural disaster threatens everything you’ve built. Refer friends, win rewards! Get your personal referral link here.

Trial by Fire

After a demoralizing hiking trip in college, Ava Ahmadbeigi gave up on nature. She had never been outdoorsy, and now she knew she didn't belong. But that hiking trip kept haunting her. On this episode, Ava tells her story. She takes us from a cramped apartment in NYC to a mountain in the Adirondacks, as she seeks to find her place — both in her own body, and in the world outside her walls. Click here to read the transcript for this episode. Sign up for our email list and be the first to know about our upcoming referral rewards program! SUPPORT OUT THERE: Become a patron

On My Own Terms

A career in the arts is tough. Creative professionals are notoriously overworked and underpaid. Even if you “make it,” it’s easy for your passion to turn into just another stressful job. On this episode, we bring you a story about photographer and skateboarder Khaleeq Alfred, who has been learning how to walk the line between following his dreams and paying the bills. It's a story about getting the compensation you deserve without sacrificing your artistic integrity, and about finding balance between happiness and the hustle. You can read the episode transcript here. Support Out There by becoming a patron today!

The Happy Hustle

On this episode, we talk with Sarah Maslin Nir, author of the book Horse Crazy. Horse Crazy is part memoir and part cultural exploration. It’s a love letter to an animal. It’s a story about the struggle to belong. And it’s a deep dive into the fascinating things that horses — and the humans connected to them — can teach us about ourselves and our society. SUPPORT OUT THERE: Become a patron

Horse Crazy

Many of us assume that self care is inherently selfish — that we either focus on ourselves, or we help others. But what if that’s a false dichotomy? This story explores how self care can end up being good for the greater community. The story follows a woman named Linda Mohammad, also known as the Bucket List Traveler, who set out to visit all the national parks in the United States. When she started the project, she was just trying to get in shape and unplug from her hectic life. But the experience snowballed into something much bigger, and much more beautiful, than that. EPISODE TRANSCRIPT: Click here to read the transcript as you listen. PITCH US A STORY: Story pitches for our upcoming season, "Things I Thought I Knew," are due July 30, 2021. Click here to see our pitch guidelines. HEAR OUR AWARD-WINNING EPISODE: Our episode "A Series of Unlikely Events" won a silver medal in PMJA's annual awards. Listen now. SUPPORT OUT THERE: Help us pay for the beautiful stories you hear on the show.

The Bucket List Traveler

 My mother always told me I shouldn’t take “no” for an answer. If you don’t get what you want, she said, keep pushing. Growing up, I took that advice to heart: whatever the task at hand, I charged forward with dogged determination. But in 2018, a bicycle accident changed my outlook on what it means to back down, and I started standing up for myself in a new way.   SUPPORT OUT THERE: Become a patron on Patreon

Don't Take 'No' for an Answer

How Harriet Tubman could change your perspective on who belongs outdoors You probably learned about Harriet Tubman in school growing up — how she led slaves to freedom on the underground railroad. But she was a lot more than an activist and freedom fighter. She was a daughter, wife, entrepreneur — and a talented outdoorswoman. On this episode, we explore Tubman’s relationship with nature; we unpack how that history shapes the way Black Americans engage with the outdoors today; and we show how a closer look at Tubman could offer new perspectives on who belongs outdoors. FOR FURTHER LISTENING: Check out our "Black & Outdoorsy" playlist for stories celebrating Black experiences outdoors Hear the Following Harriet series 

The Ultimate Outdoorswoman

When Paul Barach embarked on his first thru-hike, he was expecting a life-changing experience. The Shikoku Pilgrimage, which traverses Japan’s most rural island and takes visitors past 88 Buddhist temples, promised to be a spiritual and meditative journey, as well as an epic adventure. But the reality wasn’t so nice. On this episode, Paul tells the story of what happens when the adventure of a lifetime doesn't turn out the way you'd hoped. How do you make peace with the worst parts of hiking, when those parts never end?

The Thru-Hike of Misery

Climbing a mountain can be a lot like coming out. That’s a metaphor filmmaker Devin Fei-Fan Tau explores in his new documentary Who’s On Top. The film follows four LGBTQ climbers who set out to summit Mt. Hood. It explores their connection to nature and their efforts to challenge stereotypes about gender and sexuality — and it offers an inside view into the literal and metaphorical mountains they face. Devin joins us on this episode to talk about it. WATCH THE FILM: Apple TV | Vimeo SUPPORT OUT THERE: Patreon | Venmo | Other

Vulnerability is a Strength

As more people get vaccinated and the world starts opening up again, many of us are reflecting on the unprecedented isolation we’ve experienced over the past year. Extreme isolation was new for many of us, and we’re looking forward to getting back to normal. But not everyone can escape their aloneness. This is the story of a runner named Luanne Burke, who has been dealing with deep isolation for decades and will continue to experience it, even after much of the world returns to a “new normal.”

Running Blind

In the wake of natural disasters, those affected are faced with a tough decision: do you leave and go somewhere safer, or stay put and try to rebuild your life? How do you navigate that choice? And for those who decide to stay: what seals the deal? Why do we remain in disaster-prone areas, after losing so much? This episode takes us to an island in North Carolina and tells the story of one man who finds himself firmly rooted to place, despite growing environmental threats. FOR FURTHER LISTENING: Check out our playlist "After the Storm," which explores why we live where we live, as the climate warms. SUPPORT OUT THERE: Patreon | Venmo | Credit Card/PayPal

Why Do We Stay?

In 2015, Australian journalist James Bennett moved to India, to take up a long-coveted role as a foreign correspondent. James was an outdoorsy type: he liked to cycle, surf, camp, and fish. So he knew the move to India's crowded capital city was going to be hard. What he didn’t realize was how the experience would change his perspective on speaking up about your problems. On this episode, he shares his story. It’s a story that first ran several years ago, but which feels surprisingly relevant again now. Support Out There: Patreon | Venmo | Credit Card

The Right to Complain

On this bonus episode, we introduce you to a new podcast we think you'll love. It's called the Atlas Obscura Podcast, and it takes you on an audio journey to discover new, strange, and wondrous places from all over the world. This particular episode is about Pyramiden​, an abandoned Soviet mining town, frozen both in time and in ice. Thanks to its Arctic climate, scientists predict that it will resist decay longer than any other human settlement in modern history.

Introducing the Atlas Obscura Podcast

Out There is a podcast that explores big questions through intimate stories in the great outdoors.

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Out There

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