Nowadays, you can find a podcast about absolutely anything. There’s one about shipping containers, another about female dragonesses, one that reviews every single episode of Beverly Hills 90210. There’s even an adult podcast for the Goosebumps mystery series. So, as an outdoor enthusiast, I went on a deep dive to find the best hiking podcasts to listen to this fall. Here are five of my top picks for podcasts about hiking and the great outdoors.
The Outside Podcast
This podcast is produced by Outside Magazine, and when it’s great, it’s really truly great. It uses narrative storytelling to craft episodes about running, climbing, kayaking and hiking. It gets first person accounts from the people who went through some exceptional and often harrowing challenge, and weaves it together with narration from the host.
Two of my favorite episodes about hiking are “A Love Story Interrupted by a Bison Attack” and “Alone and Injured in the Wild.” The first is about two people who are newly dating and go on a hiking and trail running date on an island on Utah’s Great Salt Lake. During the afternoon, the couple comes into contact with one of the island’s most famous residents: bison. I won’t spoil what happens next, but it’s worth a listen.
The other details the story of a woman who made a classic hiking mistake. She went on what she thought would be a quick hike in Joshua Tree without telling anyone where she was going or when she’d be back. When injury struck, she was left alone and unable to call for help. Her story quickly became one of survival and hope that she would soon be saved.
Courtesy of Apple Podcasts
The Training For Trekking Podcast
For those looking to up their hiking game, The Training For Trekking Podcast is hosted by coach and personal trainer Rowan Smith who offers practical advice on how to build your strength and endurance for hiking. Listeners can expect topics like “How to do interval training while hiking,” “Specific strength training for hiking,” “Nutrition for hot-weather hiking,” and “How to make a pacing strategy for a long hike.” The episodes are easy to listen to and digest.
Courtesy of Backpacks & Blisters
Backpacking and Blisters Podcast
The Backpacking and Blisters podcast is like a love letter to all the joys—and sometimes less -than-great aspects—of backpacking. The hosts Derek and Carl describe the show as “tips and tales with a sense of humor,” and while they aren’t world-renowned experts (Carl is a teacher and Derek is a father of two special needs children), they have many, many years of experience with backpacking. Still they’re humble. Carl “continues to mess something up on each trip,” according to his website, while Derek brought a fanny pack on his first backpacking adventure.
Episodes include interviews with search and rescue experts, a discussion of controversial hiking gear and whether it’s worth it, and a fun one called “The Worst Backpacker of All Time.”
Courtesy of By Land
By Land Podcast
This podcast celebrates all things outdoors that happen on land and mostly includes interviews with experts in different areas. They cover thru-hiking, hunting, mountaineering, nutrition and conservation, personal development, and more.
A recent episode I really liked was “You Carry the Tent, I’ll Carry the Baby with Jack McClure.” It includes a funny and engaging conversation with Jack McClure and his wife, who hiked the Pacific Crest Trail in 2023 from the Canadian border to the Mexico border. And amazingly, they brought along their nine-month-old baby.
It was a real conversation with some technical details—like the advantages and disadvantages to being a SOBO (hiking southbound) vs NOBO (hiking northbound)—but they also talked about their relationship and how it changed along the way.
Courtesy of The Trail Show
The Trail Show Podcast
This podcast just wrapped up production after 12 years, but it has a deep and rich back catalog to go through. The show is based in Boulder, Colorado, and usually features guests who are equally as enthusiastic about hiking and backpacking as its outdoors-loving hosts. The show’s description says it’s “a comedy podcast that sometimes talks about hiking and always talks about beer.”
Claire Trageser has been writing for San Diego Magazine for 10 years. She also is a reporter at KPBS and writes for The New York Times, National Geographic, Marie Claire, Elle and Runner's World.
