#119 | Lauren & Henri de la Vega: The Triple Crown Power Couple

In today's episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, we are joined by Lauren and Henri de la Vega — a husband and wife southbounding the Continental Divide Trail to complete their triple crown. We take a journey down memory lane in both romance and trails and get an in-depth play-by-play on their CDT hike thus far. This chat paints an awesome picture of some of the alternates that are available, how to spot geothermal activity under the ground when in the backcountry of Yellowstone, and risk tolerances based on experiences from the PCT. It ends with the cutest Q&A, trek propaganda on a breakout of COVID in the AT portion of Maine, a heated triple crown of cereals, and more.

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Interview with Lauren & Henri de la Vega

• Lauren's Instagram
• Henri's Instagram
• Lauren & Henri's Guiding Company

Time stamps & Questions

00:04:15 - QOTD: How was your last week?

00:09:54 - General Reminders: Wisconsin meetups & new intern

00:11:45 - Guest introductions

00:13:18 - Did you meet on trail?

00:15:42 - Did the woman you babysat for officiate your wedding?

00:16:05 - Did you both have an interest in thru-hiking?

00:17:01 - How long had you been dating when you started the AT?

00:17:23 - Did you enjoy the transition to sharing the same tent, and giving up your personal space?

00:19:04 - How is SOBOing the CDT going?

00:19:50 - When did you start the CDT?

00:19:55 - What was the weather like at the time?

00:20:34 - Were there any big gear changes from the AT/PCT/CDT?

00:21:24 - Did the tent give you peace of mind with the bears?

00:22:20 - What was your reaction when you thought a bear collapsed the tent?

00:22:50 - Did the fires impact your hike?

00:25:28 - What was the scenery like on the Big Sky route?

00:26:03 - How many miles have you hiked?

00:27:57 - How does your mileage tracking impact your resupply?

00:30:15 - What's the most amount of people you think you've seen on a given day?

00:30:53 - Are you finding it's primarily hikers on their 3rd trail, or beginners?

00:31:29 - What's the wildlife been like?

00:35:17 - Is the pika encounter the scariest animal encounter you've had in your life?

00:35:34 - When you walked through Yellowstone, were you able to do some sightseeing?

00:36:36 - Weren't you worried about the thermal areas while hiking?

00:37:32 - How do you identify thermal areas?

00:39:20 - Were you able to identify any of the thermal areas yourself?

00:41:00 - Can the thermal hot springs be used as a water source?

00:41:14 - Are people swimming in these spots?

00:42:38 - When were you passing through Yellowstone?

00:42:44 - Where do you go after Yellowstone?

00:44:49 - Was the alternate to Jackass Pass similar to Mahoosuc Notch?

00:45:36 - How long is the alternate in comparison to Mahoosuc Notch?

00:47:10 - Did you look at photos before getting to the CDT destinations?

00:48:07 - Since you didn't see photos beforehand, were you surprised by your reaction to some of the views or spots?

00:49:02 - What were your "Oh shit!" moments on the trails?

01:04:33 - What was underneath the hole you created on Mather Pass?

01:06:46 - Did people on Facebook weigh in on what the hole was?

01:08:18 - Was it Strawberry or Tree?

01:10:54 - Did Strawberry's accident impact your risk tolerance?

01:13:40 - Where were you Guiding in New York?

01:13:55 - Is it for kids or adults?

01:14:49 - Is it a course you take to become a Guide?

01:15:46 - What types of questions are asked that could be completed on the scantron?

01:16:36 - Back to the CDT, was there anything else to mention about the Wind River Range?

01:23:13 - Filtering cow shit water

01:24:06 - What happens after the basin?

01:25:43 - When you're doing a stretch of roadway, where do you camp at night?

01:29:14 - What do you say to a cop when you get in trouble for camping on the road?

01:29:46 - Was there anything notable about Colorado we should hit on?

01:34:48 - Does it make you feel better to check the elevation gain of your hike?

01:35:51 - When playing fuck/marry/kill, why would you kill the CDT?

01:36:23 - When did you complete your 14ers

01:36:48 - Is Leadville the last town you were in?

01:38:06 - What are you looking forward to next?

01:39:19 - Did you go into Montbell while you were in Denver, to get puffy pants?

01:42:50 - What's your biggest pet peeve about each other while on the trail?

01:45:40 - What is the most endearing thing the other person has done?

01:47:48 - How do you fish when on trail?

01:48:15 - If you catch something do you keep it or catch and release?

01:49:49 - What's one thing that made you want to murder the other person while on trail?

01:52:22 - If you were to write a dating bio for the other person, in a hiking theme, what would you write?

01:55:38 - Give me your joint dating profile bio, as a couple, for a trail magic sugar momma

01:56:44 - Thanks for joining us Lauren & Henri!

SEGMENTS

Trek Propaganda: AT Surge in COVID Cases

Triple Crown of Cereals

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