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Arlette Laan Apple Pie🏳️‍🌈🇳🇱🇺🇸

@arlette_laan

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First woman to hike all 11 national scenic trails.
All season backpacker ❄️🍃☀️🍁
Hiking Guide, Doll maker @redlineguiding @arlettelaanfibercreations

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Hi! My name is Arlette and I love my body. I have bones, I have muscles, I have fat. The bones are strong, the muscles are big, the fat comes, goes, or stays forever.
If there is one thing that hiking has taught me it’s that my body is amazing. It takes me to all the places I want to go. It can scramble up rocks in the White Mountains, it can walk through the desert in California, it can walk through winter in Maine.

My body helps me make my dreams reality.

It houses my mind, my energy, my determination.

I will not deny my body of ice cream or pie so I can try to fit someone’s else image of what I ‘should’ look like. And even if I did I still wouldn’t fit their mold because my body type is not the body type featured in the magazines.

Bottom line is, whether I’m heavier or lighter, my body gets me where I want to go. And I love it for that. ❤️💪🏼

I’m writing this in response to some of the comments I’ve gotten on my chubbiness. And I will not make myself small, I will continue to take up space in the outdoors. I belong, you belong.
#mybodygotmehere
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#gossamergear #takelessdomore #lightheartgear #hikertrashforlife #nationalscenictrails #neverstopexploring #longdistancehiking #thruhike #girlswhobackpack #thruhikingwomen #guidelife #redlineguiding #wildwanderer #thetrek #goingfarout #iceagetrail by @arlette_laan

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4 years ago

Yay!!! I finished all 11 national scenic trails today!!!
Huge thanks to all those who cheered me on along the way. ❤️❤️❤️ Your support means a lot to me!!
There is a fun video on the @iceagetrailorg Instagram. I don’t know how to share it. Thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate!! It means a lot. ❤️❤️❤️
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#gossamergear #takelessdomore #lightheartgear #hikertrashforlife #nationalscenictrails #neverstopexploring #longdistancehiking #thruhike #girlswhobackpack #thruhikingwomen #guidelife #redlineguiding #wildwanderer #thetrek #goingfarout #iceagetrail #appalachiantrail #pacificcresttrail #continentaldividetrail #arizonatrail #newenglandtrail #pacificnorthwesttrail #northcountrytrail taken in Ice Age Trail by @arlette_laan

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4 years ago

We continue our way up the trail soon reaching the open tentsites marked in the FarOut app. We are very happy that we stayed at our site in the trees last night. It’s breezy and exposed and would have made for a terrible night’s sleep.
It’s a long climb up with good views. Bears seem to like this trail too as there are numerous large (old) bear poops along the way. The shrubs must have tasty berries in season.
It warms up as we climb and we are happy when we finally reach a saddle and tree cover. We could go 1.5 miles extra one way to the Sierra Butted lookout tower but we don’t feel like it and I’m still surprised I hiked it during my thru hike.
The temperature drops dramatically in the shade and wind and now we’re chilly again. Long pleasant switchbacks bring us down to Tamarack lake where we have lunch and fill up on water.
Now it’s heating up again which is unfortunate since we have another long climb ahead and it’s all in the open. The sun is brutal and I finally break out my umbrella to make it bearable. I’m not a happy camper. We stop at a water source where I sit in the shade and finally cool off. I’m feeling better now especially since there is a decent breeze.
The walking is nicer now and we have some more views over lakes in the distance. We stop at Summit lake to get water and camp. There is a bird making weird sounds and owls were hooting. by @arlette_laan

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2 days ago

The first few miles of the morning are easy hiking through a partially clear cut forest. We then hit a lot of switchbacks getting us downhill to Milton creek. They are either rocky or overgrown and not very enjoyable but we finally make it to the bottom and the creek. The lower we get, the more fall colors we see and we have a good time hiking on an old road bed, easy going again. We criss cross the creek on bridges and have some great views over treed valleys and the Sierra Buttes up ahead. The last mile or so we head slightly uphill and are swarmed by gnats, not fun.
The last bridge spans a neat gorge with cascades below.
We hesitate to hitch into town since there is no good spot for a car to pull over but as soon as we stick out our thumb a car stops and offers us a ride. Yay! The driver is a local and says the town is very thankful for the hikers since they keep the store and post office open with their business.
Unlucky for us is that due to the high winds the town’s power has been shut off and the milkshakes and burgers we dreamed of aren’t happening. But luckily the store is still open and they have our package and will still make sandwiches. Hurray!
I was hoping to send a few things home at the post office next door but without power they can’t help me. Bummer.
We buy a few more things at the store and then head off to the community center to reorganize. Then it’s back to the trail. Another quick hitch by a PCT veteran named “Baby”. A super nice guy who rearranges the back of his pickup to make space for me and our packs.
Powered by a sugar overload I march my heavy pack up the switchbacks, grateful for the shade and breeze. We pick up some water at switchback spring and continue another .9 to a spot on an old roadbed just wide enough for us to cowboy camp toe to toe. The wind above sounds fierce, I’m glad we didn’t push for the exposed tent sites up above. by @arlette_laan

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3 days ago

Temperatures overnight were in the mid 30’s but we were nice and cozy. The first night I used my extra fleece blanket around my legs.
I layered my clothes ready for another brisk day but it warmed up nicely and got back up to 60 degrees in the late afternoon. I kept my leggings on as long as I could stand because I didn’t want to stop and deal with the whole costume change.
The day was wonderfully peaceful, calm weather and easy trail. Lots of ridge walking with expansive views.
Highlights were the volcanic lava rocks and the cool trees.
We saw only two hikers today, both PCT hikers. One a late sobo and one a flip flop nobo about to finish at echo lake.
We were making good time and ended up hiking our longest day yet at 18.6 miles! #pct2026 #pacificcresttrail #pacificcresttrail2026 by @arlette_laan

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4 days ago

We get back to the trail around 10 am and start hiking up. While it never did rain in Truckee yesterday, it definitely did grapple in the mountains. We see remnants of the white stuff along the trail.
We have views of Donner lake and the old railway tunnel as we climb. We reach I-80 where there is a giant culvert for the hikers providing passage underneath the interstate. Then it’s up and down and up and down. All fairly gradual which is good because we it takes us a while to get our uphill breathing regulated again.
It’s pretty chilly all day between mid 40’s to low 50’s. It makes a huge difference whether we are on the sunny slopes out of the wind or in the shady woods with a stiff breeze. Gloves and hats come on and off. I start with my sweater over my dress but that gets too sweaty but without it it is too cold. Eventually I put my long sleeve baselayer underneath the dress and that works better. We see a group of backpackers coming out and otherwise a few day hikers and runners. More people than we had guessed.
We are camped near a pretty flowing stream at a nice tent site. Day 20, 13.6 miles. White rock creek. #pacificcresttrail #pct2026 #pacificcresttrail2026 by @arlette_laan

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5 days ago

One of the cool things about thru hiking is that besides the beautiful scenery, you run into the most interesting people. We got lucky meeting Sarah who was part of the search and rescue team we met the other day. She offered to give us a ride into town and we met up with her and her husband for dinner that night. An evening of exchanging adventure stories followed. And now we have a friend in Truckee. 😊 (should’ve gotten a picture!) by @arlette_laan

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6 days ago

But how windy was it really? #pacificcresttrail #pct2026 by @arlette_laan

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7 days ago

When snot blows sideways….
We wake up to howling winds above us, it does not sounds inviting. It is safe for us to go back up high? We don’t know. We discuss options and decide to give it a go and see how bad it is on our route.
In the morning we actually stay shielded from the wind and have an enjoyable hike. We have a nice chat with Pauline who is finishing up her flop flop thru hike today. We also run into one more PCT sobo hiker and a group of search and rescue volunteers. As we climb up to Tinker knob we are no longer protected and get hit by the wind full force. We have our mittens and buffs handy to put on when needed. We see several day hiker bundled up and we soon do the same. After a selfie with the knob and the sign, we continue on and see our trail fully exposed on the ridge for miles and miles. Gusts jostle us around and sometimes we have to stay put to brace ourselves. We manage to stay upright and are happy when we have short sections with trees to give us some relief. We push on all the way down to the Donner peak trailhead thinking we’d get out of the wind but even here we hear it blow. Luckily we found a protected site and are warm and cozy. #pct2026 #pacificcresttrail by @arlette_laan

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7 days ago

Day 16, 17.3 miles

The morning hike is easy and uneventful. We make fast miles and I’m feeling strong. After Barker pass the trail gets back in the open and we see more volcanic rock features. We also start getting more views of Lake Tahoe in the distance. After lunch we climb back up many switchbacks. I love the big trees with the bright green moss. We leave the tahoe rim trail. Soon after we meet our only two hikers of the day. One is soon to finish his PCT by hiking this last section. We chat a bit about trails which is always fun.
Higher up the trail turns into a windy ridge walk. The views are great but the wind wears me out. We are both happy when we get back into the woods and out of the wind. Many downhill switchbacks later we finally make it to a lovely tent site near a small creek. #pacificcresttrail #pct2026 by @arlette_laan

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9 days ago

From Dick’s pass to Dick’s to Richardson lake but Fontanillis lake was the prettiest. 😁

Day 15, 17.3 miles
An early morning wake up and fast pack up gets us on trail before 7 am. This is good because we have a several miles climb up to Dick’s pass and we want to beat the hot sun. Along the way we have stunning views over the lakes we hiked by yesterday and some new ones below the pass. Granite and volcanic peaks make for a beautiful back drop. Just before the pass there is a viewpoint over Dick’s lake up ahead and the previous basin down below. We are still meeting southbound PCT hikers and other hikers making 11 total for the day.
We take a break at gorgeous Fontanillis lake which looks inviting for a swim but my left foot cramps up as soon as I put it in the water so that’s a no go. The rest of the day has us on fairly easy trail through not very exciting scenery. A forest walk with lots of dead trees. We manage to make it out of the desolation wilderness and to Richardson lake for a nice campsite. Oh I saw a crawfish in the lake! #pct2026 #pacificcresttrail by @arlette_laan

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10 days ago

Day 14, 11.3 miles
We pack up after breakfast and get an uber back to the trailhead.
We walk the last few miles to Echo lake and are finally done with the Sierra section of the Farout app and onto the Northern California section!
The walk along Echo lake is really pretty albeit a bit too hot and sunny for me. How is it 80 degrees on October 7th? There are some day hikers and other backpackers and still two sobo PCT hikers. One we meet in the parking lot and the other at Aloha Lake. I manage to trip on a rock just before Aloha Lake and land on my left hand and my knees. I’m not scraped up much and I hope I didn’t do any damage.
Aloha lake isn’t as pretty as I remember as the water is really low right now. Lots of dark rocks and not as much water, it’s looking pretty desolate which is actually appropriate since we have entered the desolation wilderness. We get some water and take a break. The original plan was to camp here but it’s still early and we’re not as enchanted as we thought we’d be. We hike on past Heather lake which is gorgeous with deep waters and a rocky trail with an amazing juniper. Then it’s on to Susie Lake where we find a sweet spot near the water. There are other campers here but they are on the other side of the lake and we have this site to ourselves. My knee does hurt a bit but hopefully it’ll fine in the morning. by @arlette_laan

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11 days ago