Women in Wild Places

In this episode of Women in Wild Places, host Gabriella sits down with Dr. Iva Njunjić, a cave biologist, National Geographic Explorer, and co-founder of Taxon Expeditions, to explore the hidden worlds beneath our feet.Dr. Iva studies life in extreme underground environments, focusing on cave-dwelling insects and biodiversity in some of the most remote places on Earth. Her work has taken her to Europe’s deep cave systems, rainforests in Borneo, the Amazon and more. She shares how a childhood visit to a cave at age 13 sparked her lifelong passion for exploration and science, and what it takes physically, mentally, and technicallyto access places few humans ever see.In this conversation, we discuss:Why nearly 80% of Earth’s species may still be undiscoveredHow caves function as “living laboratories” for evolutionThe story behind naming a beetle after Leonardo DiCaprioWhy insects and small organisms are essential to ecosystemsHow citizen science helps protect biodiversityWhat it means to care for the natural world without burnoutPractical ways anyone can support conservation in daily lifeDr. Iva also explains how Taxon Expeditions allows everyday people to join real scientific research expeditions and help document new species around the world.This episode is for anyone interested in conservation, biodiversity, cave exploration, citizen science, environmental protection, and reconnecting with nature above ground and below.🎧 Listen now to learn how paying attention to the smallest creatures can change how we see the planet.Links & Resources🔬 Dr. Iva NjunjićInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/cavernella/🌍 Taxon ExpeditionsWebsite: https://www.taxonexpeditions.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taxonexpeditions/🎙️ Women in Wild Places PodcastInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/womeninwildplaces/Host: https://www.instagram.com/outsidegabs/Substack: https://substack.com/@womeninwildplaces?Cover Image by Sotiris Kountouras / Taxon Expeditions

What does it mean to hunt as a deeply embodied, emotional, and relational practice?In this episode of Women in Wild Places, I sit down with writer and landscape architect Christie Green to explore hunting as a path to connection: to food, to place, to the animal world, and to our own bodies.Christie shares her journey of beginning to hunt later in life after growing up in Alaska, and how what started as a desire to harvest her own food became a personal and creative practice. Together, they talk about the sensory world of the hunt, the moment of deciding whether to take a life, the paradox of grief and gratitude, and what it feels like to see your own anatomy reflected in the body of an animal.We talk about why the topic has become so polarizing, and how these charged topics can actually open space for deeper dialogue, humility, and mutual respect.This is a conversation about nuance, belonging, and paying attention. Connect with Christie Green🌿 Website: https://www.christiegreen.net/📸 Instagram 📖 Moonlight ElkChristie's fashion brandConnect with Women in Wild Places📸 Instagram: @womeninwildplacesJoin the free community on SubstackShop essential gear

In this episode of Women in Wild Places, I’m joined by Amanda Monthei, a former hotshot wildland firefighter, writer, and the creator of the Life With Fire podcast, for a deep, thoughtful conversation about wildfire, creativity, and what it means to live and work inside powerful & uncontrollable landscapes.Amanda spent multiple seasons working on fire crews and hotshotting, witnessing massive wildfires most people will never experience up close. Through years on the line, she came to understand something many of us resist: fire is never really “in control,” and the idea that humans can fully control it is largely a myth.We talk about what it’s actually like to live in survival mode all summer, the nervous-system crash that comes in the off season, and the emotional and psychological toll of increasingly long, intense fire seasons. Amanda shares what it means to see communities burn, to work inside catastrophe, and to carry that weight long after the season ends.We also explore her transition from firefighter to storyteller, and her current chapter pursuing an MFA in Creative Nonfiction at the University of Montana and returning to craft, attention, and creative practice as a way of making sense of the world. We talk about writing, observation, landscape, and how learning to really see the places we live changes how we tell stories.This episode is about hotshotting, the creative process, and how living with uncontrollable forces shapes the way we pay attention, write, and understand our place in the world. It’s also about humility, limits, fire ecology, and what wildfire teaches us about being human in a changing climate.Connect with AmandaListen to her podcast: Life With FireFollow her on Instagram: @a_montheiCheck out her website and SubstackConnect with Women in Wild PlacesFollow us on Instagram: @womeninwildplaces @outsidegabsJoin our SubstackSubscribe to our PatreonIf you loved this episode, please consider following the show, leaving a rating or review, and sharing it with someone who loves wild places, good stories, and thoughtful conversations about the world we live in.Note: Toward the end of the episode, Amanda accidentally say “prescribed fire councils” when she meant to say “prescribed burn associations.”

Performing aerial acrobatics suspended over glaciers sounds like a scene from a dream. For aerial artist and climate advocate Sasha Galitzki, it’s home. In frozen landscapes where ice shifts and snow falls, Sasha brings movement to places that are disappearing faster than we can comprehend, using art to help us feel what we can’t ignore.In this episode, we talk about how Sasha stumbled into pole dancing in her twenties, fell in love with the feeling of flying, and eventually combined her two great passions, the outdoors and aerial art, into breathtaking performances on glaciers and ice. She shares the logistics behind climbing anchors, rigging in the cold, and planning choreography down to her fingertips. We talk about risk, safety, and why grace means even more when conditions are harsh.We also dive into the story behind her new film Embers: losing her home in the Jasper wildfire, returning to the ice year after year to witness glaciers recede, and how grief transformed into purpose. Cover art photo by Kris Andres @kristopherandresWatch + follow Sasha’s work here:Website: https://www.sasha-gali.com/Instagram (Sasha): https://www.instagram.com/sasha_gali/Wild Aerial Film: https://www.wild-aerial.com/wild-aerial-filmEmbers Film & Festival Info: https://www.wild-aerial.com/embersInstagram: womeninwildplacesHost: outsidegabsSupport the show + join the community on PatreonGear lists & episode-inspired kitsSubstack: https://substack.com/@womeninwildplaces

Kristy and Anna are twin mushers who race sled dogs across Alaska’s most remote wilderness.Racing sled dogs across Alaska’s vast wilderness is one of the most physically demanding and logistically complex endurance sports in the world. It means weeks of preparation, months of training, and days spent moving through snow, wind, darkness, and isolation alongside a team that cannot speak, but communicates constantly.In this episode, I sit down with identical twin sisters Kristy and Anna of Seeing Double Sled Dog Racing. Based in rural Alaska, they live and work together caring for, training, and racing with 32 sled dogs. Kristy and Anna share how a childhood fascination with mushing turned into a full-time lifestyle, how they found their way to Alaska, and why sled dog racing is not just a sport, but a long-term commitment to animals, routine, and place.We talk about what it actually takes to train a sled dog team leading up to hundred-mile days, how race days unfold from the starting line to remote checkpoints, and what it feels like to move through the wilderness when it seems like you might be the only people on earth. Kristy and Anna explain how they communicate with their dogs through body language and instinct, how they make hard decisions in the dogs’ best interest, and why trust is the foundation of everything they do.We also explore what many people misunderstand about sled dog racing, including why the dogs want to do this work, how they live fully in the present, and what it means to survive together as a team. This episode is about endurance, care, sisterhood, and the intelligence required to move responsibly through wild places.Follow Kristy and Anna and meet their dogs here:Website: https://seeingdoublesleddogracing.comInstagram: @seeingdoublesleddogracingFacebook: Seeing Double Sled Dog RacingFollow Women in Wild PlacesInstagram: @womeninwildplacesHost: @outsidegabsSupport the show & help keep these stories alive through our PatreonJoin our community on Substack

Speed climbing the Yosemite Triple Crown, El Capitan, Half Dome, and Mount Watkins in under 24 hours, has always lived in the realm of legendary, and until recently, it was something dominated entirely by men. In this episode, I sit down with speed climber and designer Kate Kelleghan, who, along with her partner Laura Pineau, became the first women to complete the Yosemite Triple Crown in under 24 hours.We talk about how Kate was once an emo art kid who walked the mile on purpose who became an obsessive trail runner and then a climber. She shares how joining the Colorado Mountain Club and Yosemite Search and Rescue (YoSAR) gave her mentors, partners, and friends who took her big goals seriously. We dig into the nerdy side of speed climbing like spreadsheets, Coros data, gear notes in erasable pen and what it feels like to climb El Cap through the night with only a headlamp bubble around you.We also explore what it means to be a “competitive feminist,” to chase an audacious, history-making goal in a male-dominated space, and how Kate is thinking about mentoring the next wave of women climbers. This one is about big walls, big math, and even bigger belief.She shares updates about the Triple Crown documentary, guiding trips, and plenty of behind-the-scenes moments here:Instagram: @katekelleghanJoin her Greece climbing + adventure trip: https://www.sunrise-mindset.com/greecePodcast: Women in Wild Places — all episodes available on every major platformInstagram: @womeninwildplacesHost: @outsidegabsCheck out my curated gear lists + episode-inspired kits:Gear & kits: https://shopmy.us/outsidegabsSupport the show & the stories you love:WIWP Patreon

Adventure photographer Abbi Hearne joins me to talk about what it means to photograph love in landscapes that are literally changing beneath our feet. We get into her early years building a life off the traditional path, her deep connection to Alaska’s glaciers, and how climate grief and her father’s terminal illness became intertwined.We also talk about raising her daughter in wild places, returning to the same canyons and lakes year after year, and why she treats landscapes like characters in her work. This is a conversation about love, loss, presence, and choosing a life that’s true to you.Connect with AbbiInstagram: @abbihearne, @thehearnesWebsite: thehearnes.comConnect with Women in Wild PlacesInstagram: @womeninwildplacesHost: @outsidegabsGear Lists: https://shopmy.us/outsidegabs

Staying adventurous after having a baby is one of the questions I get asked most so in this solo episode, I’m sharing my honest take:The emotional + physical realities of returning to running, climbing, and mountain objectivesHow pregnancy and postpartum reshaped, but didn’t erase, my adventurous identityThe exhaustion, healing, and breastfeeding logistics no one warned me aboutMicro-adventures, short windows, and the small practices that helped me feel like myself againHow our family approaches outdoor life with a babyIf you’re pregnant, postpartum, or simply wondering how motherhood and outdoor identity overlap, this is a grounded, real look at staying connected to wild places while raising a little one.Connect with Women in Wild PlacesInstagram: @womeninwildplacesHost: @outsidegabsGear Lists from Episode: https://shopmy.us/outsidegabs

In this episode of Women in Wild Places, I talk with alpinist and adaptive athlete Kimber Cross—a kindergarten teacher turned ice climber who built her own prosthetic tool and is now taking on major alpine routes like the Moose’s Tooth.We get into her journey from hiding her limb difference to becoming her own representation, the story behind her ice tool prosthetic, unconscious bias in adaptive sport, and how she balances teaching, training, and big mountain goals with her mantra: can’t → will → did.Connect with Kimber:Instagram: @kimberbelleWebsite: https://www.kimberbelle.comConnect with Women in Wild Places:Instagram: @womeninwildplacesHost: @outsidegabsGear Lists: https://shopmy.us/outsidegabsIf this episode inspires you, share it with a friend or tag us on Instagram.

If you’ve ever looked at mountain biking and thought, that looks incredible, but also terrifying, this episode is for you.This week on Women in Wild Places, I talk with Emily Jordan, mountain biker, mom, brand leader, and Beacon, NY local, about what it means to find flow, community, and courage on the trail and in motherhood.Emily grew up in Portland, Oregon, hating the outdoors. A stolen commuter bike led her to her first mountain bike and eventually to hauling a 40-pound setup over the Tour de Mont Blanc. We talk about learning to ride through fear, finding “hype girls” who cheer each other on, and redefining adventure after becoming a parent.It’s a conversation about joy, risk, guilt, and doing the things that make you feel alive, even (and especially) after baby.🌿 Listen & connect:→ Join the Women in Wild Places community on Substack for stories, gear, and episode notes→ Follow along on Instagram @womeninwildplaces→ Shop my curated gear list for outdoor moms.→ Share your story or say hi: womenandwildplaces@gmail.com

River runner Jess Parks has rowed the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon 14 times, but she didn’t start out “outdoorsy.” Once a NYC crew rower surrounded by skyscrapers, a single road trip west changed her trajectory. In this episode, we talk about how she went from rowing in city rivers to guiding whitewater in Colorado, finding her home in Alaska, and building a life around big water, community, and mentorship.Jess shares how it feels to drop into the rapids with heart racing, muscles firing, everything else falling away, and how risk, awe, and mentorship intertwine on the river. We also explore what it means to be a woman at the oars, to teach others, and to recognize those once-in-a-lifetime canyon moments while they’re happening.If you’ve ever dreamed of rowing the Grand Canyon, chasing adventure, or saying yes before you feel ready — this one’s for you.Listen & Connect:Instagram: @womeninwildplacesCommunity: WomenInWildPlaces.Substack.comShare your story: Email womeninwildplaces@gmail.com with Trail Dispatch in the subject lineGear Kit: Shop my curated Grand Canyon + river trip gear shopmy.us/collections/2652763

Trail runners Sam Cash (@cruzoutside) and Kristi Confortin (@kristialexiis) join Gabriella to talk about courage, community, and finding belonging through movement. As leaders of Trail Sisters Catskills, they share how running together builds sisterhood and confidence in the mountains they call home.Trail Sisters is a nationwide organization. To learn more, follow @trailsisterscatskills and visit https://trailsisters.net/. Don’t miss an episode. Follow @womeninwildplaces, and visit womeninwildplaces.substack.com to join the community. Share your story for Trail Dispatch at womeninwildplaces@gmail.com.

In this first episode of Women in Wild Places, I share my journey of climbing Denali and what it taught me about strength, self-doubt, and belonging. From months of training and gear challenges to moments of awe high above the clouds, this experience reminded me how much growth comes from stepping outside your comfort zone. I talk about what it’s like to be part of the 19% of women who climb Denali, how community support can carry you through hard moments, and why connecting with nature brings out our deepest sense of life force and purpose.