Fancy Feast 2.0: Drinking “pig water,” walking through Poodle-Dog Bush, and working on trails with the PNTA (BPR #342)

On today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, presented by LMNT, we are joined once again by our friend and Hall of Fame holder, Marla Davidson, better known as «Fancy Feast.»

Fancy Feast is a wealth of lore and unfortunate and embarrassing stories. She shares a nasty medical mishap involving the poodle dog on the PCT; we recall her time in the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps, where she and other “malnourished minors” subsisted on moldy bread and Sriracha, which was presented as a vegetable.

Fancy Feast gives us an overview of her 2024 PCT and CDT calendar hikes, her experience navigating the Hayduke Trail with Horsepower (former guest) after he convinced her with a PowerPoint presentation, and the hilarious mismatch in hiking styles of this somewhat random couple.

She details what it’s like to be a PNTA team leader and the associated challenges in light of funding cuts and teams being reduced to a skeleton staff.

Feast also shares notable stories from his international travels, including a “pig water” disaster in the Andes, his time at the Green Mountain Club with a persistent bear who turned his food box into a rolling piñata, and his fiery takes on “main character energy” and hiker rights.

We end the show with whether we’d rather have three butts or just one, the triple crown of phobias or mild but particular phobias, and the news of how a Hayduke hiker got stuck in quicksand. Yes, really.

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Interview with Marla Davidson aka Fancy Feast

Timestamps and questions

00:05:05 – Reminders: Apply as a vlog or blog for Trek, apply to be a trail correspondent, listen to our episodes ad-free on Patreonand subscribe to The Trek Youtube!

00:10:00 – Fancy Feast Presentation

00:14:00 – Remind us of the story of the origin of your trail name

00:19:25 – What was the first trail you walked after being on the podcast?

00:22:50 – Tell us about your encounter with Bush the poodle dog.

00:31:55 – Which was worse, a poodle bush or poison ivy?

00:33:17 – How was your experience in the conservation corps?

00:37:40 – Tell us your bear story

00:42:20 – How did you handle the CDT when you don’t like black bears?

00:45:50 – What is the ManHump/HumpMan challenge?

00:50:00 – Discussion on Fancy Feast’s Allegheny Trail FKT attempt

00:52:30 – Why do you think you should have dropped out of school to work seasonally?

01:00:50 – Why did you go to Peru?

01:11:50 – Tell us about dumpster diving

01:19:12 – What did you think of the Oregon Coast Trail?

01:30:11 – At what point did you get a job at the PNTA?

01:36:25 – What about mayonnaise?

01:41:38 – What is your best strategy to prevent irritation?

01:42:53 – Tell us more about your trail maintenance work and the current status of the PNT.

01:46:08 – What volunteer opportunities exist with PNTA?

01:48:11 – Tell us how to work smarter and harder

01:53:55 – How would a former hiker get involved in volunteering?

02:03:30 – How did you end up at the Hayduke?

02:13:50 – What was it like walking with Horsepower?

02:16:15 – Did the Hayduke make you want to do more off-piste routes?

02:20:10 – What questions should you ask someone you might walk with?

02:27:25 – Tell us about the Ice Age Trail

02:42:10 – Stay Salty Question: What is your best view of the backpacking world?

Segments

Propaganda Clues: Hiker stuck in quicksand on Hayduke Trail: “Nothing seemed unusual or dangerous” by Kelly Floro

QOTD: Would you rather have one butt or three butts?

Triple Crown of phobias or mild but particular discomforts

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5 star review

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