A PCT thru-hiker lets his sister make a podcast out of his personal journal

Benjamin Drachman is sharing his audio journal with his sister Julia, while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. (Photo courtesy Julia Drachman)

“Every person that my brother passes [on the Pacific Crest Trail], he becomes friends with. … Meanwhile, I’m living in a city — in the middle of Seattle — and I just walk through town with my headphones on and don’t make eye contact.”
— Julia Drachman

When Benjamin Drachman announced that he wanted to keep an audio journal during his thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail, his sister Julia saw an opportunity: Why not make it into a podcast?

Benjamin agreed to send her his recordings — all of them.

The resulting podcast is called The Attempt. Each episode, Julia weaves together highlights from Benjamin’s journal, to create a narrative about his journey. It’s a deeply personal account of a long-distance backpacking trip — one that makes you laugh, and cringe, and reflect on your own life choices.

On this episode of Out There, we give you a taste of The Attempt, and we talk with Julia about what it’s like telling such an intimate story about a sibling.