Tough Girl Podcast Lyla "Sugar" Harrod – Triple Crown Hiker & Appalachian Trail Record Breaker
Growing up near Boston, Sugar discovered hiking in her early twenties while exploring the White Mountains of New Hampshire. After getting sober at 30, she found herself with the clarity, time and capacity to pursue the life she truly wanted. What followed was a decision to live authentically, prioritise long-distance hiking, and become what she proudly calls a professional dirtbag.
In 2021, Sugar set out on the Appalachian Trail. While she knew she was a strong hiker, she also faced the uncertainty of what it would mean to walk the trail as a trans woman. Feeling the isolation of not seeing many stories like her own pushed her to begin writing, speaking openly, and becoming someone other queer and trans hikers could reach out to.
Since then, she has become the first known trans woman to complete the Triple Crown of long-distance hiking, founded TrailQTs – a free mentoring programme supporting first-time queer and trans thru-hikers – and in 2024 pioneered the Divide to Crest Route, a 3,000-mile backcountry journey from the Mexican border in New Mexico to the Canadian border in Washington.
In 2025, Sugar set a new women's self-supported speed record on the Appalachian Trail southbound, breaking the previous record by more than a day and a half.
In this episode, we dive into sobriety, transition, representation, burnout, post-trail blues, building community, and what it really takes to push the body day after day. Sugar also shares practical advice on training, fuelling on a budget, protecting your feet, and why big dreams are built through small, steady steps.
This is a conversation about courage, visibility, and creating the path you wish had existed when you started.
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Show notes
- Who is Lyla
- Using she/her programs
- From the North East of the USA
- Living in New Hampshire
- Working with kids and doing bar tending and other odd jobs
- Growing up just north of Boston, on the North shore, about 3 hrs away from the Appalachian Trail
- Playing team sports
- Getting into hiking in her early 20s, with the help of a friend
- Hiking in the White Mountains in New Hampshire
- Getting sober at 30 years old and being sober for over 8 years now
- How it changed her life, having more time and capacity to do more hiking
- Spending time exploring the local trails in the area
- Starting her gender transition
- Knowing she was trans in her late 20s but not having the capacity to do anything about it
- Getting sober and how it opened up lots of doors for herself
- Living her authentic life
- Deciding to leave her job, sell her car and go and hike the Appalachian Trail
- Hiking the Appalachian Trail in late March 2021
- Spending the past 5 years making long distance hiking her priority
- Being a professional dirtbag
- Channeling all of her energy and resources into hiking
- Managing fears and concerns before taking on the Appalachian Trail
- Knowing she was a strong hiker
- Having concerns related to being a trans woman on trail and what unique challenges she would face
- Trying to learn more about other trans experiences on the Appalachian Trail
- Feeling a bit alone and not wanting others to feel the same way
- Deciding to write for an outdoor website called the trek
- Sharing more of her life online
- The power of seeing trans people in the outdoors
- Speaking publicly and telling her authentic story
- Trying to be someone queer and trans folk can reach out to
- Wanting to be accessible for other people
- Documenting and sharing her story while hiking
- Blog post - Trans competent on trail
- Magical moments while being on the trail
- Getting her trail name "Sugar"
- Suffering with burnout and adventure blues?
- Post trail depression and planning for it
- Mental health and the importance of spending quality time in nature
- Mental health habits and what's worked for her
- Having a rich community of people in her support network
- Having people who understand where you're coming from
- Having good friends
- Spending time along
- Self supported FKT SOBO on the Appalachian Trail
- Pushing yourself hard while on the trail
- Day 1 of the project and why it was a year before starting on the trail
- The first couple of weeks and the challenging terrain
- Why it's fun for her
- The physical challenge for her body and thinking more about millage
- Wanting to know how much she could push her body
- The planning and preparation before the start of the hike
- The Divide to Crest route
- Trying to figure out how to make it financially viable
- Looking for sponsorship from outdoor brands
- Physically training and breaking it down into 3 separate chapters
- The Arizona Trail
- Why your feet are everything
- The New England Trail
- Using her home as basecamp
- Dealing with a little tendonitis at the start
- Getting hiker legs
- Food and nutrition while on the trail
- Taking a B vitamin supplement every day to help with energy
- Taking electrolytes especially with the hot weather
- Maple syrup and salt
- Doing the trail on a budget - salt, fat, carbs….
- Eating foods that she can stomach while on the trail
- The importance of getting calories in
- The idea behind the Divide to Crest Route
- Getting into route creation
- The Great Basin Trail
- Finding out more info about the Divide to Crest Route
- How to connect with Lyla on social media
- Finals words of advice for women who want to take on a new challenge and step outside their comfort zone
- Think about scaffolding
- Why you don't need to do everything at once.
- Build your skillsets over time
- What can you do this year to move you closer to your goal.
Social Media
Instagram @seltzerskelter