A digital field guide and printable planner, out this autumn. Join the waitlist and you'll get it first, at a launch price for the people who signed up before it existed.
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Suzanne van der Veeken has been featured in print and on TV, for sailing expeditions, a rip-current rescue and a Dominica trail people said couldn't be walked
You don't have to start with 850 kilometres
My first trips weren't the GR11. They were five days in Peru with a team, Fuerteventura with borrowed gear, then an island at a time, then a Pyrenean section. Eventually I walked 850 kilometres across the Pyrenees in fifty days. Each step made the next one look normal, so start on the first one.
The bar is lower than you think
You can start with one night. You can walk slowly. You can stop for tea. You can change your plans. You can turn around. You can go home early.
And if you come home thinking, I want to do that again, you've already got your answer.
Start small, and start now.
How you get from here to the trail
Nine chapters on the how: how to find a trail that fits you and research it yourself, how to get your body ready, what to carry, how to feed yourself and find water, where to sleep, how to stay safe, and what to expect out there. Plus a printable planner and a resource library, in one guide you can read on your phone or print at home.
See if this is for you
Whether this is for you at all: why hike, what stops people, the conversations to have with yourself, your partner and your work, and the fitness question.
Choose your first trail
Seven trails I'd point a friend to, from a long weekend to a few weeks, how to find one that fits your time, your budget, the weather you like and whether you want company, and where to dig up the information on it yourself.
Plan your hike
How many hours a day you'll walk, how much time and money it takes, how to save for it, the research checklist, and getting to the start and home from the end.
Prepare your body
A walking habit in the months before, the shake-down trip that shows you what you've missed, the two weeks before you leave, and what I'd skip.
Pack smart
How to carry less without buying everything: rent, borrow, buy secondhand, the big four, my full setup at around 6.5 kg base weight, and two mistakes I made with overpacking and broken tent poles.
Food and water
What to eat and how to keep water simple: resupply in Spain, my chai and savoury trail mixes, foraging, digestion on trail, and how I find, filter and carry water.
Camp life and body care
Where you can sleep and what's allowed, looking after feet and knees, hygiene and the toilet, Ayurveda on trail, and trail life as a woman.
Stay safe
Two rules that come before everything else, then apps and maps, weather, the satellite communicator, going solo, and hiking with a dog.
On trail, and after
What the first three days feel like, why people quit, how to handle a bad day and when not to push through, and the first two weeks home.
Plus a printable planner that covers research, gear, body, logistics, food, safety, work and coming home, a resource library of the gear, apps, weather sources, books and insurance I use, and trail videos linked throughout.
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Suzanne van der Veeken
Written from experience
I've walked more than 2,000 kilometres across eleven long-distance trails, including the GR11 across the Pyrenees in fifty days, the Fisherman's Trail, the GR131 across three Canary Islands and the Waitukubuli in Dominica, a lot of it with my dog Wingo. A few of those routes I put together myself, linking shorter trails into a loop so the logistics stayed simple. In Dominica we were among the first to walk the whole Waitukubuli National Trail in one go after Hurricane Maria, which put us in the national newspaper twice. Much of what I know I learned walking beside Jonatan, who has hiked the Pacific Crest Trail and the Appalachian Trail and, as you read this, is walking across America a third time on the Continental Divide Trail.
Hiking is part of how I live, and I've lived this way full time for twenty years. I'm either in the van, on a boat or on the trail, the hiking gear lives in the van, and when I end up somewhere worth walking, I go. Before the trails came ten years at sea, more than 50,000 nautical miles and five Atlantic crossings as crew, six years living in a van, two books, and Ayurveda, which I studied in Kerala and carry onto the trail.
I'm writing this from my own trail notes, the mistakes I've made, and the questions people ask under my hiking videos. Where I haven't walked a trail myself, I've marked it as researched.
I also run Ocean Nomads, a community for people who want to live a little wilder, explore a little further, and do it with good people. The YouTube channel was named on r/hikinggear among four favourite European hiking channels.
20
years living nomadically
50000
nautical miles at sea
5
Atlantic crossings
2000
kilometres on foot
From the trail
This is the GR11, 850 kilometres across the Pyrenees with Wingo. The guide comes out of trips like this one.
A few things people have said about the videos and the first book.
“I'm not even a hiking person, but your video makes me feel like I should do it some time.”
June, YouTube, trail hygiene video
“It now feels possible, achievable and a very real prospect.”
John, Goodreads, on her first book
“Really valuable pieces of advice! You’re a real outdoor pro!”
JAloja, YouTube, trail hygiene video
“Thanks for showing both the good and bad times. Make it feel whole.”
Mspromises, YouTube, GR11 recap
“A great summary of your experiences as a Thru-Hikeretta, authentic and full of very wise words.”
J.D., YouTube, GR11 recap
“She's turned hitching rides on boats from a sketchy endeavour into a graceful art. Do as she says.”
Cliff Lyon, captain, on her first book
Is this for you?
- You keep thinking about doing a few nights on a trail but don't quite know where to start.
- You've done day hikes, but carrying everything for several days feels like a different game.
- You want to hike independently without becoming obsessed with gear.
- You're excited about the adventure and slightly nervous about the practical stuff.
- You keep saving hiking videos and thinking “one day”, but haven't quite made the leap.
- You'd love to hike somewhere bigger one day, and your first trip might be four days on a coastal path.
What you won't find in it
- A perfect packing list you have to buy
- A prescribed pace you have to hit
- A fitness test you need to pass
- A “right” way to hike
- Pressure to finish every trail you start
What you will find
- What matters and what doesn't
- Decisions that fit you
- A way to start with what you have
- Confidence built by doing
- Your own way of being outside
A few things you might be wondering
Is this suitable if I've never backpacked before?
Yes, that's exactly who I wrote it for, and a first overnight counts.
How much time do I need?
A long weekend is enough for a real first trip, and the planning chapter fits the rest to the time you have.
Is this a trail guide?
No, it shows you how to find a trail that fits you and how to dig up what you need to know about it yourself, then how to get ready for it.
Do I need ultralight gear?
You don't need ultralight gear. The packing chapter starts with borrowing, renting and secondhand, and lets the trail teach you the rest.
When is it ready?
It's coming this autumn, and the waitlist gets the email the day it's out, with the launch price.
Can I hike with my dog?
Yes, there's a section on it. Wingo walked most of the GR11 with me, so paws, heat, water and pacing are covered.
On its way
Join the waitlist
Leave your email and you'll hear the day Your First Hike is ready, this autumn. People on the list get the launch price before it goes up.
One email when it is ready, with the launch price. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Ready to go?
You don't have to know yet how far you'll walk, where you'll go next, or whether you'll love it.
Start with a few nights. The rest can come later.
Join the waitlist
