Episode Details

In today's episode of Backpacker Radio, presented by The Trek, brought to you by Topo Athletic, we're joined by Maytal Agasi, known on trail as Carrot Top. In this episode, we learn how a road trip in a mid-size SUV with her two brothers sparked Carrot Top's entry into the world of thru-hiking. She shares how she benefitted massively from both solo and group thru-hikes. We chat about her time on the JMT, Colorado Trail, and PCT, and we take a deeper dive into her most recent trek on the Camino de Costa Rica, covering standout cultural elements, landscape highlights, the incredibly muggy weather, rich wildlife (including venomous snakes and sloths), managing language barriers, unique logistical challenges, and more.

A quick note: I made a big time dumb guy mistake. About 30 minutes into the interview, I realized our audio recorder wasn't rolling. The first 36 minutes of the interview have lower audio quality than usual. That portion still offers important context about Maytal's journey into the outdoors, but if it's too distracting, the audio quality improves at the 36-minute mark of the interview.

Trigger warning: This interview includes discussion of suicide. If this is a sensitive topic for you, we recommend skipping ahead to the point where the audio improves—again 36 minutes into the interview.

We wrap the show with another clue about our super secret special guest for the upcoming live podcast in Austin, what ridiculous outfit we'd hike in forever, the Triple Crown of Colorado stereotypes, and a disturbing story of an international hiker who was detained, deported, and banned from the U.S. on her way to hike the Arizona Trail.

Topo Athletic: Use code "TREKWINTER15" at topoathletic.com.

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AG1: Get your free $79 gift at drinkag1.com/backpacker.

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Interview with Maytal "Carrottop" Agasi

• Maytal's Instagram
• Camino de Costa Rica

Time stamps & Questions

00:06:10 - Reminders: Sign up for the Trek's newsletter, join us for our live show in Austin, listen to our episodes ad-free on Patreon, and apply to blog for the Trek!

00:10:00 - Audio note

00:12:10 - Introducing Maytal

00:15:30 - How did you get your trail name?

00:16:05 - What does a garden educator do?

00:17:24 - What is the best plant?

00:19:40 - How did you get into hiking?

00:21:23 - Why don't you fight with your siblings?

00:24:00 - Discussion about Maytal's roadtrip

00:25:23 - Are your parents hippie-adjacent?

00:27:08 - What's your favorite on-trail meal to make?

00:30:50 - Do you taste the meals before dehydrating them?

00:32:44 - How did you decide to hike the JMT?

00:34:10 - What happened to your dad?

00:38:30 - How do you process things as well as enjoy