Julianne Mahoney, left, and Audrey Payne, right, the big winners. Photos: Visit Carson City//Instagram
Last year, Visit Carson City announced it would give a cash prize to two lucky Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) hikers. The marketing ploy, coined the Carson City to Canada Quest, was created to bring attention to the newly minted Capital to Tahoe Trail, which connects Carson City to the PCT and Tahoe Rim Trail. The winners would have to start a journey in Carson City, jump on the PCT northbound, and collect their cash prize once they arrived in Canada.
After receiving 350 applications worldwide, two female hikers were selected to take on the journey: Julianne Mahoney and Audrey Payne. Carson City strategically picked hikers who, aside from being capable, would be able to amplify their messaging with “strong storytelling ability.” Both outdoorswomen are fairly successful content creators: Mahoney has 17.8k Instagram followers, 66.8k TikTok followers, and 11.9k YouTube subscribers, while Payne has 10k Instagram followers, 14.9k TikTok followers, and 7.8k YouTube subscribers.
Mahoney, originally from the Washington D.C. area, discovered her love for hiking at 18 when she came across a copy of A Journey North at a rummage sale. Her newfound love for hiking helped her overcome an eating disorder in high school. The PCT section hike will be her longest hike to date, as her previous longest trek was 600 miles on the Colorado Trail. She says she’s going to take her sweet time hiking the PCT and revealed that her biggest challenge will be staying well-nourished on a vegan diet, which will require strategic meal planning.
“I’m really looking forward to just relaxing into trail life,” Mahoney told Backpacker. “I love the simplicity of just having to wake up and walk. The magic that comes from moving through an environment by foot is something I’ve been craving again since my Colorado Trail hike.”
Mahoney was hiking at 13,000 feet in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains when she got the call that she’d been selected to undertake the journey. “I cried and smiled and jumped in the air at the fact that a year from that day, I’d already be on trail, getting paid to hike and share my experience!!!” Mahoney wrote on Instagram.
Mahoney also shared that she only has $14 in her bank account and is currently looking for part-time jobs, selling a lot of her gear, and searching for brand partnerships to cover the costs of the trek. She won’t receive the $5,000 until she completes the hike. She thinks she can complete the journey frugally for under $1,000.
Payne was raised in a family that cherished the outdoors. However, her truly life-changing experience came after she experienced a debilitating back injury and quit her job. She decided to take on the Appalachian Trail and wrote a memoir about the experience called Where the Rhododendrons Bloom. Now based in Boulder, Colorado, Payne is opting to complete the entire 2,600-mile PCT, starting at the Mexican border and taking a slight detour to Carson City.
“This contest has been a tremendous blessing for me as it has helped to give me the courage to step away from work and life for six months for a great adventure,” Payne said on Instagram. “I’m feeling tremendously blessed, grateful, and ready to hit the trail!”
The hikers will embark on their journeys individually, and both will be sharing updates on their social media channels.
