About

I’m Marissa Ortega-Welch, and I’ve been traveling in wilderness for over 20 years, guiding trips, conducting scientific field work, and backpacking for fun.

I’ve spent the last 3 years reporting around the West, exploring my fascination with wilderness as a journalist. I’ve braved lightning storms, grizzly bears, and poison oak to make these stories and I’ve had a blast doing so.

I’m the creator, reporter, and executive producer of this podcast, independently producing it in partnership with KALW Public Radio and NPR. I’m an award winning radio and print journalist, and have received recognition from the Public Media Journalists Association and the Northern California Society for Professional Journalists. I’ve also received many fellowships, including the prestigious Ted Scripps Fellowship in Environmental Journalism which supported research for this podcast.