Twenty-two states and 7,875 miles. That’s the total distance SCA Alum Kelly Graner had covered to finish the Triple Crown of Hiking this summer. Triple Crowners are an elite group of thru-hikers who have completed the three major U.S. long-distance hiking trails: Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail and Continental Divide Trail.
Graner discovered her love of thru-hiking while serving with SCA New Hampshire Corps in 2017.
“I had a 10-month position that really changed my life,” Graner said. “We lived in cabins built by the Civilian Conservation Corps – no heat or electricity – we had gas lamps and had to make our own fires every night. Going from living comfortably to (that) … changed my values. There’s so much more to be had whenever it’s just a diverse group of people living together in the middle of the woods.”
SCA Alum Kelly Graner serving with the California Leadership Corps in Shasta, California, 2020. (Photo Credit: Kelly Graner)
A five-time SCA participant between 2017-2023, Graner went on to lead conservation crews from Georgia to Alaska, where she continued to build survival and trail-clearing skills while expanding her own sense of what she was capable of.
“I’m five feet (tall). I love to exercise and work out, but I’m not very strong,” Graner said. “Here I come to the SCA, and it’s like, ‘Well, you’re going to run a chainsaw.’ That’s something I take a lot of pride in.”
Inclined to test her own boundaries, Graner hiked all three legs of the Triple Crown trails by herself over a period of three years. She attributes the discovery that she can do hard things to her time spent with the SCA.
“Honestly, the SCA transformed my life in ways I never would have imagined,” Graner said. “I wish it were a requirement for youth to serve … just getting out there and learning a different way of life. I wish everyone could go out and do that because you uncover things about yourself that you never knew were possible.”
Graner is proud of her hiking accomplishment but wants others not to feel intimidated if they are interested in making the trek.
“The hiking is cool and all, but I always like to tell people that at the end of the day, it’s just walking,” Graner said. “As long as you can walk, you can figure it out.”
