The Girl Behind the Backpack

I feel like no good blog is without an About Me section, so here goes:

My name is Kirsten (sounds like Kurstin in American English), but in non-English speaking countries I go by Cristina because its easier for others to say. I’m 21 years old. My pronouns are she/her/hers. My maternal grandfather’s Italian heritage shows in my tan skin and curly brown hair, and my father’s mixed-caucasian heritage shows in my green-hazel eyes and 5’7″ height.

I am in my third year at the University of California Santa Barbara, although I’m spending the 2019 calendar year in Santiago, Chile studying for two semesters at La Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. I am a BA Environmental Studies Major and Spanish Minor, although my educational interests lie more in hands-on working with plants, environmental education, and the Spanish language, instead of the rather vague forays my current studies have taken into the worlds of environmental problems and Latinx culture.

I’m the middle child with two gorgeous, amazing sisters who are impressive role models for me. Our parents still live (albeit separately) near our childhood home and some of our maternal relatives, while the rest of our family is scattered around the US on the East Coast, in the Mid West, and the in South. My younger sister is a year younger than me and already far more impressive as an Ivy League waterpolo player studying Environmental Science (I like to brag that my baby sis is following in my footsteps). My older sister has 15 years on me, uses her MBA to manage a group of therapists, and is wonderful mother of my adorable, nearly 2-year old nephew. My mom has her own law practice and owns a house in a gorgeous coastal mountain range, while my dad does consulting work for tech companies in Silicon Valley and singlehandedly upkeeps and beautifies his mountain property (I’ll tell you more about it in a second).

I like to joke that growing up I went through some…interesting phases. In elementary and middle school, I was the loner kid that always had a book out, even during class and PE. In middle school I would only wear black and I wouldn’t let anyone hug me–I would literally bite people who tried to give me a hug. I was a huge tomboy through the end of middle school, and kept my hair short enough that people would be more likely to call ‘son’ than ‘hon.’ In 8th grade I used purple eyeshadow as eyeliner every day. In 9th grade I went through a straight-hair phase and absolutely destroyed my poor hair with that straightener. Tell me about your weird phases in the comment section below!

My love of backpacking and traveling stems from a very early introduction to the outdoors.

Long before I was born, my parents fell in love with a property in the Diablo mountain range east of San Jose; it was 160 acres of arid, undeveloped California ranch land about 45 mins from town in either direction on the highway.

Today, that piece of land has a beautifully landscaped weekend home at the end of a long dirt driveway, two decrepit trampolines and the remnants of a playground from when we were kids, hiking trails, and decorative dry stack rock walls–all built by the blood, sweat and tears of my father and mother (with some key help from contractors and us kids:P). It was the site of their wedding and reception under the great Grandfather Oak, and the location of many enjoyable Christmas’ and Thanksgivings and Labor Day barbecues.

And it was the origin of my love for the wide outdoors.

I don’t know when we started calling it the Ranch but it’s stuck through all these years and it never fails to get questions such as “How many animals do you have?” “Are there horses?” Sadly, no there are not, but not for lack of begging from us girls.

There I learned more about the natural world than I could possibly recount; every day that I talk with people who have less of an outdoor background, I realize just how much knowledge I take for granted. The most shocking realization of my college career was that your average student can’t tell you which trees in a park are oaks!

When we were little, my dad told us the names of the plants and animals he knew, or had us look new ones up in one of his many nature books. We learned that you can: eat Miner’s Lettuce, put Bay leaves in pasta sauce and get a really bad rash from Poison Oak. We would see deer, boar, fox and bobcats; gopher snakes, rattlesnakes and garter snakes; alligator lizards and blue-bellied lizards; California Newts, tree frogs, Western Pond Turtles and toads; Ana’s Hummingbirds, Scrub Jays, vultures and red tailed hawks.

Our rule growing up was if we could catch it, we could keep it as a pet for two weeks and then we had to release it. No cats or dogs for my sister and I. Instead we had a cycle of newts, tarantulas, lizards, snakes, mice and turtles. I still think that the coolest thing I’ve ever seen was our gopher snake eating a live mouse. Of course, I feel obligated to say that that gopher snake somehow escaped its terrarium and we only realized it when we saw that the other mouse we gave it had gone uneaten for a week. We decided to name that mouse Snowball and keep it until it died because PetCo said it would only live a couple weeks; it proceeded to thrive for THREE MORE YEARS, and when it finally died we buried it in the backyard.

At the Ranch, Dad taught us how to plant and irrigate native flora, start fires to warm the house, sleep under the stars, check for ticks and rattle snakes, hike cross country, swim in freezing ponds and determine the cardinal directions by the sun.

What I didn’t learn about the outdoors at the Ranch, I learned from backpacking as a teen.

Dad got us started backpacking super early, even before we were big enough to carry our own packs. In those early days we hiked out to the High Sierra Camps in Yosemite with mom along for the ride. Kaitlyn and I would only carry day packs with our clothes in them, while dad carried all the important, heavy gear. It was a super easy set up: hike a few miles through gorgeous backcountry, pull into camp where they had private tent cabins with bunks and several course meals prepared for the weary travelers, and then chill and meet some new people until we packed up and headed to the next camp.

Once we were big enough to carry a bigger share of the weight, dad decided it was time to take us ‘real’ backpacking. He is a traditional backpacker, so our packs were never light, and as we got older he would give us more weight. I don’t think Kaitlyn or I ever had more than 45 pounds, but he always had something absurd like 60 or 70 pounds.

Every summer for years we did a backpacking trip in Yosemite National Park, or somewhere nearby in the Sierra. We learned how to set up a tent, use a compass, read a topographic map, pack a backpack, filter water, cook-camp food and be respectful hikers. I steadily fell more in love with backpacking, while Kaitlyn became disheartened by it.

Freshman year of college, I took the Leadership Training Course through UCSB Adventure Programs to learn how to lead other people backpacking. I was pretty disappointed when there was only one backpacking trip in the whole 3 month class, but my knowledge of how to exist in outdoors increased exponentially. Now I know first aid, radio etiquette, Leave No Trace principles, risk management, emergency survival skills, and a dozen other things that I never knew I should know before going outside.

The summer of 2018 was the first and only trip I was ever paid to lead. My colleague (and now friend!) and I lead 6 or so adults from the Santa Barbara community to the Cottonwood Lakes in the Eastern Sierra for several nights. It was a very rewarding trip to use all of my hard earned skills and gear to show other people how amazing the outdoors are. That was the trip I truly realized I never wanted to backpack traditionally again, because the 52 pound pack was just too much for my poor body.

My journey to Ultralight didn’t begin until very recently.

Until spring of 2017, I had never even heard of Ultralight backpacking. I was trying to get more into the outdoor community on campus and went on a random hike with three people into some dunes an hour north of campus. Two of the guys I had met for the first time during that Leadership Training Course and they were bigger backpackers than I was.

One of them started talking about this crazy 12 day, 170 mile thru-hike called the Tahoe Rim Trail (TRT) that he had on his bucket list and was thinking about doing that summer but didn’t think he would find a partner to go with him in time.

Then and there I told him that I was totally down! Although I did make it clear that I had never done anything on that scale before; neither had he so it was a perfect match.

For the next several months we talked about how we wanted to do the trip and we basically decided I was going to do it his way as much as possible: Ultralight.

Let me tell you, that was an eye opening experience for me.

When the time came to fully pack our bags, I had never felt anything lighter! Changed my life. We ended up doing the longest hiking day (with a pack) of our lives that trip: 26.5 miles; yes, that IS longer than a marathon; and yes, we did almost die. But what a rush!

We used a tarp instead of a tent, which is all well and good and amazingly lightweight, but does nothing to protect from the hordes of mosquitoes in wetlands during the summer. We even went so far as to bring only one spoon and shared it and the cooking pot during dinners by passing the pot to the other person while we chewed.

To have it out in the open, I did have one VERY heavy luxury item: my nearly 4 pound DSLR camera and gear, my beautiful baby, the Canon Rebel t5i. I admitted very early on in the trip that it is an unnecessary weight and I could have been helping with more group gear instead of being selfish.

To sum up that trip, it was amazing and I know have a new really good friend and adventure partner that I tell anyone and everyone about when I have a chance because he changed my life for the better.

Sadly, since the TRT, I’ve only been out a couple other times and only one of them was even resembling Ultralight. Him and I did the 30+ mile Skyline to the Sea Trail in one night this January; be proud: I didn’t bring my camera even though it broke my heart </3 . I say 30+ and not a specific distance because all of the park signage said one distance and our maps said another, plus some parts of the trail were redirected due to washout and we also had to start at a different location, so we actually think we did something like 36 miles.

Let me tell you though, I have never had a lighter backpack in my life. My school backpack has to be at least 5 pounds heavier! I felt like I was flying with that pack 🙂

Now, you might be wondering “What’s a nice girl like you doing such dirty, masculine things such as backpacking?!?”

My response would be “Following my dreams and not letting stereotypes and social stigmatism prevent me from doing what I love.” I am personally of the belief that everyone, regardless of gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, race, physical ability, etc, should be treated equally and should not be limited by traditional societal expectations. I live by the idea that you should do what you love as long as you’re not hurting others.

I also have a lot of hobbies that I occasionally get bored with but tend to come back to out of nostalgia.

I have this unusual obsession with plants. I even almost wrote this blog on plants, but then decided I better not! The obsession started freshman year of college when I randomly decided to join a research project on ethnobotany with this cool Anthropology professor. To be honest, I had no idea what ethnobotany was before I met him, and my only experience with plants was through helping my dad with landscaping and what he taught me about nature.

The ethnobotany project opened me up to just how fascinating plants are, although I’m not super proud that most of my fascination about flora is purely anthropocentric: how humans can use plants for themselves for food, medicine and tools. Even so, this research became a bit of a pet project and for more than two years I have been working to learn more about the plants in Santa Barbara for the website, map and database we created for the project. I also did a side project for a class on Ethnobotany that was the most fascinating project I have ever done.

I’ll write more about my work in ethnobotany in a later post, because there is a lot and it was a fairly formative and deciding factor in my current education, and what I will probably end up doing when I grow up.

I furthered my more scientific knowledge of plants by taking a horticulture class at UCSB and I am now in a course called Flora Nativa in Chile because goodness knows I know nothing about the plants in this country and it makes me feel lost when I’m outside.

Non formal environmental education is another of my numerous passions. I grew up with my dad’s teachings about nature and the outdoor science camps my parents put us in over the summers, so I was non formally educated about nature for many years. Then I volunteered a lot as the counselor at outdoor camps, as well so I got to learn a lot and teach others all about connecting with nature and caring for it.

Then I took the most amazing class I have ever experienced which taught theories behind environmental education and then we had to apply those theories by creating and teaching a unit on some environmental topic. I, of course, chose ethnobotany and nature connection and my life was changed forever.

My photography hobby started when my younger sister took a class in high school on Digital Photography. She would have me model for her or go out and take pictures with her, and then bring home her projects to show off. I totally fell in love and followed her around with my phone camera while she took pictures on her fancy DSLR that our parents got ‘us’ for Christmas.

I totally stole her camera when she stopped using it after the class ended, and then I signed up for the class the next year. Best decision ever! I learned basic photoshop skills and how to use the manual settings on the camera and I’ve never gone back to phone cameras since. The vast majority of images on this blog are taken by me (or if the image is of me, a friend).

Now I mostly take macro nature photos and I have an Instagram @bluegreenplanetphotography where I post them (follow me!). All of the walls at my dad’s house have been newly covered with my nature pics, courtesy of the most expensive Christmas present I have ever given someone.

Occasionally, people ask me to do profile pictures or photoshoots for them (I’ve even been paid a couple times!), and I am the designated photographer at family events 🙂 If you’re looking for a decent photographer for any of those things, let me know in the comment section! My rate is $20/hour, or we can discuss a by-picture rate for just the ones you decide you want.

Martial arts are something I started as a kid and in the back of my head I’ve always wanted to emulate my favorite kick-ass protagonistas from books and media, so I try to keep doing them when I have time and money. I got a first-degree blackbelt in Taekwondo when I was 10 and went back to the same studio as an instructor after a six year waterpolo binge. I shared my last two years of high school between water-fighting and land-fighting.

Then in my third year of college I decided I wanted to learn a new art but found that Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is absurdly expensive and hard to fit into a working student’s schedule, so I had to put that venture on hold. I have no doubt that I will try again though, because I love organized physical activity that strengthens the body and mind.

I wish I could say that I was playing water polo in college still, but the first six years of it really screwed me over. You know how older people complain about getting old because of all the aches and pains? Tell me about it: I’ve had knee, shoulder, elbow, back, hip, and head troubles since I overused and over hit them for so long in my developmental years. Also, my scoliosis is a pretty significant deterrent to polo because of the relentless back pain I endure while playing goalie.

Growing up, our dad would sit us down occasionally and bring out this big box of art supplies, fancy watercolor paper, nice paints in tubes, graphite and brushes, and tell us to have at it. Usually we would look through magazines for a beautiful landscape or a flower that we wanted to paint and then we would try our best to recreate it for the whole afternoon.

I don’t think I would ever say I’m a great painter, but I definitely enjoy sitting down for a couple hours and making some art! I tried to bring my water color supplies to Chile, but they were one of the last things I had to take out of my suitcases to be under the weight limit. Instead I brought my sketching kit and notebook!

We started skiing when we were old enough to wear skis, barely two feet tall I think! Now we happily do black diamonds and the occasional double black 🙂 Yes, I have tried snow boarding. No I did not enjoy it. They literally had to carry me off the mountain because I was over falling on my ass and wouldn’t get back up.

My first time climbing was at summer camp from age 7 to 14. They had this outdoor wall that was pretty basic, but the coolest thing for a kid with no experience. My first outdoor experience was up by Goat Rock in the Santa Cruz mountains; I was with the same camp, but at that time I was training to work with them as a counselor. The above picture was my first and only time in a gym until I got to college.

Working with UCSB Adventure Programs in college, I met a bunch of people who climb and I had a series of climbing partners that pushed me to get better at the gym we have on campus. I had a blast with them! One of them even took me outdoor climbing a couple times. I love the forearm muscles I get when I spend enough time climbing haha.

My mom taught my sister and I how to sing and had us sign up to be in musicals from 3rd grade through 8th. For years she was the vocal director for the plays, and used her beautiful singing voice and what she learned from her youth in church choirs to teach us young’ins how to perform. I still love to sing, although I really only do it when I’m in the car for hours on end and I have to do something to prevent falling asleep.

I LOVE cooking. I joke that its part of my blood because my last name is Cook… But seriously, its a better option for procrastinating than reading for me, because if I start a book I’m screwed, but if I cook I can be creative, waste time, have food for the week, and actually get to work afterwards.

Halloween costumes are too expensive, so I started just doing fun costume makeup two years ago! I actually weirdly enjoy trying to copy a makeup artist from videos. I’ve definitely had more successful days than others, and I’ve been fairly limited by not having much makeup, so I’ve had to get creative. I look forward to this year, because my sister bought me a bunch of makeup and now I have a lot more colors to work with 🙂 I’ve been a sugar skull, a vampire, a creepy doll, a normal skull, and a fawn so far and I hope to expand to mermaids or other fun, creative renditions of creatures.

Además, I started learning Spanish in an after school program in elementary school, although goodness knows I learned all of three words and lost them all before I started up again in Spanish classes in 7th and 8th grade. I took 4 years in high school as well, and earned a 4 out of 5 on the Advanced Placement exam. That AP class in 12th grade showed me how amazing, interesting and fun learning a language is and launched me to continue taking classes in my second year of university.

Now I am in Chile improving my Spanish everyday through courses in Spanish and direct interaction with people who don’t know a word of English. Learning Spanish is the only activity I have ever been able to consciously track my progress in. I went from not having any idea what people around me were saying in their fast paced Chilean Spanish, to being able to understand enough to have relatively intelligent conversations in the 2 months of being here. I can’t wait to see where I am at at the end of this year abroad!

My obsession with reading has been a constant since after my parents had to put me in a reading class in elementary school because I had trouble keeping up with the other kids; since then, I’ve found I have an addictive personality for fiction. Once I start a book I read the rest of the series and seven more books to boot. I will try just about anything fantasy or paranormal, and have been getting more attached to romances and serial killer thrillers. My favorite books growing up were The Song of the Lioness Quartet by Tamora Pierce, The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini, The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins, the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer, the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris, and the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas.

I have this really great problem where I can read all day and tell myself “I’ll stop after the next chapter unless it’s a cliff hanger,” and there’s always a cliff hanger so I end up reading all night and by that time it’s 4am and I think “Well it couldn’t hurt my sleep cycle anymore to keep reading” so I do. A vicious cycle, I know, but oh so satisfying.

Finally, traveling is also a pretty big part of my life. I love to see new places, meet new people, and try new foods (even though I’m a picky eater!). I have been to at least 20 cities in 10 European countries, a bunch of places in Chile, Costa Rica and Mexico, and all over the US and Puerto Rico.

I also love exploring the places that I live because I feel like I lot of people don’t know much about the town they live in, let alone the county or the rest of the country. I love looking through guide books of California (and now Chile) and choosing something I haven’t done before and going there and doing it. Some of the strangest places I’ve been were super close to home: an Ostrich Farm an hour from campus, a plane crash site, weird tunnels under my high school, a burnt out building where I did long exposure spark photography, and a ghost town in the middle of a big city. You can find adventure even in your own background if you only just look!

My current bucket list for travel includes Patagonia, the Basque Country, Scotland, Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, Greece, the Galapos Islands and the rest of the world. Some places I would go back to were Isla Navarino in Chile, Norway (although this time actually go to the fjords), Amsterdam and London.

I’m sure there are further depths to my existence that I haven’t told you here, but I feel like this is probably way more information than you bargained for anyway! Thanks for reading <3

-K