Treeline Review Staff

Mike Unger, Liz Thomas, & Naomi Hudetz

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Mike Unger left his high-stress corporate job to thru-hike the Pacific Crest Trail in 2006. That experience forever changed him, and he purposefully re-arranged his life to allow for as much adventuring as possible. Today, he’s hiked over 28,000 miles on North American long trails and is one of a handful of people who is a Double Triple Crowner, having hiked the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trails twice each.

He’s also picked up another passion along the way: long-distance bikepacking, including the 1,850-mile Pacific Coast route. When he’s not hiking or biking, he’s probably planning his next trip and/or researching gear.

Liz Thomas is an award-winning Los Angeles-based writer and Editor-in-Chief of Treeline Review. A former Fastest Known Time (FKT) record holder on the Appalachian Trail, Liz came to Treeline Review from New York Times/Wirecutter, the New York Times’ product review site, where she was a staff writer on the outdoor team.

She was a guest editor at Backpacker Magazine, where she is currently the columnist of “Ask a Thru-hiker” and instructor of their online class, Thru-hiking 101.

Her first book is Long Trails: Mastering the Art of the Thru-hike. The book was the recipient of the National Outdoor Book Award for Best Instructional Book, and was deemed by judges as destined to become the “Bible of the Sport.”

Liz has talked gear on Good Morning America (TV), in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Buzzfeed, The Washington Post, Men’s Journal, Women’s Health, Gizmodo, and Outside Magazine.

She represented the sport of hiking at President Obama’s Great American Outdoors Initiative.

Liz’s keynote speaking engagements have included colleges and universities including Yale and MIT and on Capitol Hill, the Trust for Public Land, American Hiking Society, and BikeTexas.

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Naomi Hudetz is director of analytics and digital innovation and leads business strategy and revenue operations for Treeline Review. She brings decades of private sector experience in project management, budget and pricing projection, and long-term business vision, strategy, and goals.

Naomi left her corporate career to pursue her passion for the outdoors. She received the Triple Crown award for hiking for completing the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trail and has hiked numerous other distance routes including the Great Divide Trail across the Canadian Rockies (twice), Grand Enchantment Trail, Pacific Northwest Trail, the Arizona Trail, (most of) the Idaho Centennial Trail, the first known thru-hike of the Blue Mountains Trail, and the Oregon Desert Trail.

She previously served as Treasurer of the American Long Distance Hiking Association-West and is based in White Salmon, Washington.

Mike Unger left his high-stress corporate job to thru-hike the Pacific Crest Trail in 2006. That experience forever changed him, and he purposefully re-arranged his life to allow for as much adventuring as possible. Today, he’s hiked over 28,000 miles on North American long trails and is one of a handful of people who is a Double Triple Crowner, having hiked the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trails twice each.

He’s also picked up another passion along the way: long-distance bikepacking, including the 1,850-mile Pacific Coast route. When he’s not hiking or biking, he’s probably planning his next trip and/or researching gear.

Liz Thomas is an award-winning Los Angeles-based writer and Editor-in-Chief of Treeline Review. A former Fastest Known Time (FKT) record holder on the Appalachian Trail, Liz came to Treeline Review from New York Times/Wirecutter, the New York Times’ product review site, where she was a staff writer on the outdoor team.

She was a guest editor at Backpacker Magazine, where she is currently the columnist of “Ask a Thru-hiker” and instructor of their online class, Thru-hiking 101.

Her first book is Long Trails: Mastering the Art of the Thru-hike. The book was the recipient of the National Outdoor Book Award for Best Instructional Book, and was deemed by judges as destined to become the “Bible of the Sport.”

Liz has talked gear on Good Morning America (TV), in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Buzzfeed, The Washington Post, Men’s Journal, Women’s Health, Gizmodo, and Outside Magazine.

She represented the sport of hiking at President Obama’s Great American Outdoors Initiative.

Liz’s keynote speaking engagements have included colleges and universities including Yale and MIT and on Capitol Hill, the Trust for Public Land, American Hiking Society, and BikeTexas.

‍
Naomi Hudetz is director of analytics and digital innovation and leads business strategy and revenue operations for Treeline Review. She brings decades of private sector experience in project management, budget and pricing projection, and long-term business vision, strategy, and goals.

Naomi left her corporate career to pursue her passion for the outdoors. She received the Triple Crown award for hiking for completing the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trail and has hiked numerous other distance routes including the Great Divide Trail across the Canadian Rockies (twice), Grand Enchantment Trail, Pacific Northwest Trail, the Arizona Trail, (most of) the Idaho Centennial Trail, the first known thru-hike of the Blue Mountains Trail, and the Oregon Desert Trail.

She previously served as Treasurer of the American Long Distance Hiking Association-West and is based in White Salmon, Washington.

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Treeline Review: PCT Southbound Gear List & Strategy 2026

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