Author of Her Hike & Founder of Her Hike Collective
Jessica R. Chenard
the author of my debut memoir: Her Hike. A writer of purposeful adventures, healing and legacy; hiking and writing give me a sense of creativity and purpose. I am a business owner, mother, wife, daughter, sister, community builder, and friend.
I am the founder of Her Hike Collective, an all-women's hiking community. You can find me hosting the group's quarterly hikes in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
I was motivated to write this book after spending a decade living it. I hiked to heal from tragedy, and later hiking helped me nurture a beautiful life.
Hey there, I am Jessica Ryan Chenard
Meet the Author
nurturing my love for the mountains, the most significant of these people being my brother. After his tragic death, I was left with only the knowledge of his love for nature and hiking. This enabled and inspired me. His love for the outdoors gave me a direction to go in - my true north - and I made hiking a part of my lifestyle.
People I cared about played a large role in
Meet the AUthor
Richard's Spiral before his tragic death was detailed on the front-page of The New York Times. But Richard’s story—indeed, his whole life—deserves so much more than a newspaper article. What happened to Richard is sadly familiar to too many families. In Her Hike, Jessica Chenard tells her story as Richard’s sister, the lesser-known one that society rarely hears, in which life continues after the online comments stop and the cameras and reporters go away.
Her Hike - A Memoir
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Chenard’s efforts to heal after the loss of her brother, Richard. Over the course of a decade, Chenard has coped with his death by hiking different mountains, from the Blue Ridge in Virginia to the Rockies in Montana.
Miraculously, Richard’s love for nature remained unchanged during his battle with a prescription drug addiction. This passion gave Chenard a true north, a direction to go after Richard’s passing. Shedding light on how to hold onto hope, Chenard invites other women to hike alongside her and start their own journeys summiting mountains.
Her Hike is the story of
her Hike - The memoir
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the mountains, and with each step she takes along a trail, the mountains take a piece of her burden and help carry the weight. The mountains heal, and Her Hike is meant to encourage others to begin bringing their own story to the mountains.
Chenard brings all her grief to
Her Hike - The memoir
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Her Hike Book Trailer
This is Richard's Hike. This is my hike.
THIS IS HER HIKE.
And now, this is your hike too.
Hike for her, and I promise your life won't be a walk in the park, but a hike to heights you have yet to imagine.
Like Searching in photographs, I went to big sky in search of Richard's presence - of peace. It was the first trail marker of many to come. Big Sky is where I began to heal.
We sat in a circle, legs crossed and our knees touching those of the women next to us, nodding towards the sky they raised their canisters and toasted to Richard. that day - on his birthday - all of us understood that we all were on top of that mountain for a reason.
I hope that you see that rising up after falling is good. I hope you see that people will be there to witness your muddy clothes, but accept you just the same.
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What I actually long to be is a continuous rhythm. A knowing and calming sound to the human ear. A river.
A Peak into my Memoir
Excerpt from Her Hike
Inspiring women to hike in the mountains and believe in themselves in all that they aspire to do!
her Hike Collective
The Community
Her Hike Collective inspires women to hike in the mountains, adventure outdoors together and believe in themselves in all that they aspire to do.
Our motto: Hike for her. She who believes that she can do anything, be anything; that's who you hike for. We all have our personal reasons for lacing up our boots and setting out to hike. Just like life, it's not an easy walk in the park, but also like life, do we really want it to be?
When you hike for her, you are searching for more than a walk in the park. You are ready to give her more, you're ready to shake her and wake her up. If you have not realized this yet, the her I am describing is YOU!
The best part in the unfamiliarity of the waking, shaking, and more is that you are not alone. You have others who made the decision to hike alongside you. As we dedicate ourselves to creating more for her, we use our hikes to build strength, determination, and friendships. We wake ourselves up to see new horizons, often before the sun rises. Hike for her, and I promise your life won't be a walk in the park, but a hike to heights you have yet to imagine. Be her, wildly.
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Excerpt From
Sneak Peek into my Memoir
Her Hike
Sometimes, I want to scream at the top of a summit how much I hate that Richard is gone. It bottles up from the pit of my stomach like water boiling in a tea kettle. It slowly, but then suddenly rises to the surface and I want nothing more than to release it into the air. Fuming, boiling, and shaking I want to howl a maddening noise over the mountains and release the heartache permanently.
But I know that it is in me for a reason and that would only be a temporary release. Rather than the screeching of a tea kettle, or a maddening howl in the wilderness, what I actually long to be is a continuous rhythm. A knowing and calming sound to the human ear. A river.
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Planning a hiking trip? Hosting a podcast or event? Wanting to genuinely connect? Then do not hesitate to reach out to me for all possible bookings as well as just to chat.
Topics I am passionate about speaking about are mental health, healing, finding your purpose with your grief, hiking, how nature can help you heal, and much more.
It is my hope that if you found this book and this hiking community that you believe that it means you are meant to be here. Because I believe you are. Contact me! I can't wait to connect and hear your story.
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