Sun Up Lights Path for Deaf Community on AT, Completes Triple Crown-by Emily Patrick

   A chance encounter at the Junction Post Office between the Editor and an AT thru hiker named Stitch had me chasing down a lead in the most unlikely of places. Someone picked up the line at Shaw’s Hiker Hostel in Monson and I, feeling a little foolish, went on the only information I had at the time. “Can I speak to Hippie Chick, please?” To my surprise, the person on the other end of the line knew exactly who I was talking about.

   When Hippie Chick picked up the phone, I asked if she had a hiker named Sunrise staying at her hostel. “No…” she started, and I thought I must have the wrong hostel, or maybe we were given the wrong information altogether. Then she said, “I have a hiker named Sun Up. Is she deaf?”

   With help from Hippie Chick, and technology, Sun Up and I were able to set up an interview for the following day. She was a little worried about how we would be able to communicate without an interpreter and, truth be told, I was a little nervous as well. Still, my gut told me we would figure it out.

   Always go with your gut.

   We tried typing back and forth on our phones, but it was slow and awkward. Sun Up read the questions I had typed on my laptop. I was sure we’d have no issues typing back and forth but, in my ignorance of anything to do with the deaf community, I didn’t realize English isn’t Sun Up’s first language. It’s ASL. Humility was creeping in when she suggested we could have a conversation using an interpreter over our phones, as long as we were in separate rooms. And could both connect to the hostel’s WIFI; easier said than done.

   After a couple of dropped calls, we were resigned to putting off our meeting until the library opened down the street, seemingly the only place in Monson with reliable WIFI. We resolved to give it one more try and, finally: success! The interpreter’s voice rang out loud and clear on the other end of the phone, along with Sun Up’s cheerful and bubbly personality, which had been previously lost in translation. I think it was a “Eureka!” moment for both of us: finally, we could each express ourselves freely in the way we were most comfortable.

   I learned Sun Up grew up in Fremont, California. Both of her parents are deaf, as well as her two brothers. She attended the California School for the Deaf in Fremont and then a deaf college in Washington, D.C. where she studied Sports Programs and Recreation. Aside from hiking, Sun Up loves anything to do with sports and the outdoors. Though she couldn’t possibly choose a “favorite” sport or activity, volleyball and scuba diving rank at the top of the list. She also loves to read, fantasy being one of her favorite genres on the trail.

   Then, there’s this other little thing she does: she solo hikes trails thousands of miles long. On July 17^th, she completed her Triple Crown when she summited Katahdin and became the first deaf woman to have hiked the entire Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail, and the Appalachian Trail. 

   Sun Up hiked the Pacific Crest Trail first. Though the trail is a formidable foe, and she admits she experienced plenty of frustration, she says she did it for herself and her mantra became “Why not?” “Why not” soon became a new way of thinking for her and helped her complete the 2,653-mile trail in 2022.

  Next, she thought, why not hike the Continental Divide Trail? That would be the most logical step for most of us, no? She completed the 3,028-mile trail, which stretches from the US-Mexico border to the US-Alberta border, in 2023.

   In 2024, she started hiking the Appalachian Trail, which ends right in our backyard on Katahdin’s summit. She says Maine is one of her favorite states on the AT. She loves all of the water and rivers and says it’s just “beautiful.” I’m partial, but I agree.

   Sun Up acknowledges the obvious challenges that come with being a deaf thru-hiker: the danger of not being able to hear someone, or something, coming up behind you, for example. Though she loves the trail, she admits it can be extremely isolating, and even more so for a deaf or HOH person. Even with today’s technology, it can be hard to communicate at times. For Sun Up, the loneliness that inevitably comes from being on trail is a double whammy. I asked if there was anything hearing folks could do on or off trail to be more helpful and welcoming to the deaf community, and Sun Up simply said, “Be patient” and that she “always appreciates the effort” when someone puts in the time and energy to communicate.

   She hears from so many people she’s an inspiration, but she’s inspired by others on and off trail and says, “Helping each other grow. That’s what inspiration really means.” She told me about a man named Roger Poulin who is blind and deaf but completed the AT in 2014. She says she has an “ableist” point of view and admits the challenges Roger must have faced far outweigh her own, so “Why not?” Why not hike the AT? Why not step outside of your comfort zone to learn from someone who doesn’t speak the same language as you? We, and we alone, are the creators of our own Continental Divides.

   Sun Up helped me realize it’s not just blatant bias that can divide us. Ignorance can be just as damaging. If I had given up trying to communicate with this lovely human at the first, second, third or even fourth roadblock, because we didn’t have access to an interpreter, or because I had to deliberately step outside of my comfort zone to do this interview, I would have missed out on meeting one of the most inspirational people to ever cross my path. What a shame that would have been.

   I love asking hikers how they came up with their trail name. Sun Up says it was an easy choice for her: she’s an early riser, whether she’s on trail or off, on vacation or getting ready for work. It’s just in her nature to rise with (or even before) the sun. She adds jokingly that “doesn’t mean she starts hiking early,” but she’s awake, which is more than I can say!

   She says the sun also holds so much symbolism and is a source of energy and inspiration to her. Whether she realizes it or not, she’s the sun in human form: full of energy, inspiring to others, lighting the trail to a kinder and more patient world where the only thing holding you back is your inability to say…

   “Why not?”