Australian Woman Hiking Through Wyoming On Quest To Walk Length Of The Earth

The Miner's Grubstake was a welcome sight in the Wyoming autumn air for Australian Lucy Barnard, 41, and her dog, Wombat. They had just hiked out of the Red Desert and were ready for a hot meal. 

She was delighted by the Wyoming people she found there and the quirky little place’s personality. 

By the time she left behind the near-ghost town that was closing down for the winter last week, Barnard had arranged a place to stay at the next destination of her epic hike — Lander, which is about 8,700 miles into her hike. 

Barnard is on a quest to be the first woman to walk the length of the earth, and the scene in Atlantic City was just an example of how she is immersing herself in the cultures she has experienced along the way.

“Where I live, we don't have the mountains and the height that I was seeing,” Barnard said. “So for me, it was something very special. Coming into Wyoming and seeing the density of wildlife, the size of the wildlife, learning about predators, this is just something that, again, doesn't exist in Australia. 

“I've been able to learn a whole new culture about hunting and really gain an appreciation for something that has been so foreign to me.”

Yeah, But Why?

More than seven years ago, Barnard was in Argentina recovering from a knee injury and reading about George Meegan, the first man to walk the length of the earth.

She thought she could do it, too. 

“You have 3 seconds to make a decision and run with it or you will never go for it,” she said. 

Since making that split-second choice, Barnard has been moving steadily toward her goal. The journey will ultimately cover more than 18,640 miles from the bottom of South America to the top of North America, and if she finishes, Barnard will be the first woman to complete this trek. 

She started her journey in 2017 and has since gone through 21 pairs of shoes. 

“I became the first woman to walk the length of South America in 2023 on International Women's Day,” Barnard said. “Ever since, I've just been pushing to get myself as far north as possible to match the record that was first set by George Meegan back in the year that I was born.”

Barnard is not traveling quite alone on her solo adventure. 

In Chile, she had picked up her constant traveling company, a blue heeler named Wombat who has now walked all the way from Santiago with her. When the snow fell during the first part of their Wyoming trek, Wombat was excited.

“He loves the snow,” Barnard said, laughing at the memory. “He goes completely crazy for it and does the zoomies. Then eventually he'll realize that he's getting tired. So rather than breaking the snow for me, he gets right behind my feet and walks in the trail that I've dug out. He's pretty clever.”

Staying Safe And On Track

Barnard is not walking the trail nonstop, but she is walking one continuous trail from the bottom of the world to the top. 

She will leave the trail next month to return home to Brisbane, Australia, to renew her visa. When she resumes the trek, Barnard will go to the exact same spot where she stopped. Once there, she will turn on her beacon and then continue north.

This beacon also serves to let certain people know where she is at all times as she hikes through barren, rural landscapes. People also can follow her progress on a live map of her trip.

She is well aware of the dangers along the way.

“I did a lot of research and preparation to learn about the visas, what my time windows would be, what illnesses I'd need to be worried about in different countries, what animals there are, what kind of natural hazards I'd be dealing with as I crossed the continent and what the political climates are as well to ensure my safety from human interference,” Barnard said. “All of these things I have contingencies for.”

She also works with a professional company that is specialized in managing high-risk environments. 

“I have a tracker, and we check in every day that I start and finish, and they can see all the time where I am, what speed I'm traveling at,” she said. “They keep an eye out for any kind of external influences that might threaten my safety.” 

The Journey

To walk in the footsteps of Meegan, Barnard began her journey at the tip of Argentina. 

“I had to walk right across these islands and then kayak 250 kilometers (155 miles) to get to the mainland,” she said. “I was passing seal colonies and these glaciers that are like an electric blue color. I had dolphins, whales and seals swimming nearby. I just didn't think that nature could exist with such density like that.”

The next leg of the journey took her across the Atacama Desert in Chile, the driest, oldest and longest desert on the planet.

“It was really difficult,” she said. “My hair was bleached by the sun even though I was wearing a hat, because the sun reflects off the ground and it's like living in a microwave. The heat is phenomenal, and I have never been able to get my hair to stay dark brown again. It's just constantly turning back to red.”

In Peru, she followed a 500-year-old road that she described as being so old that “it’s sunk into the landscape like a scar.” 

In Panama, Barnard had to work with an indigenous group with sovereignty over the area to ensure her safe passage through. 

“That was a really tricky area to navigate,” she said. “I had to work with Border Patrol and the Panamanian police. They were really passionate about helping me because they believe in my project and they're really working at the moment to see gender equity in their own countries. 

“By the time I'm leaving, they're telling me that I'm definitely going to finish and that they're going to be checking in with me the whole way.”

She marked the halfway point by climbing the volcano, Volcan de Fuego in Guatemala.

“It erupts constantly through the day,” she recalled. “It was just an outer worldly experience that I never would have thought I would have seen in my lifetime.”

In Mexico, there were dangerous red zones, but she was able to use diplomacy to navigate to keep on the continuous trail. In the United States, she breathed a sigh of relief because she no longer had to trailblaze and make her own way. 

“There's just so much more information,” she said. “I've been able to hike with people, and I've felt really rejuvenated by coming into the area. I think the Colorado Trail especially was a major highlight for me.”'

Wyoming Trails

Barnard hiked into Wyoming in the middle of October and has been learning all she can about the people and the region.

“I've been mainly following the Continental Divide Trail,” she said. “It was really remote. I had a seven-day stretch of hiking. The first town I passed through in Wyoming was Encampment.” 

She first reached Battle Pass, and then dropped down into the small town. 

“I went back to the trail on Battle Pass,” she said. “I was definitely the last hiker to pass through there, because the snow was getting waist deep. It was quite a slow, difficult trail to follow at that point. But again, I'm so grateful to have been able to go through such a beautiful area.”

Barnard briefly left her trail to visit Saratoga and resupply on food and some equipment that needed replacing. She was able to soak in the hot springs and was grateful for the brief interlude.

“I didn't even realize how valuable that was going to be for me after being on the trail for so long and not stopping for an extended period of time,” she said. “It was amazing coming out of these really high mountains and then getting into hot springs where my muscles could relax. 

“I felt like I'd come out of some sort of a yoga retreat.” 

Hunting Trip

She returned to her point along the trail and headed toward Rawlins. On her second day of hiking since the hot springs, she met up with a man and his family out hunting. 

“There is not much of a hunting culture in Australia like there is here,” Barnard said. “I was able to have them show me how they process elk when they shot one. I really appreciate it when people are willing to share their passions with me and bring me into their world a little bit. 

“That is the whole point of life, to be enriched by the beauty of other people's lifestyles.”

The family invited her to spend the night in their RV to get out of the cold. They then insisted she stay with them in Rawlins once she got there.  

“So, I stayed with them in Rawlins, and then I just ring them every so often to check in and let them know I'm still alive,” Barnard said. “That's what I mean when I say that I'm being handed over from one custodian to the next.”

Tiny Hostel 

Her next Wyoming adventure was another unexpected detour.

“I ran into some people looking for mustangs who live in Bairoil,” she said. “They told me that if I were to walk just an extra 8 kilometers (5 miles) that I could spend some time in their town. I did that, and there's a little church there that hosts hikers and cyclists, and they have a fridge and freezer full of food. They've got a bed, and heating and they just have all of the things.

“Thanksgiving is coming so I left them some money. I especially said to them, ‘Please buy some Australian red wine so that you can remember that the people you're grateful for are grateful for you, too.’”

From Bairoil, Barnard resumed her trek to Lander. When she entered the Red Desert, she didn’t even realize she was in a desert.

“I actually had to ask where the boundary of this desert was,” Barnard said. “To me, it was just more open plains. I had no problem getting water or anything. It is an open, beautiful area with lots of wild mustangs. I really enjoyed it.”

Wyoming People 

Barnard continues to make new friends and find help along the way in the Cowboy State as she heads to her next major destination, Yellowstone National Park. 

“I've got a bunch of people that I know in Wyoming now, just because of the people that I've met along the trail,” Barnard said. “I've been introduced to a lot of people who work with NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) and they've been doing things like looking at my pack and all of the equipment that I have to help me understand what needs to be upgraded for when I start getting into the thick of winter.” 

As Barnard prepares to walk to Dubois and Yellowstone National Park, she continues to be grateful for the people she meets along the way.

“It's always just so much easier when I know I'm walking towards people who are going to host me,” she admitted. “It's just psychologically safe and exciting. When I turned up to Atlantic City, which is shutting down for the winter, it was very empty and hard to find people. 

“But then I met Dale, who has a little restaurant there and I got a really nice lunch. I then walked up to the supermarket that that has things for hikers and got to hang out with Joy, who lives there. It’s really nice because even the smallest towns, I'm meeting people who I could see myself being lifelong friends with.”

These new friends track Lucy Barnard on her Instagram page, Tangles and Trails. She is now leaving Lander behind as she hikes to her final destination of Yellowstone National Park before heading home to renew her visa.

“The general theme of this expedition has been that humanity is still wonderful, “Barnard said. “And community is still something that's very strong and present in our society. The care and love I have encountered along the way has been really important to my success.”

Jackie Dorothy can be reached at jackie@cowboystatedaily.com.