Episode #528 - Rob Diamond (Dog Tag)
Mighty Blue On The Appalachian Trail: The Ultimate Mid-Life Crisis
Steve Adams
4.8 • 599 Ratings
🗓️ 12 February 2026
⏱️ 71 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
We welcome Rob Diamond to the show today. I met Rob in 2024 in Hot Springs, when we went and tried to help out after Hurricane Helene. Rob told me then that he was planning on a 2025 thru-hike, so I asked him then to follow up with me once he was done.
Rob's hike didn't turn out as he had expected, yet he battled through innumerable obstacles as he made his way to Katahdin, eventually summiting on his intended summit date of 9/11.
On the way, Rob raised awareness of the scourge of suicide among military and first responders by carrying dog tags to represent those who die by suicide. It was a deeply personal mission, and Rob fulfilled it in a caring way. You can check out more about Rob on his YouTube channel at DogTag hiking the AT. There is even a terrific little video and song about Kyle's Trail that tracked one of the special dog tags. Check this out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=We85_ujD7MY
We've met most of our Hike the Good Hike cohort, and this week, single mother Tristen Murphy shares her emotional story. Tristen is hiking the John Muir Trail later in the year. We hope she has a blast!
In my accountability blog, I share news of my pre-hike check up with my Doctor. He gave me the green light!
I used my hike in 2024 on the South West Coast Path in the UK to help raise money for my absolute favorite charity, Parenting Matters, on whose board I've been privileged to serve for over a decade. You can learn more about the hike and the organization–and donate–by visiting Hike with Steve - Empowering Parents, One Step at a Time | Parenting Matters %. I hope you want to support this critical mission.
Don't forget. Our entire series of videos from our Woods Hole Weekend in 2022 is now FREE and available at my YouTube page at Woods Hole Weekend - Trailer There, you'll find all sorts of tips and tricks that our guests took away from the weekend that helped them with their own hikes this year. Check it out.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You are listening to the Hiking Radio Network, where we talk the walk with shows by hikers |
| 0:05.3 | about hikers for everybody. Mighty Blue on the Appalachian Trail, the ultimate midlife crisis, joins Stephen his guests every week as he staggers from Georgia to Maine. |
| 0:33.5 | Hey guys, nice to be with you all again this week on the Mighty Blue podcast. This is episode |
| 0:37.9 | number 520 out of the show and I have just three more shows to record before setting off to |
| 0:42.6 | Atlanta and the Appalachian Trail on March the 9th. Then a few days later, the first of my |
| 0:47.4 | reports directly from the trail. I don't know if I've already mentioned this or not, but I'll be |
| 0:51.4 | producing two shows a week while I'm out there. We have the regular Thursday podcast and another one on Monday mornings as well. Now that, of course, is somewhat dependent upon getting service while I'm out there, but I'll be striving to hit those deadlines as closely as I can, so please bear with me. I've got some good news to report this week with a sponsor for the first three months of the show while I'm out there. You may recall Nina Banducci from Polo Steps a few weeks back, introducing that app into America and the backpacking community. Well, I already told her that I'll be using it on the trail this year, and Polo Steps have agreed to take those first three months as our main sponsor. I'll be recording that ad in the next few days and it will feature |
| 1:27.9 | prominently in the early part of each show when I get out there. If you're interested, |
| 1:32.1 | you can follow me on polar steps and know roughly where I am on trail with access to all |
| 1:36.3 | the pictures I put on there. Hope you check it out because it's free. Today, my friend Rob Diamond |
| 1:42.5 | joins us. Rob is a guy who loves to serve people, |
| 1:45.5 | is a retired fire officer and wanted to bring suicide awareness to the trail, |
| 1:49.1 | not only for the military veterans, but also for first responders, |
| 1:52.4 | where it's also an issue. |
| 1:54.1 | Rob had his own unique take on that, and we'll hear from him in a moment. |
| 1:57.8 | He wanted to finish his hike on 9-11 for obvious reasons and his story shows that with |
| 2:02.4 | determination and ability to overcome hurdles in your way, you can achieve what you're looking to do. |
| 2:07.1 | Rob will be on the moment. Then Tristan Murphy, a single mum, joins the Hike the Good Hike cohort, |
| 2:12.6 | telling us about her own struggles as she navigates her life and plans to hike the John Muir trail |
| 2:17.0 | this year. |
| 2:22.6 | Tristan gets quite emotional in that conversation but like Rob she's determined to face not just the trail but also her own struggles with mental health. We'll hear from Tristan after Rob. |
| 2:27.8 | Then my accountability blog once more. I've got most of the big stuff for the hike. It's just a case |
... |
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