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# Hiker Spotlight: Renae Gupta — Walking Across America for a Purpose
- URL: https://www.hikingamerica.com/renae-gupta-adt-2026/
- Published: 2026-03-03T16:52:08.000Z
- Updated: 2026-03-03T16:52:07.000Z
- Description: Renae Gupta left a geology career in Alaska last November feeling unfulfilled. Now she's walking 6,800 miles across America — and raising money for causes she believes in every step of the way.
- Author: John Wesley Brett

Renae Gupta isn't hiking the **American Discovery Trail** because she needed a new challenge. She's hiking it because she needed a new direction.

At 34, Renae spent the last several years working as a geologist in Alaska's mining industry — a demanding career that, by November 2025, had started to feel like the wrong kind of hard. So she did something most people only think about: she walked away and started planning something bigger.

"I felt unfulfilled, with the need to do something more," she says. That "more" turned out to be a **6,800-mile fundraising walk** across the United States.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/0f/28/0f286572-aa37-49a3-8704-f6d42aa3a69a/content/images/2026/03/Messenger_creation_20769AD0-C061-4267-BFD1-4C1DE2FB85A4-1.jpeg)

Photo courtesy: Renae Gupta

Renae is no stranger to long miles. In 2025, she completed the **Colorado Trail**, punching her ticket into the thru-hiker community and confirming what she already suspected — her legs and her resolve are trail-ready. The ADT is a different beast entirely, but she's coming in with the right foundation.

What sets Renae's hike apart is its purpose. She's walking with a **fundraising mission** spread across organizations doing work she believes in — from **land conservation and national parks to Indigenous economic development and immigration advocacy.** 

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/0f/28/0f286572-aa37-49a3-8704-f6d42aa3a69a/content/images/2026/03/gupta.jpg) 

#### ****Renae Gupta**

Westbound  
Began Febuary 26, 2026 - Cape Henlopen, DE  
Support Links: [****ImHikingAmerica**](https://www.imhikingamerica.com/hiker/209?ref=hikingamerica.com), [****Instagram**](https://www.instagram.com/thediscoverywalk?ref=hikingamerica.com), [****GoFundMe**](https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-discovery-walk?ref=hikingamerica.com)

She is documenting the journey on [**Instagram**](https://www.instagram.com/thediscoverywalk/?ref=hikingamerica.com) and through a [**GoFundMe**](https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-discovery-walk?ref=hikingamerica.com)**,** building her platform as she goes. It's new territory for her, but then again, so is walking across a continent.

We're glad she found us. 🥾

## Hike Your Hike - John.