Jennifer Pharr Davis is using the same strength that saw her hike the 2,197-mile Appalachian Trail in 46 days to make the world a better place, including relentless Hurricane Helene recovery help in her native Western North Carolina.
Photo Above: Davis’s then-record 2011 hike began at the northern terminus of the trail at Mount Katahdin in Maine. She averaged 47 miles a day.
Photos Courtesy of Courtesy of Jennifer Pharr Davis.
When Hurricane Helene thundered into Asheville, North Carolina, last fall, the Category 4 storm destroyed municipal infrastructure, leaving thousands without clean drinking water. But mountain native Jennifer Pharr Davis had a solution.
Having lived in the region her entire life, Davis knew that many mountain folk could access streams and creeks, “especially in the more rural areas where the water wasn’t tainted by chemicals,” she says. The only challenge was that the water needed to be purified before consumption.
With this in mind, Davis reached out to water filter manufacturer Sawyer.
“They jumped at the opportunity to help,” says Davis, who worked with county officials to distribute an astonishing 80,000 filters across the mountains. Davis and her family also pitched in by preparing hot meals for volunteers traveling from across the country to support recovery efforts.
“We all have to help each other,” says Davis. “It’s the only way we’re going to stand up from this tragedy. But we are convinced that our city and all of Western North Carolina will build back stronger in time.”
Davis knows a thing or two about strength. In 2005, she completed her first thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail (AT) at the age of 21. Over those five strenuous months, she got struck by lightning, was stalked by a fellow thru-hiker and came across someone who had committed suicide on-trail. But she also witnessed the healing power of nature, the generosity of strangers and the immense beauty of the mountains she calls home.
“It was such an adventure,” says Davis.
Since then, she has hiked more than 14,000 miles on six different continents and published 10 books about walking in the woods. In 2008, she returned to the AT and completed the trail in 57 days, establishing a women’s record. And in 2011, she completed the entire 2,197-mile journey in 46 days, setting the overall record by averaging 47 miles per day. A year later, she was named a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year.
Today, Davis lives with her husband, Brew, and their two children in Asheville. Her home isn’t far from Hendersonville, the city where she was introduced to the wonders of mountains, streams and wildflowers as a child.
“I didn’t realize how lucky I was to spend so much time outside,” says Davis, who came to truly appreciate the Southern Appalachian landscape after her first thru-hike. Determined to expose more people to the outdoors, she founded Blue Ridge Hiking Company in 2007 at the age of 25.
“I wanted to get women, people of color and other marginalized groups who hadn’t been outside as much more comfortable in the woods,” she explains. “I wanted to create space for people to connect with nature and feel wild like I had when I thru-hiked.”
Under her leadership, the company expanded offerings to include everything from LGBTIQA+ pride hikes to winter tree identification expeditions. Davis estimates she and her guides took tens of thousands of people into the forests surrounding Asheville.
“I’m really proud of that,” she says.
Though Davis has since sold Blue Ridge Hiking Company, she continues to make an impact in the mountains and beyond. Just since 2020, she has served on the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition; helped establish the Appalachian High Route, a 330-mile footpath that snakes through the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee; and lobbied for the Department of Transportation to build a wildlife corridor on I-26 in Asheville after colliding with a 500-pound-bear in her Prius.
Of course, Davis is also supporting her community in the wake of Helene. Though recovering from this natural disaster won’t be easy, Davis is no stranger to uphill battles.
“Some days are messy, and you feel like you’re not making any progress,” she says. “But you have to keep putting one foot in front of the other and you can’t quit. Because finishing the trail is worth it.”
The story above first appeared in our March / April 2025 issue.
