Have you ever been hiking along a trail and had that distinct sensation of being followed? It’s the moment when your sixth or seventh sense kicks in, and you pause, holding your breath, listening, and turning to check that no one’s around. There’s always a sense of relief when you realize it was just your imagination. You aren’t being stalked or pursued.
But what if you were? What if you turned around and came face to face with your biggest fear? What if you came to realize it was something not of this world?
Monarch is a 13-episode narrative podcast that dives into the depths of that feeling. The show follows a young backpacker named Monarch who is thru-hiking the Continental Divide Trail (CDT). Along her journey, she starts to get those strange and inexplicable feelings. Weird things start happening around her, and the deeper she goes into the wilderness, the darker things start to become.
“Anyone who enjoys the outdoors, anyone who’s ever felt like someone was following them, anyone who’s ever not been able to sleep in their tent because something was rustling outside, can [relate] to this,” the podcast’s creator, Laura Munsil, told GearJunkie.
Monarch presents a spine-tingling story about backpacking, and it’s for backpackers. It’s meant to capture the anxiety, apprehension, awe, and sometimes terror that people feel on the trail — especially when they’re alone.
Monarch Podcast: Based on a True Campfire Story
Like the podcast’s main character, Monarch, Munsil is a thru-hiker. She was traversing the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) when she got the idea for this podcast. She said she was hiking a very remote and untrafficked part of the PCT and went about 4 months without seeing another person.
She’d brought a small recorder with her, though, and started using it to keep herself entertained. She didn’t listen to that until she got home.
“I made all these, like, really bizarre recordings,” she said. “It didn’t sound like me. It sounded like someone who was totally like off their rocker.”
But as she continued listening, she realized that she might be onto something. An idea started to form in her brain. Munsil had a background in television, film, and production; she understood the mechanics of telling stories visually. Why not try her hand at telling a story in audio format — with voice actors, sound effects, music, and editing? The concept intrigued her.
And she knew exactly what kind of story she was going to tell, based on those recordings from the PCT.
“Spooky campfire tales really appealed to me,” she said. “So I came up with this sort of yarn about someone who is haunted and trying to escape their past and figure out a way to move forward.”
She wrote the character, mapped out a narrative arc, and used her own experiences to enrich the story. But Munsil wanted to be clear when we spoke: Monarch is a made-up story. It’s fiction. Some of the scary encounters that happen to Monarch were real things Munsil felt, saw, experienced, or perhaps imagined on the PCT. But the paranormal element of the story, Munsil said, was all made up.
“A lot of the scary stuff is inspired by [events] that actually happened. But then, you know, I’m always trying to take it a little further,” she said.
The Making of Monarch
As soon as you start listening to Monarch, it becomes clear how much work went into its production. Munsil said she used 32 voice actors in the podcast, did a lot of editing and sound design herself, and had a professional editor friend help polish and tighten everything up.
The result is a podcast that is truly immersive. It’s hard not to be sucked in by Munsil’s voice (she plays Monarch), the soundscape, and, of course, the supernatural spookiness of the main character’s strange thru-hiking adventure. In all, there are about 10 hours of listening.
It’s enough to crush a significant portion of any long-distance trail you might be hiking.
More to Come?
Munsil said she’s been pretty blown away by Monarch‘s reception. Overwhelmingly, she said, the responses and comments have been positive. The hiking community has embraced her story and unique presentation of it with open arms. Some of them have even gotten a little overzealous about her telling of Monarch’s story.
“There’s a couple of hikers who’ve been in my DMs, like, ‘Hey I looked this story up and this didn’t happen this way,'” she said with a chuckle. “I don’t know how to tell people, ‘I made it up.’ Like, I drew off of real experience and real inspiration, but like, it’s a fictional piece.”
She isn’t annoyed by the outreach, though. In fact, she said it’s kind of flattering that people care that much and listen that closely.
Monarch has been so successful that Munsil was even able to drum up some partnerships with outdoor brands. In July, she announced a giveaway with Hikerkind, Pa’lante Packs, Bedrock Sandals, Astral Footwear, and Branwyn, with awesome outdoor prizes like the Desert Pack backpack and the Mountain Clogs from Bedrock.
The story of Monarch is over, and she’s happy with how it ended as a “complete arc.” But she also said she would love to tell more stories from this universe she’s created. Munsil has been playing with a few other story ideas about other hikers on other trails since Monarch ended.
“If people want to hear it, I’ll make a season two,” she said. “For sure.”
So, if you’re looking for a good hiking podcast for your next backpack or road trip, give Monarch a listen. You can find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or YouTube.
