Hiking for health, not steps, is this Girl Scout’s goal

May 17, 2023

Caitlin Fitzgerald of Bedford publishes hiking guide, earns Girl Scout Gold Award

BEDFORD, NH – If you have ever felt your fitness tracker guilting you into pacing around a room or a good meal ruined by the feeling you now have to make up for the calories with exercise, you know how society’s attitudes toward weight and fitness can tip toward a feeling of punishment rather than happiness and health. Gold Award Girl Scout Caitlin Fitzgerald wanted to change that mindset by getting people to discover hiking trails around Bedford while leaving their step trackers behind.

Fitzgerald, 17, of Bedford, has earned Girl Scouting’s highest honor, the Gold Award, with her project, “Hiking In and Around Bedford,” which resulted in a guidebook and in-person guided tours of the hiking trails around Bedford where she helped her hikers understand that it’s enough to just be outdoors, really take in the scenery and wildlife, and enjoy the walk for its own sake, not for a goal on a smart watch.

“I really just wanted to shift the narrative around that to be: Exercise is great for you but it doesn’t have to be a super painful experience, pushing yourself to your absolute limits,” she said. “Just get outside and move. And see nature, and have that be a really nice time for you. It’s good for you mind and good for your body. With the younger kids, I tried to talk to them and get them to shift their focus. Look at the beautiful trees! Look at the birds! It’s so nice to be outside.”

On her hiking tours, Fitzgerald encouraged her participants to shift from watching how many steps they took to thinking about how it feels to be outdoors, walking and taking in the environment. She encouraged them to ask themselves if they want to take a more challenging trail because it would be more interesting, not because it would burn more calories.

“I was trying to be like, maybe we can go through this hike and not check our steps,” she said. “Stay away from the numbers a little bit. Just for a little bit. Give yourself a break. Try to be really focused in this time. Be together. Talk with each other.”

Fitzgerald’s guide, “A Girl Scout’s Guide to Hiking In and Around Bedford,” is available for $2 on Amazon.

“It’s basically a list of all the hikes that are my favorites right in Bedford and the surrounding towns because so often I talk to people and they’re like, ‘Oh, I didn’t even know that trail existed’ or ‘I didn’t know we could go there.’”

Her favorite trails include Pulpit Rock on the border of Amherst, and the Van Loan Preserve. She’s a fairly experienced hiker with some big goals.

“I hiked Mount Washington this past summer with a few of my friends. So my Girl Scout troop leaders, ever since kindergarten, really introduced me to hiking and we made hiking a priority every year, so I guess this is 12 years of hiking. I really just fell in love with it, so I’m doing the 48 4,000-footers of New Hampshire. I’m about eight of them in. So far it’s pretty fun. I’m hoping to get another six or seven in this summer.”

Sarah Dresser, a sister hiker and Fitzgerald’s project advisor was happy to help with the project.

“Caitlin did an awesome job, and I was so proud of her achievement when she showed me the final report,” she said. “When Caitin approached me with her project idea, I discussed my favorite New Hampshire hikes with her. I included ones of varying length and difficulties plus ones with great views and things that would amuse younger hikers. I tried to give her a broad variety that would appeal to a lot of people with varying hiking experience.”

The experience made Fitzgerald realize there is a larger battle to fight in changing people’s attitudes.

“When you try to reshape the way you look at the world, it’s a really slow process and you can’t go in it all at once,” she said. “So, at the beginning of the project I had really high hopes and I was super ambitious. I was like, everybody’s going to love it. We’re going to change everything, people are going to be super healthy, want to be in nature, it’s going to be great. And as I went through the process, I realized this is a first step. This is not a solution. We need more time, more resources, more energy, more outreach. This is a national – global issue that really needs a lot of attention and there’s a lot of people that are really struggling with this.”

Fitzgerald has also promoted her hikes on WBNH-LP radio, where she is an on-air personality, and also works for Bedford Community TV.

“She adds a personal touch to the mostly automated radio station,” said Harry Kozlowski, program director for the FM station.” And she quickly adapted to the job. In fact she won a first place award for 'Best DJ' last year in the John Drury High School Radio competition. She's very driven and a quick study. She also has an engaging personality so she's a natural before a mic or camera.”

Starting Girl Scouts in kindergarten, Fitzgerald has been fortunate to have consistent troop leaders with Sue Russell and Pamela Whitney. She has enjoyed camporees, cookie sales, hiking, and the lifelong friendship of her troopmates.

This ambitious Girl Scout is a junior at Bedford High School, where she belongs to five honor societies, is a straight-A student taking AP classes and is on the IB degree track, and competes in Nordic skiing and varsity crew.

● ● ●

Gold Award Girl Scouts don’t just change the world for the better, they change it for good. The Gold Award is earned by girls in grades 9–12 who demonstrate extraordinary leadership in developing sustainable solutions to local, national, and global challenges. Since 1912, Girl Scouts have answered the call to drive lasting, impactful change. They earn college scholarships, demonstrate high educational and career outcomes, and are active in their communities.

Caitlin Fitzgerald has answered the call to drive lasting, impactful change, and her Gold Award is a testament to her remarkable dedication to improving her community and the world.

About the Girl Scout Gold Award

Gold Award Girl Scouts on average spend one to two years on their project.
A Gold Award project must be sustainable after the girl’s involvement ends.
The average age of Gold Award Girl Scouts is 17.
Since 1916, more than 1 million girls have earned the Gold Award or its equivalent.
Gold Award Girl Scouts are entitled to enlist at a higher pay grade when they join the military.
University research indicates that noting you are a Gold Award Girl Scout on a college application is influential in the admissions decision-making process.
Thirty young women from New Hampshire and Vermont earned their Gold Award in the 2021-2022 membership year as part of Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains.
The Girl Scout Gold Award is the mark of the truly remarkable.

^{We Are Girl Scouts}

^{Girl Scouts bring their dreams to life and work together to build a better world. Through programs from coast to coast, Girl Scouts of all backgrounds and abilities can be unapologetically themselves as they discover their strengths and rise to meet new challenges—whether they want to climb to the top of a tree or the top of their class, lace up their boots for a hike or advocate for climate justice, or make their first best friends. Backed by trusted adult volunteers, mentors, and millions of alums, Girl Scouts lead the way as they find their voices and make changes that affect the issues most important to them. To join us, volunteer, reconnect, or donate, visit girlscouts.org.}

^{Girl Scouts of the Green and White Mountains serves girls throughout New Hampshire and Vermont through volunteer-run troops, events, and virtual programs. Visit www.girlscoutsgwm.org to learn more.}