CRYSTAL GAIL WELCOME

After a long battle against a rare brain disease, Crystal Gail Welcome, a 41-year-old from Jacksonville, Florida, took up running as a spontaneous celebration of her health and perseverance. Then a friend invited her on a short day hike, where she had a profound encounter with, well, a tree (tale below). She later went on to tackle the Pacific Crest Trail and other cross-country jaunts. Now, Welcome seeks to bring the healing power of hiking to those who need it most.

- SHANNON DAVIS

Backpacker: Tell us about your brain.

CGW: I have a rare brain disease called pseudotumor cerebri, which produces an increase of pressure in my brain. I had many, many surgeries to implant shunts, remove shunts, and try alternate shunts. None worked. Then, in 2014, a doctor recommended a neuromodulator—an implant that regulates the amount of spinal fluid in my brain.

BP: And you manage to hike with that implant?