MELISSA DEVAUGHN is on the Outdoors staff at the Anchorage Daily News, Alaska’s largest daily newspaper, and has been covering outdoorsrelated topics for newspapers and magazines since 1990. She has also worked at the Roanoke Times in Virginia; the Peninsula Clarion, on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula; and The Associated Press in Anchorage. Her work has also appeared in Alaska, Backpacker, Canoe & Kayak, and Women’s Sports & Fitness magazines, among other publications. She hiked the Appalachian Trail in 1993 before moving to Alaska, and she continues to enjoy backpacking throughout the state. In addition, she enjoys mountain- and road-biking in the summer and in the winter spends her time dog-mushing with her team of Alaskan huskies. She lives in Chugiak, Alaska, with her husband, Andy Hall; a 7-year-old daughter, Reilly; a 10-year-old son, Roan; 11 dogs; and 1 cat.