A quote from Mark Twain: “Find a job that you enjoy doing, and you won’t work a day in your life.”
If you’ve ever heard the phrase “It’s the journey, not the destination,” you’re not far off the mark. Yes, it’s true: You can earn money going into the woods, sleeping under the stars, and lacing up your boots.
And it won’t feel like work most of the time.
Consequently, hiking guides, wildfire fighters, hiking blogs, and YouTube channels can all make a lot of money in the great outdoors.
As a result, stay tuned for the 10 best ways to make money hiking while pursuing your ambition.
How To Get Paid By Hiking in [Year]- Passive Income
Start a Hiking & Travel Blog
To begin with, let me tell you how I earn living hiking (and traveling).
In the end, you will be paid for driving traffic to your blog and earning affiliate commissions.
Become a Park Ranger
Consider becoming a park ranger if you love the outdoors and want to earn a job doing what you love. However, there is a considerable amount of schooling and competition in the job market to be expected for such a rewarding position.
The responsibilities of park rangers include:
- Touring the park grounds and leading hikes
- Enforcing regulations and patrolling parks
- Assisting in the restoration of parks
- Searching and rescuing
- First-aid and medical assistance in an emergency
Even while becoming a park ranger involves more than just hiking, you’ll still receive plenty of time in nature and exposure to fresh air every day. In order to do your job as a park ranger, you’ll need to go hiking a lot.
Your hiking adventure can be turned into a book
Walking for days on end is a fascinating way of life, and many outdoor enthusiasts have found success in their writing about their own personal wilderness adventures.
Readers will gain a deeper understanding of your love of the outdoors if you write about your hiking adventures in vivid detail. The more daring, difficult, and life-altering your excursion, the better off you’ll be.
It will take time and effort to write and market a successful book. It’s imperative that you go on a trekking excursion that will enthrall and inspire others. Get ready for lengthy hours at the computer, pitching publishers, and an in-depth marketing strategy after that.
Lead Guided Hiking & Backpacking Trips
It’s feasible to get a job as a hiking or backpacking tour leader despite the fact that the industry is quite competitive.
With a little luck and patience, you can land an interview with a trekking firm. With a shortage of leading roles, the rivalry for available positions is fierce. Put together a great résumé, nail your interview, and be prepared to work your way up from the bottom like you would for any other job.
You can even start your own hiking trip company if you prefer to be in charge. As a result, you will need a lot of trekking and backpacking expertise along with excellent interpersonal skills and an entrepreneurial spirit. Ambitious, indeed, but doable as well.
Become a Wildland Firefighter
Do you enjoy unpredictability, spending weeks at a time in nature, and promoting environmental conservation? If so, consider becoming a wildland firefighter right immediately.
Firefighting wildland blazes is like “high-speed landscaping,” a teacher once told me. His conclusion appears to be spot-on. As a wildland firefighter, you are responsible for the following responsibilities:
- Making firelines out of dirt (removing trees, brush, and other fuel from potential burn areas)
- Firefighters use prescribed burns to protect their lines of supply.
- Maintaining and repairing firefighting gear
- Maps and directions for backcountry travel-finding
Wildland firefighters typically work hard hours, although they are usually highly compensated for it. A year’s wage can be earned in only one season of about 4-6 months for many of these workers. Wildland firefighting, like many of the other hiking-related careers on this list, is particularly competitive because of this.
Wildland firefighting positions require that you complete the required training, be in excellent physical shape and have the ability to travel for weeks or months at a time.
Get Sponsored by an Outdoor Company
If you’re a big fan of hiking and have a large internet following, you may be able to get paid by outdoor companies to spread the word about their products.
These outdoor companies are using well-known online figures to promote their products to potential customers. In exchange for promoting a company’s products, these internet personalities receive free gear, money, or both.
Unless you’re a well-known figure in the hiking community, relying solely on sponsorships to support yourself is unrealistic. Hikers who are ready to pitch products in exchange for free gear and money will find plenty of both.
Start a YouTube Hiking Channel
Many hikers and backpackers from all over the world are uploading movies to YouTube, making it easier for people to share their travel experiences. Some of these YouTubers have become well-known in the outdoor world and are making a living by making videos on what they enjoy the most.
YouTubers you may know who do hiking and backpacking are:
- Homemade Wanderlust
- Darwin on the trail
- JupiterHikes
- Dan Becker
- Kyle Hates Hiking
Affiliate marketing is how these YouTubers make their living, just like it does for me when I blog. They generate money by promoting products and services in their films, and when people click on the links and buy the items, the makers get a cut of the sale.
It will take a lot of time and effort to become popular as a hiking and backpacking YouTuber, so don’t expect it to happen immediately. It takes a long time to master the craft of filmmaking, so buy your camera and start filming as soon as possible.
Write for a Hiking Publication
Hiking and backpacking are two of your favorite pastimes, but are you also an excellent writer?
To be fair, there are a slew of publications that will pay you to write about their products and services. There are a few:
- Hiking Gear Lab
- Outdoor Sports Guide
- Switchback Travel
- Backpacker Magazine
- National Geographic Traveler
For lesser newspapers, the remuneration for freelance writing is usually 5 cents per word, but it can go up to over $1 per word for more well-known publications. If you’re a good writer and negotiator, you’ll earn more money.
To make a long story short, I’m currently looking for travel writers to contribute their finest trip reports, gear reviews, and hiking tips.
Sell Your Hiking Photos
So, maybe you’re not cut out for freelancing, but you do have a good camera and enjoy taking pictures on your hikes every now and then.
You can also make money by photographing the outside world.
Getting compensated for your hiking photography can be accomplished in a variety of ways. My recommendation is to show your work to an audience and see what sticks. The following are some of the most common ways that hikers and backpackers earn money for their photography:
- Stock websites are a great place to sell your photos
- Get in touch with magazines, websites, and outdoor companies
- Your work can be sold online as prints
- Online store for outdoor photography
Start clicking away now that you have a high-quality camera in your hands. Backcountry tourism is a lucrative business.
Work for NOLS
A non-profit wilderness-based education school known as NOLS, or National Outdoor Leadership School, immerses students in the great outdoors to teach.
Young people wishing to improve self-awareness in the wilderness can take advantage of NOLS programs, which typically last a few weeks to a few months. Courses are accessible on six continents, so students and instructors have plenty of options.
The following activities are included in each NOLS course:
- Backpacking
- Rafting
- Hiking
- Kayaking
- Rock Climbing
- Skiing & Snowboarding
As a field instructor, you must first finish a NOLS Instructor Course that teaches you how to lead your own group of students into the wilderness while also teaching them new skills. You’ll be able to apply for positions at the company after completing the course.
During your time as a NOLS instructor, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to go hiking, backpacking, and exploring the great outdoors. The compensation isn’t great, but the experience you receive should be well worth it.
Quick Links:
- John Muir Quotes To Be Better At Life
- How to Make Money Blogging Best Guide
- Nelson Mandela Quotes That Will Improve Your Life
- How to Earn Money from Amazon? Easy Ways To Make Most From Amazon
- Tips to Save Your Money While Doing Online Shopping
Conclusion- How To Get Paid By Hiking
Hikers and backpackers who make a living by trekking through the wilderness and camping out beneath the stars aren’t by chance in this line of employment. Instead of settling for a boring city existence, they’ve chosen to live an adventurous life in the wilderness, and they want to do so for many years to come.
Now it’s up to you.
What kind of rewarding hiking job are you planning to pursue? Do you plan to become an outdoor photographer? Will you launch a YouTube channel dedicated to your hiking adventures? It’s never too late to start your own firm.
Whatever your ideal hiking position may be, go after it with all your might.
Because let’s face it, no one likes it when their job feels like labor.