What do you do when a botched surgery leaves you without an Achilles tendon… and a therapist tells you you’ll be “compromised for the rest of your life”? In this episode, author and hiker Jo Giese shares how she clawed her way back to the trail, one waterfall, lucky stone, and hopeful step at a time.
When a “routine” Achilles repair went horribly wrong, doctors told Jo Giese that life as she knew it was over. The Achilles died, infection set in, and even a trusted PT told her she’d be compromised forever.
But Jo refused to accept that story.
In this conversation, Jo shares how she went from barely able to walk to becoming what doctors now call a medical outlier — the 0.01% of people who recover function without an Achilles tendon. With brutal honesty and a lot of humor, she talks about rebuilding strength, finding the right medical team, and why killing someone’s hope is one of the worst things we can do.
We also dive into:
- Why some people succumb to injury while others overcome it
- How waterfalls, wild places, and “waterfall medicine” became a big part of Jo’s healing
- The importance of community: doctors, therapists, friends, and the people who simply show up
- Why Jo is firmly against hiking alone in remote places — and how to find safer ways to adventure
- The joy of lucky stones, “walkie talkies” walking groups, and discovering that your pace doesn’t define your worth
Jo’s upcoming memoir, You’ll Never Walk Alone: A Hiker’s Memoir of Adventure, Tragedy, and Defying the Odds, releases February 10, 2026 — and this conversation is a beautiful preview of the grit, vulnerability, and awe packed into her story.
🎧 Listen if you’re navigating injury, burnout, or big life change and need a reminder that your body — and your spirit — might be capable of far more than you’ve been told.
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📧 Email: Join@KerouacsCruising.com
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