This year's Trail Team members span the country from western New York to sunny Southern California and we are so lucky to be able to showcase them and the amazing things that they do. We have an amazing group of 11 humans who are brand ambassadors for us this year, and if you don’t follow us yet, what are you waiting for??
Today, we’ve invited Andrea to the blog for our first guest feature. Andrea is a fat positive yoga instructor and outdoor enthusiast who was one of our original fit testers so she’s been a friend of Alpine Parrot since the beginning. We are so happy to have you on the Trail Team!
Here is a little personal history I have with Alpine Parrot.
Back in 2020, when the world first shut down, like many people, I found myself online a lot. For me Instagram was the place I hung out most. I hung out on the fat and plus size yoga and outdoorsy accounts (of course).
I learned about Alpine Parrot through these different accounts and found out that the company had started in 2019 as an answer to the age-old problem of hiking apparel not coming in plus sizes. It was actually, I learned, started by one woman, Raquel Velez. In 2020 she launched her successful Kickstarter campaign. I was excited to support it!
Fast forward to 2021 when Raquel reached out to me to see if I would be interested in doing some sort of collaboration or something. We decided to have a Zoom meet up and I learned about the history of the company and virtually met Raquel for the first time.
We planned to try out a few things together but with the pandemic still very serious we, unfortunately, didn't end up doing anything. In 2022 Alpine Parrot had added more apparel to their line up and was starting a "Trail Team" of ambassadors. I was chosen to join and they sent me a pair of their flagship hiking pants. I loved them but unfortunately they did not fit me. They had not finished expanding their sizes yet. (Gratefully, AP told me that I could give those pants away and they found their new home with someone at my first ever “Fat Camping” weekend recently.) The size range has expanded and the pants now come in sizes 14 to 30!!
Fast forward again, to January, 2024. I flew to Seattle to speak at Fat Con and got to meet Raquel in person! We hung out all weekend, grabbed dinner and had a great time. Y'all, Raquel is a fantastic human. She's funny and thoughtful and very passionate about what she does. We are hoping that maybe we will get to do a backpacking trip together some day. She is on the west coast and I am in the northeast so it is difficult.
As of April, the Trail Team is up and running full tilt and I am proud to be a member. I can't say enough great stuff about the products, the people and the mission of Alpine Parrot.
I've been meaning to write this and share all about Alpine Parrot and give some honest reviews about the clothes. I figured now was a great time since they just celebrated their 5th anniversary!!
So, they don't have a ton of different items, but what they do have is excellent quality and feels great. I don't yet own a new pair of the Ponderosa hiking pants but I do have their Bristlecone Flannel (love them so much that I have 2) and their new Cypress Shorts.I have found the shorts to run a little small but by using the size chart, I was able to get the size that works great for me. They are super comfortable. I wear them to hike and bike in. They also have new sun shirts which look excellent as well.
Here is my review of the shorts on Instagram!
Anyway, I just wanted to share about this great company that I would honestly be raving about even if I wasn't an ambassador for them. This is the kind of company that I love to support. Owned and started by folks in the community that are passionate about giving back as well. I hope you give them a view and that maybe something will catch your eye. Maybe you could even share with a friend.
Thanks for being here friend.
-Andrea
2024-2025 Trail Team Member
Blog posts
Our bodies *can* do hard things, but they *do* do hard things, too 🏄🏽♀️
Alpine Parrot Trail Team: Meet Andrea!
