Originally from North Salem, New York, Melissa Ozbek fell in love with hiking in Washington State when she hiked to the summit of Mount St. Helens for the first time. Since then she has hiked hundreds of miles throughout the state, from beachside strolls to alpine lakes to spectacular mountain summits.
In 2015, she became a hiking guide correspondent and contributor to the Washington Trails Association, writing and researching trail descriptions on wta.org. In addition to writing, Melissa loves photographing trailscapes and is always looking to capture a hike's distinctive personality. In her free time she enjoys finding NPR podcasts and audiobooks to listen to on her drives to hikes, cooking and baking, paddle boarding, playing piano, and going for walks along Lake Washington with her husband, Onur. Check out her work at melissaozbek.com.
