An adventurer and storyteller, Megan Michelson has come to be one of the outdoor industry's most notable and respected journalists.
Always with the outdoor playground within an arm's reach, Megan Michelson sought out to be a journalist. Led by experience and an undying passion to be outside on the slopes and trail, Michelson rose through the ranks within the coveted outdoor industry be one of the most sought after journalists.
With news and stories being delivered quicker than some can take a breath, 24hrs a day, it’s hard to imagine that any journalist would have a life away from the desk. And as you reach for your favorite magazine or digital outlet, do you ever consider the person behind the words and story? Is the author writing from the heart, a credible source of the topic, or just putting words to paper with a quickly approaching deadline?
When called upon, most journalists will mainline caffeine into their bloodstream while quickly diving into research and more often than not, were chosen to write the piece because of the credibility and background. One such journalist, Megan Michelson, has been navigating through the outdoor industry for more than 15 years and is often one of the most sought-after names.
Born in Nevada City, a small town in California’s Sierra Nevada foothills, Michelson has traveled the world both for pleasure and work, and now calls the backyard playground of Tahoe her home. Needless to say, the outdoors have always been a huge part of Michelson’s life, and even heading to eastern borders of the U.S. to attend Middlebury College in Vermont where she truly began to invest in her notable writing career. As an editor for the college newspaper, the fire had been lit and her determination drove her passions for writing and after school, she returned to the Sierra and started reporting for a weekly newspaper in Tahoe City.
With her experience developing and aspirations to work and live in the outdoors lifestyle, Michelson was lucky enough to land an internship with Outside Magazine in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This was undoubtedly a monumental first step into the industry, and while the internship was focused around fact-checking for other writers, Michelson was now in a position to rise up the ranks and seek the ultimate goal of becoming a journalist. She spent two years at Outside before the urge to step away from fact-checking and get into writing and editing propelled her to a new position as Associate Editor at Skiing Mag in Boulder, Co. This is where Michelson wanted to be, writing and editing features for a magazine within the industry (skiing) that had been such a big part of her life and passions outside of the office.
“It was like a dream job for a 24, 25 year old. I said yes to everything and came up with concepts and feature ideas. It was like a fantasy, something I'd always wanted to do.”
From Skiing Mag, Michelson moved to Seattle, Washington, and continued her pursuit as Freeskiing Editor at ESPN.com writing on a platform truly accessible by the world and reporting on events such as the X Games. Continuing her progression, Michelson has contributed to other notable outlets such as Powder, The Ski Journal, The New York Times, Hi Hey Hello, and Men’s Journal, while always staying true to her heart with the stories she reports on.
Beyond her inherent drive to become the renowned journalist she is today, Michelson recognizes her mom as a strong outdoor athlete and role model. With her mom’s love for the outdoors and growing up in the Sierra, Michelson is an explorer, adventurer, and role model to friends and family out on the slopes and trails. She and her family call Tahoe home and not only use the outdoors as a playground and escape, but Michelson’s own stories from the road, slope, and trails help her to navigate and assimilate with the stories she reports on.
Megan Michelson is a journalist, adventurer, mother, storyteller, and outright amazing human. Look for her words in both print and digital, knowing that the story is meaningful and experience-driven beyond the topic and subject of the piece. Michelson believes in what she writes and hopes to transport readers to the forefront of the storied adventure.
More on Michelson at MeganMichelson.com