About

Hi, I’m Liz Derstine (trail name Mercury). I’m a professional musician, writer, and very enthusiastic trail runner and hiker. I’ve set Fastest Known Times on the Appalachian Trail northbound, Vermont’s Long Trail, the Pinhoti Trail in Georgia/Alabama, the Swiss Via Alpina, and more. I’ve been writing this weekly newsletter since December 2020 as a way to chronicle my outdoor adventures and keep in touch with those that have enjoyed following along and being part of my wild journey.

The name of my newsletter Pink Feathers was inspired by album cover art by my favorite band growing up, Garbage. The lead singer kept a blog where she described going out for runs while on tour. I thought, “How cool, a musician that runs, just like me!” I released some pop music under the moniker Pink Feathers from 2013-2017, which you can listen to on Apple and Spotify, and I’m currently pursuing my Master’s in Music degree at Longy School of Music in Boston, MA. You can learn more about my latest music compositions and performances here.

Fastest Known Times

Appalachian Trail - Women's Supported, Northbound (2020)
2,193 miles / 515,000ft elevation gain
51 days, 16 hours, 30 minutes

Long Trail - Women's Self-Supported (2022)
272 miles / 66,000ft elevation gain
6 days, 8 hours, 12 minutes

Swiss Via Alpina - Women’s Self-Supported (2023)
242 miles / 77,000ft elevation gain
6 days, 23 hours, 32 minutes

Pinhoti Trail - Women's Self-Supported (2022)
348.6 miles / 50,000ft elevation gain
7 days, 18 hrs, 22 minutes

SCAR (Smokies Challenge Adventure Run) - Women's Supported (2021)*
72 miles / 18,660ft elevation gain
18:27:07

Forest Park Nasties | Tour de Nasty - Overall Self-Supported (2020)
67.5 miles / 13,500ft elevation gain
13:58:05

Wildwood Trail | Out and Back - Women's Unsupported (2020)*
60.4 miles / 6,600ft elevation gain
11:53:43

Kings Mt. - Elk Mt. Loop - Women's Unsupported (2020)*
10.8 miles / 3,700ft elevation gain
2:27:47

2023 Fastest Known Time of the Year Nominee (Swiss Via Alpina, self-supported)

2022 #5 Women’s Fastest Known Time of the Year (Long Trail, self-supported)

2021 Fastest Known Time of the Year Nominee (Smokies Challenge Adventure Run)

3x Fastest Known Time of the Week (Appalachian Trail 2020, SCAR 2021, Pinhoti Trail 2022)

Personal Records / Race Results

2024 Okushinano 100K, Nagano, Japan - 15:15:40, 12th place

2023 Spring for the Trails Half Marathon - 1:42:37, 1st place

2023 Jack Bristol Lake Waramaug 50K - 4:28:32 (PR), 2nd place

2023 Black Canyon 100K - 12:59:49 (PR)

2022 Across the Years Last Person Standing - Last woman standing / 4th overall / 104 laps / 108.96 miles

2022 JFK 50 Mile - 7:36:54, 9th place

2022 Hagg Mud 50K - 4:34:11, 1st place

2021 Promise Land 50K - 5:51:56, 6th place

2021 Hellgate 100K - 13:57:49, 4th place

2019 Hellgate 100K - 14:18:47, 4th place, ultramarathon debut

2020 Houston Marathon - 2:51:34 (PR)

2019 Holiday Half Marathon - 1:22:43 (PR)

2018 - Tenacious 10K - 36:44 (PR)

2018 - Carlsbad 5000 - 18:01 (PR)

13x Boston Marathon Qualifier

2x Chicago Marathon American Development Program