About -

Rachel Sylvia Cavanaugh

Writer. Journalist. Storyteller.

My path to journalism originated from a natural-born curiosity and desire to learn more about the world and the people in it. I’m interested in telling stories that compel the reader to think critically, engage with their environment, and view complex issues in a new light. Much of the work I do focuses on science and the outdoors, wildlife, travel, culture, history, and technology.

I began my career in 2005 working under two former Reuters journalists in Central America, covering Latin American politics and human interest stories for an English-language newspaper in Costa Rica. Situated on the Pacific Coast of Guanacaste, we began working out of my editor’s kitchen and quickly grew to become a trusted news force in the region. By the end of my three-year tenure, I’d collected a host of memories that included exciting moments such as dining with Nobel Peace Prize-Winning President Oscar Arias and interviewing renowned Primatologist Jane Goodall. As an aspiring young journalist, I was hooked immediately.

Rachel Cavanaugh - Solitude Mountain, Outdoor Retailer 2017

Rachel Cavanaugh - Playa Potrero, Costa Rica

Over the next decade, my roles included working as Editor of the Goldendale Sentinel where I led the editorial staff and directed the vision of a weekly Washington newspaper; as Digital Producer for MSN News where I wrote, produced, and edited breaking news stories for Microsoft’s social media-based news site msnNOW; and as Digital Content Writer for Nike’s Global Consumer Experience team where I managed internal and external Nike websites.

I currently work as a Staff Writer for Bustle’s Outdoor and Fitness E-Commerce platform and contribute weekly gear reviews to Digital Trends’ Outdoor and Sports section. Please feel free to scroll through my portfolio of writing clips on Wildlife and Science, Outdoors and Gear Reviews, Food and Travel, Human Interest and Features, Opinions and Commentary, News and Politics, TV and Pop Culture, or Copywriting to learn more about my work.

Rachel Cavanaugh is a long-time journalist based in the Pacific Northwest. With more than 18 years of experience as a news reporter, writer, photographer, editor, and digital producer, her work has been featured in Men's Journal, MSN, The Hollywood Reporter, Bustle, Digital Trends, Elite Daily, Matador Network, Gear Junkie, Inverse, Mic, and other publications. She's worked as a Digital Producer for Microsoft’s msnNOW, Digital Content Writer on Nike's Global Consumer Services' team, Gear Reviewer for Digital Trends' Outdoors and Sports section, Staff Commerce Writer for Bustle's Outdoor and Fitness E-Commerce platform, and Editor-in-Chief of the Goldendale Sentinel, a weekly print newspaper in Washington state. Most recently, she was the Editorial Director for Columbia Sportswear's Tough Mother Outdoor Guide, helping to conceptualize and global retail giant's first ever digital magazine and build it from the ground up. Over a four-year period from 2020 to 2024, she grew the publication into a journalistically-styled content platform, creating compelling storytelling about people and places in the outdoors. She was responsible for all content strategy and production from story ideation and planning to research, interviews, and article delivery. In addition to writing higher-level brand stories, she managed a small team of freelance writers. She currently splits her time between Baja, California where she lives in an RV on the beach, and Hood River, Oregon where she spends her free time kiteboarding, snowboarding, and playing with dogs.

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Rachel Sylvia Cavanaugh

Writer. Journalist. Storyteller.

Pull On A Pair Of These Socks Before You Go Frolicking In The Snow

Hilltop Turbines Signal The Winds of Change

The Walking Dead: Why a Daryl-Aaron Romance is a Good Idea

Poetry is an Eight-Legged Shuffle