Thru Hiking Family of 8 - Your Thoughts?

[Gambit McCrae]

Ran into this family on youtube and personally I don't really see a HUGE deal with it, however they are really getting mixed feelings from other viewers. Really my only reservation is their youngest is 2 years old and to start in early March with him is really my only concern. I know the little boy didn't ask to thru hike, and probably doesn't even comprehend the scope of what the family is doing. They have been on the trail since about march 7th and are doing about 8 miles a day.

This family reminds me of Homer and his family of 4 thru hiking way back when...They seemed to enjoy it...

[Slo-go'en]

Talk about clueless. Their not going to last much longer. It only gets harder. BTW, they posted a new Vlog today.

Did they bring a drone along too?

[two bad]

Might want to check out their earlier vlogs. Run multiple marathons, hikes around Mt. Ranier 95 miles. Don't bet against this family, tougher than you think. What they have accomplished so far is a win. Don't hate, appreciate...

[Last Call]

First "stunt" hike of the year....and they are skipping the Approach Trail....*sigh*

[two bad]

400+ miles is in. Helluva stunt...

[MuddyWaters]

Other families have thru hiked. Including with babies.

Why would anybody care what someone else is doing?

The odds of any individual making it are only 30%.
When you multiply that by several people.... Connected together.... The odds of the group making it together completely are extremely low. Doesnt matter if they are family or not.

Which is expressly why individuals should hike don't look for people to hike with you cuz you scared to be alone. Those companions are a liability for a strong hiker

[Gambit McCrae]

Did they bring a drone along too?

Yes they did, along with a laptop, camera and whatever other electronic equipment they are using to vlog.

1-Why would anybody care what someone else is doing?

2-Which is expressly why individuals should hike don't look for people to hike with you cuz you scared to be alone. Those companions are a liability for a strong hiker

1-Almost every thread on WB is commented on because people care what others are doing. That is what fuels discussion.

2-This is a good point as I almost always search out for hiking buddies to go with me, and only 2 of those buddies can I say were independently not a liability. All the others have ended a hike early that I have invited them on. (Not all the hikes they went on, but at least 1 hike somewhere along the line) So this statement will probably encourage me to go out on more trips by myself even though I enjoy the company of a friend, I am not scared to be alone, just bored.

- The dads voice gets on my nerves, sounds like a valley girl talking thru her nose. Just had to rant on that for a moment.

[MuddyWaters]

2-This is a good point as I almost always search out for hiking buddies to go with me, and only 2 of those buddies can I say were independently not a liability. All the others have ended a hike early that I have invited them on. (Not all the hikes they went on, but at least 1 hike somewhere along the line) So this statement will probably encourage me to go out on more trips by myself even though I enjoy the company of a friend, I am not scared to be alone, just bored.

.

Reminds me of what a buddy of mine told me when I was getting into diving. He was a very experienced diver and a Dive Master.

He laughed at the buddy system. And said that's just for new newbies. When you start really diving, a buddy is just one more thing that can kill you. The best divers dive alone. They aren't going to die because someone else made a mistake.

[Coffee]

The video doesn't inspire much hope but people do learn along the way and maybe they will too. One thing's for certain ... those kids will be spinning tales about this adventure when they are old.

[lonehiker]

The video doesn't inspire much hope but people do learn along the way and maybe they will too. One thing's for certain ... those kids will be spinning tales about this adventure when they are old.

The fact that they've made it as far as they have is pretty impressive in my eyes. I especially appreciate the fact that, it appears, they didn't need to be "spoon-fed" every detail about the trail...

[T.S.Kobzol]

Yeah. I have an issue with the baby, the rest of the crew is sort of ok. But the baby - is stuck in a baby carrier for 10 miles per day, not moving, not able to generate heat via movement and blood circulation - this, for me, is at the edge of neglect and abuse. The previous video of showing his face wind freeze burnt was really upsetting to me.

[Bronk]

https://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/sho...from-the-North

Excerpt from that thread:

"My Family was the Family from the North... my trail name was Shortcut. I hiked with my whole family mom dad baby sister two step brothers and step sister. I was only eight then so all the details are a little fuzzy but at the time I hated it however looking back now at 18 years of age I am proud to have hiked the AT thru. I am really wanting to get information on our family and the hike now that my parents are split we dont talk about it. If anyone has documents or articles about our family hike that would be great. And in respone to some of the upove comments us kids didnt have a say, we all hated it. We where hungry all day and during the winter we froze, the first cold night by boots actually froze and the next morning I had to wear them until they thawed. Their where times that felt like hell but like i said im glad that I have had that experience. And at some point would love to do some section hiking."

[Leo L.]

I've carried my elder daughter quite a lot when her being 1-4yrs. But while it was extremely good exercise for me and she enjoyed it immensely, it was only daytrips and I always left a good margin from exhaustion, so I had always part of my Attention and good mood free for to take good care about her.
Not in my wildest phantasies I could imagine to do the very same, plus all the heavy stuff for me and her, for a really long hike.
But hey, its their own hike, and the baby will be fine I'm pretty sure, while the others might hit their wall (and the SPOT button) sometimes, maybe.

[illabelle]

This story sorta makes a person think about the Trail of Tears, and all they had to haul, and all they had to endure, and those that didn't make it...

[JC13]

I think their hike and the feedback is a microcosm of society today.

Some people enjoy doing hard things, some people think life should be easy and sunshine and rainbows.

[FrogLevel]

I think its a bad idea and probably not much fun but I don't think its abuse.

It would be much more pleasant if they'd have started in April.

[Richard Gallop]

I think its a bad idea and probably not much fun but I don't think its abuse.

It would be much more pleasant if they'd have started in April.

To be clear, in the latest video the father did flick the 2 year old in the mouth (hard enough to break skin) because the toddler wouldn't stop crying. That's abuse. They had the toddlers pant legs tied off to try and keep the child's feet warm causing the pants to fill with moisture while walking all morning in the rain. A 2 year old can't express pain or exhaustion properly and hypothermic reaction just looks like a sleepy baby to these people. Then, when the trail is too much for the kid to handle, crying leads to being punished in a painful way. That's endangerment. I ever see someone treat a 2 year old child the way these people are and I'm going to loose my cool real quick.

[Coffee]

To be clear, in the latest video the father did flick the 2 year old in the mouth (hard enough to break skin) because the toddler wouldn't stop crying. That's abuse.

Sure is abuse ... that's terrible. I didn't see that part.

[Elaikases]

To be clear, in the latest video the father did flick the 2 year old in the mouth (hard enough to break skin) because the toddler wouldn't stop crying. That's abuse. They had the toddlers pant legs tied off to try and keep the child's feet warm causing the pants to fill with moisture while walking all morning in the rain. A 2 year old can't express pain or exhaustion properly and hypothermic reaction just looks like a sleepy baby to these people. Then, when the trail is too much for the kid to handle, crying leads to being punished in a painful way. That's endangerment. I ever see someone treat a 2 year old child the way these people are and I'm going to loose my cool real quick.

That is terrible.

[rocketsocks]

With regard to the pole, it’s not the way would do...but does anyone of you care what I would do? Meh