families and Thru hiking

[neonfrog]

OK, I've been wondering if any decent sized families have ever attempted the AT? Although we don't plan on even attempting for a few more years, I'd like some advice. Right now, there are 5 of us. Two adults and 3 kids (6, 8, 10) We are all well accustomed to hiking including strenuous day hikes and long multi-day hikes. We have one more on the way. Has anyone ever attempted a family thru hike? If so, please share some info. Physically, I know we can do it. Mentally, as well as the fact that the kids would be away from school for many months, could we do it? thanks

[digger51]

There was a family in 2001 that hiked as I did for quite a while. They were parents and about 5 kids in their early to mid teens. They did very well. I cant remember their names right now. Sorry

[Dances with Mice]

There was a family in 2001 that hiked as I did for quite a while. They were parents and about 5 kids in their early to mid teens. They did very well. I cant remember their names right now. SorryThe Family from the North? (http://www.appalachiantrail.org/atf/cf/%7BD25B4747-42A3-4302-8D48-EF35C0B0D9F1%7D/ATN01May.pdf) Page 16.

[gsingjane]

If I were going to attempt this (and it does seem like you'd be planning a thru with a toddler or very young child, since you say you have another one on the way? that's ambitious!), speaking as a long-time homeschooler, I would take great pains to make sure my kids didn't miss out on a year of education in the process. If you were going to start a thru say in March, what I would do is start off in September homeschooling, and go weekends and vacations, etc. so I finished up a full year by the time we left. You will almost certainly not be able to keep up with lessons on the trail, and at your kids' ages, a year of educational progress is not something to casually throw away. Homeschooling for those six or seven months would also be a good chance for you to get used to being together all the time (which you will be when you hike) and help your kids develop some independence and self-control as well.

You probably wouldn't be finished with your hike in time for school to start again in the fall, but if you've done a good job with the homeschooling, when they come back and go back into school (if they do) they won't have a ton of catching-up to do.

I really would urge you, though, to make continuing with your children's education a priority. I know that when this subject has come up before, a number of posters have expressed the opinion that being out in the woods, among the flora and fauna, interacting with fellow hikers, is sufficient education for most children, or perhaps even superior to that offered by the public schools. I respectfully disagree. Perhaps back in the days of Daniel Boone or when most people farmed or did manual labor for a living, this kind of education was enough. But at least judging from my experience (preparing my children to re-enter the public school system after years of homeschooling), if your child is interested in attending college or pursuing a professional career, there is actually a fair amount of material that kids need to know in order to be successful that they don't simply absorb by osmosis. Making sure your children are at least on grade level in all their subjects - even given an absence of a year from school - is the best way to make sure they can continue with what really is their main "job" at this point in their lives. Whatever your children ultimately decide to do, education- and career-wise, the important thing is not to prematurely close any doors for them.

The physical and logistical challenges aside, which strike me as being fairly monumental, a family thru-hike could be a wonderful experience. I wish you luck and much success!

Jane in CT

[MarcnNJ]

Last year a father and his 2 kids made it all the way......The daughter was 19, and the son was 12 i think....The Wanderers

[Gaiter]

The samurai hillbillies did half the trail last summer. They were a family of 6 the kids were all in their teens.

[shuffle]

The Garland 5 started in 2004 and I think they finished in 2005, not sure though. They did school work along the way I think.

[digger51]

Nope DwM, this family was from New Jersey, and went by the trail names of the ______ Seven.

[ScottP]

Ask TINS and Trooper about the whole homeschooling thing.

Also, wasn't there a Troll family that thru-hiked in 2005?

[Sleepy the Arab]

Nope DwM, this family was from New Jersey, and went by the trail names of the ______ Seven.

The Romanski Seven.

Or something like that. I may be misspelling something.