#09 | Hiking with Kids ft. Gayheart Family, Percy Family & Heather Balogh Rochfort

In this episode of Walking Distance presented by The Trek and hosted by Blissful Hiker (Alison Young), we are joined by Jason Gayheart, Heather Balogh Rochfort, and Kayla and Fynleigh Percy. Jason Gayheart, lives in South Carolina and will be hiking the Continental Divide Trail this summer with his wife Jackie and their three children, ages 16, 12 and 8. Heather Balogh Rochfort, who you might remember from the first episode of Walking Distance, recently co-founded WildKind Closet, a non-profit that offers low cost outdoor gear rental to families. She also released the book Moms Who Hike - Walking with America’s Most Inspiring Adventurers. Kayla Percy and her 7 year old daughter Fynleigh are currently NOBOs hiking the Appalachian Trail. Unlike the Gayheart family or Balogh Rochfort family, Kayla is a single mom conquering the trail with Fynleigh.

Blissful Hiker covers how to include kids in the logistics and planning of a long hike, the most common questions about gear for kids, and motivation for kids during hard days on the trail.

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Walking Distance is sponsored by John Reamer and Associates. Go to www.johnreamer.com to learn more.

Interview with Jason Gayheart

1:35 - Introduction to Jason Gayheart and his family, who are hiking the Continental Divide Trail this summer.

2:50 - As an east coast family, why not hike the Appalachian Trail? How did the plan come to be, and how did you make it work to hike with your whole family?

3:09 - Why a thru-hike?

3:30 - You mention school, so how did you handle schooling for your children?

4:10 - So, this should be the ultimate family vacation! Was that the intention?

4:54 - Have you always had your kids hiking with you, since they were babies?

5:34 - I’m wondering about each of the kids. What is each of their hiking styles, and how do they push each other along?

6:22 - How are you managing the logistics? Does everyone carry their own things? How do you manage tents?

7:15 - How do you manage cooking and food for five people?

7:55 - This must be a real learning experience for your children too, what do you think?

8:15 - What are you looking forward to the most on trail?

9:10 - There’s plenty of dangerous things you’ll encounter on trail. How are you preparing the kids for that?

10:25 - You talk about taking the experience as it comes, but it is a thru-hike and you need to plan to make miles to complete it. What are your mileage goals?

12:00 - Someone commented on the CDT Facebook page where Jason and Blissful Hiker connected, kids can do anything; it’s often adults that hold them back. Jason’s youngest son is a few months younger than Buddy Backpacker, so setting a new record is a good motivator for the family to finish.

Interview with Heather Balogh Rochfort