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Six Pack Hikers
เข้าร่วมเมื่อ 21 ก.ย. 2011
Hi! We're David and Sally Ann. Our homeschooling family lives in western North Carolina, and we take the time to hike every chance we get. We've done over 1,000 miles of hiking as a family over the past 5 years, but our ultimate goal is to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. Join us as we begin to document our hiking adventures and as we prepare for our 2025 AT hike!
🔔 Follow Us: Instagram: @sixpackhikers
🔔 Follow Us: Instagram: @sixpackhikers
BFV - Goodbye to Montana; Time to come home!
Big Family Vacation (BFV) Day 10-11: Off to Kalispell and the Kalispell Grand Hotel. Ultimately arriving home to NC. A wonderful end to a memorable family trip!
Quick summary:
-Spent our last morning in Glacier packing up and savoring breakfast at the Glacier Guides Lodge.
-Headed to Hungry Horse, MT to do laundry. Walked around a neighborhood by the laundromat and were greeted by more “Private Property,” “No Trespassing,” and “Keep Out!” signs than we’d ever seen. Property rights are a big deal out here!
-We had lunch at Lake McDonald in the Apgar area and then hiked down to Rocky Point Beach again to skip rocks and wade in the water
-Drove to Kalispell, checked into the Kalispell Grand (enjoyed cookies and popcorn) before walking to dinner at Casa Mexico.
-Slept so well!
-Woke up Monday morning, enjoyed breakfast at the Kalispell Grand before packing up and heading to the airport.
-Finally arrived to WNC by way of Chicago and Greenville, SC at 11pm.
What an incredible trip! Memories to last for many years ❤️
Quick summary:
-Spent our last morning in Glacier packing up and savoring breakfast at the Glacier Guides Lodge.
-Headed to Hungry Horse, MT to do laundry. Walked around a neighborhood by the laundromat and were greeted by more “Private Property,” “No Trespassing,” and “Keep Out!” signs than we’d ever seen. Property rights are a big deal out here!
-We had lunch at Lake McDonald in the Apgar area and then hiked down to Rocky Point Beach again to skip rocks and wade in the water
-Drove to Kalispell, checked into the Kalispell Grand (enjoyed cookies and popcorn) before walking to dinner at Casa Mexico.
-Slept so well!
-Woke up Monday morning, enjoyed breakfast at the Kalispell Grand before packing up and heading to the airport.
-Finally arrived to WNC by way of Chicago and Greenville, SC at 11pm.
What an incredible trip! Memories to last for many years ❤️
มุมมอง: 25
วีดีโอ
BFV - Glacier Park Day 6 - Ptarmigan Tunnel, Fishercap Lake, and Late Night Ice Cream
มุมมอง 322 ชั่วโมงที่ผ่านมา
Big Family Vacation (BFV) Day 9: Glacier National Park day 6, EARLY start, Ptarmigan Tunnel, Fishercap Lake, Red Rock Lake, late night ice cream Quick summary: -Got on the GTTSR at 5:30am to drive to Many Glacier on the east side (~65 miles). Got stuck behind a line of cars behind a slow RV which added nearly 25 minutes to our commute! -Hit the Ptarmigan Tunnel Trail around 8am in the chilly mo...
BFV - Glacier National Park Day 5 - Lunch Creek and SNOW!
มุมมอง 382 ชั่วโมงที่ผ่านมา
Big Family Vacation (BFV) - Day 8: Glacier National Park day 5, Glacier Guides to the rescue, Lunch Creek, Freda’s Cafe, and Lake McDonald stroll. Quick summary: -Checked out of our tiny cabin in East Glacier -Drove to the Lunch Creek trail head -Tackled the trail while seeing big horn sheep, American marten (the weasel looking animal in our video) -Used flagging tape so we could find our way b...
BFV - Glacier National Park Day 4 - FULL Highline Trail with Grinnell Glacier Overlook, EPIC day!
มุมมอง 657 ชั่วโมงที่ผ่านมา
Big Family Vacation (BFV) Day 7: Glacier National Park day 4, FULL Highline Trail with a bonus of Grinnell Glacier overlook and the Granite Park Chalet. Totaled 15 miles of hiking today! Quick summary: -Checked out at 7am -Drove to Logan Pass but parking was full. Ended up parking 1/2 mile down the GTTSR and walking back. -Got on the Highline Trail at 8am -Saw mountain goats, black bear, golden...
BFV - Glacier National Park Day 3 - Highline Trail Preview and Hidden Lake
มุมมอง 4712 ชั่วโมงที่ผ่านมา
🏔️ Big Family Vacation (BFV) Day 6: Glacier National Park day 3, Highline Trail preview, Hidden Lake, Lunch at Lunch Creek Quick summary: -Left our cabin at 9:30am. -Drove to Logan Pass, and David dropped us off to go find parking. -While he was searching, my parents, the kids, and I did the first 1/2 mile on the Highline Trail. -Met up with David to let the kids shop at the visitor’s center -M...
BFV - Glacier National Park day 2 - Lake McDonald Boat Tour, GTSR, Many Glacier, Star Viewing
มุมมอง 5514 ชั่วโมงที่ผ่านมา
🏔️ Big Family Vacation (BFV) Day 5: Glacier National Park day 2, boat tour, exploring the GTS road and northeast side of GNP. Quick summary: -Left our cabin at 9am. -Boat tour of Lake McDonald-saw 3 bald eagles! -Drove the Going to the Sun Road-50 miles of absolute stunning views! Stopped at multiple overlooks and ate lunch with a view St. Mary Lake -Stopped at the St. Mary Visitor’s center for...
BFV - Glacier National Park Day 1 - Long Drive w/a Big Surprise, Trail of the Cedars/Avalanche Lake
มุมมอง 4416 ชั่วโมงที่ผ่านมา
🚙🏔️ Big Family Vacation (BFV) Day 4: Off to Glacier National Park and a HUGE surprise for the kids-it was a 6.5 hour, 400 mile drive from Yellowstone to Glacier, but beautiful to drive through Wyoming, Idaho, and southern Montana. We even saw 80mph speed limits! Didn’t know those existed. Quick summary: -Left Yellowstone at 8am -Drove through the countryside of WY, ID, and MT and by 100s of cow...
BFV - Yellowstone Day 3 - Mammoth Hot Springs and Lamar Valley. Wildlife? Yes, please!
มุมมอง 4319 ชั่วโมงที่ผ่านมา
🚙 Big Family Vacation (BFV) Day 3: Adventures in the North and East parts of the park-Mammoth Hot Springs and Lamar Valley. Drove 7.5 hrs this day but less than 10 miles of hiking 😆 still got to see SO much though! Remember, YS National Park is most than 2.2 million square miles. HUGE and majorly spread out. Quick summary: -We drove 1.25 hrs up to the northern entrance to check out Mammoth Hot ...
BFV - Yellowstone Day 2 - Our first 10,000’ peak and the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
มุมมอง 3321 ชั่วโมงที่ผ่านมา
Big Family Vacation (BFV) day 2: Today we set out to explore the Canyon Valley area of Yellowstone more toward the east side. We tackled Mount Washburn-our family’s first 10,000’ peak! It was a 7 mile round trip hike with 1300 feet of climbing, but the bigger challenge was doing it at such high elevation. We were definitely feeling the lack of O2! After Washburn, we hung out in Canyon Valley fo...
Big Family Vacation (BFV): Yellowstone day 1, Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic, and more exploring
มุมมอง 51วันที่ผ่านมา
Big Family Vacation (BFV) day 1: We’ve been planning for this trip for a couple of years now and are so blessed it came to fruition. On day 1, we flew into Jackson, Wyoming-right into Grand Teton National Park. We admired the Teton Mountains before driving up into Yellowstone. We took a side trek to Lewis Lake (3 miles round trip) before hitting up Old Faithful and the Grand Prismatic. Saw some...
Blueberries on Big Rock? Not this time!
มุมมอง 36หลายเดือนก่อน
Took the family to DuPont State Forest today do an easy 4.5 mile loop up and over Big Rock and Cedar Rock. There are loads of wild blueberries on top of these peaks, but we were about 3 weeks too late to enjoy the bounty. It was a gorgeous day, though, and we soaked up all the time in the woods.
The Grandfather Trail, Ladders and Cables FTW - June 2024
มุมมอง 2112 หลายเดือนก่อน
David and I had a kid-free time to head to Linville, NC and tackle the Grandfather Trail-the closest thing in the south to the Vermont/New Hampshire/Maine section of the AT. It was just ~5 miles round trip, but took us about 4 hours to complete. This trail was epic with all its 1700’ of elevation gain, ladders, cables, and bolder fields. We’ll be taking the kids to check it out soon!
Recon on the Appalachian Trail Start - May 2024
มุมมอง 1273 หลายเดือนก่อน
We are about 9 months away from our family’s thru hike attempt of the Appalachian Trail. Over Memorial Day weekend, we took all our gear and headed down to Amicalola Falls State Park in Georgia to backpack the approach trail (8.5 miles from the stone arch to the official AT start, Springer Mountain) and explore Blood Mountain. We ended up caught in a severe thunderstorm hiking back out from Spr...
Clingman’s Dome out and back
มุมมอง 1113 หลายเดือนก่อน
Another beautiful day in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We did an out and back hike to Clingman’s Dome (13 miles total)-the highest point on the Appalachian trail. We met several thru hikers on the way and got to hook them up with some trail magic. So fun!
Chimney Tops and Trickling Falls - Great Smoky Mountains National Park
มุมมอง 1244 หลายเดือนก่อน
For Mother’s Day weekend, we ventured up to Great Smoky Mountain National Park for some hiking adventures. We checked out the Chimney Tops trail (1.75 miles to the top, 1,250 feet of elevation gain), and it did not disappoint. It’s pretty relentless on the way up, but well worth it. We tacked on a little side quest to Trickling Falls on our way back.
30-mile hike, ONE day: Art Loeb Trail Thru Hike
มุมมอง 7644 หลายเดือนก่อน
30-mile hike, ONE day: Art Loeb Trail Thru Hike
April 2024 - Wildcat Rock Trail in the rain
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April 2024 - Wildcat Rock Trail in the rain
March 2024 - Mount Lyn Lowry via Waterrock Knob
มุมมอง 735 หลายเดือนก่อน
March 2024 - Mount Lyn Lowry via Waterrock Knob
March 2024 - Rattlesnake Lodge Trail to Wolfpen Knob
มุมมอง 2065 หลายเดือนก่อน
March 2024 - Rattlesnake Lodge Trail to Wolfpen Knob
Appalachian Trail Prep (12 months to go!)
มุมมอง 1426 หลายเดือนก่อน
Appalachian Trail Prep (12 months to go!)
January 2024 - Frozen Waterfalls (Looking Glass Falls and Moore Cove Falls)
มุมมอง 747 หลายเดือนก่อน
January 2024 - Frozen Waterfalls (Looking Glass Falls and Moore Cove Falls)
December 2023 - Moore Cove Falls (and Little Moore Cove Falls)
มุมมอง 618 หลายเดือนก่อน
December 2023 - Moore Cove Falls (and Little Moore Cove Falls)
September 2023 - Pilot Mountain summit
มุมมอง 3711 หลายเดือนก่อน
September 2023 - Pilot Mountain summit
August 2023 - Looking Glass Rock (and SECRET overlook!)
มุมมอง 29ปีที่แล้ว
August 2023 - Looking Glass Rock (and SECRET overlook!)
July 2023 - Cedar Rock Mountain and John Rock via Cat Gap Loop
มุมมอง 69ปีที่แล้ว
July 2023 - Cedar Rock Mountain and John Rock via Cat Gap Loop
June 2023 - 3 Blue Ridge Parkway hikes in NC (MST, Frying Pan Tower, Mt. Pisgah)
มุมมอง 31ปีที่แล้ว
June 2023 - 3 Blue Ridge Parkway hikes in NC (MST, Frying Pan Tower, Mt. Pisgah)
That was a curious marten.
@@im_agine852 it really was! Super cute, too 😍
Have you ever found artifacts on your hikes?
@@im_agine852 we’ve found really cool rocks and some bullet casings, but no artifacts yet. Maybe one day!
wow that view is AMAZING
@@CaptainScooby23 can’t wait to take the kids on this one!
hi mertens! this is rory C. i miss you guys and i hope you have fun!
@@CaptainScooby23 aww, we miss you too, Rory!
WOW! So pretty! We miss y'all! Have fun! From Rowan
@@CaptainScooby23 thanks so much! We miss y’all too. Thank goodness for email and FaceTime, right?
Glad you didn't try to pet those bison.
@@im_agine852 haha never pet the fluffalo 😆
Heck yeah.
Woohoo,Wow, how nice masterpiece~sleep well-))
@@eprohoda thank you!
i love your channel #newsub #trailmagic #love
put my my mother right to sleeo
Hiked it couple times, the Art Loeb trail is no joke, great job !!
Thanks so much! Yeah, it's a beast but full of beautiful payoffs. Way to go on tackling it!
What walking sticks is your daughter using? That was a calming video 👍
@@im_agine852 thank you! She’s using Black Diamond poles from REI. They’re not the cork handled ones-retailed around $95 when she got them. Hope that helps!
It has gotten expensive to enter the park but Profile trail is an option coming from the opposite direction. In winter conditions GF is likely closed but Profile is amazing in the snow !
@@RedC63AMG yes! We interacted with a few groups at the top who hiked in on that trail. Definitely a great alternative to the $26/person (I think) that it cost 😅
Great to hear God being praised! Enjoyed the video. A buddy and I will be hiking that soon.
@@tonyvango759 You’re in for a treat! It’s an absolutely beautiful trail. Make sure you’ve got ample water, though. I live locally and am on different sections of the trail fairly often. It can be quite dry if we haven’t had much rain prior to your hike.
Hey great Video! Did you start at mile high swinging bridge? Is it possible to get the GPX from you?
@@danielahirschmann4811 Thanks! We parked in the Black Rock parking lot on the right as you’re driving up toward the visitor’s center/swinging bridge. We took the Black Rock Trail to Grandfather Trail Extension to the true Grandfather Trail. The parking lot coordinates are: 36.09522, -81.82917 Does that help?
Thank you. The trail is signposted or isn't it? We can't miss the real grandfather trail experience?
@@danielahirschmann4811 it’s all very well marked, thankfully! And I use Gaia (GPS trail map app) on my phone to make sure I’m on the right trail. Keep in mind that going the way we did, you’ll have to pay an entry fee into the state park. It opens at 8am 👍🏻
What is trail magic
Looks like you all are enjoying the great outdoors….beautiful views…. God knew what he was doing when he created these mountains
Trail magic is loosely defined as any act of kindness given to a thru-hiker on trail. This could be as simple as a passing hiker offering treats like we did or could be more planned out like folks who set up a grill at a road crossing and cook a meal for passing thru hikers. Trail magic also includes rides to town or offering a bed for the night and more! It’s an incredible joy to provide it, and I’m sure as thru hikers, it can make the difference in a day that isn’t going quite great ☺️
We told our puppy to the peak that is now closed due to Fire that destroyed the overlook Fellow hikers helped oour puppy to climb the steep part ,Benji is the only puppy ever to be on the top peak overlook
Wow! That’s incredible. Way to go, Benji 🐶
❤have you all fun in the Nature ❤injoy Walking
Thank you so much! We had a wonderful time.
Beautiful area. Something about hiking in the rain. As long as you're comfortably dressed, I like it. Loved the video!
Thanks for the sub and the encouraging words! Yeah, rain hiking isn’t the worst at all. It did get a little tricky going downhill on leaf covered rocky trail 😅
Well I am 68 and I did a 27.5 mile day hike about ten days ago after which I was completely knackered and a 23 mile day hike last weekend which wasn't too bad. Haven't made it to 30 miles in a day yet!
Way to go! I can’t name anyone over 60 that I know who’ve reached such daily mileage. That’s remarkable 💪🏻💪🏻
happy birthday! this is awesome, YOU are awesome, and you’re killing it!
Wow! Thanks so much. It felt pretty spectacular to conquer this trail just before the big 4-0 💪🏻🥳🙌🏻
that is awesome, i couldnt do it in 1 day, maybe 2 lol
It was intense for sure! I thru-hiked it twice NOBO (once over 3 days and once over 2 days) with my family. We're really familiar with the trail which I think helped significantly in this particular challenge.
that was amazing! congratulations and so happy this came across my feed today!
Thank you so much! I left feeling very accomplished-and sore. 😆 But overall, proud of the push!
Absolutely amazing!! It’s on my list … did you eat as hiked? My biggest concern was not being able to get calories in & hitting a wall!
Yes! I kept snacks in the waist pack I was wearing and would refill when I went through everything. I ended up eating a lot: Cliff bar, cheese stick, meat stick, ham and cheese tortilla wrap, trail taco (tortilla + peanut butter + honey), apple, ramen with chicken, peanut M&Ms, trail mix, pretzels, mints...I think that's it. According to my fitness tracker, I burned 6,000 calories!
@@sixpackhikersthank you - that gives me a good idea of what I'll need. I was planning on at least 3 energy chew packs, 2 LMNT drink mixes, about 6 bars, and a cold soak salad. just re-watched your video! You had a fantastic attitude throughout - really enjoyed it! Just makes me excited to attempt it myself! The most miles I've done so far was about 22 or so - when I had a failed backpacking trip and decided to hike out instead of camping. So, I'm hoping since I could do 22 with a 32lb pack - that maybe 30 is achievable with a day pack! Happy trails. 😃
@@roselee_explores you’ve got this! And remember to bring plenty of H2O. Something I didn’t chat much about is the water sources. If it’s been dry for a while before your hike, the sources by the shelter tend to be in a much poorer state than when it’s rained. If you’re hiking NOBO, once you leave Deep Gap shelter, there’s no more water til an off trail pipe spring near the Black Balsam Knob trail parking lot. After that, not til you’re descending the final 2-3 miles 👍🏻👍🏻
@@sixpackhikers thank you so much! I'm pretty familiar with the trail and it's lack of water sources. I typically carry 3L at all times with a filter in my bag just in case I need to top off :). Definitely not doing nobo - but looking forward to attempting it! :)
@@roselee_explores cheering for you! 🥾💪🏻
Hi Mertens, it's the Cannings. Great video, great trail, and we are wishing you a good luck on your Appalachian trail hike. P.S. We hope you guys can stay in contact with us. It would be horrible to not be seeing you guys for a long period of time.
Hey guys! Thanks so much for your support and well wishes. We will definitely stay in touch. Maybe y’all can hike along with us some!
Sweeeeeett
It really was! ☺️
I was there Dec 2, 2021 Awesome experience 🙏🏻🙏🏻
Beautiful family! Love to see you doing this together…didn’t see your children on their phones once. I have through hiked the Art Loeb, it’s tough!
Thank you so much! We definitely prefer the entertainment of the outdoors over screens. And you're right, the Art Loeb is no joke!
That is an amazing goal! Can't wait to see you guys accomplish it next year 👍
Thank you so much! We are counting down the days 🤩
Gideon is the GOAT!
Love this! 😄
Looks like a pretty great Adventure to us! Love seeing you guys' fascination with the nature in your area. Keep up the good work!
We aim to keep that curiosity and sense of adventure up!
Beautiful hike! I'm glad I found this video, made me smile 😄
Glad you enjoyed it! We had perfect weather for a hike 🥾
I love to see families out doing things together. I wish I had been able to do some distance hiking with my kids when they were younger, but life got in the way. I am giving yall a sub so that I can see how yall come together to make dreams come true. The kids will make memories to carry with them for a lifetime.
Thank you so much for that encouragement and for your support! We feel so blessed to be in a place that we can make this happen for our crew 🥰
Have an awesome time, excellent video, new friend here.
Thank you!
@@sixpackhikers my pleasure
Building great memories and healthy young people with a love for God's beauty! My wife and I homeschooled our three sons here in Alabama. They all received scholarships to college and are graduates now. Press on!
What an incredible homeschool success story! Thank you for that encouragement. This is our ninth year of homeschooling, and I cannot imagine doing school any other way. It's helped our family grow close together and keep priorities where they need to be. Thanks for the comment!
@@sixpackhikers to encourage you and your family.....my oldest son is a leader in his job at the chamber of commerce, my middle son is a quality engineer in the auto industry, and my youngest son just graduated college in finance and is working for a bank. Y'all are on the right path! Family is so important and your children are receiving an education customized to each of them individually. That is very powerful! Prayer is the key!
Pretty sure my wife and I came across y'all when we were going SOBO! So cool to see your video of your trip!
Small world! Thanks for watching our recap :)
What we do not see here is the tough climbing. It's good to remember though a wonderful place I've been many years ago, when I was 40!!!! I descended by the Rainbow Fall, and yes, there was a rainbow there. In those days some people were doing the Alum Cove at least three times a day, and had on their active climbing to the top 800, 900 times. They used to have a book at the lodge where you registered so you could prove to posterity you were there. Posterity doesn't always care about such things.
Thanks for watching and for your feedback. There were definitely some tough climbs. I would need a GoPro mounted to my chest or something similar to capture the big climbs. I just hold my iPhone out, so when filming, I can’t use my trekking poles very well-if at all-and I can’t easily watch the trail for foot placement. It’s a tricky element to navigate, but I hope to get better at it (and get better equipment) as I gain more experience. Hope you continue to watch our adventures 😊
@@sixpackhikers Absolutely. You must watch where put your foot. The video is wonderful. I only mentioned the difficulty of the trail so potential hikers are aware. Thank you, again.
omg - love this so much! you all are an amazing crew and family! great job. I can't wait to do this trail. (ps - are the old A-frame shelters gone? replaced with new AT-style shelters?)
Thanks so much! Yes, the a-frames had rotted to a point of disrepair and were demolished. The Butter Gap shelter was rebuilt this past spring. Not sure if the Deep Gap one is back in place yet or not. Hopefully soon!