Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 418 is my conversation with Ben Crawford, a contractor and best-selling author of 2,000 Miles Together who in 2018 hiked the entire 2,189-mile Appalachian Trail with his family of eight, including a two-year-old. They walked from Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine in five months and nine days, and became the largest family to ever complete the trail. As a father of three myself, this one hit me. We get into the why, the near-quit, and what the hardest days actually gave them.
Listen now: Megaphone · Spotify · YouTube.
Ben Crawford is a contractor who builds houses and the best-selling author of 2,000 Miles Together. In 2018 he led his family of eight, including his wife Kami and six children ages 2 to 16, on a complete thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, making them the largest family to ever complete the entire trail from Georgia to Maine.
Ben Crawford and his family completed the 2,189-mile Appalachian Trail in five months and nine days in 2018, hiking from Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. With children ages 2 through 16, they averaged roughly 15 miles per day after the difficult first two weeks, when they were only covering about five miles a day.
Ben Crawford's family of eight spent approximately $80 per day total, about $10 per person, for their five-month, nine-day thru-hike in 2018. That figure included food, hotels, and all expenses, offset by renting out their house while they were gone, which he notes was actually cheaper than living at home with utilities and Wi-Fi.
Rain Crawford was two years old when she completed the entire 2,189-mile Appalachian Trail with her family in 2018. She was carried in a kid carrier pack by her father Ben for portions of the hike but also walked a significant number of miles on her own. Ben says she is noticeably tougher and different from their other children because of the experience.
According to Ben Crawford, up to 80 percent of people who start the Appalachian Trail do not finish. He attributes the high quit rate to false expectations and a lack of resilience, noting that most people quit in the first two weeks, before their bodies adapt to the daily mileage.
Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 418 with Ben Crawford is available on Megaphone, Spotify, YouTube, and the Tom Rowland Podcast feed. The video version is embedded at the top of this page.
This conversation hit me in a way I was not expecting. I am a father of three, and I have done plenty of outdoor adventures with my kids, but I have never taken them on anything close to a 2,000-mile hike. The thing that struck me about Ben is not just the physical accomplishment, it is the mindset, taking quitting off the table and bringing his family into the hard thing instead of protecting them from struggle. I wanted listeners to hear how he pulled it off.
Press play in the player above to hear it.
Ben is not a professional adventurer, he builds houses for a living. He explains the pull of the trail and why, instead of leaving his six kids for five months, he brought everyone along. Hear his why-not philosophy in the episode.
Cold, rain, too much gear, five miles a day while everyone else passed them, this is where 80 percent of hikers quit. Ben describes the agreement they made before starting and the mindset shift that changed everything. Listen to that section of the conversation.
Diapers in Ziploc bags packed out to town, meltdowns with no car to escape to, and a toddler who walked more miles than anyone expects. Ben explains how it made him and Kami better parents. Press play in the YouTube player above.
Strangers brought food, an Amish family took them in, they slept in a church and a CrossFit gym. Ben breaks down the generosity that helped a family of eight finish on $80 a day. Worth hearing in full.
On August 9th the family reached the northern terminus together, and everyone was crying. Ben calls it the greatest moment of his life, then gets honest about the post-trail depression that followed. Listen to the full story.
Listen to the full conversation: Megaphone · Spotify · YouTube.
Ben said something that is going to stick with me, comfort is the enemy of growth. Every best memory his family carries from that trail came from the hardest days, the nights they piled together to stay warm, the moments they wanted to quit and did not.
That applies to everything, business, marriage, parenting, fishing. The hard parts are the best parts. Press play in the player above, or grab Episode 418 on Megaphone or Spotify.
Ben Crawford · Kami Crawford · Rain Crawford · 2,000 Miles Together · Appalachian Trail · Mount Katahdin · Tom Rowland (host)
The Tom Rowland Podcast brings you long-form conversations with the most accomplished anglers, hunters, conservationists, and outdoor professionals in the game. Listen to every full-length Tom Rowland Podcast interview.
Ben Crawford is a contractor who builds houses and the best-selling author of 2,000 Miles Together. In 2018 he led his family of eight, including his wife Kami and six children ages 2 through 16, on a complete thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, making them the largest family to ever finish the entire 2,189-mile journey from Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. The five-month, nine-day adventure became the subject of his book and transformed his family's understanding of resilience and discomfort. He describes himself as a worker-bee kind of guy who values family, hard work, and doing hard things with the people he loves. Follow the family on Instagram at @thecrawfordcrew.
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