Ben Crawford | Hiking 2,189 Miles With His Family of 8 (Ages 2-16) | Tom Rowland Podcast Ep. 418

Ben Crawford is the 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 children ages 2 to 16. The five-month, nine-day journey took them from Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. But what made this contractor from a regular working family decide to take his entire family—including a toddler—on one of the most challenging thru-hikes in America? And how did they handle diapers on the trail, meltdowns in the mountains, and near-hypothermia nights with kids who probably weren't prepared for what was ahead? This conversation reveals the hard truths about family adventure, the moment they almost quit, and why the worst days became their best memories.

Why a Contractor Decided to Hike 2,189 Miles With His Entire Family

Ben Crawford isn't a professional adventurer or a trust fund kid with unlimited time. He's a pickup truck-driving contractor who builds houses for a living. But something about the Appalachian Trail captured him in a way he couldn't shake. He describes hearing about trail magic—when strangers leave cold beer in streams or bring hikers food—and thinking he had to experience it, even though he didn't like beer at the time. That pull toward the unknown, toward something hard and transformational, is what drove him. But here's the twist: he didn't want to be away from his six kids for five months. So instead of choosing between his family and his dream, he brought them all along. His reasoning is simple but profound—he's a family man who tries to include his kids in everything. The logistics of hiking with children ages 2 through 16 seem impossible until you hear how they actually did it. Ben explains his "why not?" philosophy starting at 3:15.

The First Two Weeks Were Absolute Hell

Starting the Appalachian Trail in March in Georgia meant cold, rain, and misery before anyone's body was ready. Ben admits the first two weeks were the hardest part of the entire journey—they were out of shape, carrying too much gear, and only managing five miles per day while other hikers passed them doing twenty. The kids were whining, Ben and his wife Kami were arguing, and everyone was cold and uncomfortable. It's the point where 80% of Appalachian Trail hikers quit, and the Crawford family was right there in the danger zone. But they had made an agreement before starting: quitting was not an option. No matter what. Ben told his kids they were not quitting, and that mindset shift changed everything. Once quitting is off the table, you just figure it out. The details of how they pushed through those brutal early days and what finally clicked are worth hearing. The turning point comes at 11:31.

How They Hiked With a Two-Year-Old (Diapers, Meltdowns, and All)

Everyone asks Ben about the two-year-old. How do you deal with diapers on a wilderness trail? The answer is unglamorous but necessary: you carry them in Ziploc bags in your pack and pack them out when you reach towns. Leave no trace, even when it's not pleasant. But the bigger question is about toddler meltdowns—which happen everywhere, from grocery stores to mountain trails. The difference on the trail is you can't just leave and go to the car. You have to deal with it right there in the moment, and Ben says that made him and Kami better parents because they had no escape route. Rain, the two-year-old, ended up walking more miles than anyone would expect from a child that age, though Ben also carried her in a kid carrier pack while hauling all their gear—sometimes 60 pounds total. What's remarkable is how Rain adapted and how different she is now compared to their other kids. Ben attributes her toughness directly to the trail experience, even though she can't consciously remember most of it. The diaper logistics and toddler resilience discussion starts at 17:21.

Trail Magic and the $80-Per-Day Adventure

One of the most fascinating aspects of the Appalachian Trail is the phenomenon Ben calls "trail magic"—when complete strangers bring hikers food, drinks, and supplies out of pure generosity. The Crawford family experienced this constantly throughout their journey. An Amish family invited them into their home. They stayed with a cult. They slept in an abandoned church and a CrossFit gym. People drove for hours to bring them meals, cigars, and their kids' favorite cereals, all because they wanted to support what the family was doing. When Ben calculated the total cost at the end—factoring in renting out their house to cover expenses and all the food and hotels along the way—it came out to $80 per day for the entire family. That's $10 per person per day, which is actually cheaper than living at home with Wi-Fi and utilities. The economics of this adventure are surprising, but the human generosity they encountered is what really made it possible. Trail magic stories and the cost breakdown start at 1:37.

Summit Day on Mount Katahdin and What Happened After

August 9th was the day the Crawford family reached Mount Katahdin in Maine, the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. Ben describes waking up that morning with his wife Kami saying "we're gonna do this today," and then hiking up that final mountain together as a family. When they reached the summit, everyone was crying—his wife, his kids, Ben himself. But it wasn't because they reached the top of a mountain. It was because they had done something nobody thought they could do, and they did it together. Ben calls it the single greatest moment of his life. What came after was harder in a different way: post-trail depression. On the trail, life is beautifully simple—wake up, hike, eat, sleep. No bills, no social media drama, no work stress. Coming back to regular life was jarring, and it took about three months to readjust. But the lessons stayed. The simplicity, the appreciation for hard work, the family bond—those things didn't fade. The summit moment and post-trail reality check begin at 14:47.

Final Thoughts from Tom

This conversation with Ben Crawford hit me in a way I wasn't expecting. I'm a father of three, and I've 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 most about Ben's story isn't just the physical accomplishment—it's the mindset. Taking quitting off the table. Embracing discomfort as the path to growth. Bringing your family into the hard things instead of protecting them from struggle.

Ben said something that's going to stick with me: "Comfort is the enemy of growth." And he's right. Every single best memory his family has from that trail came from the hardest days. The nights they body-piled in a tent to stay warm. The moments they wanted to quit but didn't. Those are the stories that shaped them. And I think that applies to everything—business, marriage, parenting, fishing, all of it. The hard parts are the best parts.

If you're a parent, if you're someone who's discontent with comfortable living, if you've ever wondered what your family is capable of when pushed beyond what seems reasonable—you need to listen to this whole thing. Ben's book "2,000 Miles Together" is worth reading too, but hearing him tell these stories in his own words is something different. This one's worth your time.