1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 3 00:01:57,618 --> 00:01:59,753 - My name's Matt, I'm a Brand Manager 4 00:01:59,787 --> 00:02:01,789 at a backpacking company. 5 00:02:01,822 --> 00:02:04,358 In my job I interact with a lot of customers. 6 00:02:04,392 --> 00:02:07,195 And I find out about a lot of interesting 7 00:02:07,228 --> 00:02:09,430 and unique trails all across the world. 8 00:02:09,463 --> 00:02:11,865 The Uinta Highline Trail really stood out 9 00:02:11,899 --> 00:02:16,170 because it seemed to be such a uncommon trail. 10 00:02:16,204 --> 00:02:18,339 - It's really remote, it's really high. 11 00:02:18,372 --> 00:02:20,608 Most of the trail's above 10,000 feet. 12 00:02:20,641 --> 00:02:22,976 I think it's just kind of a hidden gem. 13 00:02:23,010 --> 00:02:24,812 - Just from the little research that I did. 14 00:02:24,845 --> 00:02:27,981 And the pictures that I saw, I knew that this hike 15 00:02:28,015 --> 00:02:29,983 was gonna be something spectacular. 16 00:02:30,017 --> 00:02:31,385 - I didn't know really a whole lot 17 00:02:31,419 --> 00:02:33,321 about Utah to be honest with you. 18 00:02:33,354 --> 00:02:35,223 I wasn't expecting very much. 19 00:02:35,256 --> 00:02:38,392 - I expect to be uncomfortable and in pain. 20 00:02:43,431 --> 00:02:45,633 - Logistically when you try to get a lot of people 21 00:02:45,666 --> 00:02:50,003 in one spot at the same time, usually something goes wrong. 22 00:02:50,037 --> 00:02:52,406 And this time Steve's journey 23 00:02:52,440 --> 00:02:54,642 really became a comedy of errors. 24 00:02:54,675 --> 00:02:58,412 - Matt, Will and myself we flew on one plane and then Benny 25 00:02:58,446 --> 00:03:01,849 had come in a day earlier and Steve was coming from Raleigh, 26 00:03:01,882 --> 00:03:05,185 North Carolina and his flight didn't make it. 27 00:03:05,219 --> 00:03:07,888 He was late, he missed his connection in Denver. 28 00:03:07,921 --> 00:03:10,224 He stuck there, he had to change airlines. 29 00:03:10,258 --> 00:03:13,193 Thank goodness he did arrive there a few hours late, 30 00:03:13,227 --> 00:03:14,428 but we were worried. 31 00:03:14,462 --> 00:03:15,829 We didn't know if he was gonna be able 32 00:03:15,863 --> 00:03:17,598 to even come with us on the hike or not. 33 00:03:17,631 --> 00:03:20,668 So it was great that he he got there. 34 00:03:20,701 --> 00:03:23,036 It wouldn't have been the same without Steve. 35 00:03:23,070 --> 00:03:26,840 - These guys, I don't know why I like them, I really don't. 36 00:03:26,874 --> 00:03:29,777 So I'm gonna be late going into Salt Lake City. 37 00:03:29,810 --> 00:03:33,281 I have no time to go to a store to buy food. 38 00:03:33,314 --> 00:03:35,283 And I'm asking them to buy food for me 39 00:03:35,316 --> 00:03:37,251 and they're like, no, I don't have room. 40 00:03:37,285 --> 00:03:39,453 I don't have time, I can't do it. 41 00:03:39,487 --> 00:03:41,855 You're gonna have to starve to death on the site. 42 00:03:41,889 --> 00:03:44,091 Well, finally, Will Wood 43 00:03:44,124 --> 00:03:48,862 My Savior, went out and bought me a bunch of food 44 00:03:48,896 --> 00:03:53,267 and I had plenty to eat on the trail. 45 00:03:53,301 --> 00:03:56,069 - Fortunately, our shuttle driver was so gracious. 46 00:03:56,103 --> 00:03:58,472 He was able to just wait on Steve 47 00:03:58,506 --> 00:04:02,175 and that made that a less stressful event. 48 00:04:06,314 --> 00:04:08,282 - So basically I'm a Star Wars nerd, 49 00:04:08,316 --> 00:04:09,917 especially with the original trilogy. 50 00:04:09,950 --> 00:04:13,654 So you've got, Boba Fett, Mandalorian, 51 00:04:13,687 --> 00:04:18,392 Imperial Destroyer, Slave I, TIE Fighter. 52 00:04:18,426 --> 00:04:21,929 So I have like, a lot of Star Wars stuff. 53 00:04:21,962 --> 00:04:24,732 And because of those tattoos, we could never get 54 00:04:24,765 --> 00:04:28,001 a ride hitch hiking into town, we had to walk the whole way. 55 00:04:31,372 --> 00:04:33,341 - From Salt Lake City, it was about a four 56 00:04:33,374 --> 00:04:34,742 to five hour drive. 57 00:04:34,775 --> 00:04:36,410 It was so cool because you instantly 58 00:04:36,444 --> 00:04:38,912 just start to ascend into the mountains. 59 00:04:38,946 --> 00:04:41,849 And then you go around the mountain range. 60 00:04:41,882 --> 00:04:43,951 So we went through the desert. 61 00:04:46,320 --> 00:04:49,122 And all we were doing there was climbing, 62 00:04:49,156 --> 00:04:52,426 just to see the way the landscape looked 63 00:04:52,460 --> 00:04:55,162 as we were approaching the trail, it was unexpected. 64 00:04:55,195 --> 00:04:57,765 By the time we arrived at the trailhead, 65 00:04:57,798 --> 00:05:01,369 we were already right around 8000 feet or so in elevation. 66 00:05:05,973 --> 00:05:09,042 We knew at that point just seeing what it looked like, 67 00:05:09,076 --> 00:05:11,545 we were in for an incredible hike. 68 00:05:13,714 --> 00:05:16,116 - The mountains and the forests looked beautiful. 69 00:05:16,149 --> 00:05:17,785 And we all just camped right there. 70 00:05:17,818 --> 00:05:19,019 We're really just amped 71 00:05:19,052 --> 00:05:20,988 to be starting this journey together. 72 00:05:21,021 --> 00:05:23,391 - Well look at that spot right there, nice and flat. 73 00:05:23,424 --> 00:05:26,059 I think I'm gonna put my tent right there. 74 00:05:26,093 --> 00:05:27,294 - Right by the road? 75 00:05:27,327 --> 00:05:28,796 - Right by the road. 76 00:05:28,829 --> 00:05:29,797 - Are crazy? 77 00:05:29,830 --> 00:05:31,331 - That when the car is coming, you can wonder 78 00:05:31,365 --> 00:05:32,633 if it's gonna run you over or not. 79 00:05:33,333 --> 00:05:34,802 It'll add that little bit 80 00:05:34,835 --> 00:05:36,236 of excitement to your night. 81 00:05:36,269 --> 00:05:37,571 - Matt you found something good back there? 82 00:05:37,605 --> 00:05:40,340 - Yeah, but it's, he's gonna say it's good. 83 00:05:40,374 --> 00:05:42,175 He doesn't wanna walk back so... 84 00:05:42,209 --> 00:05:45,145 What he says has no relevance to what's actually up there. 85 00:05:45,178 --> 00:05:46,914 That's what we've learned on past hikes. 86 00:05:50,384 --> 00:05:52,820 - Okay, I'm gonna go see what I can find. 87 00:05:58,225 --> 00:06:00,394 - I feel the elevation. 88 00:06:01,595 --> 00:06:04,197 Just from setting this up, I can feel it a little bit 89 00:06:04,231 --> 00:06:05,833 it's a little harder to breathe. 90 00:06:05,866 --> 00:06:09,036 - Actually I see a trail looks like a wildlife trail that 91 00:06:09,069 --> 00:06:13,641 goes between our sites and some spots where elk have been 92 00:06:14,775 --> 00:06:17,611 doing their business, there's a chance that they'll come up 93 00:06:17,645 --> 00:06:21,048 through our camp tonight and that'd be cool. 94 00:06:21,081 --> 00:06:22,382 - Can't wait to see some moose. 95 00:06:22,416 --> 00:06:23,451 - Lets change that...You hear that? 96 00:06:27,621 --> 00:06:28,956 - What is that? 97 00:06:28,989 --> 00:06:30,090 - Matt said it was an elk. 98 00:06:36,464 --> 00:06:39,299 - What time do you think sun rise is? 99 00:06:39,332 --> 00:06:41,034 - Let's say, somewhere between00am 100 00:06:41,068 --> 00:06:44,538 and30am would be a guess. 101 00:06:44,572 --> 00:06:48,876 But either way, I mean, if thunderstorms are always 102 00:06:48,909 --> 00:06:50,277 gonna be a threat in the afternoon 103 00:06:50,310 --> 00:06:52,412 getting an early start is not a bad idea. 104 00:06:52,446 --> 00:06:54,081 - If we get going at like six in the morning 105 00:06:54,114 --> 00:06:56,550 we're gonna be done at 12 or one o'clock. 106 00:06:56,584 --> 00:06:58,385 - Well if we get started at 10am, and then we hike 107 00:06:58,418 --> 00:07:00,654 through a hailstorm every day at00pm 108 00:07:00,688 --> 00:07:02,623 that would also not be fun. 109 00:07:02,656 --> 00:07:03,891 - Nothing wrong with that. 110 00:07:03,924 --> 00:07:05,493 - I don't think there's gunna be hailstorms 111 00:07:05,526 --> 00:07:09,463 - A $20 bet that we have two or more hailstorms. 112 00:07:09,497 --> 00:07:11,131 - Does it actually have to hail or... 113 00:07:11,164 --> 00:07:13,066 - It actually has to hail, like a substantial amount. 114 00:07:13,100 --> 00:07:15,469 - I will take that bet. 115 00:07:15,503 --> 00:07:17,905 It's gotta be ice falling from the sky. 116 00:07:17,938 --> 00:07:20,240 I mean twice on the same day doesn't count right? 117 00:07:20,273 --> 00:07:21,642 - I'm gunna lose this bet but.... 118 00:07:21,675 --> 00:07:24,745 - I wanna just bet you some thing. 119 00:07:56,143 --> 00:07:58,145 - Well, for me my expectations 120 00:07:58,178 --> 00:08:00,714 for this hike was a little bit different. 121 00:08:00,748 --> 00:08:03,150 I started my summer out hiking the long trail 122 00:08:03,183 --> 00:08:05,152 that goes through the Green Mountains of Vermont. 123 00:08:05,185 --> 00:08:08,321 Once I finished that one, I went over to California 124 00:08:08,355 --> 00:08:10,023 through hiked John Muir Trail. 125 00:08:10,057 --> 00:08:14,227 So I thought this wasn't gonna be like anything 126 00:08:14,261 --> 00:08:16,764 magnificent is just 100 miles long. 127 00:08:18,331 --> 00:08:20,601 Don't ever underestimate a trail. 128 00:08:22,570 --> 00:08:25,472 - So today we're gonna hike about 12 miles. 129 00:08:25,505 --> 00:08:26,740 We're gonna be in a forest 130 00:08:26,774 --> 00:08:28,341 most of the time, so that's good. 131 00:08:28,375 --> 00:08:29,577 The thing that's not so good 132 00:08:29,610 --> 00:08:31,378 is there's not really much water. 133 00:08:31,411 --> 00:08:33,213 We may have some water at the end, 134 00:08:33,246 --> 00:08:35,348 so hopefully we don't get dehydrated. 135 00:08:35,382 --> 00:08:36,750 We're gonna start climbing slow 136 00:08:36,784 --> 00:08:40,721 and then in two more days, we should get above treeline 137 00:08:40,754 --> 00:08:43,123 and be above 10,000 feet almost the whole time. 138 00:08:48,461 --> 00:08:51,031 - My name is Tom Flanigan, I'm the Forest Archeologist 139 00:08:51,064 --> 00:08:52,532 and the Heritage Program Manager 140 00:08:52,566 --> 00:08:55,736 for the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest. 141 00:08:55,769 --> 00:08:58,606 The Uinta Highline Trail traversals about 104 miles 142 00:08:58,639 --> 00:09:00,440 along the backbone of the Uinta Mountains. 143 00:09:00,473 --> 00:09:02,209 The eastern terminus is in McKee Draw 144 00:09:02,242 --> 00:09:04,377 which is located on the Ashley National Forest. 145 00:09:04,411 --> 00:09:06,914 The western terminus is over by Hayden peak, 146 00:09:06,947 --> 00:09:09,449 Hayden Pass area near the Mirror Lake highway. 147 00:09:10,417 --> 00:09:12,519 The Uintas were designated as a primitive area 148 00:09:12,552 --> 00:09:14,221 long before the Wilderness Act. 149 00:09:14,254 --> 00:09:17,557 So this was identified early on as a unique place. 150 00:09:17,591 --> 00:09:20,393 We have a unique topography, we have a mountain range 151 00:09:20,427 --> 00:09:23,463 that's unique in its linear structure going east to west, 152 00:09:23,496 --> 00:09:26,033 the geology, the history and its importance 153 00:09:26,066 --> 00:09:27,668 to the expansion of the West. 154 00:09:29,336 --> 00:09:32,372 Even in 1935, it was identified as unique enough 155 00:09:32,405 --> 00:09:34,507 to be set aside as a primitive area. 156 00:09:35,809 --> 00:09:38,979 - The trail itself seems to be built in sections. 157 00:09:39,012 --> 00:09:41,048 We've done our own research here. 158 00:09:41,081 --> 00:09:43,050 And it was kind of interesting, the fact that a lot 159 00:09:43,083 --> 00:09:44,818 of the Forest Service folks don't have a whole lot 160 00:09:44,852 --> 00:09:47,320 of idea when the trail was actually built. 161 00:09:47,354 --> 00:09:49,056 Doing some of the historic research we're able 162 00:09:49,089 --> 00:09:51,892 to put together some of the different aspects of it. 163 00:09:51,925 --> 00:09:55,495 And probably the earliest, identifiable concerted effort 164 00:09:55,528 --> 00:09:58,832 to make a trail was during the Civilian Conservation Corps 165 00:09:58,866 --> 00:10:02,302 era under the new deal and the Roosevelt administration 166 00:10:02,335 --> 00:10:03,937 trying to put everybody back to work. 167 00:10:03,971 --> 00:10:06,073 A lot of our infrastructure on the national parks, 168 00:10:06,106 --> 00:10:08,676 national forests were created by the CCC. 169 00:10:08,709 --> 00:10:11,278 And I did find a newspaper article dating to the 1930s 170 00:10:11,311 --> 00:10:14,314 talking about some of the early sections of the trail 171 00:10:14,347 --> 00:10:17,350 from that Hayden Peak Hayden pass area being constructed 172 00:10:17,384 --> 00:10:20,854 by Boy Scout troops and also members of the CCC. 173 00:10:22,122 --> 00:10:24,692 So then probably what happened is then the trail 174 00:10:24,725 --> 00:10:27,027 was building in sections from that, and then also maybe 175 00:10:27,060 --> 00:10:29,196 existing trails had then got tied into it. 176 00:10:35,068 --> 00:10:36,503 - Hi you guys! 177 00:10:36,536 --> 00:10:39,206 - Moooooooo 178 00:10:40,674 --> 00:10:42,509 - Uh Oh..... 179 00:10:42,542 --> 00:10:44,712 - Not the wildlife I thought I was gunna see out here 180 00:10:44,745 --> 00:10:48,115 - Day one, we were constantly in and out of meadows 181 00:10:48,148 --> 00:10:50,718 and forests and the trail was tough to navigate. 182 00:10:50,751 --> 00:10:53,553 In fact, for a huge portion there was actually 183 00:10:53,586 --> 00:10:56,323 no trail, you were really just following a route. 184 00:10:56,356 --> 00:10:59,492 - So the trail was marked with rock Cairns 185 00:10:59,526 --> 00:11:02,162 and blazes like ax places on the trees 186 00:11:02,195 --> 00:11:04,531 and a lot of it didn't really have foot tread, 187 00:11:04,564 --> 00:11:06,599 or if there was foot tread it was very light. 188 00:11:06,633 --> 00:11:07,667 And I think we got turned around 189 00:11:07,701 --> 00:11:09,636 a couple times that first day. 190 00:11:09,669 --> 00:11:11,504 We had a nice argument over which was the right trail 191 00:11:11,538 --> 00:11:12,873 because there was an old trail 192 00:11:12,906 --> 00:11:15,175 and a new trail that split off. 193 00:11:15,208 --> 00:11:16,710 - This isn't showing any turns. 194 00:11:16,744 --> 00:11:18,311 There's a road that we're supposed to cross 195 00:11:18,345 --> 00:11:20,247 and we haven't crossed it yet. 196 00:11:20,280 --> 00:11:21,715 And there's no junctions on here. 197 00:11:21,749 --> 00:11:23,316 - All I did was get a file, 198 00:11:23,350 --> 00:11:24,384 you guys made me the navigator 199 00:11:24,417 --> 00:11:25,518 I didn't ask to be the navigator. 200 00:11:25,552 --> 00:11:27,187 - Yeah, but you didn't check your file. 201 00:11:27,220 --> 00:11:29,589 - See up here, the blaze is old, but on this same trail 202 00:11:29,622 --> 00:11:32,159 going down before you get to the...it's brand new. 203 00:11:32,192 --> 00:11:33,761 - Yeah, let's stick on the new trail. 204 00:11:33,794 --> 00:11:34,995 - What do you mean a new trail? 205 00:11:35,028 --> 00:11:36,029 - No, I'm saying this trail 206 00:11:36,063 --> 00:11:37,931 has a brand new blaze at the bottom. 207 00:11:37,965 --> 00:11:40,200 - Yeah, because it's going that way. 208 00:11:40,233 --> 00:11:41,568 - I'm sorry, I'm sorry. 209 00:11:41,601 --> 00:11:42,770 - I don't wanna get lost. 210 00:11:44,137 --> 00:11:46,006 - My name is Joe Valesko. 211 00:11:46,039 --> 00:11:48,208 I started a company that makes ultralight 212 00:11:48,241 --> 00:11:51,378 backpacking gear in 2005. 213 00:11:51,411 --> 00:11:53,580 Since then, I've hiked probably 214 00:11:53,613 --> 00:11:55,749 over 10,000 long distance miles. 215 00:11:55,783 --> 00:11:58,952 - Joe's one of the most interesting people I've ever met. 216 00:11:58,986 --> 00:12:03,556 He's one part like robot in a way. 217 00:12:05,125 --> 00:12:07,694 At work, he's just an engineer. 218 00:12:07,727 --> 00:12:09,029 He's kind of emotionless, 219 00:12:09,062 --> 00:12:12,065 he just wants to do things a certain way. 220 00:12:12,099 --> 00:12:15,135 - Problem there is on the other tent on the prototype tent, 221 00:12:15,168 --> 00:12:17,604 this piece shouldn't be this long. 222 00:12:17,637 --> 00:12:19,572 It's supposed to be like this long. 223 00:12:19,606 --> 00:12:22,242 - And then on the other hand, you've got this guy 224 00:12:22,275 --> 00:12:25,278 who in Scotland on top of the second highest mountain 225 00:12:25,312 --> 00:12:28,581 in Scotland, it's like 60 mile per hour sustained winds, 226 00:12:28,615 --> 00:12:30,583 we can barely walk. 227 00:12:30,617 --> 00:12:32,119 And we're like getting blown all over the place. 228 00:12:32,152 --> 00:12:33,420 And I look up and the guy's got 229 00:12:33,453 --> 00:12:35,222 the biggest smile on his face. 230 00:12:35,255 --> 00:12:38,591 So he's like, one part engineer, and then one part living 231 00:12:38,625 --> 00:12:41,528 on the edge, and it's almost like he's two people. 232 00:12:45,165 --> 00:12:46,499 - Woooo!!! 233 00:12:46,533 --> 00:12:48,168 It is straight down. 234 00:12:49,436 --> 00:12:54,674 - Joe has the most minimal needs of anyone I've ever met. 235 00:12:55,708 --> 00:12:58,011 - So I always hike in sandals, they keep my feet cool. 236 00:12:58,045 --> 00:12:59,379 They dry off really quick. 237 00:13:00,447 --> 00:13:02,816 - There's not really any downside to it, really. 238 00:13:02,850 --> 00:13:05,285 I mean, I did the Continental Divide Trail in sandals 239 00:13:05,318 --> 00:13:07,254 in the snow and everything else, 240 00:13:07,287 --> 00:13:08,822 I just had waterproof socks. 241 00:13:08,856 --> 00:13:13,526 - He can get by on very little external material things. 242 00:13:14,561 --> 00:13:18,598 He's truly a minimalist, and he's happy being so. 243 00:13:18,631 --> 00:13:22,635 - Joe's kind of quiet, doesn't say a whole lot. 244 00:13:22,669 --> 00:13:25,372 - He's very opinionated, he's very determined, 245 00:13:26,506 --> 00:13:29,109 and he's mentally strong. 246 00:13:29,142 --> 00:13:32,645 He's got more experience backpacking than any of us. 247 00:13:32,679 --> 00:13:34,848 He's hiked the Appalachian Trail, 248 00:13:34,882 --> 00:13:37,650 the Continental Divide Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail. 249 00:13:37,684 --> 00:13:39,386 Those are just the three long trails 250 00:13:39,419 --> 00:13:40,787 he's done in the United States. 251 00:13:40,820 --> 00:13:42,890 Then the Te Araroa in New Zealand. 252 00:13:42,923 --> 00:13:45,292 His wife did a lot of the hikes with him 253 00:13:45,325 --> 00:13:48,128 but she did the Te Araroa, pregnant. 254 00:13:48,161 --> 00:13:49,496 If that says anything. 255 00:13:49,529 --> 00:13:51,698 - He's always been very confident. 256 00:13:51,731 --> 00:13:55,202 He's very smart, he loves the outdoors. 257 00:13:55,235 --> 00:13:57,537 I think of him, I think of the color green. 258 00:13:57,570 --> 00:13:59,372 - I was outdoors a lot as a kid. 259 00:13:59,406 --> 00:14:01,708 We had a kind of a forest behind my house 260 00:14:01,741 --> 00:14:03,376 and I spent a lot of time back there. 261 00:14:03,410 --> 00:14:06,079 We had a river, I used to go swimming a lot. 262 00:14:06,113 --> 00:14:08,815 My family used to go on camping trips. 263 00:14:08,848 --> 00:14:10,417 Whenever we went on vacation, 264 00:14:10,450 --> 00:14:12,685 we were usually low budget so we would go camping. 265 00:14:13,887 --> 00:14:15,522 When I was in high school, I got the idea 266 00:14:15,555 --> 00:14:17,490 that I wanted to hike the Appalachian Trail. 267 00:14:17,524 --> 00:14:19,826 So I started researching backpacking, 268 00:14:19,859 --> 00:14:22,529 I'd never been backpacking before, 269 00:14:22,562 --> 00:14:25,865 I realized that lightweight gear was important. 270 00:14:25,899 --> 00:14:28,235 So I bought the lightest gear I could find, 271 00:14:28,268 --> 00:14:31,104 did some test hikes, looked at it and realized 272 00:14:31,138 --> 00:14:33,506 a lot of it was just way too heavy and unnecessary. 273 00:14:33,540 --> 00:14:37,277 So I got into making my own gear and ultimately 274 00:14:37,310 --> 00:14:38,711 ended up hiking the Appalachian Trail 275 00:14:38,745 --> 00:14:43,116 in 2004 with mostly homemade gear. 276 00:14:43,150 --> 00:14:45,085 Nobody was ultralight back then, everybody was carrying 277 00:14:45,118 --> 00:14:48,755 like 40, 50 pounds, big heavy backpacks, it was awful. 278 00:14:48,788 --> 00:14:50,790 So I was carrying, you know, an eight pound backpack 279 00:14:50,823 --> 00:14:52,559 and everybody's like, what are you doing, 280 00:14:52,592 --> 00:14:54,561 you're gonna die or they were all impressed 281 00:14:54,594 --> 00:14:56,796 or scared for my life, one of the other. 282 00:14:57,931 --> 00:15:00,400 The people that liked the idea, they're like you should 283 00:15:00,433 --> 00:15:02,369 start making this stuff when you get off 284 00:15:02,402 --> 00:15:04,771 the trail and I had just graduated college 285 00:15:04,804 --> 00:15:06,373 and didn't have a job yet or anything. 286 00:15:06,406 --> 00:15:10,577 So I finished the AT, went back home to my parents house 287 00:15:10,610 --> 00:15:11,878 and of course they were putting 288 00:15:11,911 --> 00:15:13,713 a lot of pressure on me to get a job. 289 00:15:13,746 --> 00:15:16,950 So I ended up getting a job as a software developer 290 00:15:16,984 --> 00:15:19,152 but at the same time I was starting to make 291 00:15:19,186 --> 00:15:21,588 my first products to sell and I put together 292 00:15:21,621 --> 00:15:24,024 a little website and that's how it all got started. 293 00:15:25,358 --> 00:15:28,095 I met my wife in college, I had a studio apartment 294 00:15:28,128 --> 00:15:30,597 so I was working out of my kitchen, I would come home 295 00:15:30,630 --> 00:15:32,966 from work and start working again. 296 00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:34,968 I'd start building a backpack or building stuff sacks 297 00:15:35,002 --> 00:15:36,603 or building little stuff like that. 298 00:15:36,636 --> 00:15:40,140 - In 2010 we grew pretty fast, it was actually stressful. 299 00:15:45,378 --> 00:15:48,781 - I spent the last decade and a half building my business 300 00:15:48,815 --> 00:15:51,018 and that was more than a full time job. 301 00:15:51,051 --> 00:15:53,020 You know we'd get up in the morning and work until we went 302 00:15:53,053 --> 00:15:55,188 to bed at night pretty much, but I've been trying 303 00:15:55,222 --> 00:15:58,625 to tone that back or dial that back lately. 304 00:15:58,658 --> 00:16:01,261 - We are having more family time which is great. 305 00:16:01,294 --> 00:16:04,264 - My family is the most important thing to me. 306 00:16:04,297 --> 00:16:06,433 Every day we try and go and do something. 307 00:16:06,466 --> 00:16:10,603 We'll go canoeing or camping, outdoor stuff. 308 00:16:10,637 --> 00:16:12,205 From what I've seen kids just do the opposite 309 00:16:12,239 --> 00:16:13,840 of what their parents do. 310 00:16:13,873 --> 00:16:16,376 So I don't really have expectations. 311 00:16:16,409 --> 00:16:18,178 I hope they like the outdoors and I hope they like doing 312 00:16:18,211 --> 00:16:21,214 the same sorts of stuff that my wife and I like to do. 313 00:16:21,248 --> 00:16:22,649 But eventually they're gonna be their own people. 314 00:16:22,682 --> 00:16:24,217 I know that. 315 00:16:24,251 --> 00:16:26,019 - I think he's a great husband. 316 00:16:26,053 --> 00:16:27,954 I think he's a great father. 317 00:16:27,987 --> 00:16:30,057 I hope I'm friends with Joe for life. 318 00:16:41,034 --> 00:16:42,469 - I got the sandals, the staff and the hats. 319 00:16:42,502 --> 00:16:46,005 So I picked up the trail name, Samurai Joe 320 00:16:46,039 --> 00:16:48,375 It'd make more sense if I was wearing the hat. 321 00:16:49,509 --> 00:16:51,611 - My tail name is Red Beard and I think you might be able 322 00:16:51,644 --> 00:16:53,980 to figure out why I have that trail name. 323 00:16:54,013 --> 00:16:56,116 I got it on the AT, my first thru hike. 324 00:16:57,050 --> 00:16:59,519 - My trail name is Plug-It-In. 325 00:16:59,552 --> 00:17:01,521 Actually, it's the name of my business. 326 00:17:01,554 --> 00:17:04,724 I was wearing one of my Plug It In t-shirts. 327 00:17:04,757 --> 00:17:06,659 Whenever I was hiking one time and a, 328 00:17:06,693 --> 00:17:08,395 through hiker came through and said 329 00:17:08,428 --> 00:17:09,862 "Hey what's up, Plug It In?" 330 00:17:09,896 --> 00:17:12,031 That's how it happens. 331 00:17:12,065 --> 00:17:14,067 - My trail name is Cannonball. 332 00:17:14,101 --> 00:17:15,835 I got it on my very first night 333 00:17:15,868 --> 00:17:17,904 before I hiked my very first hike. 334 00:17:17,937 --> 00:17:21,108 I fell off the top deck of the Fontana Hilton 335 00:17:21,141 --> 00:17:23,710 Getting up to go to the bathroom, I got a concussion. 336 00:17:24,744 --> 00:17:26,679 And everybody was very concerned. 337 00:17:26,713 --> 00:17:27,714 They said, "Are you okay?" 338 00:17:27,747 --> 00:17:29,882 I said, no, I'm not okay. 339 00:17:29,916 --> 00:17:32,452 But no one seemed to get up to care. 340 00:17:32,485 --> 00:17:35,021 The next day, I had a concussion, I couldn't eat. 341 00:17:35,054 --> 00:17:37,124 I was dizzy, and I almost threw up. 342 00:17:37,157 --> 00:17:39,426 I love it, so I've been hiking ever since, 343 00:17:39,459 --> 00:17:41,261 I fell in love with hiking that day. 344 00:17:42,462 --> 00:17:44,264 - My trail name is Details. 345 00:17:44,297 --> 00:17:46,299 Actually, Steve gave it to me because I was obsessesing 346 00:17:46,333 --> 00:17:50,570 over all the logistics of the trip, and now they like 347 00:17:50,603 --> 00:17:52,805 to make fun of me when I miss a detail, so... 348 00:17:53,773 --> 00:17:55,475 - It's built in name so we can make fun 349 00:17:55,508 --> 00:17:57,710 of him when he gets things wrong. 350 00:17:57,744 --> 00:17:59,546 And we just make up things that he does wrong 351 00:17:59,579 --> 00:18:01,614 just so we could make fun of him. 352 00:18:01,648 --> 00:18:03,416 He's a great planner. 353 00:18:08,020 --> 00:18:09,856 - Dang that's good 354 00:18:33,980 --> 00:18:35,782 - My name's Gordon Hirschi. 355 00:18:35,815 --> 00:18:39,419 I'm president, Uinta Basin Back Country Horsemen. 356 00:18:39,452 --> 00:18:42,589 I've been clearing these trails for about 10 years. 357 00:18:42,622 --> 00:18:47,627 The Highline Trail is special to me because there's very few 358 00:18:48,161 --> 00:18:50,797 people and it has great scenery. 359 00:18:51,731 --> 00:18:54,334 The purpose behind Back Country Horseman 360 00:18:54,367 --> 00:18:59,138 is we make sure that trail stays open. 361 00:18:59,172 --> 00:19:01,774 Basically, we go through with chain saws 362 00:19:01,808 --> 00:19:05,812 and other hand tools, and the trees that are fallen 363 00:19:05,845 --> 00:19:07,614 or getting ready to fall, 364 00:19:07,647 --> 00:19:10,817 that might be a danger to the users, 365 00:19:10,850 --> 00:19:14,187 we remove those trees from the trail. 366 00:19:14,221 --> 00:19:19,058 We also put in water bars, either made out of rocks 367 00:19:19,091 --> 00:19:23,129 or small wooden bars, and they're put in at an angle 368 00:19:23,162 --> 00:19:25,398 to divert the water off the trail. 369 00:19:25,432 --> 00:19:27,900 If you don't, it'll eventually wash the trail out. 370 00:19:30,537 --> 00:19:32,872 In the winter, I'm a couch potato. 371 00:19:34,374 --> 00:19:37,977 When it comes time to working on the trails, 372 00:19:38,010 --> 00:19:40,747 I actually look forward to it, I bug 373 00:19:40,780 --> 00:19:43,583 the forest service I says, get the gates open. 374 00:19:43,616 --> 00:19:45,818 I need to get up there and get to work. 375 00:19:45,852 --> 00:19:50,857 And then in the health aspect, I usually lose 30 376 00:19:52,058 --> 00:19:54,894 to 40 pounds every summer by just getting out 377 00:19:54,927 --> 00:19:58,231 and climbing on and off a horse and the gals 378 00:19:58,265 --> 00:20:03,270 sometimes asked what my secret is, so I says, come on out. 379 00:20:04,036 --> 00:20:06,239 I'll put you on a horse and give you a chainsaw 380 00:20:06,273 --> 00:20:08,441 and I'll show you how to lose pounds. 381 00:20:19,652 --> 00:20:21,788 Something had to be done 382 00:20:21,821 --> 00:20:24,391 or we would lose the trails for posterity. 383 00:20:49,181 --> 00:20:51,918 - Well, we were walking down this meadow here looking 384 00:20:51,951 --> 00:20:55,722 for some water and we came across this beautiful 385 00:20:55,755 --> 00:20:56,923 little stream it kind of looks 386 00:20:56,956 --> 00:20:59,158 like it just comes right out of the ground. 387 00:20:59,191 --> 00:21:00,927 - I don't feel great. 388 00:21:00,960 --> 00:21:01,728 - You don't? 389 00:21:01,761 --> 00:21:02,929 What's the matter? 390 00:21:02,962 --> 00:21:04,297 - I'm just hurty everywhere. 391 00:21:04,331 --> 00:21:05,064 - Hurty 392 00:21:08,134 --> 00:21:11,103 He's in the fetal position. 393 00:21:11,137 --> 00:21:11,938 - Sorry man. 394 00:21:22,615 --> 00:21:25,785 - I just had a great dinner, great hiking day. 395 00:21:25,818 --> 00:21:29,188 Can't wait to get in there and go to sleep, watch some TV. 396 00:21:29,221 --> 00:21:32,525 Read, write some letters. 397 00:21:33,526 --> 00:21:36,363 Wake up in the morning, and do it all over again. 398 00:21:44,236 --> 00:21:49,241 - One of the biggest things we run onto as trail people 399 00:21:50,309 --> 00:21:53,546 is what they call "altitude sickness". 400 00:21:53,580 --> 00:21:55,782 - Will, he wasn't feeling too good, 401 00:21:55,815 --> 00:21:58,050 he was having some issues with the elevation. 402 00:21:58,084 --> 00:22:01,020 - He had a slight headache as did I 403 00:22:01,053 --> 00:22:03,189 and he was feeling a little bit nauseous. 404 00:22:03,222 --> 00:22:06,292 - You figure they're coming from almost zero 405 00:22:06,325 --> 00:22:08,728 all the way up to almost 10,000 feet. 406 00:22:08,761 --> 00:22:10,329 - It's not a fun deal. 407 00:22:10,363 --> 00:22:13,265 The severe cases you feel disoriented. 408 00:22:14,367 --> 00:22:17,036 - Well, today was day one on the Highland, 409 00:22:17,069 --> 00:22:18,237 which trail are we on again? 410 00:22:18,270 --> 00:22:19,839 - By the time we got to camp, 411 00:22:19,872 --> 00:22:21,674 it seemed to be getting a little bit worse. 412 00:22:21,708 --> 00:22:25,912 So after he attempted to eat some food, it really got worse. 413 00:22:32,852 --> 00:22:36,423 - My name is Will Wood and I work for a backpacking company 414 00:22:36,456 --> 00:22:39,392 and I run the backpacking company's social media 415 00:22:39,426 --> 00:22:42,028 and I also backpack for living. 416 00:22:42,061 --> 00:22:44,230 - Will's a fun guy, he's pretty laid back. 417 00:22:44,263 --> 00:22:46,098 He's usually pretty happy go lucky. 418 00:22:46,132 --> 00:22:48,367 - You're almost doing the backpack dance. 419 00:22:51,370 --> 00:22:53,440 - He's a strong hiker. 420 00:22:53,473 --> 00:22:56,242 - The older I get, the less I can keep up with a guy. 421 00:22:56,275 --> 00:23:00,079 - He's got thousands of miles under his belt. 422 00:23:00,112 --> 00:23:02,582 He knows what he's doing when he's on the trail. 423 00:23:02,615 --> 00:23:05,284 - He hiked the Appalachian Trail and then the year 424 00:23:05,317 --> 00:23:08,855 after that he did most of the PCT. 425 00:23:08,888 --> 00:23:11,057 - He has a little camera and he films everything. 426 00:23:11,090 --> 00:23:12,925 He does gear reviews. 427 00:23:12,959 --> 00:23:14,861 - Hey, guys, Red Beard here. 428 00:23:14,894 --> 00:23:17,864 Well, I've been getting a lot of requests on trekking poles. 429 00:23:17,897 --> 00:23:19,532 - He filmed his hikes. 430 00:23:19,566 --> 00:23:21,868 - Wow you can really tell just how much water 431 00:23:21,901 --> 00:23:23,703 got dumped in this area. 432 00:23:23,736 --> 00:23:25,472 - Apparently a bunch of people like to watch him do that. 433 00:23:25,505 --> 00:23:28,140 So he's pretty popular on social media. 434 00:23:28,174 --> 00:23:32,078 - He loves the outdoors, he loves the community. 435 00:23:32,111 --> 00:23:36,716 He really cherishes his relationship with his followers, 436 00:23:36,749 --> 00:23:39,318 and I cherish my relationship with him. 437 00:23:39,351 --> 00:23:43,456 - Will Wood is quite a tender soul much more 438 00:23:43,490 --> 00:23:46,459 than what you would think just meeting him. 439 00:23:46,493 --> 00:23:50,262 He has a lot of depth, a lot of emotion. 440 00:23:50,296 --> 00:23:53,332 He cares deeply about people. 441 00:23:53,365 --> 00:23:57,136 He's very smart, he has a lot of skills. 442 00:23:57,169 --> 00:24:00,172 He is just a close dear friend of mine. 443 00:24:02,108 --> 00:24:05,512 - Growing up as a kid, I was really passionate about sports. 444 00:24:05,545 --> 00:24:08,981 I played tennis, soccer, cross country track. 445 00:24:09,015 --> 00:24:12,485 And I started hiking, when I was young with my dad, 446 00:24:12,519 --> 00:24:16,322 he would take us to the Smoky Mountains and my family 447 00:24:16,355 --> 00:24:19,959 would kind of hang out in town and my dad and I would go 448 00:24:19,992 --> 00:24:23,496 into the forest and just hike all the trails in the Smokies 449 00:24:23,530 --> 00:24:25,331 and ever since then I really started to develop 450 00:24:25,364 --> 00:24:28,501 a passion for being outside and backpacking. 451 00:24:29,468 --> 00:24:32,972 - I hike because I love being in the forest. 452 00:24:33,005 --> 00:24:35,474 And I've also found that when I'm traveling, 453 00:24:35,508 --> 00:24:37,977 I love experiencing different cultures, 454 00:24:38,010 --> 00:24:39,946 whether I'm hiking just in different states 455 00:24:39,979 --> 00:24:42,214 in the United States or in other countries. 456 00:24:42,248 --> 00:24:44,150 - Well, guys, we've made it to Iceland. 457 00:24:44,183 --> 00:24:45,885 - Well, I can't believe I'm here 458 00:24:45,918 --> 00:24:47,887 in southern Chile of Patagonia. 459 00:24:47,920 --> 00:24:50,489 - Well, here we are in Tasmania. 460 00:24:50,523 --> 00:24:53,560 - I really get a grasp for the culture and the people 461 00:24:53,593 --> 00:24:56,529 when I'm walking and exploring on foot. 462 00:24:56,563 --> 00:24:59,799 So it's just a lot different than driving in a car. 463 00:24:59,832 --> 00:25:03,069 You really feel much more connected to the location. 464 00:25:07,907 --> 00:25:11,578 - Before I started long distance hiking in 2014, 465 00:25:11,611 --> 00:25:16,082 I found that I was kind of lost and a lot of times 466 00:25:16,115 --> 00:25:20,386 I settled in life, I got married young, before I really 467 00:25:20,419 --> 00:25:23,089 even kind of knew who I was as a person. 468 00:25:46,478 --> 00:25:49,448 - Before I was kind of just playing everything safe. 469 00:25:49,481 --> 00:25:52,284 So long distance hiking forced me out there on my own. 470 00:25:52,318 --> 00:25:57,256 It really just, it awakened me, it awakened my soul. 471 00:25:57,289 --> 00:26:00,693 Since then, my life has just been one adventure 472 00:26:00,727 --> 00:26:03,763 after the next really and all it took was that first 473 00:26:03,796 --> 00:26:07,634 initial step, once I started chasing after the things 474 00:26:07,667 --> 00:26:09,636 that I was passionate about, that's when I just started 475 00:26:09,669 --> 00:26:11,804 to notice my life beginning to change. 476 00:26:13,773 --> 00:26:16,809 I met Joe and Matt in 2013, as I was preparing 477 00:26:16,843 --> 00:26:19,411 for the Appalachian Trail, a good friend of mine 478 00:26:19,445 --> 00:26:21,648 who was gonna originally hike the trail with me. 479 00:26:21,681 --> 00:26:24,450 He went to the warehouse of the backpacking company 480 00:26:24,483 --> 00:26:27,319 where Joe and Matt work at and he introduced himself 481 00:26:27,353 --> 00:26:29,055 and they invited us to come on 482 00:26:29,088 --> 00:26:30,723 a hike with them in the Smokys. 483 00:26:30,757 --> 00:26:33,893 It was about a 70 miles section hike. 484 00:26:33,926 --> 00:26:37,096 We started to bond on that hike and form a friendship. 485 00:26:38,030 --> 00:26:39,932 After I finished the Appalachian Trail, 486 00:26:39,966 --> 00:26:42,434 I ended up moving down to Florida to work with them 487 00:26:42,468 --> 00:26:45,071 and we've been close friends ever since. 488 00:26:45,104 --> 00:26:47,573 And we've hiked all over the world together the last four 489 00:26:47,606 --> 00:26:49,809 or five years it's been quite an adventure. 490 00:26:51,644 --> 00:26:54,346 - Will and I met actually on a dating app. 491 00:26:54,380 --> 00:26:56,849 - She was different than any girl 492 00:26:56,883 --> 00:26:59,251 that I had seen since moving to Florida. 493 00:26:59,285 --> 00:27:02,088 Her pictures were of her on a tractor. 494 00:27:02,121 --> 00:27:03,923 She's a farmer and she's very passionate 495 00:27:03,956 --> 00:27:07,126 about what does, I just was really drawn to that. 496 00:27:07,159 --> 00:27:11,263 - When we first met, he popped his head in my window. 497 00:27:11,297 --> 00:27:13,766 And was super smiley and I just saw all this red hair 498 00:27:13,800 --> 00:27:17,303 and he was just super funny, made me laugh a lot, 499 00:27:17,336 --> 00:27:20,306 we got along great, he was also a little nervous. 500 00:27:20,339 --> 00:27:22,374 I could tell, but it was really cute. 501 00:27:26,846 --> 00:27:28,380 - Long distance hiking definitely 502 00:27:28,414 --> 00:27:30,683 can impact your normal home life. 503 00:27:30,717 --> 00:27:33,319 Obviously, if you're gonna be gone for a month 504 00:27:33,352 --> 00:27:36,122 to six months hiking through the forest, 505 00:27:36,155 --> 00:27:38,557 sometimes you don't even have cell phone service. 506 00:27:38,590 --> 00:27:40,827 It can be tough, it can be tough for those you love 507 00:27:40,860 --> 00:27:42,561 and those that you leave behind. 508 00:27:42,594 --> 00:27:44,563 But for us, it's definitely a little bit 509 00:27:44,596 --> 00:27:47,333 more difficult because we are running a small farm. 510 00:27:47,366 --> 00:27:51,337 So it does put more work on Joelle. 511 00:27:51,370 --> 00:27:54,741 But she's a worker, so she's able to hold things down 512 00:27:54,774 --> 00:27:57,143 until I get back and I'm kind of more her helper. 513 00:27:57,176 --> 00:28:00,880 She's the professional farmer, so I'm learning from her. 514 00:28:00,913 --> 00:28:03,182 - Hiking for Will is his passion 515 00:28:03,215 --> 00:28:05,517 and I want him to do what he loves. 516 00:28:05,551 --> 00:28:07,153 He's always excited to come home and share 517 00:28:07,186 --> 00:28:10,089 with me his experiences and I really love that. 518 00:28:34,146 --> 00:28:37,784 - Typically, when I hike at elevation I've walked 1000 miles 519 00:28:37,817 --> 00:28:39,752 before I've gotten there so I've had no issues 520 00:28:39,786 --> 00:28:42,621 but on this trip after the first day of hiking, 521 00:28:42,654 --> 00:28:45,624 we were approaching 10,000 feet in elevation. 522 00:28:45,657 --> 00:28:48,961 So last night I experienced for the first time 523 00:28:48,995 --> 00:28:51,563 having elevation sickness and it was pretty rough. 524 00:28:51,597 --> 00:28:53,933 I attempted to eat dinner and threw it up 525 00:28:53,966 --> 00:28:56,936 so I threw up twice, today's a new day. 526 00:28:56,969 --> 00:28:58,204 I'm feeling great this morning. 527 00:28:58,237 --> 00:29:00,239 So let's keep our fingers crossed. 528 00:29:00,272 --> 00:29:01,974 It's gonna be different today. 529 00:29:02,008 --> 00:29:04,310 - Will seem to be doing fine and all the effects 530 00:29:04,343 --> 00:29:06,445 of the altitude had gone away. 531 00:29:07,413 --> 00:29:09,982 - So Benny and I took a little side trip down 532 00:29:10,016 --> 00:29:14,086 to Mill Park, which had an old sawmill and we found 533 00:29:14,120 --> 00:29:18,590 these old cabins that were like 100 years old or more. 534 00:29:18,624 --> 00:29:21,460 It was really cool to see the history 535 00:29:21,493 --> 00:29:23,863 of the pioneers, to see the relics. 536 00:29:25,197 --> 00:29:27,233 - The remnants maybe just three, four logs high, 537 00:29:27,266 --> 00:29:29,301 but still, that was very cool to see that, 538 00:29:29,335 --> 00:29:32,338 especially to step in those cabin areas. 539 00:29:32,371 --> 00:29:36,175 Knowing that 100 years ago, people lived in those, 540 00:29:36,208 --> 00:29:38,344 and people were walking on the very spots 541 00:29:38,377 --> 00:29:40,146 that we were walking on. 542 00:30:19,886 --> 00:30:21,954 - Near the end of the day, we're gonna pass 543 00:30:21,988 --> 00:30:24,356 Carter Military Trail and there's a stream there 544 00:30:24,390 --> 00:30:27,059 so we can load up, then after that we're gonna 545 00:30:27,093 --> 00:30:28,294 be hitting a bunch of water. 546 00:30:36,903 --> 00:30:39,471 - Day two was very similar to day one 547 00:30:39,505 --> 00:30:41,740 we did pop out of the forest. 548 00:30:41,773 --> 00:30:45,144 - We came next to this one hill and we could see 549 00:30:45,177 --> 00:30:47,679 just this one pile of rocks up there and we thought, 550 00:30:47,713 --> 00:30:51,150 you know, that looks pretty cool, let's go check it out. 551 00:30:51,183 --> 00:30:54,987 It honestly look like a chimney, is was basically a huge 552 00:30:55,021 --> 00:30:58,090 rock cairn that someone had built up that was 553 00:30:58,124 --> 00:31:00,792 probably eight feet tall, if not taller than that. 554 00:31:04,563 --> 00:31:06,198 - We got our first view of the mountains all around. 555 00:31:06,232 --> 00:31:07,900 So that was pretty cool. 556 00:31:07,934 --> 00:31:09,701 We sat up there on top of this little peak 557 00:31:09,735 --> 00:31:12,538 for quite a while and had our lunch and everything. 558 00:31:14,941 --> 00:31:17,009 - So you see this hill behind me it doesn't look 559 00:31:17,043 --> 00:31:18,911 like it's that tall, right? 560 00:31:18,945 --> 00:31:22,281 It's maybe like 40, 50 feet, just climbing up this hill. 561 00:31:22,314 --> 00:31:25,251 I felt like I was about to die, I could not breathe. 562 00:31:25,284 --> 00:31:28,687 We're at about 10,150 feet or so. 563 00:31:28,720 --> 00:31:30,756 There's just not much oxygen up here. 564 00:31:30,789 --> 00:31:34,326 But I can say I'm loving it, it's beautiful out here. 565 00:31:35,727 --> 00:31:39,298 - Throughout day two, Joe seemed to be coughing 566 00:31:39,331 --> 00:31:42,701 and falling behind, which is not typical Joe, 567 00:31:42,734 --> 00:31:44,903 he's usually near or at the lead. 568 00:31:44,937 --> 00:31:46,772 So we were all kind of concerned to see 569 00:31:46,805 --> 00:31:49,942 what was going on there but it didn't seem like too big 570 00:31:49,976 --> 00:31:53,112 of a deal 'cause his spirits were still pretty good. 571 00:31:53,145 --> 00:31:55,814 - We continue to gradually climb all day 572 00:31:55,847 --> 00:31:58,150 as we were approaching the High Uintas. 573 00:31:58,184 --> 00:32:01,187 We had a GPS file that we used, it was on our phone 574 00:32:01,220 --> 00:32:02,488 and it would have been tough to get 575 00:32:02,521 --> 00:32:04,723 through that area without that. 576 00:32:04,756 --> 00:32:06,925 - The trail was still mostly non existent 577 00:32:06,959 --> 00:32:11,730 We were just following cairns and blazes on the trees. 578 00:32:11,763 --> 00:32:13,099 - So it's hailing out a little bit, 579 00:32:13,132 --> 00:32:14,900 hoping it doesn't start raining. 580 00:32:14,933 --> 00:32:17,136 We found this nice little spot to relax 581 00:32:17,169 --> 00:32:21,007 under the pine tree here while we wait, have a little snack. 582 00:32:22,108 --> 00:32:24,977 Hopefully it'll just blow by without raining too hard. 583 00:32:26,012 --> 00:32:28,180 It's dripping on me, but that's about it right now. 584 00:32:44,396 --> 00:32:46,798 - During the first 20 some odd miles as you're approaching 585 00:32:46,832 --> 00:32:48,834 the High Uintas there's really 586 00:32:48,867 --> 00:32:51,437 not many opportunities to get water. 587 00:32:51,470 --> 00:32:54,206 - We stumbled across some water 588 00:32:54,240 --> 00:32:56,508 that may have been questionable. 589 00:32:56,542 --> 00:33:00,212 It seemed like there was a lot of cow activity in the area. 590 00:33:00,246 --> 00:33:03,682 And the water tasted reminiscent of that activity. 591 00:33:03,715 --> 00:33:06,118 - It looked like cows had done nothing 592 00:33:06,152 --> 00:33:09,655 but pee and poop in this thing for like years. 593 00:33:09,688 --> 00:33:12,058 - It was pretty disgusting. 594 00:33:12,091 --> 00:33:15,661 - It was kind of gross and kind of yellowish brown color. 595 00:33:15,694 --> 00:33:17,696 - You know cow poop water is not 596 00:33:17,729 --> 00:33:20,899 your first choice, I don't think. 597 00:33:20,932 --> 00:33:23,035 - There really wasn't any water that day on trail, 598 00:33:23,069 --> 00:33:24,836 other than that, so we just did our best 599 00:33:24,870 --> 00:33:27,639 to filter and scoop from there. 600 00:33:27,673 --> 00:33:30,008 I don't think I filtered it but I did, I did boil it 601 00:33:30,042 --> 00:33:32,010 and cook with that water, it was all right. 602 00:33:32,044 --> 00:33:33,845 It wasn't the worst water I've ever had. 603 00:33:41,920 --> 00:33:43,522 - The Highline Trail does cross 604 00:33:43,555 --> 00:33:46,425 what was the historic Carter Military Road. 605 00:33:47,426 --> 00:33:48,860 The Carter Military Road is named 606 00:33:48,894 --> 00:33:50,762 after this guy named Judge Carter. 607 00:33:50,796 --> 00:33:53,632 He was a veteran of the Seminole Wars down in Florida. 608 00:33:54,866 --> 00:33:57,503 He was out of the Fort Bridger Area, he was a sutler, 609 00:33:57,536 --> 00:33:58,904 which is the guy who supplies 610 00:33:58,937 --> 00:34:00,539 the army with all their equipment. 611 00:34:02,040 --> 00:34:03,609 It was a fairly lucrative business 612 00:34:03,642 --> 00:34:05,244 that he got through a friend of his. 613 00:34:06,612 --> 00:34:09,115 With the advent of the transcontinental railroad 614 00:34:09,148 --> 00:34:11,717 making access to the west a lot easier. 615 00:34:11,750 --> 00:34:13,752 And Fort Bridger being a nexus of things 616 00:34:13,785 --> 00:34:16,755 and you had all the settlement in the Uinta Basin, 617 00:34:16,788 --> 00:34:21,093 encroaching on what was also designated in 1861 618 00:34:21,127 --> 00:34:23,295 as the Uintah Ouray Reservation. 619 00:34:26,332 --> 00:34:28,734 So there was back and forth between a lot 620 00:34:28,767 --> 00:34:30,302 of the Native Americans and the settlers. 621 00:34:30,336 --> 00:34:33,472 So it obviously had a serious impact on the Ute folks, 622 00:34:33,505 --> 00:34:35,541 all three bands that are now on the reservation, 623 00:34:35,574 --> 00:34:38,444 two of them from Colorado that were forcibly removed. 624 00:34:42,148 --> 00:34:43,482 The Battle of Little Bighorn, also known as 625 00:34:43,515 --> 00:34:45,217 Custer's Last Stand 626 00:34:45,251 --> 00:34:46,985 is when basically the Seventh Cavalry was decimated 627 00:34:47,018 --> 00:34:49,955 by a fairly large conflagration of a bunch 628 00:34:49,988 --> 00:34:52,391 of different bands of Native Americans. 629 00:34:52,424 --> 00:34:54,893 And that was the first real defeat that the army 630 00:34:54,926 --> 00:34:57,263 had suffered at the hands of the Native Americans. 631 00:34:57,296 --> 00:35:01,567 So that of course sparked a lot of fear among settlers 632 00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:04,403 that they would be next if the army couldn't protect them. 633 00:35:04,436 --> 00:35:07,206 Of course there was mistrust on both sides. 634 00:35:08,940 --> 00:35:11,643 In the Uinta Basin after the Ute's were forcibly 635 00:35:11,677 --> 00:35:14,280 put on the reservation, the local settlers, 636 00:35:14,313 --> 00:35:16,582 white settlers wanted protection and petitioned 637 00:35:16,615 --> 00:35:18,150 to have a military encampment there. 638 00:35:18,184 --> 00:35:21,353 So military Fort Thornburgh was created. 639 00:35:22,554 --> 00:35:25,357 In order to connect the Uintah Basin with Fort Bridger 640 00:35:25,391 --> 00:35:28,427 and Carter, of course, probably for his own elevation 641 00:35:28,460 --> 00:35:31,197 on the fact that he could supply two military forts. 642 00:35:31,230 --> 00:35:34,800 Had this road made that crossed the Uintas. 643 00:35:53,852 --> 00:35:57,223 - Good day hiking today, stayed hydrated, 644 00:35:57,256 --> 00:36:02,027 and there's the raw water out of this little puddle. 645 00:36:02,828 --> 00:36:04,396 That's not even really a stream. 646 00:36:04,430 --> 00:36:08,400 Probably moving very slowly, you had to dip. 647 00:36:08,434 --> 00:36:11,370 And then this is it, filtered, it's got a little red tint 648 00:36:11,403 --> 00:36:13,339 to it from the Kool Aid. 649 00:36:13,372 --> 00:36:17,209 So here we are set up I'm right in direct line of the sun. 650 00:36:17,243 --> 00:36:21,280 Somehow Joe always gets the best spot, so, 651 00:36:22,681 --> 00:36:24,115 that's why I'm here. 652 00:36:25,217 --> 00:36:27,686 - Well, we did about 10 miles today. 653 00:36:28,954 --> 00:36:31,557 We got hailed on just a little, bit got sprinkled on 654 00:36:31,590 --> 00:36:34,260 just a little bit, nothing to get us wet. 655 00:36:34,293 --> 00:36:36,194 Matt says it's about three miles to the next potential 656 00:36:36,228 --> 00:36:38,664 water source, it should be all right. 657 00:37:04,923 --> 00:37:06,458 - Good morning 658 00:37:06,492 --> 00:37:09,194 - Well we had a little stormed kind of just kind 659 00:37:09,227 --> 00:37:11,297 of glanced us a little bit not too bad. 660 00:37:11,330 --> 00:37:14,700 The lightning was pretty dang bright. 661 00:37:14,733 --> 00:37:18,604 I almost had to crawl way up underneath my sleeping bag 662 00:37:18,637 --> 00:37:20,806 to kind of block a little bit of that out 663 00:37:20,839 --> 00:37:23,241 but besides that I slept great. 664 00:37:23,275 --> 00:37:25,477 Just love being out in the wilderness. 665 00:37:25,511 --> 00:37:27,112 Just something peaceful about it. 666 00:37:27,145 --> 00:37:29,981 You can just sleep forever but time to wake up, 667 00:37:30,015 --> 00:37:32,484 time to get going and we got miles to do. 668 00:37:38,256 --> 00:37:40,626 - I got a nice rolling boil to get all 669 00:37:40,659 --> 00:37:42,728 the crap out of there just in case. 670 00:37:42,761 --> 00:37:44,730 - You gotta do that for about 10 minutes. 671 00:37:44,763 --> 00:37:46,932 - No, you gotta do it for like 60 seconds. 672 00:37:48,099 --> 00:37:51,002 - That's why your kind died off. 673 00:37:57,142 --> 00:37:59,478 - I get blisters because I have a narrow heel 674 00:38:00,479 --> 00:38:03,782 and it slips up and down in a shoe 675 00:38:03,815 --> 00:38:06,184 and I get a blister no matter what I do. 676 00:38:07,152 --> 00:38:10,389 So this is a product made for hiking. 677 00:38:11,457 --> 00:38:15,026 If I don't put enough, I'll still get a blister. 678 00:38:17,295 --> 00:38:18,530 - You should put honey on there. 679 00:38:18,564 --> 00:38:20,532 Put honey all over your feet. 680 00:38:22,300 --> 00:38:23,502 - Have you ever thought about that 681 00:38:23,535 --> 00:38:24,536 You're not the star of this film. 682 00:38:27,238 --> 00:38:30,308 So stop trying to horn in on my time. 683 00:38:41,186 --> 00:38:43,288 - Today's day three, we're gonna be venturing out 684 00:38:43,321 --> 00:38:45,624 of the forest into some of the higher mountains 685 00:38:45,657 --> 00:38:48,293 above treeline, we're gonna start hitting a bunch 686 00:38:48,326 --> 00:38:50,228 of lakes and streams and that water 687 00:38:50,261 --> 00:38:52,531 shouldn't be an issue going forward. 688 00:38:52,564 --> 00:38:54,633 It's only 10.7 miles today. 689 00:38:54,666 --> 00:38:57,335 But we have a 700 more feet of elevation gain 690 00:38:57,369 --> 00:38:58,837 than we did yesterday. 691 00:38:58,870 --> 00:39:01,172 So 2300 feet in total, which still isn't that bad, 692 00:39:01,206 --> 00:39:04,342 but elevation gonna still get you winded. 693 00:39:04,376 --> 00:39:09,247 - So as we were going down the trail, animals ran across it. 694 00:39:10,081 --> 00:39:11,883 - I was in front of everybody and off in the distance 695 00:39:11,917 --> 00:39:15,721 I saw what appeared to be full grown moose. 696 00:39:15,754 --> 00:39:18,657 - I saw it first, Will is gonna probably dispute that, 697 00:39:18,690 --> 00:39:21,226 but I'm like, look, look at the elk, look at the moose. 698 00:39:21,259 --> 00:39:23,729 I called them moose and the big dispute arose 699 00:39:23,762 --> 00:39:26,598 from that because Joe said "Those aren't moose" 700 00:39:26,632 --> 00:39:29,234 He and Will went into a big argument 701 00:39:29,267 --> 00:39:31,236 for about three days on this. 702 00:39:31,269 --> 00:39:32,438 - They had white butts, 703 00:39:32,471 --> 00:39:34,272 I've never seen a moose with a white butt. 704 00:39:34,305 --> 00:39:36,074 - I'm pretty certain they were moose. 705 00:39:36,107 --> 00:39:38,209 I'm gonna go ahead and stick with that. 706 00:39:39,310 --> 00:39:42,013 - We were heading towards a peak called Leidy Peak. 707 00:39:42,047 --> 00:39:43,882 And it was the first time 708 00:39:43,915 --> 00:39:45,717 that we were gonna go above treeline. 709 00:39:47,052 --> 00:39:51,122 - It's just so mind boggling, looking up at a mountain. 710 00:39:51,156 --> 00:39:53,625 It looks like it's just right there. 711 00:39:53,659 --> 00:39:57,262 When you get up on top of it, it's extremely high. 712 00:39:57,295 --> 00:39:59,998 It's just so hard to get the scale. 713 00:40:01,299 --> 00:40:04,470 But we climb up Leidy Peak, we get some cell phone service. 714 00:40:04,503 --> 00:40:06,337 Everybody's on their phones. 715 00:40:07,439 --> 00:40:08,774 - And I don't think anybody was really 716 00:40:08,807 --> 00:40:11,477 paying much attention to the sky. 717 00:40:11,510 --> 00:40:13,645 - We're all standing around taking pictures and I'm looking 718 00:40:13,679 --> 00:40:16,147 around thinking, I don't wanna be up here. 719 00:40:16,181 --> 00:40:17,483 This isn't looking good. 720 00:40:21,453 --> 00:40:25,891 That was a moment that I thought, sure enough... 721 00:40:25,924 --> 00:40:28,159 Okay this is where I die 722 00:40:29,127 --> 00:40:31,062 - A lightning strike got really close. 723 00:40:31,096 --> 00:40:32,764 Everybody freaked out. 724 00:40:32,798 --> 00:40:34,666 Right as we were at the high point, 725 00:40:34,700 --> 00:40:38,069 this thunderstorm just opened up and started hailing on us 726 00:40:38,103 --> 00:40:40,472 and lightning started striking all over the place. 727 00:40:40,506 --> 00:40:42,307 - There's a lightning storm right there, 728 00:40:42,340 --> 00:40:44,743 but there's not really anywhere to go. 729 00:40:44,776 --> 00:40:46,111 Except right down here. 730 00:40:46,144 --> 00:40:48,079 - And it was like a mad rush to get 731 00:40:48,113 --> 00:40:49,981 back down to the tree line. 732 00:40:50,015 --> 00:40:52,951 So we don't get burned into a crispy critter 733 00:40:52,984 --> 00:40:54,786 from a lightning bolt. 734 00:40:54,820 --> 00:40:56,655 - I owe Matt $20 bucks because it said 735 00:40:56,688 --> 00:40:58,456 it was gonna hail every day, I thought he was lying. 736 00:41:00,526 --> 00:41:01,693 - He was not lying. 737 00:41:04,295 --> 00:41:06,297 - Some hail hit me in a sensitive part. 738 00:41:06,331 --> 00:41:08,700 You can say, that wasn't so much fun. 739 00:41:24,315 --> 00:41:27,185 - Once we made it down into the forest, it was pelting us. 740 00:41:28,153 --> 00:41:31,389 And the lightning was crashing right above us. 741 00:41:33,692 --> 00:41:36,061 I look over at Steve and he's got his cell phone up. 742 00:41:36,094 --> 00:41:38,697 And he was looking at a picture. 743 00:41:38,730 --> 00:41:40,532 And he turned his phone towards me 744 00:41:40,566 --> 00:41:42,734 and was like, look at my girlfriend. 745 00:41:42,768 --> 00:41:43,902 Isn't she beautiful? 746 00:41:43,935 --> 00:41:44,736 And I was like, damn. 747 00:41:48,406 --> 00:41:50,175 It was definitely a Steve moment. 748 00:41:50,208 --> 00:41:51,843 That's what I love about Steve. 749 00:41:51,877 --> 00:41:54,079 He wasn't even thinking about the lightning 750 00:41:54,112 --> 00:41:56,582 or the danger that he was in, he didn't care. 751 00:41:56,615 --> 00:41:59,150 He was just thinking about his girlfriend. 752 00:42:04,189 --> 00:42:07,492 - Everyone scattered and we all got into cover 753 00:42:07,525 --> 00:42:09,394 and back into the tree line. 754 00:42:09,427 --> 00:42:13,732 So that cell exhausted itself and went away 755 00:42:13,765 --> 00:42:17,068 and we gathered up and got a game plan together. 756 00:42:17,102 --> 00:42:20,839 We pulled up the weather radar, 757 00:42:20,872 --> 00:42:23,609 and it showed another big cell just coming our way. 758 00:42:23,642 --> 00:42:26,612 So we got back down into the tree line 759 00:42:26,645 --> 00:42:30,048 just to be protected from any lightning strikes. 760 00:42:32,217 --> 00:42:35,320 So we're waiting it out, better be safe than sorry. 761 00:42:36,588 --> 00:42:38,724 - We wrote out like two waves 762 00:42:38,757 --> 00:42:41,059 of storms until the weather clear. 763 00:42:41,092 --> 00:42:44,529 - That was the end of our first real hail lightning storm. 764 00:42:44,562 --> 00:42:47,733 But then we didn't have cell phone service after that. 765 00:42:47,766 --> 00:42:51,036 - I didn't die there, so that's good, I'm still here. 766 00:42:51,069 --> 00:42:53,071 To hike another day. 767 00:42:53,104 --> 00:42:55,573 - That was probably the most fun part of the trip, for me. 768 00:42:55,607 --> 00:42:57,375 It was the only part when I forgot that everything hurt 769 00:42:57,408 --> 00:42:58,777 and that I couldn't breathe. 770 00:43:00,846 --> 00:43:04,249 - We reached the top of the plateau there, 771 00:43:04,282 --> 00:43:09,054 close to 11,000 feet, and it was like walking in a field. 772 00:43:09,087 --> 00:43:11,156 But on top of a mountain, I would say kind of like 773 00:43:11,189 --> 00:43:13,258 The Highlands or something maybe 774 00:43:13,291 --> 00:43:15,160 that you would imagine in Scotland. 775 00:43:19,097 --> 00:43:21,066 - One of the really cool aspects of the Uintas is really 776 00:43:21,099 --> 00:43:23,902 they're a monument to 19th century science. 777 00:43:23,935 --> 00:43:26,071 The Uintas kind of formed a sort of a crossroads 778 00:43:26,104 --> 00:43:28,840 of what they used to call the great surveys of the West. 779 00:43:28,874 --> 00:43:31,743 You had the Hayden survey, the Clarence King survey 780 00:43:31,777 --> 00:43:35,413 that came out of California, John Wesley Powell, 781 00:43:35,446 --> 00:43:36,848 and they all kind of converged on the Uintas 782 00:43:36,882 --> 00:43:39,350 at about the same time at about 1870. 783 00:43:40,451 --> 00:43:43,488 They mapped the geology and they had paleontologists in toe. 784 00:43:43,521 --> 00:43:45,256 So if you look at a lot of the peaks, 785 00:43:45,290 --> 00:43:47,625 they're named after naturalist, geologists, 786 00:43:47,659 --> 00:43:51,262 explorers, surveyors, and paleontologists. 787 00:43:53,564 --> 00:43:55,667 - So you have Untermann Peak. 788 00:43:55,701 --> 00:43:57,535 Untermann was well known for doing some 789 00:43:57,568 --> 00:43:59,871 of the early renditions of both dinosaurs 790 00:43:59,905 --> 00:44:02,207 and some of the early mammals and trying to make them 791 00:44:02,240 --> 00:44:04,642 lifelike and sort of bring them to life for the public, 792 00:44:04,676 --> 00:44:07,913 translating that from the bone to the actual animal itself. 793 00:44:10,481 --> 00:44:13,318 Leidy was sort of a gentleman scholar, 794 00:44:13,351 --> 00:44:15,520 also the father of Vertebrate Paleontology. 795 00:44:15,553 --> 00:44:17,188 So there's a peak named after him. 796 00:44:17,222 --> 00:44:18,890 He was one of the foremost 797 00:44:18,924 --> 00:44:21,392 paleontologists in the 19th century. 798 00:44:26,597 --> 00:44:29,968 Marsh Peak is named after Othniel Marsh, 799 00:44:30,001 --> 00:44:32,704 A fairly famous sort of paleontological war took place 800 00:44:32,738 --> 00:44:36,307 between Othniel Marsh and Edward Drinker Cope. 801 00:44:36,341 --> 00:44:38,744 Marsh was associated with Yale, Cope was attached 802 00:44:38,777 --> 00:44:41,479 to the Hayden Survey for a while, and they were battling 803 00:44:41,512 --> 00:44:43,514 over the fossil fields of the West 804 00:44:43,548 --> 00:44:45,016 It was sensational enough 805 00:44:45,050 --> 00:44:48,754 that they basically warred with each other in the papers. 806 00:44:48,787 --> 00:44:51,189 When it started off Cope was in New Jersey and was actually 807 00:44:51,222 --> 00:44:53,391 getting some fossils from a rock quarry. 808 00:44:54,692 --> 00:44:57,162 Paleontologists would team up with rock quarriers 809 00:44:57,195 --> 00:44:59,097 and people that were miners and things like that 810 00:44:59,130 --> 00:45:00,899 and as they would come across things, 811 00:45:00,932 --> 00:45:03,334 they would then relate them to the paleontologists 812 00:45:03,368 --> 00:45:06,071 and that's how they would get a lot of their specimens. 813 00:45:08,073 --> 00:45:10,708 So Cope was down there and he was using this one quarry 814 00:45:10,742 --> 00:45:12,944 and he invited Marsh down to check it out. 815 00:45:12,978 --> 00:45:14,612 And then by the time he left, he didn't realize Marsh 816 00:45:14,645 --> 00:45:16,281 made deal with these guys and they started 817 00:45:16,314 --> 00:45:18,349 sending all the fossils to him. 818 00:45:18,383 --> 00:45:19,885 So basically these guys were constantly 819 00:45:19,918 --> 00:45:21,419 scooping each other's finds. 820 00:45:21,452 --> 00:45:23,955 So that of course put them at odds very early on. 821 00:45:28,994 --> 00:45:30,796 With the transcontinental railroad, 822 00:45:30,829 --> 00:45:32,864 access and logistics are a lot easier. 823 00:45:32,898 --> 00:45:35,366 So once that sort of opened up, and everybody knew 824 00:45:35,400 --> 00:45:37,035 about the fossil fields of the West, 825 00:45:37,068 --> 00:45:39,938 it was almost like a gold rush but for paleontology. 826 00:45:39,971 --> 00:45:42,040 So these guys were always kind of trying to stake 827 00:45:42,073 --> 00:45:45,310 out claims, and then claim jumping each other's claims 828 00:45:45,343 --> 00:45:47,545 and then every time they would find something, 829 00:45:47,578 --> 00:45:48,780 they would rush into print 830 00:45:48,814 --> 00:45:50,982 so that they would be the ones to name it. 831 00:45:51,016 --> 00:45:52,650 And then trying to one up the other guy. 832 00:45:52,683 --> 00:45:54,619 That's why you would have maybe say something like, 833 00:45:54,652 --> 00:45:57,655 the Uintatherium it might have five different names, 834 00:45:57,688 --> 00:45:59,657 by the time it gets published, 'cause everybody's 835 00:45:59,690 --> 00:46:02,027 finding them and then naming them themselves. 836 00:46:03,428 --> 00:46:06,564 Marsh kind of had more the financial backing that he kind 837 00:46:06,597 --> 00:46:08,733 of pushed Cope out in a lot of ways while Cope 838 00:46:08,766 --> 00:46:10,768 was still able to find hundreds 839 00:46:10,802 --> 00:46:13,304 of different fossils and fossil fields. 840 00:46:16,207 --> 00:46:18,243 Another big bash against Cope was, 841 00:46:18,276 --> 00:46:20,478 Cope had sort of a Plesiosaur, 842 00:46:20,511 --> 00:46:23,248 and he had mounted the head on the wrong end. 843 00:46:23,281 --> 00:46:25,516 So Marsh got a lot of traction out of basically trying 844 00:46:25,550 --> 00:46:27,953 to make fun of him and saying didn't know what he was doing. 845 00:46:27,986 --> 00:46:30,188 But then of course, Marsh is also famous for creating 846 00:46:30,221 --> 00:46:31,857 a Brontosaurus by putting 847 00:46:31,890 --> 00:46:34,159 the wrong skull on the wrong skeleton. 848 00:46:36,161 --> 00:46:38,997 Leidy was so disgusted with the whole Marsh and Cope war, 849 00:46:39,030 --> 00:46:41,032 going back and forth that he actually kind of bagged 850 00:46:41,066 --> 00:46:43,201 out of it and stopped investigating in the West. 851 00:46:43,234 --> 00:46:45,871 But overall, this went on and on they both died 852 00:46:45,904 --> 00:46:47,638 about the same time. 853 00:46:47,672 --> 00:46:48,974 There really wasn't a winner in the end, 854 00:46:49,007 --> 00:46:51,242 but volumes have been written about these guys. 855 00:46:52,210 --> 00:46:54,045 Cope is still the most highly published 856 00:46:54,079 --> 00:46:55,881 scientists in American history. 857 00:46:55,914 --> 00:46:57,815 In fact, actually what we've been talking about recently 858 00:46:57,849 --> 00:47:00,451 is even trying to nominate one of the peaks 859 00:47:00,485 --> 00:47:02,820 to be named after Edward Drinker Cope. 860 00:47:10,728 --> 00:47:15,666 - Our first pass on this great hike was Gabbro Pass. 861 00:47:16,667 --> 00:47:19,871 And once again, you just can't get the scale you're looking 862 00:47:19,905 --> 00:47:24,509 at it going, how am I gonna hike over that? 863 00:47:24,542 --> 00:47:26,878 - Like most of the passes on this trail, 864 00:47:26,912 --> 00:47:30,982 it was a pretty vertical climb, it was Rocky. 865 00:47:31,016 --> 00:47:32,984 But for me the passes are my favorite part. 866 00:47:33,018 --> 00:47:36,721 So maybe some people dread them because it's a hard climb. 867 00:47:36,754 --> 00:47:39,724 But with each step that you take, every time you turn 868 00:47:39,757 --> 00:47:44,062 around and look back, the view just gets more spectacular. 869 00:47:50,368 --> 00:47:53,471 - It was just gorgeous, just beautiful. 870 00:47:55,873 --> 00:47:59,577 - Gabbro Pass was really our first experience of what 871 00:47:59,610 --> 00:48:02,580 the next few days were gonna be like for us on this trail. 872 00:48:11,389 --> 00:48:15,360 - We ended up down at Deadman's Lake, not really a name 873 00:48:15,393 --> 00:48:17,128 of a lake you wanna be hanging out at, 874 00:48:17,162 --> 00:48:19,597 especially after nearly getting struck 875 00:48:19,630 --> 00:48:21,632 by lightning like multiple times. 876 00:48:23,969 --> 00:48:27,772 - Deadman Lake is named after the unfortunate body 877 00:48:27,805 --> 00:48:29,207 of a prospector that was found there 878 00:48:29,240 --> 00:48:31,242 by a couple of individuals later. 879 00:48:31,276 --> 00:48:34,379 The north slope is known to have fairly harsh winters. 880 00:48:34,412 --> 00:48:36,814 Even today, we lose people in the Uintas. 881 00:48:36,847 --> 00:48:40,051 So the idea that this prospector could be up there and run 882 00:48:40,085 --> 00:48:42,587 afoul especially, you know, back in the early days, 883 00:48:42,620 --> 00:48:43,888 when you don't have all the fancy 884 00:48:43,921 --> 00:48:45,991 equipment that we have now. 885 00:48:46,024 --> 00:48:48,493 It's pretty status quo back then you're really taking 886 00:48:48,526 --> 00:48:49,961 your life in your hands, 887 00:48:49,995 --> 00:48:51,762 especially as an individual going in there. 888 00:48:51,796 --> 00:48:53,731 It's an undertaking now, but to do it, 889 00:48:53,764 --> 00:48:56,501 say in the 1870s, or 80s, or 90s. 890 00:48:56,534 --> 00:48:58,336 It's a whole different ball of wax. 891 00:49:30,168 --> 00:49:32,170 - Today was probably one of the most eventful days 892 00:49:32,203 --> 00:49:34,472 of hiking I've had, it started off pretty normal 893 00:49:34,505 --> 00:49:38,709 and pretty awesome and then some crazy storms rolled in. 894 00:49:38,743 --> 00:49:42,047 I almost got hit by lightning, then it started to hail, 895 00:49:42,080 --> 00:49:44,115 which was kind of good because I won my bet with Joe 896 00:49:44,149 --> 00:49:46,051 that it would hail at least three times. 897 00:49:46,084 --> 00:49:48,819 So I won 20 bucks and then promptly a piece of hail 898 00:49:48,853 --> 00:49:53,791 struck me in my genitalia, which was pretty not awesome. 899 00:49:53,824 --> 00:49:57,062 But, it's funny now but wasn't really funny at the time. 900 00:49:57,095 --> 00:49:59,664 I haven't even looked, it could be bruised, who knows. 901 00:50:01,832 --> 00:50:03,868 - I feel like today was the first 902 00:50:03,901 --> 00:50:07,305 real day of hiking. After the storms past. 903 00:50:07,338 --> 00:50:10,341 It was beautiful and it felt like a ton of climbing. 904 00:50:10,375 --> 00:50:13,144 It was only supposed to be 2300 feet, but it felt like more. 905 00:50:13,178 --> 00:50:15,046 So it's a beautiful day. 906 00:50:15,080 --> 00:50:17,515 We're here at this beautiful pond tonight 907 00:50:17,548 --> 00:50:20,718 and we're gonna get some good rest 'cause tomorrow 908 00:50:20,751 --> 00:50:22,687 we've got it again, we got 12 miles 909 00:50:22,720 --> 00:50:25,190 and we're gonna probably be going over a couple passes. 910 00:50:53,118 --> 00:50:56,121 - My name is Matt, I work for a backpacking company. 911 00:50:56,154 --> 00:50:58,089 I love to travel. 912 00:50:58,123 --> 00:51:01,092 I love my family and I love backpacking, 913 00:51:01,126 --> 00:51:03,794 and I love it when I can incorporate all three together. 914 00:51:05,430 --> 00:51:07,798 - The best way I can describe Matt, 915 00:51:07,832 --> 00:51:09,500 he lives his life with integrity. 916 00:51:11,001 --> 00:51:12,470 He makes it a point. 917 00:51:13,504 --> 00:51:16,441 He is really dedicated to his family. 918 00:51:17,475 --> 00:51:21,112 And that speaks to me, those two things speak volumes to me. 919 00:51:22,012 --> 00:51:24,249 I would say when it comes down to it, 920 00:51:24,282 --> 00:51:29,387 me and Matt are probably the two most alike people, 921 00:51:29,420 --> 00:51:32,123 even though we come from totally different backgrounds. 922 00:51:33,124 --> 00:51:35,493 - Growing up, I was a little explorer. 923 00:51:35,526 --> 00:51:38,163 I was always spending time in the woods. 924 00:51:38,196 --> 00:51:41,266 I was always building forts, going farther than my mom 925 00:51:41,299 --> 00:51:44,269 would like on my bike or my skateboard. 926 00:51:44,302 --> 00:51:45,770 I grew up with a single mother, 927 00:51:45,803 --> 00:51:49,974 so I never really got the chance to travel or go anywhere. 928 00:51:50,007 --> 00:51:52,410 As I grew up, like after high school, I was in a band 929 00:51:52,443 --> 00:51:55,180 and I used that as an opportunity to explore the country, 930 00:51:55,213 --> 00:51:58,082 go on tour, see places I'd never been before. 931 00:51:58,115 --> 00:52:00,618 And I learned through those experiences 932 00:52:00,651 --> 00:52:04,255 how valuable travel really was to me. 933 00:52:04,289 --> 00:52:06,591 - He was a singer in a heavy metal band. 934 00:52:06,624 --> 00:52:09,126 He's tattooed from head to toe. 935 00:52:09,160 --> 00:52:12,497 He's never been high, he's never been drunk, 936 00:52:12,530 --> 00:52:15,166 and his memory is like a steel trap. 937 00:52:15,200 --> 00:52:20,205 He will pull names and dates out of his memory. 938 00:52:21,172 --> 00:52:22,873 And you wonder, where does this come from? 939 00:52:22,907 --> 00:52:24,775 - Matt was the person that I instantly 940 00:52:24,809 --> 00:52:27,144 connected with when I met him. 941 00:52:27,178 --> 00:52:29,447 He's a fun guy to be around. 942 00:52:29,480 --> 00:52:33,784 On the trail, he's all for hiking 30 miles without breaking 943 00:52:33,818 --> 00:52:36,020 and it's hard sometimes to keep up with him. 944 00:52:36,987 --> 00:52:39,990 - My name's Kim Favero, I'm married to Matt. 945 00:52:40,024 --> 00:52:42,727 I'm a cardiovascular specialist. 946 00:52:42,760 --> 00:52:44,094 I met Matt on MySpace. 947 00:52:45,095 --> 00:52:47,498 He tells me he was impressed with my picture 948 00:52:47,532 --> 00:52:51,569 'cause I was pretending to lick Borat on like a bus stop 949 00:52:51,602 --> 00:52:53,404 promotion for the movie. 950 00:52:53,438 --> 00:52:56,207 So that was enough to reel him in I guess. 951 00:52:56,241 --> 00:52:58,709 - And 11 months later, we were married. 952 00:52:58,743 --> 00:53:01,178 On my honeymoon, we stumbled across 953 00:53:01,212 --> 00:53:03,314 this trail in Canada and we just decided 954 00:53:03,348 --> 00:53:07,518 to walk down it and about 15 minutes in, I was in heaven. 955 00:53:07,552 --> 00:53:11,222 It was the first time I'd been in the woods in so long, 956 00:53:11,256 --> 00:53:14,191 ever since that day man, it led me to my job. 957 00:53:14,225 --> 00:53:16,361 It led me to so many adventures. 958 00:53:16,394 --> 00:53:18,963 Every time I go into the woods, I just wanna go back. 959 00:53:21,966 --> 00:53:23,268 - When I married Matt, 960 00:53:23,301 --> 00:53:25,503 I knew that it wasn't gonna be boring. 961 00:53:25,536 --> 00:53:27,338 I knew it was gonna be an adventure. 962 00:53:27,372 --> 00:53:28,639 I knew that for sure. 963 00:53:30,708 --> 00:53:32,209 Matt's crazy passionate 964 00:53:32,243 --> 00:53:34,912 about everything he does, just unconventional. 965 00:53:34,945 --> 00:53:37,848 I can just list off so many weird things he does. 966 00:53:37,882 --> 00:53:39,417 He was in a band. 967 00:53:39,450 --> 00:53:42,052 - Matt's a good organizer of everything really. 968 00:53:42,086 --> 00:53:45,890 - He did A.M radio show. 969 00:53:45,923 --> 00:53:47,892 - He plans most of our hikes. 970 00:53:47,925 --> 00:53:50,728 - He was running all night scavenger hunt game. 971 00:53:50,761 --> 00:53:53,698 - He also for a while was running a soccer club. 972 00:53:53,731 --> 00:53:55,300 - He made t-shirts. 973 00:53:55,333 --> 00:53:57,568 He did screen printing till like four in the morning once. 974 00:53:57,602 --> 00:53:59,370 - That's what Matt does. 975 00:53:59,404 --> 00:54:01,739 He finds people and gets them together to do things. 976 00:54:01,772 --> 00:54:03,140 - People tolerate him pretty well. 977 00:54:14,151 --> 00:54:16,654 - My family came to be, 978 00:54:16,687 --> 00:54:20,558 again in true Favero fashion very unconventionally. 979 00:54:20,591 --> 00:54:25,596 And I think at the time, we were talking about having kids, 980 00:54:26,497 --> 00:54:27,665 and then we stopped talking about it 981 00:54:27,698 --> 00:54:31,001 because he had gotten laid off. 982 00:54:31,035 --> 00:54:32,737 We moved in with my mom, 983 00:54:32,770 --> 00:54:35,773 we just weren't really in the position at that time. 984 00:54:35,806 --> 00:54:37,708 And then I got pregnant. 985 00:54:39,310 --> 00:54:42,813 - So in 2010, my wife and I were working out of our garage, 986 00:54:42,847 --> 00:54:44,949 we were still building everything ourselves. 987 00:54:44,982 --> 00:54:46,183 It was getting to the point 988 00:54:46,216 --> 00:54:48,252 where we couldn't keep up with demand. 989 00:54:48,285 --> 00:54:52,657 As I got into backpacking, I stumbled across Joe's website, 990 00:54:52,690 --> 00:54:54,659 and I noticed that Joe had moved 991 00:54:54,692 --> 00:54:57,227 to the next city south of me Palm Bay. 992 00:54:58,195 --> 00:54:59,697 - Matt emailed and asked if he could come over 993 00:54:59,730 --> 00:55:01,666 and check out some gear. 994 00:55:01,699 --> 00:55:05,169 So he came to our house to our garage, checked out some gear 995 00:55:05,202 --> 00:55:07,438 and we talked, we ended up going out to lunch. 996 00:55:07,472 --> 00:55:09,139 And basically we ended up extending him 997 00:55:09,173 --> 00:55:11,609 an offer to be a seamster for us. 998 00:55:11,642 --> 00:55:14,845 So he was our first first outside employee. 999 00:55:14,879 --> 00:55:18,349 - We kind of just went with it and slowly got 1000 00:55:18,383 --> 00:55:20,685 our lives back together structurally. 1001 00:55:20,718 --> 00:55:24,689 And then Lu was born in 2010. 1002 00:55:31,929 --> 00:55:34,331 But then, a few weeks later, 1003 00:55:34,365 --> 00:55:36,667 we found out she had a serious heart defect. 1004 00:55:38,202 --> 00:55:41,205 - She had a couple holes in her heart and some other things. 1005 00:55:49,414 --> 00:55:51,549 - It was a really trying time for my wife and I 1006 00:55:51,582 --> 00:55:55,219 because we were broke at the time, 1007 00:55:55,252 --> 00:55:58,255 our living situation wasn't the best. 1008 00:55:58,288 --> 00:56:01,091 And then we had this huge, horrible situation 1009 00:56:01,125 --> 00:56:04,762 with our daughter and through it, I was still able 1010 00:56:04,795 --> 00:56:09,600 to go on hikes, and it really helped me decompress. 1011 00:56:10,868 --> 00:56:13,671 For me hiking lets me get into a place in my mind 1012 00:56:13,704 --> 00:56:16,340 where I'm at peace with how I feel about things 1013 00:56:16,373 --> 00:56:18,443 that have happened and how I would feel 1014 00:56:18,476 --> 00:56:20,778 about things if they happened. 1015 00:56:20,811 --> 00:56:23,448 And going through a difficult situation 1016 00:56:23,481 --> 00:56:27,618 like that hiking really helped me stay strong. 1017 00:57:06,924 --> 00:57:09,994 - From then on, she's just been everything. 1018 00:57:10,027 --> 00:57:12,229 She's guided us through everything 1019 00:57:12,262 --> 00:57:13,698 and everything has been for her. 1020 00:57:15,866 --> 00:57:17,768 - My trail name is Champion. 1021 00:57:19,269 --> 00:57:21,338 I like to hike with my family. 1022 00:57:22,306 --> 00:57:25,476 The longest hike I've been on is Italy, France 1023 00:57:25,510 --> 00:57:28,713 and Switzerland. 100 miles. 1024 00:57:29,947 --> 00:57:34,785 I was the youngest kid that hiked it. In the world. 1025 00:58:07,685 --> 00:58:10,287 - The older I get, the more I realize life 1026 00:58:10,320 --> 00:58:12,356 isn't about obtaining possessions. 1027 00:58:12,389 --> 00:58:16,160 It's about obtaining experiences. What that translates 1028 00:58:16,193 --> 00:58:21,198 to with my family is traveling together and hiking together. 1029 00:58:22,499 --> 00:58:24,368 So the outdoors and hiking in general has become 1030 00:58:24,401 --> 00:58:26,470 an experience that we share to build 1031 00:58:26,503 --> 00:58:29,073 and foster our relationships with each other. 1032 00:58:50,728 --> 00:58:54,665 - Well, now today is day four, just got off, 1033 00:58:54,699 --> 00:58:57,367 just got packed up, spent the whole night coughing 1034 00:58:57,401 --> 00:58:58,736 so that wasn't great. 1035 00:58:58,769 --> 00:59:01,672 We're meeting somebody and we're picking up 1036 00:59:01,706 --> 00:59:04,074 our food drop today, and we're gonna go from hardly 1037 00:59:04,108 --> 00:59:05,375 any food to a six days of food 1038 00:59:05,409 --> 00:59:06,711 and so that's gonna be fun too. 1039 00:59:06,744 --> 00:59:08,613 Oh, and then I guess we have like a bunch of passes 1040 00:59:08,646 --> 00:59:10,748 to go over with all our heavy food. 1041 00:59:10,781 --> 00:59:12,617 And we've got 13 miles today, 1042 00:59:12,650 --> 00:59:16,186 so it's gonna be a big day for us, so there's that. 1043 00:59:26,631 --> 00:59:28,799 - So we've been smelling smoke all morning. 1044 00:59:28,833 --> 00:59:29,867 And you can see in the distance 1045 00:59:29,900 --> 00:59:32,036 here that the sky is all hazy. 1046 00:59:32,069 --> 00:59:33,604 You can smell it pretty good here. 1047 00:59:33,638 --> 00:59:35,940 So we're wondering if there's fires nearby 1048 00:59:35,973 --> 00:59:37,608 or how far away it is. 1049 00:59:37,642 --> 00:59:39,209 Hopefully it's not gonna impact our route, 1050 00:59:39,243 --> 00:59:40,778 but you never know. 1051 00:59:47,985 --> 00:59:51,455 - One of the great things about this hike was the community 1052 00:59:51,488 --> 00:59:54,124 in the area, we actually had someone that was willing 1053 00:59:54,158 --> 00:59:58,428 to drive out there and bring us our resupply. 1054 00:59:58,462 --> 01:00:00,464 So this allowed us not have to carry 1055 01:00:00,497 --> 01:00:02,566 10 days worth of food from day one. 1056 01:00:02,599 --> 01:00:05,970 - And we appreciate the kindness. 1057 01:00:06,003 --> 01:00:09,273 Of the gentleman who did our resupply, a phenomenal guy. 1058 01:00:13,277 --> 01:00:15,345 - Cameramen down. 1059 01:00:15,379 --> 01:00:20,651 - There was a little unexpected event, we lost Gordy, 1060 01:00:21,618 --> 01:00:23,287 our cameraman, he jumped off the trail 1061 01:00:23,320 --> 01:00:27,457 'cause he had extreme foot pain and blisters. 1062 01:00:27,491 --> 01:00:29,459 - It's been a crazy four days 1063 01:00:31,461 --> 01:00:34,498 seen stuff I'd never seen before. 1064 01:00:34,531 --> 01:00:37,501 Vistas I never imagined I would see. 1065 01:00:39,303 --> 01:00:42,707 Too bad my feet aren't hold up but.. 1066 01:00:42,740 --> 01:00:45,876 It was cool, while it lasted, super cool. 1067 01:00:45,910 --> 01:00:47,878 - Cool, we're gonna miss you Gordy. 1068 01:00:47,912 --> 01:00:50,681 - See you in Salt Lake. 1069 01:00:50,715 --> 01:00:53,050 - I'll try to meet you at the end of the trail. 1070 01:00:53,083 --> 01:00:54,284 - All right man 1071 01:00:54,318 --> 01:00:55,319 - Best of luck out there. 1072 01:00:55,352 --> 01:00:56,887 - Stay safe 1073 01:00:56,921 --> 01:00:58,155 - Take care 1074 01:00:58,188 --> 01:00:59,890 - You too, it was awesome hiking with you. 1075 01:00:59,924 --> 01:01:03,794 - We hated to see Gordy go 'cause we got attached to him, 1076 01:01:03,828 --> 01:01:05,996 he was like became one of our own. 1077 01:01:07,231 --> 01:01:10,701 But we definitely understand we've all been there. 1078 01:01:10,735 --> 01:01:14,071 - So he was able to get a ride with Aaron off the trail. 1079 01:01:14,104 --> 01:01:15,305 So he was out. 1080 01:01:15,339 --> 01:01:17,875 - It left us with our producer 1081 01:01:17,908 --> 01:01:21,245 and other cameraman and Matt and Benny. 1082 01:01:21,278 --> 01:01:23,180 They picked up some cameras 1083 01:01:23,213 --> 01:01:24,581 and they were taking shots as well. 1084 01:01:24,614 --> 01:01:27,517 So we managed to get through it 1085 01:01:27,551 --> 01:01:31,255 but Gordy did miss a great hike. 1086 01:01:46,971 --> 01:01:50,574 - Chipeta Lake is named after the wife of Chief Ouray. 1087 01:01:50,607 --> 01:01:53,177 And he was one of the most well known Ute Chiefs 1088 01:01:53,210 --> 01:01:55,746 that the government actually sort of identified to speak 1089 01:01:55,780 --> 01:01:58,282 for all the Ute during the negotiations 1090 01:01:58,315 --> 01:02:00,751 over the Uinta Ouray, named after him of course, 1091 01:02:00,785 --> 01:02:02,419 Reservation in the Uinta Basin, 1092 01:02:02,452 --> 01:02:05,655 where now the three bands of Ute's reside. 1093 01:02:06,757 --> 01:02:09,026 - The Native American story in the Uintas 1094 01:02:09,059 --> 01:02:11,561 goes back to the late Ice Age. 1095 01:02:11,595 --> 01:02:14,031 We're talking about 15,000 years plus 1096 01:02:14,064 --> 01:02:18,035 of human habitation in North America, it's not new. 1097 01:02:18,068 --> 01:02:20,871 There's an archaeological culture called Clovis Culture. 1098 01:02:20,905 --> 01:02:23,941 And we know that we have artifacts from very close 1099 01:02:23,974 --> 01:02:28,212 to the forest, a famous Clovis cache of weapons was found. 1100 01:02:28,245 --> 01:02:30,981 And those date back to say 14,000 years ago. 1101 01:02:31,015 --> 01:02:32,216 - These are the folks that are still 1102 01:02:32,249 --> 01:02:34,084 in the last waning stages of the Ice Age. 1103 01:02:34,118 --> 01:02:36,153 These are the people that are still hunting mammoth, 1104 01:02:36,186 --> 01:02:38,222 and hunting extinct forms of animals 1105 01:02:38,255 --> 01:02:39,689 that we don't have any more. 1106 01:02:40,925 --> 01:02:42,960 We've got some more severe weather patterns. 1107 01:02:42,993 --> 01:02:45,595 We've obviously got lower sea levels, 1108 01:02:45,629 --> 01:02:48,465 that's affording people to actually come across Beringia, 1109 01:02:48,498 --> 01:02:49,800 which is the Bering Strait, 1110 01:02:49,834 --> 01:02:53,003 coming down into the continental United States. 1111 01:02:53,037 --> 01:02:56,073 - Time marches on, things change, the environment changes, 1112 01:02:56,106 --> 01:02:59,276 people adapt to their sort of home range ecological zones, 1113 01:02:59,309 --> 01:03:01,645 you see a little bit of diversity in that. 1114 01:03:01,678 --> 01:03:04,114 We don't necessarily know how they were organized, socially. 1115 01:03:04,148 --> 01:03:07,852 What they call themselves up until about the historic period 1116 01:03:07,885 --> 01:03:11,856 when we do have all these other sort of Western Shoshone 1117 01:03:11,889 --> 01:03:15,025 Piute and Ute bands that we see in more recent history 1118 01:03:15,059 --> 01:03:17,194 that we can identify with the names that they still 1119 01:03:17,227 --> 01:03:18,896 identify themselves with today. 1120 01:03:21,298 --> 01:03:24,101 - Obviously, native people have a very different 1121 01:03:24,134 --> 01:03:26,436 relationship and a very close relationship 1122 01:03:26,470 --> 01:03:30,107 with the archaeology and history of their own people. 1123 01:03:30,140 --> 01:03:33,677 As archaeologists, our job is to make that Native American 1124 01:03:33,710 --> 01:03:35,645 history relevant to people that aren't necessarily 1125 01:03:35,679 --> 01:03:37,848 of Native American ancestry, because I think a lot 1126 01:03:37,882 --> 01:03:39,549 of our problem comes from people see things 1127 01:03:39,583 --> 01:03:41,886 as the other, or they're not concerned about it 1128 01:03:41,919 --> 01:03:43,820 'cause they don't feel some sort of link to it 1129 01:03:43,854 --> 01:03:46,790 with that sense of stewardship and that sense of time depth 1130 01:03:46,823 --> 01:03:48,725 that we seem to always be yearning for. 1131 01:03:48,758 --> 01:03:51,896 But we have. If it can just be recognized 1132 01:03:51,929 --> 01:03:54,564 by more people as an American archaeology. 1133 01:03:54,598 --> 01:03:57,868 This is an American history and we're Americans. 1134 01:04:10,680 --> 01:04:13,918 - It really stunk to have to go on without one of the guys 1135 01:04:13,951 --> 01:04:16,486 in our group, but you just got to keep moving. 1136 01:04:16,520 --> 01:04:17,988 And that's what we did. 1137 01:04:18,022 --> 01:04:20,324 We threw all that weight into our packs. 1138 01:04:20,357 --> 01:04:22,126 And we took off again. 1139 01:04:23,360 --> 01:04:24,995 We still kept an eye on Joe. 1140 01:04:25,029 --> 01:04:27,097 I was kind of wondering if he was gonna bail 1141 01:04:27,131 --> 01:04:29,900 at that point because he was in bad shape. 1142 01:04:29,934 --> 01:04:31,902 In fact, I think, in my opinion, 1143 01:04:31,936 --> 01:04:35,272 he seemed to almost be doing worse than Gordy. 1144 01:04:35,305 --> 01:04:39,543 So I was nervous, and at that point, you know, I didn't know 1145 01:04:39,576 --> 01:04:41,711 if we were gonna have other opportunities 1146 01:04:41,745 --> 01:04:44,314 to get out of the mountains if it was necessary. 1147 01:04:45,782 --> 01:04:48,085 - I'm feeling all right, right now. 1148 01:04:48,118 --> 01:04:50,887 I've just been having a hard time breathing 1149 01:04:50,921 --> 01:04:52,923 on all the up hills, and I feel like my lungs 1150 01:04:52,957 --> 01:04:54,191 aren't working right. 1151 01:04:54,224 --> 01:04:56,093 I can only breathe in like halfway 1152 01:04:56,126 --> 01:04:57,794 and then it kind of like hurts. 1153 01:04:57,827 --> 01:04:59,964 So I don't know exactly what's wrong with them, 1154 01:04:59,997 --> 01:05:02,799 but I just have to go real slow going uphill. 1155 01:05:02,832 --> 01:05:05,102 I was like, can't breathe, so I'm dealing 1156 01:05:05,135 --> 01:05:07,904 with that but whatever, maybe it'll go away. 1157 01:05:07,938 --> 01:05:09,806 That's what I'm hoping for. 1158 01:05:09,839 --> 01:05:14,144 - Of course, as luck would have it, we got our resupply, 1159 01:05:14,178 --> 01:05:16,380 and then immediately had to go up what is routinely 1160 01:05:16,413 --> 01:05:18,115 considered the toughest pass 1161 01:05:18,148 --> 01:05:21,251 on the Highline Trail, North Pole pass. 1162 01:05:21,285 --> 01:05:24,788 - Every pass seem to be a little tougher than the one 1163 01:05:24,821 --> 01:05:27,224 before 'cause we were going west going 1164 01:05:27,257 --> 01:05:30,160 into more aggressive terrain. 1165 01:05:49,613 --> 01:05:52,649 - I'm not sure exactly what happened, but I think I had some 1166 01:05:52,682 --> 01:05:55,485 kind of like, chest cold or chest infection 1167 01:05:55,519 --> 01:05:58,622 at the same time as being at altitude. 1168 01:05:58,655 --> 01:06:01,258 So when we got to North Pole past, what I was doing 1169 01:06:01,291 --> 01:06:03,860 is putting one foot in front of the other like this, 1170 01:06:03,893 --> 01:06:06,063 little bitty stops 'cause that's all I could do. 1171 01:06:07,664 --> 01:06:09,499 - It seemed like it took forever to get 1172 01:06:09,533 --> 01:06:11,768 to the top of that pass. 1173 01:06:11,801 --> 01:06:15,339 I remember seeing this sign, thinking Ashley 1174 01:06:15,372 --> 01:06:16,840 my wifes name is Ashley. 1175 01:06:16,873 --> 01:06:18,442 So I thought about her a lot 1176 01:06:18,475 --> 01:06:20,444 when I was sitting there at that pass. 1177 01:06:20,477 --> 01:06:22,846 I love the outdoors, I love going backpacking. 1178 01:06:22,879 --> 01:06:27,151 I love being out for days and weeks and months on the end. 1179 01:06:27,184 --> 01:06:29,853 But I still miss my wife. 1180 01:06:47,604 --> 01:06:49,873 - Well, today was day four. 1181 01:06:49,906 --> 01:06:52,309 I will say it started off today 1182 01:06:52,342 --> 01:06:55,245 and I was a little nervous because the smoke blew in. 1183 01:06:55,279 --> 01:06:57,481 We could smell it when we woke up and I was thinking 1184 01:06:57,514 --> 01:07:01,218 that we might be walking into a fire, but it sounds 1185 01:07:01,251 --> 01:07:04,088 like that smoke is just blowing to us here 1186 01:07:04,121 --> 01:07:06,256 from California and Oregon and maybe for some other 1187 01:07:06,290 --> 01:07:08,158 smaller fires around Utah. 1188 01:07:08,192 --> 01:07:10,160 So that's really good news. 1189 01:07:10,194 --> 01:07:13,263 We'll see if it clears up because it still is a little hazy. 1190 01:07:16,700 --> 01:07:20,104 - Today was a tough day, man. 1191 01:07:20,137 --> 01:07:24,241 Got up, walked a little bit, got our food drop, 1192 01:07:24,274 --> 01:07:26,710 and climbed the biggest pass ever. 1193 01:07:26,743 --> 01:07:30,114 North Pole pass with six days of food on our backs, 1194 01:07:30,147 --> 01:07:32,249 seemed like it went on and on and on forever. 1195 01:07:33,550 --> 01:07:35,685 Finally made it to the top came down the other side 1196 01:07:35,719 --> 01:07:37,621 and ended up here in this grassy meadow, 1197 01:07:37,654 --> 01:07:40,224 which is really nice, so I'm glad to be here. 1198 01:07:41,325 --> 01:07:44,728 - So Joe's been having some trouble with the altitude 1199 01:07:44,761 --> 01:07:46,896 and climbing at higher altitudes, he's having a real 1200 01:07:46,930 --> 01:07:51,101 hard time breathing and getting a full, full breath inside. 1201 01:07:51,135 --> 01:07:53,137 So he's been struggling, he's been coughing a lot. 1202 01:07:54,504 --> 01:07:56,773 If you know Joe, he's a tough dude. 1203 01:07:56,806 --> 01:07:58,808 So he's gonna make it to the end for sure. 1204 01:07:58,842 --> 01:08:02,078 But he's just dealing with some stuff right now. 1205 01:08:02,112 --> 01:08:04,648 And we're concerned for him, but I think he's gonna make it. 1206 01:08:17,794 --> 01:08:20,397 - During the night, I woke up some where around 1207 01:08:20,430 --> 01:08:22,632 two o'clock and I could hear Joe coughing. 1208 01:08:24,000 --> 01:08:27,103 And I was a little bit concerned. 1209 01:08:28,705 --> 01:08:32,176 - I listened to him for, you know, probably 15 to 20 minutes 1210 01:08:32,209 --> 01:08:34,511 just struggling to breathe in the middle of the night. 1211 01:08:34,544 --> 01:08:38,182 And then I dozed off, but the next day, 1212 01:08:38,215 --> 01:08:42,352 I just knew that Joe's trip might be coming to an end. 1213 01:08:43,620 --> 01:08:46,190 - It was like the worst night's sleep for me ever. 1214 01:08:46,223 --> 01:08:48,758 I got this cough that keeps getting worse and worse. 1215 01:08:48,792 --> 01:08:50,827 So I don't know what to do right now. 1216 01:08:51,695 --> 01:08:53,197 We're a long way from anywhere. 1217 01:08:53,230 --> 01:08:56,366 So there's not really any great escape plan. 1218 01:08:56,400 --> 01:08:58,202 I couldn't breathe so like I didn't blow 1219 01:08:58,235 --> 01:08:59,803 my sleeping pad up last night. 1220 01:08:59,836 --> 01:09:02,339 I was like I'm so short of breath. 1221 01:09:02,372 --> 01:09:05,342 So in the middle of the night like I wanted to blow 1222 01:09:05,375 --> 01:09:06,810 this thing up because I kept tossing and turning, 1223 01:09:06,843 --> 01:09:08,212 but I just couldn't do it. 1224 01:09:09,379 --> 01:09:11,781 So if it's worse tonight, I'm more screwed 1225 01:09:11,815 --> 01:09:12,782 'cause we're gonna be farther away 1226 01:09:12,816 --> 01:09:14,518 from any escape plan. 1227 01:09:20,824 --> 01:09:23,627 - Unfortunately, Joe was not getting any better. 1228 01:09:23,660 --> 01:09:25,662 He seemed to be going slower. 1229 01:09:25,695 --> 01:09:30,234 He seemed to be coughing more, and we were considering 1230 01:09:30,267 --> 01:09:33,002 that a helicopter ride might be on the horizon 1231 01:09:33,036 --> 01:09:34,538 for Joe to get him out of there. 1232 01:09:38,408 --> 01:09:40,210 - When I got up, I knew that I wasn't feeling well. 1233 01:09:40,244 --> 01:09:41,811 So I'd already started looking at my maps 1234 01:09:41,845 --> 01:09:44,047 and trying to formulate an escape plan. 1235 01:09:44,080 --> 01:09:46,049 And there was one trail where I could hike 1236 01:09:46,082 --> 01:09:49,052 out to a trailhead near Fox Lake. 1237 01:09:49,085 --> 01:09:53,657 And I was thinking well if I keep going and if it got worse, 1238 01:09:53,690 --> 01:09:55,592 I don't know what I would have done because we would have 1239 01:09:55,625 --> 01:09:57,494 been too deep into the mountains and it would have been like 1240 01:09:57,527 --> 01:10:00,430 a multi day hike to get to a trailhead to get out of there. 1241 01:10:03,066 --> 01:10:06,236 - We got to the end of Fox Lake and there was an old cabin 1242 01:10:06,270 --> 01:10:08,772 and we sat down for a break. 1243 01:10:08,805 --> 01:10:11,341 - We were all in good spirits except for Joe. 1244 01:10:11,375 --> 01:10:14,944 He was real quiet and just kind of keeping to himself. 1245 01:10:14,978 --> 01:10:17,914 - I remember I was sitting on a rock just exhausted, 1246 01:10:17,947 --> 01:10:19,849 couldn't even move and everybody else is like dancing 1247 01:10:19,883 --> 01:10:21,418 around and having a great time. 1248 01:10:21,451 --> 01:10:23,787 Like they hadn't been hiking or anything. 1249 01:10:23,820 --> 01:10:25,855 So we got to the end of the lake and there was a dam 1250 01:10:25,889 --> 01:10:27,924 and that's where the trail splits off, where I knew 1251 01:10:27,957 --> 01:10:29,459 I could hike eight miles and get out of there, 1252 01:10:29,493 --> 01:10:31,094 if I wanted, I was like, well, 1253 01:10:31,127 --> 01:10:33,597 I'm not dying, I'm gonna be okay. 1254 01:10:48,678 --> 01:10:51,548 - Joe's got the beginning stages of pulmonary edema. 1255 01:10:51,581 --> 01:10:53,783 So basically Joe's gotta bail. 1256 01:10:53,817 --> 01:10:56,085 - So we hiked about another mile or so and 1257 01:10:56,119 --> 01:10:57,721 Joe had had enough. 1258 01:10:57,754 --> 01:11:00,490 He was coughing, he couldn't catch his breath. 1259 01:11:00,524 --> 01:11:02,892 So he finally made the decision 1260 01:11:02,926 --> 01:11:04,561 that he was gonna get out of there. 1261 01:11:04,594 --> 01:11:06,930 - Somethings wrong with my lungs right now, so... 1262 01:11:09,265 --> 01:11:12,669 - He said, "Look, you guys, I am not enjoying it. 1263 01:11:12,702 --> 01:11:16,473 "I didn't sleep, I'm in pain, I'm coughing. 1264 01:11:16,506 --> 01:11:20,577 "And on top of that, my hands are turning cold." 1265 01:11:20,610 --> 01:11:24,247 And I noticed when he was holding his trekking staff 1266 01:11:24,280 --> 01:11:26,115 that his knuckles were white 1267 01:11:26,149 --> 01:11:27,351 that he knew at that point 1268 01:11:27,384 --> 01:11:28,952 that there's just really nothing he could do. 1269 01:11:28,985 --> 01:11:30,320 He needed to get out of there. 1270 01:11:30,354 --> 01:11:32,155 And it just wasn't worth it. 1271 01:11:32,188 --> 01:11:33,523 It wasn't worth risking his life. 1272 01:11:33,557 --> 01:11:35,959 - And I think he made the right choice. 1273 01:11:35,992 --> 01:11:38,094 Anytime you're dealing with that kind of issue, 1274 01:11:38,127 --> 01:11:39,796 it can be life threatening. 1275 01:11:39,829 --> 01:11:42,332 We had a brief discussion about a helicopter, 1276 01:11:42,366 --> 01:11:44,868 a brief discussion about a horse. 1277 01:11:44,901 --> 01:11:47,136 If you know Joe, he turned those down pretty quickly. 1278 01:11:47,170 --> 01:11:48,271 - Hey, Gordy. - So we found 1279 01:11:48,304 --> 01:11:49,939 an alternate route. 1280 01:11:49,973 --> 01:11:52,776 We made a satellite call at Gordy who now was free. 1281 01:11:52,809 --> 01:11:55,879 - I'm gonna hike like an eight mile side trail down 1282 01:11:55,912 --> 01:11:59,783 to a trailhead and Gordy who got off yesterday. 1283 01:11:59,816 --> 01:12:02,051 He's gonna come pick me up in the rental car. 1284 01:12:02,085 --> 01:12:04,988 So I'm out of here, but I bet you guys will have fun. 1285 01:12:05,021 --> 01:12:06,890 Five more days to go after today. 1286 01:12:06,923 --> 01:12:08,558 And I'll see you guys at the end. 1287 01:12:08,592 --> 01:12:10,360 - So we all said our goodbyes, 1288 01:12:10,394 --> 01:12:13,563 and Joe headed down the trail away from us. 1289 01:12:13,597 --> 01:12:15,999 And we were all pretty sad because we really wanted 1290 01:12:16,032 --> 01:12:17,401 to complete the journey together 1291 01:12:17,434 --> 01:12:19,569 but it just wasn't in the cards this time. 1292 01:12:26,443 --> 01:12:28,311 - It took me the whole day to do that eight miles. 1293 01:12:28,344 --> 01:12:31,715 So it was probably 5.30 by the time I got down there. 1294 01:12:31,748 --> 01:12:33,082 - How are you doing? 1295 01:12:33,116 --> 01:12:34,350 - All right, how are you doing right? 1296 01:12:34,384 --> 01:12:35,719 - All right. 1297 01:12:35,752 --> 01:12:38,354 - Gordy had a pickup truck and he had a half 1298 01:12:38,388 --> 01:12:40,156 of a turkey sub in the car 1299 01:12:40,189 --> 01:12:42,358 and it was the most amazing sound I've ever had. 1300 01:12:42,392 --> 01:12:44,428 All of a sudden I went from I don't feel like eating to, 1301 01:12:44,461 --> 01:12:46,329 oh, I do feel like eating. 1302 01:12:46,362 --> 01:12:49,165 It's amazing what getting in a air conditioned vehicle 1303 01:12:49,198 --> 01:12:50,400 and knowing you don't have to walk anymore 1304 01:12:50,434 --> 01:12:51,635 will do for your morale. 1305 01:12:53,036 --> 01:12:55,271 I was a little disappointed that I wasn't able to finish 1306 01:12:55,304 --> 01:12:58,107 the trail but at the same time, I just wasn't able to enjoy 1307 01:12:58,141 --> 01:13:01,044 it at all with how I felt so it wasn't worth it. 1308 01:13:02,378 --> 01:13:04,948 I was able to catch a flight out of Vernal, 1309 01:13:04,981 --> 01:13:07,451 Utah, the next day. It was really good 1310 01:13:07,484 --> 01:13:09,453 getting back home especially on this trip. 1311 01:13:09,486 --> 01:13:12,055 It took me a couple nights of sleeping sitting up 1312 01:13:12,088 --> 01:13:14,691 until whatever was wrong my lungs cleared out of there. 1313 01:13:14,724 --> 01:13:17,727 So everything kind of worked out really well. 1314 01:13:18,662 --> 01:13:22,599 - So we were down to five people. Four hikers 1315 01:13:22,632 --> 01:13:24,501 and our producer cameraman. 1316 01:14:02,171 --> 01:14:05,141 - Well today, really the one thing that stands out to me 1317 01:14:05,174 --> 01:14:08,478 is we kind of lost our captain, Joe, 1318 01:14:08,512 --> 01:14:11,648 the most experienced hiker of the bunch. 1319 01:14:11,681 --> 01:14:13,850 He had to check out early and I've hiked with Joe quite 1320 01:14:13,883 --> 01:14:18,087 a bit, and I've never seen him like I saw him on this hike. 1321 01:14:18,121 --> 01:14:21,190 So we're definitely gonna miss having him here with us. 1322 01:14:22,125 --> 01:14:23,993 - We're kind of beding down for the night 1323 01:14:24,027 --> 01:14:27,564 getting ready for another epic day tomorrow. 1324 01:14:28,498 --> 01:14:31,801 We go to the highest point on this whole trip 1325 01:14:31,835 --> 01:14:34,704 We'll be climbing Kings Peak. 1326 01:14:34,738 --> 01:14:37,140 That's the highest point in Utah so that'll be cool. 1327 01:14:37,173 --> 01:14:40,677 That'd be another high point state for me. 1328 01:14:40,710 --> 01:14:42,512 I think we got a pretty tough time in the morning 1329 01:14:42,546 --> 01:14:45,348 but I think a lot of us are ready for it. 1330 01:14:45,381 --> 01:14:46,883 We're kind of used to it at this point. 1331 01:14:46,916 --> 01:14:49,786 Should just be like another day on the job. 1332 01:15:03,432 --> 01:15:05,802 - Today, we are climbing up to Anderson Pass, 1333 01:15:05,835 --> 01:15:08,638 the highest point on the Highline Trail 1334 01:15:08,672 --> 01:15:12,341 and then we are gonna take an off-shoot up to King's peak, 1335 01:15:12,375 --> 01:15:14,544 the highest point in Utah. 1336 01:15:14,578 --> 01:15:16,980 So we'll see we're gonna be about, man, 1337 01:15:17,013 --> 01:15:20,149 I think 3000 feet higher than we are right now. 1338 01:15:20,183 --> 01:15:23,486 So it's gonna be pretty crazy up there, I'm excited. 1339 01:15:23,519 --> 01:15:26,355 - I really am not crazy about climbing 700 feet 1340 01:15:26,389 --> 01:15:29,726 straight up, but peer pressure got the best of me 1341 01:15:29,759 --> 01:15:33,096 and I will be making that climb. 1342 01:15:33,129 --> 01:15:34,631 - Today is gonna be awesome. 1343 01:15:35,565 --> 01:15:38,935 We're gonna go really high and pass out 1344 01:15:38,968 --> 01:15:41,470 because we're gonna not have a lot of oxygen. 1345 01:15:42,572 --> 01:15:46,610 And then we're gonna hold up a sign that says, Kings Peak, 1346 01:15:46,643 --> 01:15:48,778 and then we're gonna like do crazy faces like. 1347 01:15:49,913 --> 01:15:52,381 UINTA!!! 1348 01:15:55,985 --> 01:15:57,220 Now my throat hurts. 1349 01:15:58,487 --> 01:16:00,957 UINTA!! 1350 01:16:15,639 --> 01:16:17,073 - This was our big day. 1351 01:16:17,106 --> 01:16:20,977 This was a day that we were looking forward to. 1352 01:16:21,010 --> 01:16:23,613 But we were also a little nervous and apprehensive about 1353 01:16:23,647 --> 01:16:26,449 because we knew we were gonna be doing a lot of climbing. 1354 01:16:28,184 --> 01:16:30,253 - We weren't doing huge miles on the hike, 1355 01:16:30,286 --> 01:16:33,657 we were only really doing anywhere from eight to 12. 1356 01:16:33,690 --> 01:16:36,826 So that wasn't a big deal but being above 10,000 feet 1357 01:16:36,860 --> 01:16:40,997 in elevation, a 3000 foot climb just feels so much harder. 1358 01:16:49,005 --> 01:16:52,075 - We started making our way to Anderson Pass. 1359 01:16:52,108 --> 01:16:56,079 It took a while. It meandered and switchbacked and we 1360 01:16:56,112 --> 01:16:57,446 finally got there 1361 01:16:57,480 --> 01:16:59,182 and it was the first pass that when you got 1362 01:16:59,215 --> 01:17:01,450 to the top it was like dropping off a cliff 1363 01:17:01,484 --> 01:17:05,321 on the other side and just a big expansive valley. 1364 01:17:06,455 --> 01:17:09,492 - So we could already feel it, we could feel the elevation, 1365 01:17:09,525 --> 01:17:12,696 but the views were just unbelievable. 1366 01:17:12,729 --> 01:17:16,432 - We put our packs off to the side on some rocks 1367 01:17:16,465 --> 01:17:18,668 and just start going up this peak, 1368 01:17:18,702 --> 01:17:21,170 all of a sudden the trail disappears. 1369 01:17:21,204 --> 01:17:23,673 The side trail to the King's Peak should not be called 1370 01:17:23,707 --> 01:17:27,310 the side trail to anywhere because it is not a trail. 1371 01:17:27,343 --> 01:17:32,081 It is simply giant rocks for 700 vertical feet, 1372 01:17:33,316 --> 01:17:35,151 all the way to the top. 1373 01:17:35,184 --> 01:17:37,486 - I've never seen a mountain like this before, 1374 01:17:37,520 --> 01:17:41,891 it was just a pile of rocks, rocks that are about anywhere 1375 01:17:41,925 --> 01:17:45,528 from the size of a coffee table to the size of a car. 1376 01:17:45,561 --> 01:17:49,532 And you have to just kind of hop from rock to rock 1377 01:17:49,565 --> 01:17:51,534 and just hope that you don't fall. 1378 01:17:51,567 --> 01:17:53,069 - I don't think anybody really expected it 1379 01:17:53,102 --> 01:17:55,839 to be as difficult as it actually was. 1380 01:17:55,872 --> 01:17:59,709 Some parts of it, we were actually going hand over hand 1381 01:17:59,743 --> 01:18:03,579 and it just kept going up and up and up 1382 01:18:03,612 --> 01:18:07,817 and I complained, I bitched the entire way. 1383 01:18:07,851 --> 01:18:11,054 I yelled at everybody, I was mad. 1384 01:18:11,087 --> 01:18:13,356 I was like, why are you making me do this? 1385 01:18:13,389 --> 01:18:14,991 You said I was gonna have cell phone 1386 01:18:15,024 --> 01:18:17,093 service halfway up this mountain. 1387 01:18:17,126 --> 01:18:19,362 That's the only reason I'm coming up this mountain 1388 01:18:19,395 --> 01:18:22,331 so I can call my girlfriend, was their cell phone service? 1389 01:18:22,365 --> 01:18:24,300 No, there was no cell phone service. 1390 01:18:43,586 --> 01:18:45,454 - It is completely rewarding being up here 1391 01:18:45,488 --> 01:18:47,523 and doing it with these guys. 1392 01:18:47,556 --> 01:18:49,759 Makes it all that much better. 1393 01:18:49,793 --> 01:18:51,194 These guys let me tag along. 1394 01:18:51,227 --> 01:18:53,329 I feel pretty grateful and lucky for that. 1395 01:18:54,563 --> 01:18:56,800 - It was a good time, and here we are. 1396 01:18:57,767 --> 01:19:00,804 - The Highest point in Utah. Here's to Utah. 1397 01:19:09,078 --> 01:19:11,781 - It's one of the reasons why I hike is for those moments 1398 01:19:11,815 --> 01:19:13,983 and it was a moment that I'm not gonna forget. 1399 01:19:23,860 --> 01:19:25,829 - We made our way back down Anderson Pass 1400 01:19:25,862 --> 01:19:28,264 which took almost as long as it took to get back up 1401 01:19:28,297 --> 01:19:31,734 because you couldn't move fast 'cause there's no trail. 1402 01:19:31,767 --> 01:19:34,237 - We're all sitting there at Anderson Pass 1403 01:19:34,270 --> 01:19:35,972 and we're just kind of relaxing 1404 01:19:36,005 --> 01:19:38,607 and Will says, is that a patch of snow on the side of 1405 01:19:38,641 --> 01:19:40,609 that mountain, I look at it and I seen the head move, 1406 01:19:40,643 --> 01:19:42,846 I was like, no, that's a mountain goat. 1407 01:19:42,879 --> 01:19:44,848 That's first time I ever seen a mountain goat. 1408 01:20:23,086 --> 01:20:27,857 - So we're coming down from King's Peak, none of us 1409 01:20:27,891 --> 01:20:29,959 were smart enough to bring enough water with us. 1410 01:20:29,993 --> 01:20:32,528 So we're all out of water, we're in this valley. 1411 01:20:32,561 --> 01:20:36,665 We can't find any, we're thirsty, and that sucks. 1412 01:20:53,349 --> 01:20:57,086 - So we saw some herds of sheep, two or three times, 1413 01:20:57,120 --> 01:21:00,523 and you would hear 'em ahead of time. 1414 01:21:00,556 --> 01:21:04,860 And I said, why are those sheep making so much noise? 1415 01:21:04,894 --> 01:21:08,097 And Benny just makes this up. 1416 01:21:08,131 --> 01:21:10,499 He says, "Oh, they're just trying 1417 01:21:10,533 --> 01:21:11,901 "to tell each other that we're coming." 1418 01:21:11,935 --> 01:21:14,003 And he was totally serious 1419 01:21:14,037 --> 01:21:16,539 It was the biggest crock of crap. 1420 01:21:16,572 --> 01:21:21,310 - I've never heard so much bahing in my life, like . 1421 01:21:22,045 --> 01:21:23,612 It was kind of crazy. 1422 01:21:23,646 --> 01:21:25,348 - There are sheep drive lines that do cross the trail 1423 01:21:25,381 --> 01:21:27,716 at times, we've had almost 150 years 1424 01:21:27,750 --> 01:21:29,919 of grazing history in the Uintas. 1425 01:21:29,953 --> 01:21:32,588 Sheep grazing mainly in the high elevations. 1426 01:21:32,621 --> 01:21:33,957 And the Uintas are a primitive area, 1427 01:21:33,990 --> 01:21:35,558 now they're a wilderness area, but it's still part 1428 01:21:35,591 --> 01:21:36,892 of our public land system. 1429 01:21:36,926 --> 01:21:39,929 So grazing is still an acceptable use. 1430 01:21:56,745 --> 01:21:58,614 - Well, today was definitely one of the hardest days 1431 01:21:58,647 --> 01:22:00,249 of hiking that I've ever had. 1432 01:22:00,283 --> 01:22:02,751 And that's saying a lot 'cause I've hiked a lot of miles, 1433 01:22:02,785 --> 01:22:04,320 a lot of places, a lot of countries, 1434 01:22:04,353 --> 01:22:08,424 but the climbing was pretty insane. 1435 01:22:08,457 --> 01:22:11,794 And the sun was just beating on us all day long. 1436 01:22:11,827 --> 01:22:14,830 The water was plentiful on the way up, 1437 01:22:14,863 --> 01:22:16,932 but on the way down, we kind of ran out. 1438 01:22:16,966 --> 01:22:19,935 So we were hiking without water for a while. 1439 01:22:19,969 --> 01:22:22,171 So we were a little parched. 1440 01:22:22,205 --> 01:22:24,140 Pretty much ran down the mountain 1441 01:22:24,173 --> 01:22:26,242 so that I could get to water source. 1442 01:22:26,275 --> 01:22:29,412 So as you can see, I'm in a reclined position right now 1443 01:22:29,445 --> 01:22:31,514 that's because I'm literally about to fall asleep. 1444 01:22:31,547 --> 01:22:33,349 I just ate my food. 1445 01:22:33,382 --> 01:22:35,151 And I'm gonna go climb into my tent, 1446 01:22:35,184 --> 01:22:37,186 and we're gonna do it all over again tomorrow. 1447 01:22:58,674 --> 01:23:03,646 - Usually I wake up a little chipper, didn't happen today. 1448 01:23:04,647 --> 01:23:08,451 - My name is Steve Kaiser, and I'm 60. 1449 01:23:08,484 --> 01:23:10,186 And I feel like my life has been a life 1450 01:23:10,219 --> 01:23:14,357 of adventure and enjoyment, for the most part. 1451 01:23:14,390 --> 01:23:19,362 - Steve is like a mix of a big brother and another father. 1452 01:23:19,395 --> 01:23:22,565 He's just this big, jovial personality. 1453 01:23:22,598 --> 01:23:24,867 He's always optimistic. 1454 01:23:24,900 --> 01:23:27,070 He's a person who's not afraid to give a compliment. 1455 01:23:27,103 --> 01:23:29,905 He will always find something positive to say 1456 01:23:29,938 --> 01:23:33,576 about you to build you up and to make you feel good. 1457 01:23:33,609 --> 01:23:35,378 - When you're down or you're feeling it. 1458 01:23:35,411 --> 01:23:36,912 Your legs are feeling it. 1459 01:23:36,945 --> 01:23:38,481 Steve will come up and he'll just make you laugh, 1460 01:23:38,514 --> 01:23:39,815 and make you smile. 1461 01:23:39,848 --> 01:23:41,050 - There's only so much oxygen here 1462 01:23:41,084 --> 01:23:43,619 and I need it to breathe, not laugh. 1463 01:23:44,587 --> 01:23:47,056 - And don't tell him that he's 60 years old 1464 01:23:47,090 --> 01:23:48,891 because he's hiking with all us young guys. 1465 01:23:48,924 --> 01:23:51,060 Sometimes he's moving faster than us. 1466 01:23:51,094 --> 01:23:52,895 He pretty much started hiking with Joe 1467 01:23:52,928 --> 01:23:54,263 and Matt right from the beginning. 1468 01:23:54,297 --> 01:23:56,599 So all he's ever known is moving fast. 1469 01:23:56,632 --> 01:23:58,734 So Steve is just crazy. 1470 01:23:58,767 --> 01:24:00,736 Honestly, I really aspire to be like Steve, 1471 01:24:00,769 --> 01:24:02,738 when I'm his age, you know, in that good of shape. 1472 01:24:02,771 --> 01:24:07,710 - Steve is a crazy character, I absolutely love Steve. 1473 01:24:08,944 --> 01:24:10,513 If you're not laughing when you're around Steve, 1474 01:24:10,546 --> 01:24:12,248 then you're deaf. 1475 01:24:12,281 --> 01:24:13,582 - I love hiking. 1476 01:24:14,483 --> 01:24:17,753 Well, I love everything except the walking. 1477 01:24:17,786 --> 01:24:21,090 - Can be moody at times so we tease him about that. 1478 01:24:21,124 --> 01:24:22,425 He gets Hangry. 1479 01:24:22,458 --> 01:24:24,293 - Look a bone! 1480 01:24:27,896 --> 01:24:32,268 - But just a great guy who would do anything for you. 1481 01:24:32,301 --> 01:24:34,437 - He's had a crazy life, you know, 1482 01:24:34,470 --> 01:24:36,872 he's lived in a bunch of different places. 1483 01:24:36,905 --> 01:24:38,040 He just has a lot of stories. 1484 01:24:38,073 --> 01:24:41,110 He's a real interesting guy to hang around with. 1485 01:24:41,144 --> 01:24:43,612 - I have some core passions that really 1486 01:24:43,646 --> 01:24:45,681 have been with me all my life. 1487 01:24:46,915 --> 01:24:49,485 I have to work with my hands. 1488 01:24:49,518 --> 01:24:52,121 I do a lot of original designs, you know, 1489 01:24:52,155 --> 01:24:55,758 nothing really too complex, more artistic. 1490 01:24:55,791 --> 01:24:58,127 I make a lot of gifts for people. 1491 01:24:59,328 --> 01:25:04,233 So woodworking and metalworking those are two very important 1492 01:25:04,267 --> 01:25:07,136 core passions of mine and also fitness, 1493 01:25:07,170 --> 01:25:11,174 I try to be as fit as possible. 1494 01:25:11,207 --> 01:25:14,777 As a person, just my overall path in life, 1495 01:25:14,810 --> 01:25:18,514 I just feel solid and I'm happy, I'm content 1496 01:25:18,547 --> 01:25:21,184 and my life is perfect. 1497 01:25:28,191 --> 01:25:30,058 - Life before hiking, 1498 01:25:32,361 --> 01:25:37,366 was, well, a lot transpired around the same time 1499 01:25:37,400 --> 01:25:42,171 I started hiking, so my life is very different now. 1500 01:25:42,205 --> 01:25:45,608 My life of addiction actually began when I was 1501 01:25:45,641 --> 01:25:50,646 about three or four years old, being the youngest of five, 1502 01:25:51,914 --> 01:25:55,484 I guess I was a surprise for parents that were over age 40. 1503 01:25:56,819 --> 01:26:01,357 My two older sisters were 15 and 17 when I was born, 1504 01:26:02,391 --> 01:26:04,827 and by time I was three, they were gone. 1505 01:26:04,860 --> 01:26:08,631 So, back in the 60s they didn't know about abandonment 1506 01:26:08,664 --> 01:26:12,235 issues and all of that, you know, it just wasn't a thing. 1507 01:26:12,268 --> 01:26:15,871 But it's real, so my life changed at that time 1508 01:26:15,904 --> 01:26:20,175 and I kind of went dark for 52 years. 1509 01:26:24,280 --> 01:26:27,883 My parents back then they smoked about eight 1510 01:26:27,916 --> 01:26:32,688 or 10 packs a day between them, just lighting one cigarette 1511 01:26:32,721 --> 01:26:36,259 off the other, and so I would get cigarettes just take them, 1512 01:26:36,292 --> 01:26:39,194 just steal them and they would never miss them. 1513 01:26:39,228 --> 01:26:42,398 But I was addicted where I needed a cigarette. 1514 01:26:42,431 --> 01:26:45,200 I was addicted by time I was four or five years old. 1515 01:26:59,282 --> 01:27:04,052 From age 27, I had been involved with AA or NA, 1516 01:27:06,088 --> 01:27:10,426 and most of my adult life from age 20 to age 55, 1517 01:27:10,459 --> 01:27:13,896 I only had six years cumulative 1518 01:27:13,929 --> 01:27:17,099 of active alcoholism or addiction. 1519 01:27:17,132 --> 01:27:20,369 All those other years were just dry years 1520 01:27:20,403 --> 01:27:23,639 trying to be sober, but miserable. 1521 01:27:24,940 --> 01:27:29,478 And throughout my adult life, I had probably six bad spikes 1522 01:27:30,679 --> 01:27:33,549 of depression where I really needed to go get help. 1523 01:27:33,582 --> 01:27:36,719 I would go to AA, I would go to NA, I'd work the steps, 1524 01:27:36,752 --> 01:27:40,656 I would get sponsors, and the story was always the same. 1525 01:27:40,689 --> 01:27:42,057 When I was three years old. 1526 01:27:42,090 --> 01:27:43,959 My two older sisters had left me 1527 01:27:43,992 --> 01:27:46,362 so it just stopped right there. 1528 01:27:47,496 --> 01:27:50,433 There was no more, there were no more questions 1529 01:27:50,466 --> 01:27:53,569 about any other trauma. 1530 01:27:53,602 --> 01:27:56,138 And so I had had other abuses 1531 01:27:56,171 --> 01:27:58,474 that I didn't realize were a factor. 1532 01:27:58,507 --> 01:28:03,512 And I struggled with that until I was about 55 years old. 1533 01:28:07,550 --> 01:28:12,120 I discovered hiking as a series of random events 1534 01:28:12,154 --> 01:28:17,159 that began with reading a novel entitled, "Lone wolf." 1535 01:28:18,327 --> 01:28:21,964 And in that novel, there were things mentioned 1536 01:28:21,997 --> 01:28:25,868 about hiking and things like that or wilderness. 1537 01:28:25,901 --> 01:28:30,906 And I got this idea of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. 1538 01:28:31,507 --> 01:28:35,911 My motivation was pretty dark. 1539 01:28:36,745 --> 01:28:39,214 Actually, I'd been to therapists 1540 01:28:39,247 --> 01:28:42,050 and psychiatrists and nothing worked. 1541 01:28:43,318 --> 01:28:47,923 Nothing could help, and suicidal thoughts were escalating. 1542 01:28:49,992 --> 01:28:54,997 And my plan was to go out to California in 2014, 1543 01:28:59,902 --> 01:29:01,904 and hike the Pacific Crest Trail 1544 01:29:01,937 --> 01:29:05,340 and just die and just not come back. 1545 01:29:05,374 --> 01:29:07,643 I was not coming back. 1546 01:29:07,676 --> 01:29:10,345 I knew I just did not wanna live anymore. 1547 01:29:15,618 --> 01:29:19,722 I researched probably 200 websites, 1548 01:29:19,755 --> 01:29:22,224 looking at gear of just reading about it. 1549 01:29:22,257 --> 01:29:24,927 I had not done any hikes at that time. 1550 01:29:24,960 --> 01:29:28,431 That's how I met Joe Valesko. 1551 01:29:28,464 --> 01:29:30,499 - Steve Kaiser is a good friend of ours. 1552 01:29:30,533 --> 01:29:33,836 He started off as a customer, he had bought something 1553 01:29:33,869 --> 01:29:36,772 or other and he came to the shop to pick it up. 1554 01:29:36,805 --> 01:29:39,374 And we were going on a like a short section hike 1555 01:29:39,408 --> 01:29:41,376 of the AT in a couple of weeks. 1556 01:29:41,410 --> 01:29:42,845 And we just happen to ask him if he wanted 1557 01:29:42,878 --> 01:29:44,680 to come on the hike with us. 1558 01:29:44,713 --> 01:29:49,718 - And I thought, "what?" Do you see what you're looking at? 1559 01:29:50,786 --> 01:29:53,689 I'm an old fat man, I can't even walk barely, you know, 1560 01:29:53,722 --> 01:29:57,460 and here's Joe like not even 30 years old inviting me 1561 01:29:57,493 --> 01:29:59,628 on this hike and I was a little uncomfortable 1562 01:29:59,662 --> 01:30:03,466 with it wondering, what the correct answer was, 1563 01:30:03,499 --> 01:30:05,434 of course, I wanted to go but I felt like, 1564 01:30:05,468 --> 01:30:08,370 oh my God, I'm gonna be imposing on these people. 1565 01:30:08,403 --> 01:30:13,408 Well, I went with him, his wife Sheryl and Matt Favero. 1566 01:30:14,910 --> 01:30:16,912 That's when I first met Matt. 1567 01:30:16,945 --> 01:30:19,247 He was a little scary at first, 1568 01:30:19,281 --> 01:30:20,783 but really hit it off with them. 1569 01:30:37,933 --> 01:30:42,237 I went to treatment, and the therapist said, 1570 01:30:42,270 --> 01:30:43,739 "I'm gonna put you in the trauma group." 1571 01:30:43,772 --> 01:30:46,074 So I go the trauma group, and there's about three people 1572 01:30:46,108 --> 01:30:49,111 in there plus the therapist. 1573 01:30:49,144 --> 01:30:53,281 And she said, "Well, you know, Steve, why are you here?" 1574 01:30:54,316 --> 01:30:59,087 And it just came out with this sexual abuse I had as a kid, 1575 01:30:59,121 --> 01:31:03,859 10, 11, 12, 13 years old, a couple of different incidences. 1576 01:31:04,527 --> 01:31:06,595 And I remember saying it 1577 01:31:06,629 --> 01:31:09,297 and then feeling this feeling inside. 1578 01:31:09,331 --> 01:31:12,968 And I just said, "I guess it was important". 1579 01:31:13,001 --> 01:31:14,703 And I just started sobbing. 1580 01:31:15,838 --> 01:31:18,173 I had no idea I was carrying this around. 1581 01:31:19,341 --> 01:31:22,511 I was free at that moment, because I'd worked 1582 01:31:22,545 --> 01:31:25,514 on so many other things in my life. 1583 01:31:25,548 --> 01:31:29,785 There really wasn't anything left, except that. 1584 01:31:29,818 --> 01:31:33,556 Since then, I haven't had any more depression. 1585 01:31:33,589 --> 01:31:38,594 No more thoughts of suicide at any level whatsoever. 1586 01:31:39,662 --> 01:31:43,532 It was a very fortunate event, because I think a lot 1587 01:31:43,566 --> 01:31:46,168 of people are walking around with those things 1588 01:31:46,201 --> 01:31:48,303 that they don't know how to get rid of. 1589 01:31:48,336 --> 01:31:50,739 And I was one of the lucky ones. 1590 01:31:50,773 --> 01:31:52,575 - That was probably five, six years ago. 1591 01:31:52,608 --> 01:31:54,176 And ever since then, he's been coming on 1592 01:31:54,209 --> 01:31:56,344 almost all the hikes that we do. 1593 01:31:56,378 --> 01:31:59,014 He does great, he keeps up with us, no problem. 1594 01:31:59,047 --> 01:32:00,916 We have to keep up with him, half the time. 1595 01:32:09,191 --> 01:32:11,159 - All right, so today is day seven. 1596 01:32:11,193 --> 01:32:12,394 It's gonna be one of our easier days. 1597 01:32:12,427 --> 01:32:14,529 We've got about just a little over 10 miles 1598 01:32:14,563 --> 01:32:16,531 and we 1700 feet in elevation gain, 1599 01:32:16,565 --> 01:32:19,401 which is about half of what we did yesterday. 1600 01:32:19,434 --> 01:32:21,604 We're gonna go over Tungsten Pass immediately. 1601 01:32:21,637 --> 01:32:24,072 Then we've got Porcupine Pass, and then we're looking 1602 01:32:24,106 --> 01:32:26,241 forward to that Red Beard dance party. 1603 01:32:26,274 --> 01:32:28,110 When we get to camp early today. 1604 01:33:36,278 --> 01:33:39,748 - Growing up my dad always had nice minerals and rocks, 1605 01:33:39,782 --> 01:33:42,685 you know around the house from places that he went. 1606 01:33:42,718 --> 01:33:47,122 And so doing this hike, you just see all kinds. 1607 01:33:47,155 --> 01:33:50,458 This just gives you a little sampling of these red, 1608 01:33:50,492 --> 01:33:53,662 there's purple, there's green, there's yellow. 1609 01:33:54,496 --> 01:33:55,463 Just beautiful. 1610 01:34:06,909 --> 01:34:08,677 - My name is Ryan Buerkle, 1611 01:34:08,711 --> 01:34:10,713 I'm the Recreation Program Manager 1612 01:34:10,746 --> 01:34:12,647 for the Ashley National Forest. 1613 01:34:12,681 --> 01:34:14,282 Once you're on the Highline Trail, 1614 01:34:14,316 --> 01:34:16,451 especially in those high basins, you're gonna come 1615 01:34:16,484 --> 01:34:18,821 along these big rock cairns, 1616 01:34:18,854 --> 01:34:21,523 Six to eight foot high pile of rocks. 1617 01:34:21,556 --> 01:34:23,658 And what those are for is for way finding. 1618 01:34:23,692 --> 01:34:26,695 So you can see from one cairn to the next, 1619 01:34:26,729 --> 01:34:28,897 and see where you're supposed to head towards. 1620 01:34:28,931 --> 01:34:31,066 Because in that alpine tundra, 1621 01:34:31,099 --> 01:34:34,536 there's not a specific worn in trail tread. 1622 01:34:34,569 --> 01:34:37,973 It's just walking across a natural landscape. 1623 01:34:38,006 --> 01:34:40,709 - Stone cairns are a difficulty for archaeologists, 1624 01:34:40,743 --> 01:34:43,145 because you can't just date stones. 1625 01:34:43,178 --> 01:34:45,380 So basically, unless someone's already identified 1626 01:34:45,413 --> 01:34:47,916 them historically, and you can go back to a historic record 1627 01:34:47,950 --> 01:34:49,818 and know that one was there. 1628 01:34:49,852 --> 01:34:51,353 There's really no way to know necessarily 1629 01:34:51,386 --> 01:34:52,988 when they were built. 1630 01:34:53,021 --> 01:34:55,390 Sheep herders are a kind of well known for making some 1631 01:34:55,423 --> 01:34:57,760 of the more complicated cairns that you might see, 1632 01:34:57,793 --> 01:35:01,529 like some of the nice sort of cylindrical ones. 1633 01:35:01,563 --> 01:35:04,499 The hard aspect of that too, is the fact that what you see 1634 01:35:04,532 --> 01:35:06,769 in a lot of wilderness areas and public lands, 1635 01:35:06,802 --> 01:35:08,370 especially in the West, 1636 01:35:08,403 --> 01:35:10,939 is a lot of the hikers creating cairns themselves. 1637 01:35:12,140 --> 01:35:14,176 Existing human infrastructure that's already there. 1638 01:35:14,209 --> 01:35:17,379 That's historic, we like it and it's good stuff. 1639 01:35:17,412 --> 01:35:20,682 But as far as creating new infrastructure or new structures, 1640 01:35:20,715 --> 01:35:22,751 whether out of trees or rock or anything else, 1641 01:35:22,785 --> 01:35:24,186 that's something that's kind of a big 1642 01:35:24,219 --> 01:35:25,788 no, no in the wilderness, we wanna try to leave 1643 01:35:25,821 --> 01:35:27,422 that as untrammeled as possible. 1644 01:35:34,662 --> 01:35:37,599 - I was walking along the rock path yesterday, 1645 01:35:37,632 --> 01:35:40,368 one of the rocks turned over and the sharp edge of the rock 1646 01:35:40,402 --> 01:35:43,038 went "pow" right into the side of my shoe. 1647 01:35:43,071 --> 01:35:46,574 I screamed a few choice words at the rock and kept going 1648 01:35:46,608 --> 01:35:48,310 and I just realized that hey, look at this. 1649 01:35:48,343 --> 01:35:50,045 I got a nice bruise from it. 1650 01:35:50,078 --> 01:35:51,279 - What are you gonna do? 1651 01:35:53,415 --> 01:35:57,419 - Towards the end of our day, we got to a location 1652 01:35:57,452 --> 01:35:59,955 and we stopped there initially just to take a break. 1653 01:35:59,988 --> 01:36:04,259 But it was so incredible that we all just kind of came 1654 01:36:04,292 --> 01:36:07,395 to the conclusion rather quickly that this was a great 1655 01:36:07,429 --> 01:36:09,097 place to spend the night. 1656 01:36:24,813 --> 01:36:27,349 - Around 10.30 I climbed out of my tent. 1657 01:36:27,382 --> 01:36:30,252 The stars were just incredible. 1658 01:36:30,285 --> 01:36:32,520 They were unlike anything I'd ever seen before. 1659 01:36:32,554 --> 01:36:35,023 And I just remember standing there and taking it all 1660 01:36:35,057 --> 01:36:38,460 in for a few minutes before climbing back in my tent 1661 01:36:38,493 --> 01:36:41,163 and going to sleep that night. 1662 01:37:18,901 --> 01:37:20,668 - Steve here, he had to go to the bathroom. 1663 01:37:20,702 --> 01:37:22,204 We just started hiking so he went off 1664 01:37:22,237 --> 01:37:24,839 into the woods to do number two. 1665 01:37:33,916 --> 01:37:35,317 - No way. 1666 01:37:35,350 --> 01:37:37,986 - He just got an Elk to freken call back at him. 1667 01:37:38,020 --> 01:37:39,888 The Elk's like, "I wanna hang out with you". 1668 01:37:45,860 --> 01:37:48,230 - It was amazing. 1669 01:38:18,994 --> 01:38:22,430 - As we climbed up Red Knob Pass, the beauty around us 1670 01:38:22,464 --> 01:38:24,066 was just spectacular again 1671 01:38:24,099 --> 01:38:26,401 like it had been on this entire hike. 1672 01:38:26,434 --> 01:38:30,572 But once we reach the top of the pass, I'll never forget it. 1673 01:38:30,605 --> 01:38:35,343 It was by far the best pass that we had been up so far. 1674 01:38:39,781 --> 01:38:43,618 It was almost 360 degrees of mountains 1675 01:38:43,651 --> 01:38:46,588 with a deep valley, almost a canyon. 1676 01:39:27,295 --> 01:39:30,765 - We did this right going from east to west on this trail. 1677 01:39:30,798 --> 01:39:32,334 Every day was great. 1678 01:39:32,367 --> 01:39:35,937 And the next day was even better and today was the best. 1679 01:39:35,970 --> 01:39:38,640 The whole mountain range was just so much 1680 01:39:38,673 --> 01:39:41,876 more defined and jagged and pretty. 1681 01:39:41,909 --> 01:39:43,345 Everything was just better today. 1682 01:39:55,690 --> 01:39:59,627 - My name is Benny Braden, I'm Electrician by trade, 1683 01:39:59,661 --> 01:40:01,863 but I also have a great passion for backpacking. 1684 01:40:03,231 --> 01:40:05,633 First of all, I'm follower of Christ, 1685 01:40:05,667 --> 01:40:09,271 and I absolutely love my family. 1686 01:40:10,238 --> 01:40:13,475 - Benny is Mr. Loyalty, if you need him, he'll be there. 1687 01:40:13,508 --> 01:40:17,845 He'll drive hours to help you, he really values friendship, 1688 01:40:17,879 --> 01:40:20,715 and he values a quality relationship, 1689 01:40:20,748 --> 01:40:22,150 whether that be with his family, 1690 01:40:22,184 --> 01:40:24,986 his friends or the hiking community. 1691 01:40:25,019 --> 01:40:27,922 - Benny is one of the most passionate guys 1692 01:40:27,955 --> 01:40:29,924 when it comes to hiking that I've ever met. 1693 01:40:29,957 --> 01:40:33,361 He is pretty much always on a trail. 1694 01:40:33,395 --> 01:40:36,664 He holds some records, he's the fastest person to ever hike. 1695 01:40:36,698 --> 01:40:39,101 All the trails in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park 1696 01:40:39,134 --> 01:40:41,503 is about 900 miles of trail. 1697 01:40:41,536 --> 01:40:44,672 - I think Benny is the most physically fit 1698 01:40:44,706 --> 01:40:48,443 45 year old I have ever met in my life. 1699 01:40:48,476 --> 01:40:50,278 - He's a man of few words. 1700 01:40:50,312 --> 01:40:52,847 He's an electrician by trade, and I guess he's able 1701 01:40:52,880 --> 01:40:55,883 to just stop his business and then his clients wait 1702 01:40:55,917 --> 01:40:58,553 for him and when he gets back to town, he picks up 1703 01:40:58,586 --> 01:41:01,389 where he left off and he's able to make enough money 1704 01:41:01,423 --> 01:41:03,891 to basically support himself and support his hiking. 1705 01:41:04,892 --> 01:41:08,696 - When I was growing up, I was, I like to say, 1706 01:41:08,730 --> 01:41:11,933 I was a good son, I was a pretty quiet kid, 1707 01:41:11,966 --> 01:41:15,069 and I really enjoyed just being outside. 1708 01:41:25,580 --> 01:41:28,250 In the early 2000s, I used to be an EMT. 1709 01:41:29,351 --> 01:41:34,389 I did it because I would hope that someone would do 1710 01:41:34,422 --> 01:41:37,192 something for my family member if they were in need. 1711 01:41:38,326 --> 01:41:40,495 It is a great opportunity, I enjoyed it at the time. 1712 01:41:59,347 --> 01:42:04,186 It's tough to do that job and have a normal life. 1713 01:42:06,821 --> 01:42:10,758 We did all kinds of calls, mostly medical, 1714 01:42:10,792 --> 01:42:12,794 that they could range from anything 1715 01:42:12,827 --> 01:42:17,565 from a vehicle accident, to drownings. 1716 01:42:22,970 --> 01:42:27,709 To spare everybody the graphic nature of that job, 1717 01:42:27,742 --> 01:42:29,377 I just simply tell folks, 1718 01:42:29,411 --> 01:42:31,979 I've seen people die every way they can possibly die. 1719 01:42:40,255 --> 01:42:45,059 Those kind of events can really impact you mentally. 1720 01:42:46,561 --> 01:42:50,398 Whenever I would leave a scene, I would just block it 1721 01:42:50,432 --> 01:42:55,437 out in my mind as if it didn't happen, and I would go on 1722 01:42:56,037 --> 01:42:58,240 with my normal daily routine. 1723 01:42:59,374 --> 01:43:03,411 And when I was on call, if I was let's say extricating 1724 01:43:03,445 --> 01:43:08,115 a person from a vehicle, I wouldn't make patient eye contact 1725 01:43:09,183 --> 01:43:11,219 because it wasn't human at that point. 1726 01:43:12,220 --> 01:43:15,923 I'd focus mostly on moving the metal of the vehicle 1727 01:43:15,957 --> 01:43:20,061 to get that person out, and that allowed me 1728 01:43:20,094 --> 01:43:22,664 to just kind of "out of sight out of mind". 1729 01:43:22,697 --> 01:43:24,532 And that worked for years, 1730 01:43:25,633 --> 01:43:28,903 until after I was completely out of the field. 1731 01:43:30,972 --> 01:43:33,608 I first noticed the effects of it, 1732 01:43:34,242 --> 01:43:36,077 shortly after we got married. 1733 01:43:37,078 --> 01:43:40,548 I had a son from a previous marriage, 1734 01:43:40,582 --> 01:43:43,451 and Ashley had her two daughters from a previous marriage. 1735 01:43:44,452 --> 01:43:47,255 In addition to that, my brother passed away 1736 01:43:47,289 --> 01:43:50,091 in that same time period, and he had two girls. 1737 01:44:08,343 --> 01:44:12,747 Most people call it PTSD, post traumatic stress disorder. 1738 01:44:13,681 --> 01:44:17,251 Nobody wants to be labeled with a disorder. 1739 01:44:17,285 --> 01:44:20,655 So that's why choose simply to call it PTS. 1740 01:44:23,190 --> 01:44:28,463 You try to block out some stuff but at some point in time, 1741 01:44:29,297 --> 01:44:30,298 you can't block out anymore. 1742 01:44:37,805 --> 01:44:39,941 It sent me into a very deep depression. 1743 01:44:41,309 --> 01:44:46,548 - To see Benny go through PTS was really heartbreaking. 1744 01:44:47,882 --> 01:44:50,752 It was kind of like walking on eggshells all the time. 1745 01:44:50,785 --> 01:44:53,020 - I would just become a monster I would yell 1746 01:44:53,054 --> 01:44:56,758 and scream. Not just at Ashley, but at the kids. 1747 01:44:56,791 --> 01:44:59,594 - Then he would leave and he'd say gone through the night 1748 01:44:59,627 --> 01:45:03,230 he would go park in a parking lot and sleep. 1749 01:45:04,332 --> 01:45:09,170 - And before I knew it, there was an attempt at suicide. 1750 01:45:14,642 --> 01:45:17,211 I woke up a day or two later, 1751 01:45:17,244 --> 01:45:19,514 being evaluated in a mental hospital. 1752 01:45:20,815 --> 01:45:23,785 - That was definitely a hard thing to go through. 1753 01:45:23,818 --> 01:45:25,987 And I did a lot of praying. 1754 01:45:26,020 --> 01:45:28,322 But I knew that there would come 1755 01:45:28,356 --> 01:45:31,192 a time where it would be over. 1756 01:45:31,225 --> 01:45:35,162 So you just have to like, work through it. 1757 01:45:35,196 --> 01:45:37,532 And I wasn't gonna stop loving him no matter what. 1758 01:45:50,845 --> 01:45:54,549 - Whenever I'm on a long hike, I pray a lot. 1759 01:45:54,582 --> 01:45:58,185 Talk to God a lot, just try to clear out my mind. 1760 01:45:58,219 --> 01:46:01,956 And I started seeing some answers. 1761 01:46:02,957 --> 01:46:05,092 It's like I have a huge desk in my brain 1762 01:46:06,193 --> 01:46:11,065 and is just piled up with images of different events. 1763 01:46:11,866 --> 01:46:13,334 It's like I can take one of those images 1764 01:46:14,669 --> 01:46:18,205 and look at it and pray about it, meditate about it, 1765 01:46:18,239 --> 01:46:19,907 and try to make some sense of it. 1766 01:46:19,941 --> 01:46:23,010 Now some things I don't ever make sense of, 1767 01:46:23,044 --> 01:46:24,812 like why did this one child have die? 1768 01:46:26,247 --> 01:46:29,216 Or why did this family have to suffer this loss? 1769 01:46:29,250 --> 01:46:32,219 Some things I simply cannot answer, 1770 01:46:32,253 --> 01:46:34,722 but I'm able to make sense of it. 1771 01:46:35,823 --> 01:46:37,459 So that allows me to move on. 1772 01:46:38,225 --> 01:46:40,728 Then I can pull another image. 1773 01:46:40,762 --> 01:46:44,799 Now it might take me a day to deal with that. 1774 01:46:44,832 --> 01:46:47,602 It might take me the whole hike to deal with it, 1775 01:46:48,770 --> 01:46:52,106 but at least that's one situation that I've dealt with. 1776 01:46:53,274 --> 01:46:54,108 And I can move on. 1777 01:46:55,743 --> 01:46:58,480 My whole demeanor was different, it was changing me. 1778 01:46:58,513 --> 01:47:01,749 Every day I would be out in the woods, it was changing me. 1779 01:47:02,684 --> 01:47:06,621 I was less aggressive with my discipline, with my words. 1780 01:47:06,654 --> 01:47:09,457 It softened me up 1781 01:47:09,491 --> 01:47:13,795 - We're closer as a couple and closer with kids. 1782 01:47:13,828 --> 01:47:18,032 He's a better husband, and a way better dad. 1783 01:47:19,266 --> 01:47:22,670 - Well, my life now is a lot different 1784 01:47:22,704 --> 01:47:25,139 than what it used to be for sure. 1785 01:47:25,172 --> 01:47:28,309 And I'm so thankful, I couldn't have scripted 1786 01:47:29,677 --> 01:47:31,546 my life any better than what it is. 1787 01:47:32,947 --> 01:47:36,918 And it's all thanks to long distance backpack. 1788 01:47:36,951 --> 01:47:41,523 And of course to God. A lot of answered prayers. 1789 01:47:41,556 --> 01:47:46,360 Our time together is very well spent and is cherished 1790 01:47:46,393 --> 01:47:50,364 'cause we know how life used to be. 1791 01:48:16,758 --> 01:48:19,360 - The finish!! - Congratulations! 1792 01:48:21,763 --> 01:48:22,429 - Good job Benny! 1793 01:48:28,402 --> 01:48:29,170 - You beast! 1794 01:48:29,203 --> 01:48:30,905 - Good job Benny! 1795 01:49:08,109 --> 01:49:08,910 - Careful. 1796 01:49:22,724 --> 01:49:24,592 - Best pass so far. 1797 01:49:24,626 --> 01:49:27,061 No doubt definitely the sketchiest pass, my gosh. 1798 01:49:32,066 --> 01:49:33,434 - Amazing, geeze. 1799 01:49:34,836 --> 01:49:37,805 - You can definitely knit a hat out of that. 1800 01:49:37,839 --> 01:49:39,874 Yeah, I love wool hats. 1801 01:50:29,323 --> 01:50:32,827 - I was just in the worst hailstorm in my life basically 1802 01:50:32,860 --> 01:50:35,462 it started off pretty tame and then it just got crazier 1803 01:50:35,496 --> 01:50:38,099 and crazier and heavier and heavier. 1804 01:50:38,132 --> 01:50:41,035 - It only lasted for maybe three or four minutes. 1805 01:50:41,068 --> 01:50:44,271 And then we were able to really just jump out of our tents 1806 01:50:44,305 --> 01:50:48,142 and hang out together and just enjoy each other's company. 1807 01:50:48,175 --> 01:50:50,511 As we experienced our last night 1808 01:50:50,544 --> 01:50:52,546 on the magical Uinta Highline Trail. 1809 01:50:59,520 --> 01:51:01,689 - The final day. 1810 01:51:01,723 --> 01:51:04,325 Me and Will are some of the first to wake up. 1811 01:51:04,358 --> 01:51:06,694 We're sitting there taking pictures of the sunrise 1812 01:51:06,728 --> 01:51:09,897 reflecting off of the lake, and all of a sudden, 1813 01:51:09,931 --> 01:51:12,566 I thought Will was gunna choke on his coffee 1814 01:51:12,599 --> 01:51:17,338 because he's like, "moose! there's two moose!" 1815 01:51:17,371 --> 01:51:21,242 - We're seeing two moose right now, right in front of us. 1816 01:51:22,710 --> 01:51:24,278 It looks like a male and female. 1817 01:51:30,852 --> 01:51:33,554 It was really a special moment for me on this trip. 1818 01:51:33,587 --> 01:51:37,158 And I'm like pumping my arms and I was like yeah. 1819 01:51:37,191 --> 01:51:39,026 - What a great ending. 1820 01:51:39,060 --> 01:51:41,562 Really, I don't think we could have scripted it any better. 1821 01:51:41,595 --> 01:51:44,932 To have these incredible majestic animals just walk out. 1822 01:51:44,966 --> 01:51:47,935 And it was a great experience really, 1823 01:51:47,969 --> 01:51:49,937 and something I'll never forget. 1824 01:52:00,147 --> 01:52:02,784 - The thing I missed the most every time I'm on the trail 1825 01:52:02,817 --> 01:52:05,352 is my wife and my daughter, I know that sounds cliche, 1826 01:52:05,386 --> 01:52:07,421 but it's totally the truth. 1827 01:52:07,454 --> 01:52:10,557 - What I miss on this hike is just communicating 1828 01:52:10,591 --> 01:52:13,094 with people that I talk to every day. 1829 01:52:13,127 --> 01:52:16,097 We've gone so many days without any phone service. 1830 01:52:16,130 --> 01:52:18,232 You know how it is it's traumatic. 1831 01:52:18,265 --> 01:52:19,967 - The thing I miss the most is my girlfriend, 1832 01:52:20,001 --> 01:52:24,471 Joelle and just my life in Gainesville and the farm. 1833 01:52:24,505 --> 01:52:28,976 - I miss my wife, my beautiful bride, miss my kids, 1834 01:52:29,010 --> 01:52:32,613 the last couple days just before you start going back home, 1835 01:52:32,646 --> 01:52:35,582 you start anticipating what that moment 1836 01:52:35,616 --> 01:52:38,152 is gonna be like whenever you reunite. 1837 01:52:45,759 --> 01:52:47,628 - The thing that really means the most to me in life 1838 01:52:47,661 --> 01:52:50,597 are my relationships, because you can't buy them. 1839 01:52:50,631 --> 01:52:52,133 You can't fake them. 1840 01:52:52,166 --> 01:52:55,002 You have to earn them through shared experiences. 1841 01:52:56,003 --> 01:52:58,005 - I can be in the country, I can be in the woods, 1842 01:52:58,039 --> 01:53:02,643 I can be in the city, and enjoy myself no matter where I am. 1843 01:53:02,676 --> 01:53:04,678 I guess what's most important is who I'm with. 1844 01:53:07,815 --> 01:53:09,183 - Yey! 1845 01:53:09,216 --> 01:53:10,818 - Yeah! yeah! 1846 01:53:11,819 --> 01:53:14,421 - Another one done baby! 1847 01:53:14,455 --> 01:53:15,356 - 104 miles. 1848 01:53:21,295 --> 01:53:22,696 - It was incredible. 1849 01:53:22,729 --> 01:53:25,799 I couldn't imagine finishing up my summer hike, 1850 01:53:25,833 --> 01:53:28,269 any other way at any other place, 1851 01:53:28,302 --> 01:53:30,071 than on the Uinta Highline. 1852 01:53:32,206 --> 01:53:34,041 - And it's just one of those things you kind of have 1853 01:53:34,075 --> 01:53:36,610 to just chase after your passions and you don't know 1854 01:53:36,643 --> 01:53:38,512 what tomorrow is gonna hold and that's the whole 1855 01:53:38,545 --> 01:53:41,148 excitement about long distance hiking, you don't know 1856 01:53:41,182 --> 01:53:43,284 who you'll meet the next day, you don't know 1857 01:53:43,317 --> 01:53:45,319 where you'll sleep the next day. 1858 01:53:45,352 --> 01:53:46,954 - Everybody spends their time indoors. 1859 01:53:46,988 --> 01:53:50,124 You know, you go from in your house, to in a car, 1860 01:53:50,157 --> 01:53:52,860 to in an office, back to in your car, back in your house. 1861 01:53:52,894 --> 01:53:54,628 So I think you know, getting outside 1862 01:53:54,661 --> 01:53:56,663 is important for everybody. 1863 01:53:59,000 --> 01:54:00,667 - My children are watching. 1864 01:54:02,336 --> 01:54:06,707 We don't only teach our children right from wrong, 1865 01:54:06,740 --> 01:54:08,442 but we also teach them how to live. 1866 01:54:09,776 --> 01:54:12,846 Do we want them to be ordinary? 1867 01:54:12,880 --> 01:54:15,049 Or do we want our children to be extraordinary? 1868 01:54:16,550 --> 01:54:17,751 We lead by example? 1869 01:54:28,295 --> 01:54:33,300 - I'm so grateful for my life and I love the experiences 1870 01:54:34,568 --> 01:54:36,703 and the adventures that I've been on in the last few years. 1871 01:54:36,737 --> 01:54:38,973 I look forward to what's to come. 1872 01:54:41,308 --> 01:54:45,579 - It's our path, and this is where I'm supposed to be, 1873 01:54:46,280 --> 01:54:48,549 right now, at this very moment. 1874 01:54:49,650 --> 01:54:53,120 And what we do next, matters. 1875 01:55:18,412 --> 01:55:21,882 - All right, day night, oops, day night. 1876 01:55:21,915 --> 01:55:23,284 Okay, it's day nine. 1877 01:55:25,186 --> 01:55:26,787 - Take 12 Matt. 1878 01:55:26,820 --> 01:55:27,721 Day nine. 1879 01:55:27,754 --> 01:55:28,789 - He's really struggling with it 1880 01:55:35,829 --> 01:55:37,198 - My favorite animal. 1881 01:55:39,200 --> 01:55:41,068 I don't know if I have a favorite animal, 1882 01:55:41,102 --> 01:55:43,937 maybe the honey badger, 'cause they're pretty badass 1883 01:55:46,373 --> 01:55:48,075 - Hi! Make a happy face. 1884 01:55:48,109 --> 01:55:50,377 - Make a silly face Lu 1885 01:55:51,178 --> 01:55:51,979 - That's awesome. 1886 01:56:02,689 --> 01:56:03,790 - That was wonderful. 1887 01:56:03,824 --> 01:56:05,026 - Please don't put that in the video.