Just wrapped up another 3-day, 2-night backpacking trip with the crew: grandpas, grandkids, and a bunch of slightly overstuffed backpacks including: chocolate chip pancakes, bacon, and meatball pasta. Lightweight? No chance. Delicious? 100%.
This annual tradition has been going strong for over 40 years now, and somehow, each year it feels both exactly the same and completely brand new. Before we all had kids, these trips were all about bagging peaks and seeing just how far and fast we could. These days? It’s more about passing the torch. Teaching the little ones how to be bored, slow down, and appreciate being out there with the bare minimum.
We hiked through forests that probably remember us better than we remember the trail names. We swam in alpine lakes that made the kids shout and made the adults (grown-ish men) squeal. Fishing was abundant and will surely make for future stories of “how big the fish were.” And of course, we ended each night around a crackling campfire, swapping tales, sipping wine, and teaching the kids the fine art of doing nothing.
There’s something powerful about being out there together, away from phones and to-do lists, with only dirt underfoot and stars overhead. This trip has always been about more than just the miles, it’s about anchoring our family in tradition, teaching the kids that wild places matter, and reminding ourselves that the best kind of bonding often involves a little mud, a lot of laughter, and carrying the communal load.
Curious. Do you and your family have any similar traditions?
-Dom
KETL MTN Co-Founder
