Hiking, camping, and backpacking are as important to us as eating and sleeping. They are a necessity!

Ever since Laura and I met in 2001 we’ve enjoyed hiking, camping, and backpacking together and, since 2007, with our children. They’ve been on hikes within weeks of being born. They’ve been camping before they were 1.5 years old. Soon they’ll experience backpacking.

We try to get out each weekend for a hike at a nearby park or in a national forest. Some of our favorite areas include Mountain Loop Highway, Carkeek Park (Seattle), Salmon River (Oregon), and Tiger Mountain, to name a few. We may live in the Pacific Northwest but that hasn’t stopped us from enjoying the outdoors in all seasons.

Before having kids we sought out challenging and long hikes. Today, we look for hikes that our children will enjoy and as a family we can call ‘fun’. We always try to remember that it’s not about the summit or lake or whatever the end of the trail may be but about the journey to get to that point. It’s important we stop and observe the flora and fauna along the trail. There are an abundance of teaching opportunities for Ethan and Autumn and we, as parents and lovers of nature, must stop to point them out so they can learn and appreciate nature as much, or more, as we do.

One of our favorite resources for finding great hikes is the Washington Trails Assocation website. It’s offers an easy use to ‘Hike Finder’ system to find relevant hikes for you. Since we live in Snohomish County, we also use the book “Hiking Snohomish County” by Ken Wilcox to find great family hikes. Both resources have not disappointed us.

Enjoy learning about our experiences in the great outdoors.

Outdoor Adventures Map

(We’ve done a lot of hiking that isn’t reflected here. We’ll update it as we have time.)

View Holt Family Outdoor Outings Google Map in a larger map

Recent Outdoor Experiences

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