Photo: Joshua Sutton via AP
A 5-year-old Virginia boy just accomplished a feat few Americans will achieve in their lifetimes.
Harvey Sutton is now among the youngest people ever to complete the Appalachian Trail, according toNPR. He and his parents, Josh and Cassie Sutton, recently completed the 2,100-mile adventure across 14 states in 209 days, the outlet reported.
“It started out as a joke and we decided maybe that could be our mini-retirement and hike the Appalachian Trail with Harvey,” Josh told NPR about getting his son prepared for the epic journey. “We started training [him] at a young age to hike and camp and he took on to it really well.”
“We learned that he is fabulous at hiking, but as long as we’re playing make-believe and pretend with him all day long, then he moves quickly and hikes a lot faster than a lot of us imagine,” Josh told NPR.
“It gave us a bond and a strength that we hadn’t realized before,” mom Cassie Sutton added to theAssociated Press. “We’re closer than ever before.”
Though challenging, Harvey’s parents said their son still found the tricky hike rather exciting.
When he wasn’t looking for wildlife like frogs and lizards, he was pairing Skittles with peanut butter tortillas for energy, according to the AP.
“I think a lot of people are surprised at how well he did,” Cassie admitted to NPR. “They’re like, ‘How did you get your 5-year-old to do that because my 5-year-old won’t even walk half a mile without complaining?’ Everyone is pretty amazed and astounded.”
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In fact, Harvey added to the outlet, “I would do it again because I like it so much.”
“The rock scrambles were really fun and hard. We were not bored,” the boy told the AP of his journey.
With in-person classes back in session at most schools nationwide after a year of virtual learning due to the pandemic, the Suttons said they’re curious to see how their son will transition from the outdoors to a small classroom when he begins kindergarten.
“Hopefully, after going hiking for 10 hours a day to sitting in the classroom, he’ll do okay,” Josh told NPR.
source: people.com
