Buddy Backpacker Embarks on Continental Divide Trail

buddy backpacker

A boy known as “buddy backpacker” who completed the Appalachian Trail at 5-years-old and the Pacific Crest Trail at 6-years-old has now embarked on completing the Continental Divide Trail by the end of this year.

Christian Thomas, age 7, is joined on this journey as he has on others with his mother Andrea Rego and companion Dion. Andrea usually follows in a car with supplies while Dion hikes with Christian. They also complete the trail in sections and not in one shot.

This month, Christian and family were featured in Backpacker Magazine in a story titled Kindergarten Can Wait

After media attention following their Appalachian Trail hike last year, the trio faced criticism by child safety advocates on Facebook and other news sites. Rego has reportedly fought several legal battles with Christian’s biological father to continue their lifestyle, which she revealed on a post to their website recently. 

This year they are back at it again, this time tackling the Continental Divide Trail, which traverses the western United States along the Rocky Mountains from Canada to Mexico. 

 

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