Appalachian Trail 2024 - This Trail has Changed Me. I’m a Totally Different Person!

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Thank you for watching and if you’d like to show more support for my videos, I have a support page on which viewers can “buy me a coffee” as encouragement for the time and effort I put into making these videos 🙏 ko-fi.com/derekcullen

[@krendagrey6277]

This is by far, for me, the best video you've posted. This one made me cry, but they were happy tears for you and your buddies. I'm so happy you're able to do this journey. I truly understand every step you take. I was born and raised in the Appalachian Mountains. Everyday was an adventure. Everyday/Anyday I'm away from the Mountains I have to say, if only to myself, "I have to go home now." Further on down the trail when the days get warmer, if it rains, take your shoes off, embrace the downpour and dance in the rain. Safe travels, keep on trekking and God Bless you and your trail mates.

[@UnnamedPodcast_Uprising]

I always want to comment to show my support but never know what to say. You capture so much of life in these videos. They always seem to leave me speechless. Thank you for all you do. And I hope for your sake Bob makes an appearance again soon. 👍🏻

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Lovely to hear this and thanks so much for leaving a comment to let me know 🙏

[@marydoyle7350]

Another inspiring video. Those last few mins when Lee saw the glorious view was powerful. The sun will always shine again after so many wet days. You are all doing great. I hope Bennet's mood lifted too. Nice story of how Smokey Joe started his AT journey. Thanks Derek

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Thanks so much Mary! Yes Bennet it doing good. All thruhikers go through these same emotions, ups and downs…they might not say it ☺️

[@maureenp7082]

I can't believe what a great story teller you are. I love every bit of your videos. You should do more of this. It's your calling. ❤

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Thank you so much Maureen. Yes I’ve known for a long time that this is my path, it took maybe 10 years of adventures and making videos for them to look this way 🙏🙏🙏

[@RoseW-ge2cm]

“Heart Good”….thanks Derek and Soapie Joe..keep on truckin’..❤🙏🏻

[@ihikefar]

You sir are a gift. Just binge watch all your AT videos to get caught up. Lovely. Advance North! Spokes, AT class of 2009.

[@musingwithreba9667]

Soapy Joe....what a great name, and a wonderful story of how you found yourself on the AT. ❤

[@JodyCarbone]

I loved this. I follow several hikers and thru hikers, yours shares the perfect amount of emotions and personal triumph. All the best to you.

[@jimmyjenkins9240]

When they say, “It’s the people.”, this 1 video explains all that! Thanks for sharing yourself and you companions with us.

[@Lovesracing19]

This was a wonderful video. I almost cried when the hiker talked about the AT. I'm too old to hike now, but I hope I can hike a little of the AT. You are so fortunate to be hiking the AT.

[@tonyharding28]

Very grateful we got to meet on trail and at WH and become friends. So proud of you and how you portray the trail through your unique and personal view. I wish you well on your journey my friend. Til our paths cross again. Soapyjoe 🤙

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Ah soapy Joe, thanks so much and would love to see you again ❤

[@auburn200011]

Derek! You outdid yourself yet again! Not ashamed to admit; you had me teared up man! This trail is definitely calling this 60 year old man! lol. Beautiful work, just beautiful!

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Awwww thanks so much !!

[@shannonparker1]

Omg, Soapy Joe and Pringles! My heart is with all of you. I want to do this so bad!

[@hogmtnrob]

I stumbled across your channel last night, so glad I did! I love watching thru-hike channels; AT, PCT, CDT and any others. I'm an old guy with a bad back, hip and knees so I live vicariously thru all of who go out and do it! Your videos have touched me in a way no others have. Without question they are beautifully shot and well edited but there's something more. In each video I've watched you've shared insight, personal philosophy and wisdom. Each has brought tears to my eyes for one reason or another. Your gentle spirit and kind heart shine through. The beautiful wilderness you are walking through is only surpassed by the beautiful group that you are hiking with. Birdy singing Amazing Grace was a blessing! My heart breaks for the Dad who lost his son and is walking to find the self he lost. Each and every one of you are people we'd all be better by knowing. Praying that you all have a safe and successful journey to Maine and that you "walk each other home". I'm borrowing your inspiring mantra; Head good, Body good, Feet good, Heart good. I'm also going to remind myself that "this too shall pass" when things are tough, they always do. Stay safe, be blessed and have joy!

[@decels]

Another great video and update pal. You could pick anyone on this trail, and they will all have their story. And each one of those stories would be (and are) completely different. But there is a shared commonness between you all. Loved Soapy Joe's tale of how he has ended up there.

[@JohnHancock-x7k]

what a nice video! Thanks for compiling and posting. I really enjoyed the thoughts about hiking alone, hiking with people, Soapy Joe's story, of course.

[@valeriecarter836]

You are definitely in the best place right now Derek. You are surrounded by the most spiritual, soulfull people. I am loving their stories........... Love is bald x

[@andrewcolley2460]

How true that statement is - so often in my life I’ve “done what I’m supposed to do”, owing to my parents, teachers, societal norms. I’ve been lucky and done better in life than I have any right to - I have a good job, a beautiful Wife and son and I’ve made the best friends I could hope for. I can’t help thinking though, I’d be happier if I’d done what I wanted to do. Great videos, Derek.

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Cheers Andrew, there’s still time 🙏

[@ShininRock]

I've been watching AT hiking vlogs since I did my first section hike back in 1999 and I feel comfortable saying that yours are perhaps the best. Everything about your videos (content, music, cinematography, video length, etc, etc) is spot-on!

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Wow thank you so much for this incredible feedback ❤️

[@Carolsite]

Great video! Love it. My mom grew up in Virginia and when my dad was transferred to an Air Force base in the desert of California, she loved it--she was tired of all the green😂

[@kpangrace]

I thru-hiked in 2012 and you have have captured the feelings associated with hiking the trail better than any other videos I have seen. I also love that you keep them to 10-15 minutes they are perfectly digestible. Cheers to the rest of your hike, I’ll be watching the entire way!

[@Woodthrush]

Wow, I cried through that one...just beautiful! Happy Trails, Soapy Joe and to you, Derek.🌈🏕🌄🙏

[@marylynch951]

Derek I can't say this enough You are an inspiration My utmost respect to you May God continue protecting you ❤❤

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Really happy to hear you enjoy my videos so much Mary 🙏

[@jenniferwilliams4447]

Hello you! 😉. Love it ! Love it! Love it! What a beautiful experience, meeting lovely people in the process of healing and connecting with nature. It's so good for the soul. Thanks for sharing it with us all Derek. 💞

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

My pleasure Jennifer 🙏

[@lyndaalexander6582]

Wow! You are a wonderful storyteller. Please keep posting these inspiring videos for the rest of us who can’t go hike the trail. ❤️

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Happy to hear you are enjoying these videos so much!

[@RobinSchmidt-ej1lv]

I love your videos, this so far this is my favorite. My favorite quote “I listened”. Thank you for sharing your experience. I am section hiking Connecticut with my sister in June maybe we will see you out there.

[@juliebuchikos777]

I cried listening to his story. I also appreciated how you broke down your time on trail. Great video! I’ve watched it twice already!❤

[@Elizabeth-pt4bv]

Incredible, incredible video. Views, thoughtfulness, epic interview. Overall, amazing, well done, 😊

[@padraigocobthaigh1770]

Thanks Derek for yet another brilliant video. The birdsong especially at the hostel stop is so beautiful as Sophie Joe was telling his inspirational story. I love the way he said that he didn't choose the AT ,it choose him. I think Derek it choose you as well.

[@angelacronin184]

Thank u, Derek! The love and heartwarming connections made as u all journey thru the AP. is palpable. Heart good, all good.

[@LomanB]

I listened. I listened to an insane idea, and I didn't deny myself the greatest joy I've ever experienced. Class stuff from Soapy Joe - Inspiringly beautiful storytelling from yourself, as always, Derek.

[@Sasha-r8n6v]

Oh I bet the airs as fresh as a daisy where you are ❤

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Oh for sure and that’s why we prefer to sleep in tents 🙏

[@michaelpaine8884]

Amazing!

[@jimhenderson387]

What an awesome video! Thank you. I just now stumbled on this video and you, my friend, are a wonderful videographer. Definitely a couple cuts above any channel out there. Not that it's a competition. Anyway, I'll be following from here on, and as a native Virginian, I hope my state has treated you well and continues to do so.

[@lynnmcguire2742]

Another beautiful video, Derek. When you unzipped the tent in the morning , the birdsong made it sound like paradise. :) I also really appreciate the challenges you face on the trail and enjoy the sharing of experience with your fellow hikers. Well done, as always!

[@vinneyH]

Another great video derek. When you talk we listen .. so easy to listen too. You've a way with words . Soapy Joe's story was cool 👌🏻 looking forward to the next one. Go raibh míle maith agat, mo chara.

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Thank you for the kind words Vinney 🙏

[@horsedog713]

I started my thru hike of the AT on March 22 of 2023! I believe you were hiking the Ireland Way back then.

[@pippasmyth]

Beautiful episode! Thanks.😀✌️🌱🌿🌲

[@kmichaelp4508]

WOW… my goodness you capture the moment… WOW!!! ❤️🙏

[@patd8063]

Thanks for sharing this joy and love with us.

[@christinabourke4854]

Another incredible video Derek. I hope you get some nicer weather so you can spend time with each other in the evenings. Fair play and keep going. You're doing so well.

[@carolsnook6768]

I absolutely love watching your videos, they are so uplifting. May your journey be full of wonderful memories.

[@BicheBug1996]

Your opening statement about hiking alone ,, meeting up at campsite made this all worth looking at,, ,,, that way no one feels crowded in their hike and thoughts ,, and can enjoy the best of both worlds of solitude and company all in this hike trial ❤❤❤to me this is tye epitome of what this long hike is all about ,, quiet solitude spent in my thoughts along the silent forest yet still sharing myself with others having a great conversation and laughs

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Thanks so much. Really appreciate this lovely feedback 🙏

[@AleaheaZamaniego]

Derek!!! Always giving us wholesome content! You guys are awesome and inspirational! Keep going!! We are rooting for you! 🥳

[@paulgoodman2924]

Damn, what a video! Wonderful !!!!!!

[@TheHealthyHiker]

This one is my favourite! Sophie-Joe speaks for all of our thu-king hearts! Thank you for listening to and filming his story for all of us to hear! Fellow youtuber question for you...where do you source your music? Mine is all from the youtube music library, and it's so bloody hoky-poky, I can hardly stand it in my own videos! lol

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

My pleasure! Epidemic sound dot com :)

[@EddieJoe55]

Simply put, AWESOME!

[@MachasDaughter]

Another compelling video. Stay real my friend. ❤

[@BruceEllmaker]

We have many of the same sensibilities, so I like to hear what you have to say. From SW Virginia 🙂

[@thisbeem2714]

I’ve been wanting to hike this trail for years. It might be time to plan it for real. My kid is old enough, college age. It might just be time.

[@MrGhris]

I love your videos Derek! You are a genuine and interesting person, I wish I could join that hike right now. Currently preparing for my own AT truhike in 2025. I might just start 22 March, just for the fun of it :)

[@toddjohnston4788]

Great stuff Derek....thanks 😊

[@AnneMulligan-hj5gi]

Fantastic!!!

[@charliem5332]

Nearly 2 months now!

[@ASTHECROWFLIESHIKING]

Great video! New follower here. Crow✌️

[@annier6]

Absolutely beautiful

[@markjackman702]

Hi Derek: Enjoying your videos and REALLY appreciating your insight, and point of view !! I have to ask, is your tent the Hubba Hubba? Thank you, and be safe !!

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

My pleasure! It is a hubba hubba NX2

[@mushercdn]

I think you're the only one that can turn a Survivor episode into a teachable moment. Is it Smokey, Sophie, or Soapy Joe? What a story. "There are no coincidences." I am curious to know your trail name. It should be something along the lines of "Bard." Thanks for the video.

[@summerwood619]

Simply beautiful❤

[@dawnseely1013]

Have I told you lately that, in my opinion, you are a gifted story teller. Does Soapy Joe have a youtube channel? If so, can you share it?

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Soapy does not have a channel. Thanks so much for the kind words of encouragement 🙏

[@lindamalcovsky]

Wow!!! Too choked up to say more ❤❤❤❤

[@MrBoxer1200]

I stayed at woods Hoe in 1994 30 years ago My life has been moved since then. Love to all

[@paddyo3841]

Did you know that Appalachia was an island in prehistoric ages …. During most of the Late Cretaceous (100.5 to 66 million years ago) the eastern half of North America formed Appalachia (appalachian mountains) an island land mass separated from Laramidia to the west by the Western seaway. This seaway had split North America into two massive landmasses due to a multitude of factors such as tectonism and sea-level fluctuations for nearly 40 million years. The seaway eventually expanded, divided across the Dakotas and by the end of the Cretaceous, it retreated towards the Gulf of Mexico to the Hudson Bay. This left the island masses joined in the continent of North America as the Rocky Mountains rose. From the Cenomanisn to the end of the Campanian ages of the Late Cretaceous, Appalachia was separated from the rest of North America. As the Western Interior Seaway retreated in the Maastrichtian, Laramidia and Appalachia eventually connected. Because of this, its fauna was isolated, and developed very differently from the fauna of the western part of North America, known as Laramidia.

[@Running0NEmpty]

Derek thank you for sharing your journey. I dream of the ability to do a thru hike maybe some day I will find a way. I was wondering, are you editing as you are completing the hike? If not, how are you storing all of the footage and what do you use to record everything? Keep going for all of us watching and love every moment. Kevin

[@MrBoxer1200]

Nice !

[@eddiegulley]

Hike On!

[@thiskewlchick]

Wiping tears.

[@paddyo3841]

Beautiful ❤

[@elliemaez3451]

How is your experience hiking the AT versus your time on the PCT? Love your videos!

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

The PCT was far more remote and more demanding (more miles each day). The scenery on the pct was spectacular every day and different almost every day. Big views/vistas on the AT are few and you spend most of the time in between the trees. There is more culture and points on the AT and a much bigger/better community. They are very different from one another but each one perhaps has as much to offer as the other :)

[@Yaketyyak21]

Hello soapy Joe🖐

[@missys6719]

Wow!!!!

[@ubermike412pgh9]

❤️❤️❤️

[@Sdal2593]

Derek, do you have a trail name?

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

I do ! Perhaps i will mention this in an upcoming episode ☺️

[@Sdal2593]

Please do.

[@jimmycorrigan4009]

@@Sdal2593 unreal

[@bkrajewski6756]

For several years, Nebraska’s official tagline was…Nebraska. Honestly, it’s not for everyone. lol

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Haha

[@ruthram477]

"Virginia is for lovers!" Engaging with one's solitude makes all the difference...

[@acjoeboxer]

Soapyjoe is my dad ❤ I love you dad , have fun ✝️🫶🏻you’re an inspiration (My KZbin username is also named after our dog, Joe)

[@tonyharding28]

Ahhhh thanks for the message sweety I Love you too ❤

[@richardh.5404]

Woods Hole is the very best

[@troyjenkins3886]

You ever want to watch a amazing series about survival,highly recommend Survivorman/Les Stroud.He is the real deal.Soapy Joe is a cool guy.

[@kathrynrose5241]

🖐🏻👍🙏

[@yellowlabrador]

I wanted to become a garden archictect but in the 70's I would have been the only girl in an argricultural college. After 15 years in a convent school , I chickened out.

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Wow what a story you have!!

[@Sailor14223]

The crazies will always be there. Stick to your plan, don’t engage with the weirdos .

[@walkandtalkinnaturefordepr3357]

aahu.. Netflix. Is this the right size film 35mm. Your doing it. Making a nf series. I see it. Good music. Selling the dream. The dreamers dream. I will buy it. Caus i cant do it. Your doing it for us all. Its not steps. Its a feeling. Freedom life truth. Peace beauty. Make our dreams come true. Give us the feeling. Can i come with you. Let us in. The walkers that cant walk. The thinkers that cant think. The writers that cant write. The believers followers friends brethren. Sisters of the brotherhood. Thankyou.......

[@DerekCullenOutdoors]

Haha nope this is for KZbin, not Netflix. Thanks so much 🙏

[@cherokeesurvival8340]

hello my irish friend - YOU SHOW IRSHIST WAY WELCOME TO MY WORLD APPALACHIAN .. N.C. S.C. GA TON IRISH PEOPLE IN KANNAPOLIS CITY .N.C. GO THHERE AFTER YOUR HIKING AT