SOLO BACKPACKING CHARLES DEAM WILDERNESS // 30 Miles of Spring Wildflowers in the Indiana Hills

Hello everyone! Hope you are doing well and staying cool this hot summer. On March 29-30, I got the chance to drive up to Southern Indiana to backpack around Charles C Deam Wilderness Area, located within Hoosier National Forest. I picked a 30mile loop to do as an overnighter, and got to experience some amazing ephemeral wildflowers, as well as one of the most beautiful campsites covered in wild daffodils and overlooking Lake Monroe. I hope you enjoy the sights and sounds, and be sure to like, subscribe, and comment if you enjoyed it! Thanks and God Bless!

[@kentuckyhiker7071]

At 19:49...."Doesn't get better than this!" Spot on!! Great vid and thanks for posting!!

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Heck yeah! Good food and drink after a long day of backpacking is truly so satisfying! Thanks for watching, Briann!

[@cynthiaberry2019]

Beautiful job! Thank you for this peace giving video.

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks so much for watching!! I’m glad you enjoyed it and that the scenery brought you peace 🙂

[@rogerevans4339]

Your video took me there. The sights and sounds, the pace of the camp and hike, your narrative describing and highlighting... As I went along, I too felt “happy and content”. Thanks for sharing! I especially enjoyed being at the camp for the fire, moon, and dawn... and flowers. Like the poem, the experience out there has brought you wealth. Wordsworth: “For oft, when on my couch I lie In vacant or in pensive mood, They flash upon that inward eye Which is the bliss of solitude; And then my heart with pleasure fills, And dances with the daffodils.”

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks for viewing and for your friendship and words of encouragement and wisdom. You are one of many in mind when I make these videos, so it is a blessing to know that you are pointed towards the Light through them. Love to you and yours, shine on!

[@KathysOutdoorAdventures]

It is SOOOO beautiful out there!! That's a good hike for an overnighter. Thanks for sharing with me

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks so much for watching!! I can’t wait to return to the Deam- it’s a really special place!

[@shuaglenn6802]

Finally, a Kentuckian backpacking channel! Digging the uploads

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks so much! Means a lot- stayed tuned for more Kentucky videos and beyond! Happy hiking!

[@NicoleHikesalot]

great bloopers too

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

😂😅🤣

[@delilapipoly]

Excellent video thanks for sharing☺️🥰🥰

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

You are very welcome! Thanks so much for watching!

[@BackpackingWithJason]

Love that Lake area. Great campsite spot too. I really enjoy how you narrate the video Samuel.

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Lake Monroe is great! I’d love to canoe or kayak camp it sometime. I really appreciate your compliment, brother! I enjoy making videos like this. Thanks for watching!

[@OutdoorOperator]

Killer intro; gave me a great sense of the setting. Lots of great shots of the flora and fauna. Got me missing spring.

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks so much for those kind words!!! I worked really hard to produce a final product that would be enjoyable for everyone to watch. It means a lot on the little things you picked up on! I miss spring too! Can’t wait for temps to cool down. Thanks for watching!

[@bikhills]

Another inspiring video. I hiked this same trail a week earlier. This was when the BSF had the major flooding, so decideded to give this a try. I had great weather also. Nice trail and surprisingly uncrowded.

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks so much for your kind words!! I came up to the Deam for the exact same reason! The flooding was so bad during those couple of weeks. I hear that Deam can get pretty crowded at times since it’s close to Bloomington, but I didn’t experience that all during the week, much like you did. Thanks for watching!!

[@aaronmullinz]

Great video as usual. Loved the blooper of you tripping only cause you’re ok. Beautiful area you were in

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks so much for watching! I had to include that blooper, I was laughing at myself as soon as it happened! The Deam is an awesome place, I highly recommend it! Thanks again for your support!

[@leslieteague7885]

Finally getting to watch the video and it was probably one of the most serene I’ve watched . The wildflowers, babbling water and the campsite with the daffodils were just beautiful ! The bloopers were 😂😉 gotta love the Klutz gene you get from me 😳😂. Proud of you and all your endeavors and adventures ❤️Love you!!!

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks for watching Mom! I hope it helped you feel better after being sick last week. You know there’s always gonna be bloopers with me! 😂Love you!

[@hobsonschoice8649]

I've hiked every trail there numerous times

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

I can see why!! It’s such a great wilderness area, I can’t wait to return soon. Thanks for watching!!

[@tonyabrowninghikes]

Love this place! Only an hour from me. I was there with a friend the weekend before you. We stayed by the lake and then by Terrell pond. Great video. I'll be sharing in my favorite hiking groups.

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

I love Deam!! I want to go back so soon! I would love to camp by the shores of the lake, or explore amongst the pines after a good snow! Thanks for being willing to share my video! Really appreciate you watching!

[@tonyabrowninghikes]

@@BluegrassBackcountry your welcome! Love supporting my fellow creators! It's pretty wonderful sleeping next to the lake!

[@NicoleHikesalot]

awesome video, every detail was beautifully filmed. The campsite was amazing for sure. I will have to do this particular hike. We only live an hour and a half from the wilderness.

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks so much Nicole! I really appreciate your compliments about my filming- I try very hard to get good shots that people will enjoy looking at. If you need me to give you the route, just let me know! I would be there all the time if I only lived an hour from there! Thanks again!

[@NicoleHikesalot]

@@BluegrassBackcountry thank you I've hiked all these trails individually. I think I could find the campsite too. I love KY and TN too.

[@beyondthecampfire]

Thank you for putting together another relaxing and inspiring video! This one brought back a lot of great memories from my own springtime Charles Deam trip a few years ago. It was good to see those places again. I have a lot of comments to make, and I'll leave some below and try to remember the rest of them for the river this weekend. Thanks again for all the hard work filming, editing, and narrating these. They improve my week every time, and I always look forward to them. See you in a couple hours! 4:55 I love that feeling. This blazing heat has me longing for that time of year when you actually WANT the sun on your skin. 9:14 Very cool how this special spot came together with the Wordsworth lines that your family likes to recite. This kind of meaningful event seems to happen a lot on the trail. 11:55 I love the sound of those waves, but I think you made the right choice in going back to the daffodil spot. 15:30 Still need to get myself one of these saws… It just chews through that wood! 16:18 Tulip poplar bark, right? That stuff makes great tinder. 19:20 Thumbs up indeed. 20:35 Wow! I really enjoyed this entire camp scene, but this shows just how good of a view you had. And that moon is surreal. I appreciate the thoughts you shared throughout this camp scene, too. Sometimes I like editing and watching the camp stuff even more than the trail stuff. 23:13 Now I understand the shortcut you took around Martin Hollow. I seem to remember that being a difficult area. I can see how it gave you trouble. 23:40 One of the interesting things about this video is that I can tell exactly where you were standing for a lot of your shots… except for this one. Somehow I entirely missed this cemetery! 24:48 Nice job capturing the feeling of spring growth and renewal with all the ephemerals. I especially like this shot. The flowers look like they’re glowing. 25:16 Oh man, don’t let the Bigfoot people see this shot! They’ll never leave you alone! 26:30 I’m glad you included some shots and background info on the cabin. 29:05 Nothing like climbing a fire tower after hiking 30 miles! It’s the only way to end a trip to the Deam though. It looks like there are several more layers of graffiti than there were the last time I saw it. 31:50 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 This is a once in a lifetime shot! I had to rewatch it several times, hahaha. 32:26 I apologize for spreading the curse of the falling camera to you 😂 32:56 This is why I don’t talk to the camera anymore!

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Super sorry for my extended delay in getting this reply back to you (work has been more insane than usual), but I wanted to extend my deepest thanks for another meaningful comment you passed my way on my video production. It’s one of the more satisfying feelings to know how a piece of artist production like a narrated outdoor video can inspire and encourage other human beings. I am humbled to know you have been the recipient of those blessings. I don’t know what it is about Deam specifically, but it really seems to have left an impact on us both. All of those things you picked up on during my video were elements that made the trip and wilderness so special. I hope we can have the chance to ramble up there together sometime for a shared backpacking experience of this special place- preferably with lots of snow and a fire in a cabin ruin hearth! Thanks again for watching and your support. Also, thanks for an awesome weekend on the river- can’t wait for the next adventure!

[@beyondthecampfire]

@@BluegrassBackcountry Hey, no worries! I think you had a good excuse (aside from work)! I just want to acknowledge all the work you put into making these, especially because I am genuinely moved and inspired by them. Most of the time, I'd rather watch backpacking and nature videos, so you've given me many hours of great viewing. It has certainly been a blessing. I'm looking forward to a potential winter trip! The more I think about it the better it sounds. Thanks again for putting in all the work to plan our river adventure. It was a blast! Can't wait for the next one, and for the next video!

[@coalminersdaughter]

Beautiful area that we’ve never heard of. Your narration skills are on point. You do a really good job on these videos. Adding the bloopers is a great final touch!

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thank you so much for these kind words!! The Deam is a wonderful place, I definitely recommend checking it out sometime. I really appreciate your comments about the style of my videos- I enjoy making them this way! And you can’t live life without a little humor! 😂Thanks for watching!

[@PopPopTN]

That was great! All poetic and serious and then BAM, the bloopers! Very nice camera work, especially the closeups (macro lens at all?). Thanks!

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks so much Pop Pop! I love being serious and funny all in the same fell swoop! I really appreciate your kind words about my video! Nope, all the footage came from a little handheld Sony RX100-III; it’s got some great glass for a lens! Thanks for watching!

[@Smokeybeesnatural]

Good one buddy! I've always wanted to visit Charles Deam in the winter. Is this on your new camera? Resolution and frame rate look smother.

[@BluegrassBackcountry]

Thanks brother!! It’s worth the travel time- it’s a great spot to explore. Chad was saying there’s some hidden cabin ruins off trail too that sounds awesome! Nope, this was the last video I used with my River-Swamped RX100-II. I think I changed some of the settings to get stuff a bit clearer. Thanks for watching!

[@komodohype2142]

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