Team Hunt Adventure
Mike Hollis had a crazy idea called the Team Hunt Adventure. He wanted to take his family (from Tennessee) with a special needs child, on a 4 week long overland trip from Yosemite to Portland, OR. and wanted to know if I could help make it a reality. You bet I wanted to help!!! More than three months of planning, meetings, and waiting on weather, made this successful trip a reality for Mike, Ellen, and Hunt.
The Jeep was transported to Oakland, with final prep & pack happening in Palo Alto, CA. The THA officially began in Yosemite. From there they went to Mono Lake, South Lake Tahoe, Napa, Gualala, the Lost Coast, and Trinity Lake. Medford was the first stop in Oregon. They continued north to Crater Lake and on to their final destination, Portland! After a long but wonderful 3+ week journey, the Hollis family was back in Tennessee, with a trip full of memories to enjoy.
Hunt loves Jeep Crawlin'! Along their trip, they made a stop near the entrance of the Rubicon Trail. Other highlights included Yosemite, Corral Hollow, and the Lost Coast of Northern California.
Hunt has a rare disease called mitochondrial disease or 'mito' for short. Once diagnosed, we were told he wouldn't walk, wouldn't talk, and had a 1 in 2 chance he wouldn't live to see his 12th birthday. That's why we created Team Hunt. Since Hunt's diagnosis, we started a the Team Hunt foundation to show him and others that all things are possible..since then we've raised $500K+ for research and family support.
Currently, Hunt is walking, talking and loves all things outdoors including overlanding. He runs the risk of regressing at any moment, seizures could reverse how far we've come...but Hunt wants a full life and we're going to provide him one. My 'ask' of this community is to follow our adventure this last summer. We want to show all communities and families that kids with special needs (especially those given the worst of odds) can survive and thrive.
Overlanding is in itself a journey...not to different from what we've experienced from his diagnosis. There is no end in mind, there is no cure....we endeavor down the road of life, embracing the journey not the destination. In Hunt's case, he loves camping, jeeps & off roading (or as he likes to call it, 'Jeep Crawlin')... a perfect stew for Overlanding.