Segment 3 September 9th, 2023

How many of us remember that trip back before we were married, had a job, had a mortgage, had children?  A part of life is going through these different periods & celebrating them with a part of us yearning to recreate & share them with others.

Marty Ohlhaut worked for IBM for over thirty years & then as an independent educator, travelling around the world (44 countries, 50 states).  In 1972 he and friends took on a big trip.  He was single with buddies but had the self-described, “best time of my life.”

Fast forward a dozen years, a job, a wife, and five children later-in 1994 & Marty decides begins to plan a multi-week, epic western Rockies trip for seven.  He took notes & twenty-five years later his daughter, Grace Ly found them & began to piece it into the newly published book, “TENT for SEVEN.”

They join the Carolina Outdoors to talk about the book, the trip, & its effect on each of them.

You’ll learn about:

The planning of a big, DIY trip.

The difference between a “Buddy trip” (in your twenties) & “Family Trip” (with five children under 16).

The potential tragedies that can ococur

The beauties seen & the bonds made with people met along the way.

The benefits of notes & keeping a journal

Marty’s daughter, Grace Ly, worked for the White House, CIA, and has travelled to over thirty countries and lived in Europe, the Middle East, & Asia.  She’ll speak on her view of her dad’s trip in 1972 & her participation as a teenager in 1994.  She speaks about finding the journal notes that her dad had therapeutically written after his trips & turning it into the book, TENT FOR SEVEN.

Her insight on:

Teenage memories of the trip & the difference in her dad’s perspective

The people that took them into their homes after accidents left them in need

Passing on kindness after that trip as she moved forward into adulthood

The importance of keeping notes or journal.

Marty’s words within the book: “I am thankful for every adventure I have ever had, for every crazy story I can tell, for every mountain I have climbed, every stream I have crossed, and every night I have spent out in the woods. Most of all, though, I am thankful for my family, for the love they have shown, every laugh we have shared, every obstacle we have overcome, and every incredible experience we have had together. They have, by far, been my greatest adventure.”

Marty & Grace will both tell their story, TENT FOR SEVEN during STORYTELLER’S NIGHT at JESSE BROWN’S, Sept. 21, 2023, at 6 p.m.  Afterwards they’ll be signing their book of the same name.

Storyteller’s Night at Jesse Brown’s is sponsored by Jesse Brown’s & the Carolina Outdoors program.  Host Bill Bartee hangs his hat at the fly shop in Charlotte & the local Patagonia dealer, Jesse Brown’s