Today we’d like to introduce you to Jesse & Heather Gariepy.
Hi Jesse & Heather, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Our story really began long before Adventure Family Vlog ever existed.
Jesse was serving in the military and had recently gone through a divorce after spending a year stationed in South Korea. When he was assigned to Hill Air Force Base in Utah, he thought it would simply be another assignment, another job, and another place he would live for a while.
Then he met Heather.
Heather had also gone through a divorce and was searching for her own passion and direction in life. She began showing Jesse all that Utah had to offer—the mountains, National Parks, trails, hidden places, road trips, and adventures right outside their door. Somewhere along the way, Jesse fell in love with both Utah and Heather, and it reignited a passion for travel, exploring, and adventure that had always been a part of him.
We quickly fell in love while sharing those adventures together.
When our son Lukas came along, we knew becoming parents wasn’t going to mean giving up the life we loved. We were out hiking and exploring with him when he was only a few months old. As he grew, so did our adventures. We kept finding incredible places and having experiences that made us think, “Other families need to know this exists. They need to see these places and know they can do this too.”
That was how Adventure Family Vlog began.
We simply wanted to share the places we were discovering and the family adventures that were bringing so much meaning to our own lives. We had absolutely no idea it would grow into what it is today—a travel community of nearly 240,000 people who love travel, adventure, and experiencing life.
Even now, our lives are probably more relatable than people might expect. Jesse still works full time, Heather homeschools Lukas, and our family travels whenever and however we can. Lukas has also become world-schooled through our adventures, learning about history, geography, nature, culture, and the world by experiencing it firsthand.
A big part of what has helped us grow is that we genuinely live the experiences we share. We’re the ones waking up before sunrise, hiking the trails, driving the backroads, getting lost occasionally, finding the places that exceed expectations, and figuring out the logistics so our audience doesn’t have to. We share the beautiful moments, but we also try to share the practical details that make a trip actually possible.
Looking back, neither of us could have imagined where life would take us. We were both starting over and searching for what came next. Somehow, we found each other, found a shared love of adventure, and built a life around experiencing as much of this world as we can.
Adventure Family Vlog grew from that life. At its heart, it is still simply Heather, Jesse and Lukas sharing the adventures we love and hoping to inspire other people to stop putting off the trip, get outside, explore somewhere new, and create more memories with the people they love.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely hasn’t always been a smooth road.
One of our biggest challenges has been learning how to take everything we discover while traveling and share it in a way that is genuinely useful to other people. We often come home with so much information, but figuring out what families really need to know—and how to make it simple, practical, and inspiring—has been something we’ve learned over time.
Another challenge is knowing there are people we could help, but not always being able to reach them. Sometimes we share something that could save a family time, help them avoid mistakes, or inspire an unforgettable trip, and it simply doesn’t find the people who need it.
But when someone reaches out and tells us they planned a trip because of something we shared or created a memory with their family because we helped them discover a place, it reminds us why we do this. It really keeps us going, knowing that we’re helping people experience more of life together.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Heather was a stockbroker and is an artist, while Jesse served 26 years in the Air Force and now works as a defense contractor supporting the Air Force. Our different backgrounds bring together creativity, planning, problem-solving, and storytelling.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
Jesse’s was tent camping for a week in Joshua Tree and visiting Yosemite National Park. Heather’s was spending summer nights on Lake Powell.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.adventurefamilyvlog.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adventurefamilyvlog/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AdventureFamilyVlog
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AdventureFamilyVlog/featured
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@adventurefamilyvlog
