Carl Grimes is the son of Rick Grimes and one of the oldest survivors of the zombie apocalypse . After escaping his hometown with his mother and Shane Walsh , Carl settled in a camp outside Atlanta where he miraculously reunited with the father he had left for dead and then began traveling with a group of survivors in search for a safe haven. Although he started out as a normal and innocent child, the tragic events of the new world forced him to grow up precipitously and turned him into a cold and competent person, capable of making difficult decisions for the good of his friends.