Experiencing the Outdoors with Little Ones: Strategies for an Enjoyable, Thriving, and Fulfilling Venture
Family Backpacking Trips: A Journey to Bond and Build Confidence
For the Smith family, backpacking isn't just a hobby—it's a way of life. McKenzie Smith, along with her husband and their six children (ages 5 to 14), embark on half a dozen backpacking trips each year.
When it comes to selecting trails, McKenzie emphasizes the importance of considering elevation over mileage. She advises starting with a trail in the 3-5 mile range for a first backpacking trip with children, ensuring the trail is under about 2,000 feet in elevation gain and offers shaded areas and water sources for breaks and play.
The Smiths prioritize comfort and practicality in their gear choices. McKenzie recommends using gear that can be shared among family members, such as a double sleeping pad (Exped Duo) and backpacking quilts. For young children, she suggests using trail sneakers instead of full-on hiking boots.
Mealtime is an essential part of their journey. The Smiths primarily use freeze-dried meals, but also enjoy cost-friendly options like bulk freeze-dried refried beans and tortillas, instant pudding, and bulk freeze-dried fruit. During the day, the children enjoy snacking on trail mix that they make themselves.
When it comes to hydration, water sources are crucial for both hydration and morale, especially on family backpacking trips.
Safety is a top priority for McKenzie. She advises avoiding trails with natural hazards such as scrambles, cliffs, and fast-moving rivers when backpacking with children. She also emphasizes the importance of being prepared for frequent bathroom breaks and sanitation needs.
To keep the trip engaging for the children, McKenzie suggests packing activities for the twilight hours before bed, such as capture the flag, fishing poles, card games, charades, art kits, scavenger hunts, and pinecone collections.
McKenzie believes that backpacking builds character and is a confidence-builder for children. She advocates for not putting outdoor adventures on hold while children are babies and has taken all of her children hiking while they were still infants.
As the children grow, McKenzie suggests buying a hiking-specific pack for a child when they are around eight years old. She also recommends borrowing gear from friends or renting from REI and university outdoor programs to minimize costs before fully committing to family backpacking.
Facebook Marketplace can be a good source for affordable backpacking equipment for children. McKenzie notes that backpacking is one of the most powerful ways to connect as a family and remembers family backpacking trips more than other activities.
In summary, careful route planning, packing light with necessary clothing and gear, involving kids in the process, and keeping activities fun and safe are the keys to making a family backpacking trip rewarding for everyone.
- For the Smith family, backpacking trips serve as a means to bond and build confidence, with McKenzie Smith leading half a dozen trips each year with her husband and six children.
- McKenzie advises selecting family-friendly trails, emphasizing considerations of elevation over mileage, and starting with a trail under 2,000 feet in elevation gain for a child's first backpacking experience.
- The Smiths prioritize practicality and comfort in their gear choices, such as opting for a double sleeping pad and backpacking quilts that can be shared among family members.
- During meals, the Smiths utilize cost-friendly options like freeze-dried refried beans, tortillas, instant pudding, and bulk freeze-dried fruit, with the children snacking on homemade trail mix.
- Water sources are critical for both hydration and morale, especially on family-dynamics focused backpacking trips.
- Safety precautions, like avoiding trails with natural hazards, are essential in implanting the character-building and confidence-boosting aspect of backpacking in children while maintaining a family-style, fun, and engaging lifestyle in the home-and-garden environment of the outdoors.
