Hiking with my 3 year old

[sbossom]

As a father and outdoor enthusiast I love passing on my interests to my little one.

We had a fun memorial day. My wife and I have been prepping our 3 year old to do difficult and tasking hikes since she could walk. Ive had a personal goal of seeing if she can climb a 14er as a 3 year old. She has totally grasped that idea, always wanting to climb a "big" mountain. This of course is not common. I insist she may only climb if she walks the whole way herself and carries her own pack. (we got her her own miniature kids pack, with a bladder etc. and she carries her own rain gear, lunch, snacks, etc.)

So this weekend we drove out to camp for a night and to try an attempt at a relatively mild 14er. (mount Sherman) I unfortunately and somewhat by mistake chose to camp at turquoise lake.. which meant we had access to the western slopes which is a class 2 climb instead of the eastern slope which is a class 1 climb. On top of the more difficult climb there was quite a bit more snow on the western slopes.

So we still decided to make an attempt. And both my wife and little gal champed it (it was my wife's first 14er as well)

So we get all the way up to the final ridge about 13900 and by this point you can really only go a few steps without taking a moment to catch your breath. Under any normal circumstance we could have taken a short breather and then finished the last little stretch to the summit (it was barely noon). However, a big snow storm started moving into the summit and the only wise choice was for us to turn back down.

Thankfully my wife was still able to jaunt up to the summit and conquer her first 14er! But my poor little girl had to turn around with me. So as we walked back down, other hikers (some of which hadn't even made it as far as this three year old) were applauding, some literally bowing to her as she descended... All the while she choked back tears knowing how close she was. It was my proudest... saddest moment as a father to date. The attached picture is how close she made it.

[cbmurtagh]

Hey this is awesome and I love seeing this on here rather than arguments between people who have way too much time on their hands. Great job to you all, and better luck with the weather next time!

I have a 7 month old that I can't wait to get on the mountains with me. Anyone have any tips on what to start with when getting your children into the hiking/camping? Everything we have done so far I just carry him in the pack, trying to get some ideas on how and when to transition as he starts walking.

[sbossom]

That's great! Once our little one was old enough to walk on her own, we made a big effort to start doing relatively easy walks on local trails with her. always stopping for her to pick up rocks, look at bugs and flowers (occasionally illigally picking one.. i know.. tisk tisk), etc. All the small things that tend to bore us as adults are great at captivating a toddler. Once she could walk, we always tried to maintain a "no carry" policy, essentially only carrying her in much longer hikes when we wanted to go further than could be expected from her. Then we started adding in some elevation gain, small hikes up green mountain and around the flat irons were GREAT for this. Eventually once she had gotten good at the lower elevation trails, and slight elevation gain, we went out to hanging lake. This is about 1000 feet of elevation gain over 1.2 miles. So it's a great entry to steeper elevation gain... and it has a lovely view at the top.

[Scott P]

Anyone have any tips on what to start with when getting your children into the hiking/camping?

Here are a few tips:

https://www.summitpost.org/hiking-and-c ... ren/192264

[CHWitte]

Great post! Taking a 3 year old is fantastic!

My brother wrote an entire chapter in our book Surviving the Colorado 14ers: A Family's Journey from Quandary to Capitol about taking kids on 14ers including topics such as when they are ready, food/water, motivating, and when to turn around. His youngest was 4 years old on his first 14er. His kids are now hiking them in both summer and winter every year. Good times with family.