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Sunshine has gone on sporadic hikes since she was about 2, but it wasn’t a regular occurrence until this past year.
Last spring when we started going on regular hikes, River was riding in the jogger. That didn’t last too long though, as he decided he needed to be hiking alongside Sunshine and I. So he’s been hiking regularly since before he turned 3.
Ocean is starting even younger. He’s been riding along on my back in the Boba carrier all this time, but he’s such an active little boy that I decided it was time to start letting him walk a bit during our hikes. My original idea was to let him walk for a bit at the beginning, then put him on my back for the rest of the hike. After our first experience, I decided to move his walking time to the end of our hikes.
Ocean loved walking with the big kids. But, as I expected might happen, he wanted to stop to pick up all the sticks (he loves his sticks). And then he wanted to wander off the path. And then he wanted to sit and scratch in the dirt with his stick.
Since I anticipated all those things (or similar) happening, I was prepared for us to move very slowly. The problem arose when I decided to put him in the carrier because Sunshine and River wanted to go faster. In all honesty, so did I, since it was cold and windy. Ocean did not want to go in the carrier- he was having too much fun. Letting him walk the final stretch to the car might alleviate some of those problems.
On our second attempt I let him walk at the end of our hike. While it meant waking him up since he fell asleep about 3 minutes before it was time for him to walk, he actually did quite well.
He still wanted to pick up all the sticks and play in the dirt, but he did a slightly better job staying on the path. River came back and held Ocean’s hand for a bit, which also helped him stay on task a bit better.
I’ll gradually let him walk longer and longer stretches of the trail, but he’s just over 20 months old, so we’re not in a big rush.
We started with hiking because it doesn’t require much equipment, but we’re getting ready to add bike rides into the mix, and possibly kayaking. The bike rides need a bit more prep though, as my bike needs a tuneup and the bike trailer tires need to be checked out. Neither have been used for several years and have suffered a bit from the neglect. Before we go kayaking we need to buy kayaks, paddles, and life jackets before we can go kayaking- so quite a bit more to be done there.
Starting to participate in adventures at a young age helps build healthy habits of exercise and increases endurance. I think it also fosters both a love of nature and family relationships. It does take more effort on our part as parents, but the benefits far outweigh the hassles.
Which activities have your children participated in from a young age?
