Overnight hikes with a baby

[Claire]

Been following this forum for a while now and have appreciated all the advice I've received so far! Now I have my own question to post.
I am currently pregnant, due in October, so have not been on an overnight hike since January. I'm starting to really miss it! I just want to get back out there, but at the moment my back couldn't handle carrying the weight, and I don't have as much stamina as I used to!
I was wondering if anyone has done any overnight hikes with a young baby? Maybe it's not even feasible, but I thought I'd see if anyone out there has had experience with this.
I would probably start with normal camping first, to see how to manage a baby without the luxuries of home, and do some day walks. Then work up to a one night short easy hike. I have plenty of willing people to go with to share the extra weight that would need to be carried!
Hope someone has some stories to share.

Claire

[Son of a Beach]

When my brother (a very keen walker) tried this for the first time, he came back and said that it was a LOT harder than initially anticipated, and he would probably never do it again, but would rather camp somewhere where they could do day trips.

I ignored this advice, and have taken our kids on a couple of trips while very young, but found he was right. It ended up being a LOT harder than I was initially expecting.

Thankfully I listened enough to make sure I only did a VERY easy walk. We've now done this same walk with our two kids twice. Some details and photos of the first trip are here. And... The trip report for the second walk is here.

The first time, we had to carry both kids, being only 2 years and 4 months old. This made carrying anything else very difficult. My wife carried both kids in, the eldest on her back, and the youngest on her front. I carried two full packs in. On the way out, we took a child and a pack each. This was back breaking and heart breaking work (and the rain didn't help), even for such a short walk. About 3/4 of the way there, I dropped the packs, and helped the wife with the kids the rest of the way, and then went back for the packs.

The second time, we were aware of the issues, and did it differently. The eldest (then 3) walked all the way, my wife carried the youngest, and I carried just 1 large pack. I then went back to the car for the second large pack. Being a very short walk made the second trip for the second load possible.

The first trip involved a lot more nappies, and such (with both the kids very young), but the second trip required us to take our light weight portable cot, which was quite bulky (and not all that light). For both trips, we stayed in a well equipped hut and did NOT carry tents, stoves, crockery or cutlery. But we still needed double carrying capacity for all the kids and the extra gear kids require. Carrying out 6 kid-days worth of dirty nappies is substantial too.

Baby carrier back packs are VERY uncomfortable after some time. I've tried a few, and they simply cannot be made as comfortable as a normal bushwalking back pack. You will get very sore carrying one for any significant time.

I would recommend doing only an exceptionally short walk (what would normally be a very short day walk), but do it as an overnighter. Allow for two trips for all the extra gear if you're not absolutely certain you can carry it all at once (and so long as there's enough people to stay with the kids!).

IMPORTANT TIP: We planned our walks well ahead of time, and started collecting the Huggies Baby Wipes bags. These are large plastic zip-lock bags, and quite tough. You can fit a LOT of dirty nappies into one of these when you really squash them in.

PS. ONE MORE TIP: My wife's fleece-lined down-filled jacket made an excellent sleeping back for the 4 month old.

[Bill P]

Hi Claire,

Good on you!

My wife & I were full on bushwalkers and when our 1st child arrived we believed and wanted the baby to fit in with us. Somehow. The baby doesnt really care where it is, as long as they are fed & kept warm & dry in the bush. We were strong & fit and experienced but, unfortunately, for us, after some quite valiant attempts overnight hiking proved to be just too hard . In retrospect, our efforts were more about us not wanting to lose something we enjoyed doing, rather than accepting our lives had irrevocably changed. Basecamps are great!

Bill P

[Drifting]

Make sure the trail is flat- their stuff weighs as much as yours, and only one person is going to be carrying it. Also, settling can be a problem- especially if you are tent bound. Base camping is good.

[Son of a Beach]

accepting our lives had irrevocably changed. Basecamps are great!

Well said. I think that's the key. We tend to want to go on doing the things we always did, but have to realise that's no longer possible in all cases. However it doesn't necessarily mean to stop doing things, but maybe the way they are done needs to be different, given the changed circumstances and responsibilities.

"Basecamps are great" would be a good motto for bushwalkers with toddlers!

I'm planning to take my eldest (will be 4 by then) on her first bushwalk in which she walks all the way and sleeps in a tent this summer. She's done a few walks before, including overnighters, and she's slept in a tent before, but has not yet combined the two. So I'm planning to take just her and me on a very short easy overnight walk.

I think we'll aim for Lees Paddocks, but if we don't get that far it doesn't matter. There's plenty of places to stop and camp on the way there. This is probably another good thing to aim for, if you're dead set on doing it. Ie, have a fallback plan, such as making sure there's plenty of alternative places to stop and camp all the way along the track.

[Drifting]

I really enjoyed Pine Huit- with a day walk to the falls up stream. Laura and I were on our own (No Mum Pack-mule), and we had a great, no-stress time.

[Claire]

Thanks for all the advice!
As I thought it is something that will need a lot of planning and preparation, but I am looking forward to sharing the outdoors with my little one when she comes along!

[Liamy77]

well apart from being a slow torture of sleep deprivation we also went on hikes... make sure the baby will always be warm and dry - the backpacks that protect the baby's legs are better when a bit older - we used a baby bjorn sport front carrier when the littleuns were smaller.... but yeah i Completely agree with the basecamp theory

Good luck, have fun and be SAFE

[Nuts]

I have no experience!
I have often pondered the wisdom of carrying the little ones in packs though. I see it now and then up around Cradle/Marions (and once of twice on the Overland Track).
Just cause someone makes a bushwalking branded carrier never really added up to it being a good idea (to me). Seems like almost as dangerous as bike rack carriers!
As much attention as people get carrying littleuns around like this I hear the concerns and comments of others after they have gone. BillP's comment about accepting the constraints seems on the mark, if they dont care (or remember) where theyv'e been then really it seems quite selfish a act?

[Liamy77]

To be honest we didn't have the energy to do it untill our first baby was about 20 months old... and yeah we tended to turn day walks into overnighters and be pretty tame with where we went... The smaller your body - the quicker you lose your body heat too and babies can't regulate their temperatures like an adult so be really careful how, when and where you do it!

[Lizzy]

Hi Claire,
I can understand your anticipation to get back on the trail, but if this is your first bub- your ideas about what you want to do will probably rapidly change. I know I had zero idea of what was to come, and of course it all depends on the personality of the little-un, their health and your health. Don't get me wrong, you may still be keen to get out out there but I know many keen new Mum's- including me, (& Dads) whose priorites suddenly shifted from a good overnight hike to a good nights sleep!!
I definitely agree to try basecamping or even the backyard to get a sense of how you'll all go and what you may need.
Good luck- don't be discouraged but don't be too dissapointed if it doesn't turn out like you think- it'll all happen. We take out 2 young boys canoe camping- that way we can get away from it all without having to lug tonnes of gear & the boys love it!
Cheers
Lizzy

[Son of a Beach]

I guess it's kind of obvious, and implied by posts already, but I just wanted to say it clearly also:

Do a couple of day walks first - not even from a base camp. Just some straight out simple day walks. It will give you some idea of what the walking is like with the baby and just minimal gear for a reasonable length of time. Then you can better imagine doing it will all the overnight gear on top of that.

[zac150]

Hi Claire,

My wife and I were also determined to get back out into the great outdoors after the birth of our daughter, not only to prove the doubters wrong (the "your life is going to change" club) but also for our sanity. We have enjoyed a number of great adventures with our daughter (now 4) ranging from base camping and overnight trips to completing several of the rail trails.

I would agree with most of the posts so far the biggest challenge's with walking with kids are sleep, weight and dealing with poo.

Their is nothing worse than having to walk 15km after a sleepless night, which I guess is why most people are suggesting a base camp. Having said that only you will know your baby (how they sleep) and your body, it is manageable as long as you don't try and bite off too much first time.

The poo issue is easy to overcome, we use 100% biodegradable nappies made from recycled paper and tea leaves, they will actually degrade faster than sorbent toilet paper.

Our biggest issue to overcome was weight, how to carry enough gear for ourselves as well as our daughter. We figured walking was going to be to hard so have done most of our overnight adventures on mountain bikes using a bike trailer.

[Liamy77]

i use a small screw lock caribiner on the tent zip - so they can't get the door open if i am asleep without me... not such an issue at first but once they are mobile... Our son was not a good sleeper!

[kramster]

G'day Claire
My wife and I are in the same vote (our first little'un came along 4 mths ago). At this stage we are thinking of starting with the odd easy family day-walk as others have mentioned above, then some car-camping action over summer when things outside are a little warmer. In order to suffice our (yes, maybe selfish) desires for a bush-fix, we might even enlist the services of ever-willing grandparents to look after bub for a night while we trip off. My first overnigher was when I was 8 yrs old (and we had some 4 year olds on that trip) - so still wondering how soon we can go the whole hog... but it will happen one day!
Cheers
Mark

[sailfish]

"BillP's comment about accepting the constraints seems on the mark, if they dont care (or remember) where theyv'e been then really it seems quite selfish a act?"

My kids are 21 and 18 now and I must disagree with this statement.
The value of an experience is not just about the memory of it. If that were so, there would have been no point visiting my father with dementia or comforting him as he passed away. You may as well just leave babies in their cot, not bothering to pick them up, cuddle them, take them out doors or allow them to play. Doing so would be classed as abusive neglect. It is clear that these early unremembered experiences are vital to a babies and child’s development. They are the formation experiences for inelegance and socialisation etc. How selfish is it then to give kids a rich variety of these formation experiences?


Regards,
Ken

[Nuts]

Good call Ken, you may be stretching it a bit but then I wouldnt know, it was a question probably best left to those who do.

However, that comment I was relating it to the rest of my post (specifically about needing to carry them around in the bush). There was a cover shot on a now defunct outdoor mag of a baby being carried well up a pitched climb, how far do you go?

With the obvious additions that, being a 'baby', its going to Need to be carried on any overnight walk... and also that people break things when they fall... and we all fall at some stage!

[Liamy77]

There are two main issues that i can see...
1) environment: relaxed refreshed happy stimulating development warm nuturing etc.... encompasses the whole "failure to thrive" issue... and peaceful family bonding...etc
2) SAFETY - babies cant sweat or shiver when small! - therefore heat regulation becomes the main issue especially as smaller bodies lose heat faster (large surface area compared to volume ratio). If there is a problem how far away from help are you?
also SLEEP... we had a restless first kid... but our youngest kid was (to us) nearly unbelievable (eg: even has fallen asleep on the front of the 4 wheel bike on the farm) Less sleep = more accidents

I think if you can safely manage the risks and it suits you all it is well worth while.

[sailfish]

Good call Ken, you may be stretching it a bit but then I wouldnt know, it was a question probably best left to those who do.

However, that comment I was relating it to the rest of my post (specifically about needing to carry them around in the bush). There was a cover shot on a now defunct outdoor mag of a baby being carried well up a pitched climb, how far do you go?

With the obvious additions that, being a 'baby', its going to Need to be carried on any overnight walk... and also that people break things when they fall... and we all fall at some stage!

Yes, a slanted response to highlight a point.

We just did some short easy day walks or car camping when the kids were little. Nothing remote.

I think we all suffer mixed motives in just about all things.
Perhaps if we regularly examine why, we won't go too far wrong. There is such a thing as obsession too.
If we are at an extreme of human behaviours, it's probably time to have a real critical look at this.


Ken

[turtle]

One thing I do remember, and I'm still frequently harrassed about 27 years later, is our first camping trip with our son.

It was to a motocross meet and our baby boys first camping adventure.

He cried all night.

The next day accusations were made by other competitors that we had bought along a secret weapon to destroy everyone's sleep and give my husband an unfair advantage.

Base camps are a great idea - but for the first few trips make sure your miles from anyone else.

[colleen50]

I have been reading these old posts and would like to see if this idea is possible. I would like to complete the Maria Island (3 nights) walk in Tasmania around November with my two daughters and one grandchild who will be 10 months. It is a very soft hike (approx. 7klms, 13 klms, 9klms) with food provided at permanent camp sites and one night at a homestead. A baby may not be allowed, but if so, is it doable. We are strong walkers and apart from the baby, we are required to carry very little. Any feedback would be appreciated.

[Son of a Beach]

If walking with any kids who need to be carried, I would strongly recommend against overnight walks that require being more than about 1 hour's adult walk time from the car. This is likely about 3 hours for young kids, and about 1.5 hours for an adult carrying a baby.

This sounds too easy, but you'd be surprised at just how difficult it can be doing this with a baby. I've done it a couple of times, and even when walking to a hut, and not having to carry a tent/stove/crockery/mat/etc it was still MUCH more difficult that I'd expected.

In my experience, and that of everyone else I've known who's done it, the recommendation is that if you really have to go on an overnight bushwalk where you have to carry kids, make sure it's VERY short, and choose one that involves a base camp, rather than camping in more than one location. If you plan it right, and make the walk short enough, it can be enjoyable, but it will still be very hard work.

Make sure you try everything out first too. Ie, start with a day walk, then progress to a ridiculously easy overnight walk. It's not until you do this that you can get a feel for what is reasonable.

[Nuts]

A baby may not be allowed, but if so, is it doable

Easy walking, definitely 'doable', the risk is a personal thing i guess.
Just curious though... a guided walk? They are considering offering to take you with a baby?