Comments on: Happier Trails: Hiking With Kids

By: Anyone know of any good Hiking/Camping trails in Florida? | Camping Tours

Anyone know of any good Hiking/Camping trails in Florida? | Camping Tours — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 00:03:13 +0000

[...] Happy Trails: Hiking With Kids | Five Hens [...]

By: Healthy Hen

Healthy Hen — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 01:59:35 +0000

Hey Painted Hen! We love to hike with our little ones and two of our best motivations for moving them along have involved activities like you mention. Our favorites are a treasure hunt on the trail with little wrapped candies or a game of hide and seek (of course the Rooster or I run ahead and “hide” while they look for us)! Thanks for your tips. Healthy Hen

By: Painted Hen

Painted Hen — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 00:53:28 +0000

Excellent ideas Natalie! Trekking poles would definitely help us on the uphills. A magnifying glass and pocket guide are small, lightweight items that would be easy to take along. Thanks!

By: Natalie

Natalie — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 22:55:03 +0000

Great tips…let me know when you find that perfect downhill trail!! Until then, we have had great success with our 6 year old using kid size Leki trekking poles (they serve double duty for snowshoeing too), especially on the more challenging uphill hikes.
Our kids also always carry a magnifying lens in their packs which come in very handy when we come across a cool anthill or roly poly.
We’ve recently added a new item to our goodies…a pocket guide to mammal tracks. Another good use for those magnifying lenses and a great way to get them measuring and comparing ( it’s got a little ruler printed up one side so that you can measure any footprints you come across).
Our good old standby to get our kids to walk that final stretch to the car (other than sniffing Ponderosa Pines…we find some are vanilla & some are butterscotch, count how many of each you find) is to play I Spy. That usually buys us at least twenty more minutes and keeps them from asking to be carried.
Our mantra when hiking with our little guys is ALWAYS go slow and take lots & lots of snack/water breaks and NEVER plan on making it all the way to the top…that way no one is dissapointed if you don’t get there, and it sure is an awesome treat when you do!