Hiking families are made, not born.
I try to remember this every time a fun family outing turns into a hiking fail. If there’s a lake or river, my kids will eventually fall in it and have to walk the rest of the way soaking wet or half-naked. We’ve run out of food and water long before reaching the mountain hut because my youngest was walking so slow, picking flowers. We’ve been caught in surprise lightning rain storms without our jackets. One time we missed the last chair lift down and had to hike another hour down the mountain when we were all exhausted. We’ve been chased by cows. I’ve built countless rock piles after toilet emergencies in the forest. My kids have thrown tantrums mid-trail and refused to continue walking when they were much too big to carry, but we carried them anyway. We gotten sick on the trail, nursing headaches, cleaning up vomit, sanitizing wounds. And still, we keep hiking.
Hiking is the best thing that ever happened to our family. Without hiking, I don’t know how I would survived all those seemingly never-ending weekends with little kids that got up early, rarely napped, and wanted my attention every minute. On the trail, suddenly the whole world was their playground and we were doing something we both enjoyed.
I quickly realized that I’d much rather be having an outdoor adventure with my family and dealing with the occasional meltdown out there, than at some noisy “family” amusement center, or same old neighborhood playground, or worse, stuck at home, trying to entertain my kids all day. The days go by much faster on the trail than in our living room.
Our family is also much more connected on the trail. Without the distractions of screens, toys, social networks, work, schedules, etc., we suddenly talked more, having such good conversations, between parent and child, between siblings, between partners, between friends. With all that time just walking, my kids started telling me stories that no one had time for in our busy lives at home. Hiking gives us the time to focus on each other.
Of course, I had to learn some new tricks to survive these hiking excursions. If my kids were tired or fussy, I’d strap them on my back or in the stroller and just walk and walk until they fell asleep. When they got too big to carry, we chose short trails with playgrounds or animals or rivers for rock throwing and always made an exit plan for the inevitable breakdown. When they got older, we brought friends, which made them competitive so they walked faster, trying to beat each other to the end. We learned a lot, but still make mistakes.
Somewhere along the way, my kids learned to love hiking. That doesn’t mean they always want to go or that they never complain. They complain a lot, mostly when I wake them up early on Saturday for the long drive to the mountains (I try to appease them with pastries and hot cocoa). But it’s kinda like learning to love vegetables. Broccoli will never be cotton candy, not even close. But once you learn to like broccoli, it can be very satisfying and tasty if you prepare it the right way. Hiking is similar. It can be unpleasant and frustrating at times. But sometimes it’s fantastic, just what you need and makes you feel really good. My kids don’t love vegetables yet, but hiking, they get.
I also keep reminding myself that hiking teaches children all sorts of life skills, like working hard to achieve a goal, enduring the elements, overcoming discomfort, being flexible when things don’t go as planned, and the delight of making your own fun instead of simply being entertained. I hope my kids are learning these lessons, but I’ll probably never know. So I just keep taking them hiking, hoping that something good happens along the way and that we make a few memories to savor for when I’m too worn out to join them anymore.
Need trail ideas? See 10 Theme Trails to Motivate Lazy Kids
One Response
So this is what the rock piles in the mountains are all about ;-)))
I admire your family for consistently planning and doing new hikes! Great that your kids have friends to join them.
Should they ever apply for Swiss citizenship their future army supervisors will LOVE them for their spirit and outdoor skills!