Backpacking with Children

“ever pulled a MT.house packet out to cook and it has a game boy and extra batteries repacked in it.yah!backpacking w/kids is dietetic.
it's not that the food was missing,or that the weight was along---it was in my PACK.”

“I was supposed to take my family backpacking today, but rain and the computer dying stalled things. I'm still on my laptop, but the kids kept crashing the main computer with their games. I didn't want to take the kids out in the rain yet, because I am trying to hook them and reel them in on the backpacking lifestyle.

Anyway, what kinds of things do you do with the kids when it rains for several hours during a backpacking trip? I think someday I would like a big silnylon tarp that we can sit under, play cards and enjoy the scenery without getting soaked. Obviously when it is 90 degrees, getting soaked isn't that bad, but what do you do if it is not summer? I'm sure that it rains at least some of the time on most backpacking trips, so I thought those of you with kids probably have some fun ideas.”

“About the backpacks for kids issue, I found a Kelty Coyote 4500 cu in (torso is 13-19 adj). The salesman showed me how to adjust the torso and shoulder straps. I tried it on my daughter and the waist belt was too big. I asked how it felt to her and she said that it "hurt everywhere". Oh well. I was impressed with the Kelty system for adjusting the torso, etc. But my daughter is not ready for it. Being thin, she may need some thing that has more cushioning. Or maybe she just needs to grow some more. But I think the Coyote is a great pack. Cinches down so that it doesn't look at all like 4500 cu inches. Or maybe it was mismarked and was the 3200 cu inch model.”

“4500 seems like a whole lot for a thirteen year old.”

“Another reason why I love lean-tos. You're out of the weather but not confined to a tent. A tarp can easily be attached to the edge and nearby trees to cover your campsite.”

“My pack is 4200 cu inches, and this Coyote looked much smaller. Either it was mismarked, or you can cinch it down to be much smaller. It didn't look huge on my daughter but wasn't comfortable for her, so I won't be buying it.”

“It wasn't this one was it, Lyndy?

That's a Coyote Jr. It's range is 10-14 in torso.”

“Nope, it was real different looking. The tag said Kelty Coyote 4500. I told the fellow that I was looking for the Coyote 3200 and he said that he'd never seen one of those in the store. They just had a Kelty rep show the staff how to adjust the pack the day before I got there. Before that, he didn't know that you could undo the velcro near the backpad and slide the pack down closer to the hipbelt, and then adjust the shoulder straps down, to shorten the torso. But the pack, if it is 4500 cu inches, cinches down nice, because it really didn't look unwieldy. Regardless, she didn't like it, so I'll wait. The truth is that my kids may not like much of anything until they decide that they like backpacking, which might be never. Sometimes I get very frustrated at how inflexible they can be.”

“Well Lyndy, you can always resort to the tactic my mom used: forcing them. She had to spank me to get me to learn to ride a bike.

Seriously though, if they don't want to do it, making them probably won't help any. Are we talking teens here?”

“Nah, they are 7 1/2 and 9 1/2, but very strong willed. So I can make them go and hope that they grow to love it, but who knows.”

“If you need to, you can replace the hipbelt with a smaller one. When G00SE was shopping for the one he has now he found one that fit perfectly everywhere but the hipbelt was too big. They switched it for a smaller hipbelt there at the store before he bought it. If you find yourself in a similar situation with your daughter you might consider asking them to do that.


Also, understand that you may never find a backpack that they are happy with until after they've been backpacking long enough to know what they want. The best you can do is make sure it fits and is comfortable and then if they stick with it long enough maybe upgrade them.”

“Soooo, Scully, by the way, is GOOSE a different person from Father Goose?”

“I bought one of those dial a game things for bad weather. It has checkers, chess, backgammon and 3 other games on it. It's pretty small and light, but I used it more at home with my nephews than I ever did out in the woods.”

“Yes LyndyS, they are indeed 2 different people.”

“I finally found a Long Trail Jr. I had been watching Ebay for a couple months with no luck - but now REI has re-introduced the pack. It is listed at a couple ounces heavier than the old model - they added an extra pocket. I received it in the mail a couple days ago - my 7 year old daughter really likes it - it fits her very well.
REI also has another slightly larger pack called the Long Trail Scout - aimed at kids around 10 to 12 maybe ?


http://www.rei.com/cgi-bin/rei/searchc.pl?cat=11549370&query=backpack&text=1&noheader=1&stat=7585”

“Thanks. I plan on taking my 12 y/o son on a trip this fall and have been looking for a pack. This should help. I would take my 8 y/o daughter, but she has a tendency to lose interest too quickly. If she were to get bored, I am afraid she would relentlessly abrade her brother.”

“That thing is cool. I bought Newergirl a little mini Jansport daypack, just like Mama's school pack. She looks so cute w/ it on.”

“My 10 year old uses a Kelty Yukon, which is a nice adjustable pack for kids in the 10-13 range:

Yukon 3200”

“Here's a better link thingie:

Yukon on sale at Campmor”

“gearjunkie

That Yukon looks like a great pack. How long has he/she had it. Has it been used yet ?”

“One of the boys in our boyscout troop had one of those Yukons and he loved it. I got to looking it over and decided to go buy the adult version, the Kely Trekker. I love mine. A couple of the other boys in the troop were able to talk their parents into getting them Yukons also. They're pretty versatile.”

“Hangman,
My son has had the pack since Christmas. We used it on one 3 day trip and a bunch of overnighters.

It is also a popular pack with the local boyscout troop.

For pictures of the pack in action, click on my profile and check the webshots page ("home page").”

“gearjunkie - incredable photos - thanks for sharing them”

“GJ - those are great pics of what looked like a great trip to Alaska.

My oldest son (12) has been going on pack trips with me since he was 8. Started with a REI Long Trail Jr. and now uses a Peak 1 internal of some type (4200cu) - he loves it. He'll probably get whaterver Gregory pack he wants when he makes Eagle Scout(Star now). He's goin to Alaska with his grandparents to salmon fish for his 13th Bday in Aug. I'm jealous.

My younger son (4.5) will use the REI pack as soon as it fits him. Starting next year he gets to go anyway, probably with just a fanny or day pack.”

“That looks like a great pack for a starter. I’ve been looking for some gear for my daughter who has been asking me to take her on an overnighter. She's 12 and enjoys day hiking and car camping, and wants to take it another step. I find her reading my old backpacker magazines. I think she’s going to get it.”

“Anyone know of a backpack suitable for a real young kid (5 yr old, ~45 lbs.)? I'll be taking my 2 oldest daughters out and want the little one to carry a little bit (not much more than her sleeping bag) but was looking for something better than her Barbie school pack.”

“Violin - I was looking at some rucksacks (bookbag, schoolbag ?) at Gander Mountain while I was trying to find the Longtrail Jr. A few of them have waistbelts and lash straps on the bottom - I didn't have the kids along, but I kinda measured them and they might be about right for a 5 year old.”

“http://www.campmor.com/webapp/commerce/command/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=9169&prmenbr=226


i think i'm gonna get my 10 yr old this pack. it inexpensive , light & has lots of room. he'll be stylin up there in wyoming.”

“Stratdewd, that is the pack that I use. It is not bad if you don't overload it. I fold my thermarest in half lengthwise, and then a couple of times to make a flat rectangle about 10" X 15" and put it up against my back in the pack. That seems to make it more comfortable.”

“The REI/Kelty Long Trail Jr backpack that I just bought for my 7 year old daughter was listed at 3# 7 oz. I weighed it on two different postal scales at 2#13 oz. Why doesn't the manufactuer list the true weight? I have seen this before on other stuff - but usually things are heavier than what the manufactuer claims.”