Remember the things your dad taught you while you were growing up? Maybe he taught you how to build a table, fix a car, use a pocket knife, skin a deer, play a harmonica or make a mean pancake breakfast. Of all the skills passed down to me, the one I find myself doing exactly the way my dad showed me, is hanging the food bag in the backcountry. Every evening we were out on ...
Backpacking
Backpacking Larison Creek
Our family is very fortunate to have some good friends who are hardy backpackers. One of the most important things I have learned about backpacking motivation is that friends who backpack with children can do a lot to encourage each other to hit the trails. Even outdoorsy folks like myself can lose motivation. There have been summers where the weather was hot, life was busy with the kids ...
Beyond the Hall of Mosses: Backpacking the Hoh River
Growing up with the Olympic National Park in my backyard meant that I spent my childhood getting to know all the local rivers and their hiking trails. The Dungeness, the Greywolf, the Elwha, the Soleduc, the Bogachiel, the Hoh, and the Queets became these living, breathing places that I regard as fondly as old friends. Since having children of my own, I think we've done too ...
Backpacking With Children
I meet a lot of parents who want to take their children backpacking, but aren't quite sure where to begin. Many used to backpack in their pre-parenting days, and decided it would be too complicated with kids along. There's the matter of gear, and then the matter of complaining or unwillingness on the children's part. I always tell them to go for it anyway! I grew up backpacking. When I was six, ...
Backpacking With Babies
I'm sure that many of you outdoor enthusiasts and backpackers can remember the moment you knew you were having a child, or were snuggling with your sweet little baby and had the thought, " What about backpacking?" Personally, I was snuggling with two sweet little babies, so that question was a big one. How will we go backpacking with babies? How will we go with TWO of them? Are my backpacking days ...
Backpacking Trips: Threemile Lake
Last year we were looking for a good backpacking trip to do with some friends of ours, with all our kids ranging in age from 3-7. In my experience, three miles is generally a good rule of thumb for backpacking in a day with young children. This can certainly vary depending on the trail, how old they are and how accustomed they are to backpacking. In very good keeping with this rule, ...