The best mountain with children– Until about 3 years we can still bring the kids with a backpack baby carrier but from that age are many times. When we surrender unable to motivate them to walk more than a few meters so many times we throw in the towel and we resign ourselves to spending the field days without excursions. We say to ourselves we will go up the best mountain to burn calories when the children are bigger.
That’s not funny. To paraphrase a great movie: we have seen things you would never believe; families with children of 8 years making excursions in shelters located more than 2,000 meters high … in the French Pyrenees. As we start from the basis that we are no more than anyone else. We think that this is another proof that taste. And respect for nature is something that we can implicitly and naturally transmit to our children. Like so many things. Or what is the same as the movement is demonstrated … walking.
A recommended recommendation is that you do with Mountaineering with children a book of desnivel, the publisher of the magazine of the same name. And one of the websites of reference respect for everything related to the enjoyment of the best mountain and the natural environment. Its authors Jekaterina Nikitina and Víctor Riverola are the parents of two passionate creatures of hiking, climbing . And skiing through this book share a world of really practical advice. And recommendations when it comes to enjoying the best mountain with our children of any age and time of year.
Mountaineering with children
To know more and in good ink we have asked for the opinion of those who know so they can tell us how they put it. In this guest post they write and where they also contribute their photographs. They share their experience with all of us and they provide us with some recommendations. And some other trick that will come to us but very well.
SOME RECOMMENDATIONS TO ENJOY THE BEST MOUNTAIN WITH OUR CHILDREN
A couple from Barcelona who have been mountaineering for many years. For a long time we lived thinking only of the next weekend’s outings to the mountains or the ascents. And crossings that we would carry out during the next holidays. And dreaming of climbing great mountains: the McKinley, the Aconcagua, the Pamir mountains, a eight thousand…
Little by little we were also harboring the idea of having children. When our first child was born we realized that there is no mountain that can be compared to having your newborn baby in his arms, to see him grow. And to guide and accompany him in his life.
The birth of your children changes your vision of life and places you many times in the dilemma of choosing between dedicating yourself to them. Or continuing along the same path you used. For us there was no doubt. Raising them does not mean, however, that we should give up everything for our children. We just had to change the way to go to the mountain .
We forgot for some time the peaks of the Pyrenees, Alps and Andes, and began to explore the mountains and valleys closer. At first we carried them on our backs, in backpacks and in arms, but soon the children wanted to go also walking there where we were going. Climbing a 300-meter mountain or hiking a PR trail was an authentic odyssey. Many times we returned home with pockets full of stones and sticks without having reached anywhere.
However, the children were happy and eager to return to the mountain soon to walk, to eat lunch box, to drink from a canteen. And rest on the grass, to run down the slope, to pick up stones and sticks, to make trips through the high mountain bivouacking in store away from the hand of God, to take photos and see them on the computer. Little by little our older children have been surpassing each other and reaching higher peaks and dreaming with getting higher still.
We have never intended to manufacture elite climbers but to transmit to our children a taste for the mountains, to teach our children to enjoy the contemplation of a landscape, to discover the beauty of mountains, forests, rivers. And fauna wild, to strive to achieve our goals, to feel the joy and satisfaction for the effort made to reach the top of the best mountain.
In addition to the healthy value of outdoor physical activity, hiking stimulates the capacity for improvement, promotes knowledge of one’s own limits, increases physical and mental resistance. And develops our knowledge, love and respect for the land in which we live. The best mountain is undoubtedly a magnificent educational resource. But how do we get our children to like the mountain?
Children a taste for the mountains is to be with them and to do it with them . And we have to start as soon as possible better. And since they are 3-4 months old we can take them in a backpack to feel the sun, the wind. The murmur of the torrents, the crunch of the leaves trodden on, our breath panting.
For children, going out to the best mountains must be fun and enjoyable first of all. We have to plan outings thinking about their needs and capabilities and not our desire to make important summits.
One of the biggest incentives for children to go mountain is to go with other children. When they go with their friends, fatigue disappears, friendship grows stronger. And their autonomy increases. Having mountaineering friends with children or joining a mountain club that makes family outings is a very valuable resource.
For those who want to start hiking there are a series of basic requirements that we have to fulfill so that a trip to the best mountains with children does not become a hell.
In the first place, to go out with children must be a meteorologic ally optimal day and we have to be well informed of the weather forecast, as the weather can change rapidly. Especially in the high mountains. If there is not a good forecast we can return the following week. The best mountains will not move from their place. An exit with cold, rain, strong winds or snow can be excruciating for children and make them want to go back. When they are older they will learn to enjoy the mountain in winter conditions.
Secondly, we have to leave properly equipped: appropriate clothing and footwear, spare clothes, water and enough food, maps, reviews and compass or GPS. The children grow and immediately everything is small: the boots, the trekking pants, the anoraks, etc. However, today we can find suitable equipment for them at acceptable prices in a well-known sports equipment chain, whose name starts with D.
There are also more publications and mountain guides for families with children. Which show appropriate itineraries for all ages. A visit to Altair will provide us with a lot of information. Also on the Internet we will find forums in which to exchange impressions with other mountain families. And itinerary reviews that may be suitable for children.
It is also important not to set objectives above the possibilities of our children. It is difficult to give general rules about what type of ascension is appropriate based on age. In fact, our older children have climbed the same mountains 2 years apart. Based on our experience, we think that the excursions of up to 300 m of altitude. Which represent an ascent of 1h – 1h 30min are suitable for all children aged 4 – 7 years. Those that suppose of 400 to 700 ms of unevenness are apt for children of 7 – 10 years or minors very walkers. Whereas those of more than 700 ms of unevenness and at least 3 hours of ascent are Suitable only for children over 10 years old or younger, very walkers.
One recommendation that is timely to remember is always to leave early. On the best mountain you have to get up early. If we start the ascent early, we will be lighter to climb with the cool of the morning. We will have plenty of time to walk relaxed and enjoy the route. And we will have room for maneuver before any unforeseen. In the mountains we will never regret having left early. But almost always having done it late.
Finally, we must bear in mind that the best mountain is not the park. If we do not follow the rules we can be injured, injured or worse. We must also know that in many places there is no mobile phone coverage and help. If we need it, may take some time to arrive. In the places exposed or with some danger we will have to be attentive to the movements of our children, to guide them. And if it is necessary to help them. With good planning, careful observation of our children, prudence and common sense we will enjoy wonderful days in the mountains. Our children will be and will do what they decide and choose. Surely they will not be mountaineers. But the best mountain will leave in its character an indelible mark.
