Once you have taken care of the footwear, it’s time to turn to the rest of your body. Today’s hiking clothes feature all kinds of terrific, hi-tech, lightweight fabrics that keep you warm on cold days and cooler on hot ones, that magically wick moisture away from your skin, resist getting smelly, and even have built-in bug repellent. Buying everything new would be prohibitively expensive, so focus first on investing in a pair of the new, decadently cushy, wool-blend socks and one of those nifty new undershirts that wick sweat away and are very comfortable. Once you are convinced of the benefits of the new clothing, turn to buying hiking shirts and pants that are made of a thin but remarkably tough nylon-blend fabric that stops the wind and dries extremely quickly.
As with clothing, almost every other piece of backpacking equipment has recently undergone design upgrades and changes in materials to make it noticeably lighter, stronger, and easier to use. Tents are now wonderfully light and easier to put up. Packs are better designed to fit your body. Sleeping pads are impressively cushy and comfortable. Sleeping bags fit better, last longer, and are much warmer. So if you are not satisfied with your current gear, head for the nearest sporting goods store, check out the product ratings in the hiking magazines, and do a little shopping. Your top priorities should be a comfortable pack and a lightweight tent.
Also, be sure to obtain a water filter or other modern method of water purification. Unfortunately, you can no longer drink untreated water out of most backcountry creeks and lakes, even if they look clear and pure. Nasty microorganisms live there and, believe me, you really don’t want to ingest them.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s outdoor equipment manufacturers had one of those “Well, duh!” sort of epiphanies when they noticed, apparently for the first time, that men and women are different. This belated discovery has dramatically improved life for female backpackers, who were previously forced to use smaller versions of equipment designed for men. But today, women have a wide array of clothing, sleeping bags, packs, and accessories that are specifically designed to fit their body shape and unique needs. So if it has been several years since those of you proudly sporting two “X” chromosomes have been backpacking, you might want to look into upgrading your equipment. The added comfort and utility of the new female-oriented gear may make the cost worthwhile.
Introducing Your Kids to Backpacking
By the time I turned 12 years old, I had been going on dayhikes and family car-camping trips for well over half my life. Then, just as I was starting to get the hang of things, my father decided to up the ante and take me backpacking. Gallons of blood donated to thick clouds of mosquitoes turned that first trip into an unmitigated disaster, but youthful enthusiasm overrode good sense, and I was happily backpacking again the next weekend. Apparently, when you find the right mix of an active young mind and the wonders of nature, it is an irresistible (and a wonderful) combination.
Even though it requires considerably more work and planning, few things in life are more gratifying or enjoyable than taking a kid backpacking. One big reason for this is that children have the unique capacity to renew your appreciation of the outdoors. No matter how commonplace and mundane things may be to you, everything is new and interesting to a child. The list of wonders includes all kinds of “little” things—mushrooms, old pine cones, tadpoles, fern fronds, discarded feathers—that adults no longer appreciate or even notice. In fact, it is downright humbling to see how much a child “notices,” and the feeling is only slightly reduced by the realization that children possess a natural height advantage when it comes to seeing things that are close to the ground.
Although backpacking with a child may be fun for the adult, it is even better for the kid. Today, when American children spend, on average, more than 6 hours a day (!) staring at some kind of electronic screen, and where even summer “camp” is more likely to be a computer camp than one where a kid can actually get outdoors, it is vital that we reintroduce our children to nature. A growing body of evidence indicates that regular contact with the outdoors is a natural antidote for attention deficit disorder, depression, and obesity, and is generally crucial for a child’s overall mental and physical development. What better way to fill that need than to take them to a place where electronic screens simply aren’t an option, and where they can explore a world filled with newts and flowers, pine cones and toads, and countless other real-world wonders?
To ensure that the backpacking experience is a great one (for both young and old), here are a few tips and guidelines to keep in mind:
Despite everything you will read elsewhere (including in this introduction), when backpacking with young children, leave the teensy-ultralight-supposedly-for-two-people-but-only-if-they-are-on-their-honeymoon tent at home and pack along a nice roomy shelter.
Don’t forget that children, much more than adults, need a few comforts of home. Packing along that favorite blankie, stuffed animal, or bedtime storybook may be essential to everyone getting a good night’s sleep.
Remember that young bodies are less tolerant of weather extremes than older ones. Precautions such as protection from the sun, drinking plenty of water, and bundling up for the cold, for example, are all much more important for children than adults.
Recognize that your kids, especially preteens, will get dirty—probably downright filthy, in fact. Live with it. Don’t bother to scrub them clean every time you see them. A dirty kid usually means they are having fun.
If your kids are too young to recognize natural dangers (poison oak, steep drop-offs, anthills, or the like) then you will need to physically block these off or post a watch among the adults.
A little entertainment makes a big difference. In the evening, kids love the idea of having a headlamp (for some reason it’s really cool), so bring along one for every member of the party. Bring simple games to keep everyone entertained in the evening. Playing cards, “pick-up sticks,” and small board games all work well. Finally, don’t forget to brush up on your storytelling. It is still the best way to spend an evening with kids in the outdoors.
Don’t forget to bring snacks. Lots of ’em.
Be thoroughly familiar with child first aid, and recheck your first aid kit to ensure that it contains children’s aspirin, lots of bandages (often great for psychological comfort even when the child isn’t really hurt), and tweezers for removing splinters.
Consider bringing along the child’s best young human friend, or even their whole family. It may not fit with your idea of solitude in the wilderness, but kids usually love having a playmate while exploring the outdoors.
How much leeway and independence you give your child depends on their age and responsibility level. You have to be able to trust that the youngster will follow instructions and not stray too far from camp when searching for huckleberries, chasing a squirrel, or some other equally distracting activity. To help combat this problem, all younger children should carry a whistle, preferably on a necklace, which they have been instructed to blow if (and only if) they become lost and need to be found.
Your choice of backpacking location is especially crucial when traveling with young hikers. Unlike adults, children are rarely impressed by great views and invariably complain about steep climbs. (To be fair, we adults often complain about steep climbs as well.) This book includes dozens of backpacking trips that are especially well suited to children. Identified both in the summary chart on pp. xii–xiii and by icons on the first page of the individual hike, these trips are relatively short, involve less elevation gain, and include plenty of the things that youngsters love—splashing creeks, wildlife, berries, lakes to explore, and the like.
An excellent time to schedule a backpacking trip with kids, especially into the Cascade Mountains, is late August. This is huckleberry season, when children (and adults) can stuff themselves with handfuls of the delicious berries. In fact, one measure of the success of a hike at this time of year is how purple one’s fingers and tongue are by day’s end. In addition, the mosquitoes are usually gone by this time, and the mountain lakes remain warm enough for a reasonably comfortable swim. Finally, your trip will take place just before kids go back to school, so they will have impressive stories to tell when their teacher asks the