Hiking with kids doesn’t have to be daunting or intimidating. It doesn’t require fancy gear or long miles. All you need to do to get started is step outside your front door with the purpose of having fun and a sense of adventure. Today, we have Maggie (Nimo), active mom of two from Sydney, Australia here sharing how her family got started hiking by going on local neighborhood excursions. She walks you through everything you need to know about neighborhood hiking with kids and how to start your own family tradition.
Benefits of hiking with kids
Hiking is not only fun, but it has many health benefits for kids and adults. Hiking is a great way to get kids outdoors and is a fun way to get them to love nature and foster their curiosity about the world around them.
When most people think of hiking, they think of an expedition that involves fancy gear from The Northface, hiking poles and a hydrating Camelbak with a straw into your mouth. While these kinds of hikes can lead you to some amazing places, they are not always possible to undertake with small children. However, hiking doesn’t have to be so intense. Kids can get outside and hike in their own neighborhoods!
The start of neighborhood hiking
When my son was only 20 months, I fell pregnant with my second child. I had such bad morning sickness that I spent most of my days laying on the floor, the TV on and my son entertaining himself around me. When my husband would come home from work, we would go for a walk to get some fresh air. This was the beginning of our neighborhood hiking adventures.
In the beginning, we needed to carry my son most of the time we were hiking, but in no time, he was covering the distance all by himself! That was 3 years ago. Today, he is an avid hiker and is always encouraging his little sister not to give up.
Neighborhood hiking with kids
Our hikes have since advanced from our neighborhood to National parks, but we still make time to walk around the neighborhood a few times a week. Most of our neighborhoods are rich with interesting things to make a group of children excited enough to get outside. If you want to get your little ones hiking around your neighborhood, here is where to start.
1. Start a weekly tradition
Pick a day (or multiple days) in a week and call it “family hiking day.” Pick a time that suits the whole family, when the kids are not too tired or hungry. Also, make sure you are not in a hurry so the kids can explore. Our hikes usually happen in the evening, after dinner. This is a time when my husband and I are not rushed, the kids are full and they have that pre-bedtime surge of energy.
2. Make it exciting
Make a big deal of your neighborhood hikes and show them you’re excited about going. Help them pack a little bag with items for the hike (my kid’s bags contain water, a magnifying glass, a neighborhood map printed off Google maps and a headlamp for winter walks). Our hikes are known as excursions by the kids and we have reached a point where they usually choose which direction to take.
3. Find interesting things in your neighborhood to mark your destination
When we first started hiking and our son was small, our excursion used to take us to a neighborhood cat. When he became comfortable with that distance, we discovered a friendly dog that was a little bit further and this became our destination. We have since discovered other interesting things around the neighborhood and we choose to hike to those destinations. This gives the kids a goal and helps set their expectations.
Some of our other destinations are a large tree with all sorts of interesting insects to watch. There’s a large rock where we practice our climbing technique and a local dog park where we have made friends. Sometimes we hike to a construction site so the kids can see the diggers and tractors. Most recently, a local community garden has become a favorite spot for my 2-year-old daughter because she gets to feed all my lettuce to the chickens. Kids find interest in so many things that adults tend to overlook. Use your neighborhood hike to discover things in a whole new way.
4. Find friends to hike with
There is strength in numbers. This could not be truer when it comes to toddlers and pre-schoolers. During our walks, I usually notice that my kids cover way more distance when we bring friends along. I like to ask other mothers in the neighborhood and their kids to join us on our hike. I find that the children get so busy with each other that they rarely ever ask to be carried or complain about the distance.
5. Don’t worry too much about the destination
Yes, I mentioned that having a destination helps keep kids motivated, but make sure you allow them to explore. Toddlers and pre-schoolers get distracted very easily. Sometimes, a rock or tree will catch their attention and they’ll want to stop to explore or play. You can try to gently encourage them to keep walking, but don’t force them or get impatient with them. This will only make you frustrated and discourage them from trying the walk again.
If it so happens that a child stops and refuses to move on, then stay there! Let the kids explore whatever they find interesting until they’re satisfied. If after a while they still don’t want to move on, turn around and go home, and try again another time.
6. Don’t combine the hike with a task
Neighborhood hikes should not be the time when you plan to stop at the grocery store and pick up a gallon of milk. Separate “tasks” from “hikes.” These neighborhood hikes are meant to get your kid outside and into nature and eventually increase the child’s stamina and endurance. If you tie it to a task, you shift the focus to your needs and it then becomes impossible to move at the child’s pace. Remember, these child-friendly hikes should be led by them, so don’t rush them.
7. Safety first
As always, when hiking, safety is high on the list. Put down some basic rules that are easy for the kids to follow. Our rules are:
- No running too far ahead of the parents
- When asked, you must stop
- All children must hold an accompanying adult’s hand when crossing a street
We also try to avoid main roads, as its more peaceful and less polluted. We always repeat our rules before leaving the house. If any child is struggling with following them after a few reminders, that child goes back home with one of the adults. I have had to do this to show the kids just how important it is to follow the rules. I’m happy to report that, my 4-year-old son knows them and follows them quite well. My 2-year-old has not gotten the grasp yet, but I am confident she will get there.
8. Leave the gadgets at home
When we do neighborhood hikes, we make sure to stay off our phones. However, one adult usually carries a phone with them for emergencies and safety reasons, but it stays hidden in a backpack or pocket and is not to be used. Our hikes are a time to connect as a family. You never know when a pre-schooler is going to hold your hand and tell you about their day. If you are distracted by your phone, they may move on to something else and you’ll miss out on an important piece of your child’s day. Our neighborhood hikes usually last around 45 minutes, and everything else can wait.
9. Don’t forget to have fun!
The main purpose of our neighborhood hikes is to explore, exercise, and, most importantly, have fun. Use your imagination on your hike and pretend to hunt for dinosaurs or escape from crocodiles. Let the kids’ imagination take them places like the jungle or desert, and go along with them. You will be in for quite an adventure.
Start your own tradition of neighborhood hiking
If you want to get outdoors more with your family but find life getting in the way, neighborhood hiking is a great place to start. Getting out the door and into your local neighborhood is the perfect way to start adventuring more with the kids. Before you know it, you will be online ordering that fancy gear from the Northface, ready for a hike off a beaten track! We hope to run into you out there. Happy hiking everyone!
About the author
I am Maggie (Nimo). I’m originally from Kenya but lived in the U.S. for over 10 years. While living in Pittsburgh, I met and married a Slovakian man. We decided to move to warmer weather, initially thinking California, but we kept moving and ended up in Sydney Australia. We now call Australia home and when we are not busy working, we like to get out and hike, camp and travel with our children ages 2 and 4.
You can find more of their family’s adventures in the following locations:
Instagram – @babystepslongstrides
Website – http://babystepslongstrides.com/