Witness the three year old. Fiercely independent yet requires assistance, talks nonstop, highly opinionated, emotionally volatile… still quite cute.
Thus far hiking with a three year old is a challenging in-between zone. We can still carry him in the pack, but he’s heavy.
He wants to get out and hike, but can’t go far.
This has led us to shorter hikes in the 4-6 mile range and more outdoor adventures that emphasize hanging and playing in beautiful spots over racking up miles.
We are still carrying West in the Osprey Poco Plus for the majority of our hikes. It is heavy, but possible. I definitely appreciate the snack breaks more than I used to for taking a breather. (Check out our updated review!)
Regardless, for us, it is summer in the Colorado Rockies, and that is glorious. Below is our setup for hiking with a three year old.
- The Osprey Poco Plus. As I mentioned this is still our go to, but I can tell we are getting close to maxing it out on weight and West’s height, which makes it harder and harder to buckle the shoulder straps. We still love this pack though. It has served us well for hundreds of miles on the trail.
- Osprey Talon. Whoever is not carrying the child, carries all the water and heavier gear in this pack. We are big Osprey fans. They are local to Colorado. We have packs from them that are still holding up after a decade of use.
- Water bottles. Classic widemouth Nalgenes for us. Junior 12oz Yeti or Hydro Flask Kids for West. The Hydro Flask has been better on the leak proof front.
- Extra layers. This is mountain 101. We always carry a fleece layer even on the hottest of days.
- Extra underwear and pants. For those potty trainers out there.
- First aid kit. We have carried Adventure Medical Kits in our pack for as long as we have been hiking. Check out our post on Building a Comprehensive Emergency Kit for Hiking With a Toddler.
- Sunscreen. How I dread the sunscreen routine. The child cries. The child squirms. I get sunscreen all over my hands. No one likes sunscreen. We use All Good Kids Mineral Sunscreen and Alba Bontanica Kids Sunscreen. Both have an environmental ethos. All Good rates higher for its reef safety, but is a little harder to rub in, but only a little.
- Snacks. Snacks. Snacks. We have talked about this before, but we are all in on a little bribery to make hiking a treat instead of a slog. We tend to carry Jelly Belly and gummies on all expeditions. Some things we carry: applesauce pouches, whole apples, Annie’s bunnies, pretzels, Justin’s nut butter packs, pb&js and granola bars.
