PeterMP Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 Having done both, assuming you are in shape to carry the equipment, going to the beach with a 1 year old is the more difficult/dangerous job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TD_washingtonredskins Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 Having done both, assuming you are in shape to carry the equipment, going to the beach with a 1 year old is the more difficult/dangerous job. I should take up camping. We took our kids to the beach (one of which was a little older than one) for 7 straight days last year and had a blast. It was easy and temporary, which is what makes it so much more convenient. At lunch or nap time...you walk back to the condo and it's almost like you're in your own house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pointyfootball Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 THIS is why kids are soft. It's a one-two day camping trip, not a hike across the aboriginal territory of Australia! We did it in October (once when it got down below freezing) with both of ours when they were about that age. As long as the kid can get around a bit on their own so you don't have to carry him/her the whole time, I say do it. Bugs & heat are undesireable, that's why I like to camp in spring/fall. Bunch of cityslickers! ES Camping Advice Council: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S.T.real,lights,out Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 I'm not a camper, but this sounds like a recipe for disaster. Yes! My GF has a daughter who just turned 2 and i still woulnd't attempt it yet. Maybe 3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pointyfootball Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 I made her read this thread. Thanks everyone. The compromise has been to change venue to a more reasonable camp ground. No hike to/from camp site, we can park right next to our camp site. Hospital is 18 minutes away. It's going to be camping-lite but I think this is the more sound way to do it. Is this it? ---------- Post added July-12th-2011 at 02:38 PM ---------- Personally,much ado about nothing. Of course,taking kids out that age,(and sometimes even younger),is very much common place out here so maybe I just take it for granted. Aside from the gear,(which most first timers tend to bring too much of),It would be okay. Those irresponsible people probably don't cut the hotdogs lengthwise or grapes in half for their 12 y /o's either! Terrible parents! Seriously, it all depends upon the temperment of your kid. Some kids - no way. Most - probably ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
China Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 Is your name Homer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterMP Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 I should take up camping. We took our kids to the beach (one of which was a little older than one) for 7 straight days last year and had a blast. It was easy and temporary, which is what makes it so much more convenient. At lunch or nap time...you walk back to the condo and it's almost like you're in your own house. You have a tent. When it is time for nap, you take them into the tent and have them go to sleep. Not much different than walking back to the condo. Even when hiking nap isn't really a concern. Kids that age have no problem with falling a sleep in a back carrier. One year I went with family and my nephew did us a favor and carried my daughter for a while (we planned that he could help do the carrying). But she was afraid of him. We waited for her to get tired, transferred the carrier over to him, she cried for a while, but with rocking of the walking motion, she pretty quickly went to sleep. For food, you don't even have to worry about walking back to the condo. You have it with you. I'm assuming at the beach, you essentially kept a constant eye on them. You worried about them wandering off into the other people, into the ocean, eating the sand, getting sun burned, etc. Once you get to the camp site, it is basically all of the same concerns. Getting there can be the hard part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renaissance Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 Even without the baby it sounds miserable considering how hot it's been lately. Aside from that, though, I don't see how taking a small child camping would really be that much more complicated than taking a small child for a day trip or overnight anywhere else though. Only thing that would suck is if you want to do some serious hiking or something like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 The heat is my biggest concern Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarrellsMyHero28 Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 Terrible. Idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TD_washingtonredskins Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 You have a tent. When it is time for nap, you take them into the tent and have them go to sleep. Not much different than walking back to the condo. Even when hiking nap isn't really a concern. Kids that age have no problem with falling a sleep in a back carrier. One year I went with family and my nephew did us a favor and carried my daughter for a while (we planned that he could help do the carrying). But she was afraid of him. We waited for her to get tired, transferred the carrier over to him, she cried for a while, but with rocking of the walking motion, she pretty quickly went to sleep.For food, you don't even have to worry about walking back to the condo. You have it with you. I'm assuming at the beach, you essentially kept a constant eye on them. You worried about them wandering off into the other people, into the ocean, eating the sand, getting sun burned, etc. Once you get to the camp site, it is basically all of the same concerns. Getting there can be the hard part. Fair enough...I guess if you know what you're doing, it can work out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCS Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 ^^^ That's a big help for sure. No doubt that even knowing a little can help raise the comfort level in something like this. Parents need to find one as much for them as the kids. I think the OP found a decent compromise. One that could lead to a trip much like the one first described. And it really isn't as bad as all that imho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elessar78 Posted July 12, 2011 Author Share Posted July 12, 2011 Yeah, we're still in a state park. Still sleeping underneath the stars and hanging out around a campfire. Maybe a long hike during the day. But it's comforting to know that if the kid is miserable (or I'm miserable) that first night we can bail and hopefully find a hotel. Or we're even a reasonable 2.5 hour drive home. Or if something, God forbid, happens we're not that far from civilization. I think the biggest psychological and logistical roadblock for me was the pack in/pack out scenario. It's great to be out in the middle of nowhere, but you think about middle of nowhere a little differently once you have kids, I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1786254/heat_exhaustion_in_infants_a_comprehensive.html?cat=25 Heat Exhaustion in Infants: A Comprehensive Guide Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dockeryfan Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 Some of you people seriously need to get out more. One guy is fearful of a one year old "wandering away" from the tent in the middle of the night. lol That's some herculean genius of a child that can work the zippers. Let alone sneak around 2 adults in a 3-man tent. At one year old. Spoken like a man that has never been in a tent in his life. Get real people. The physicality of the task wouldn't worry me in the least. Carrying the gear, the food and water...it can all be done. twa hit upon one big point. The heat. The kid just may end up being very uncomfortable. No fun for the kid, no fun for you. Life threatening? No. It doesn't have to be at all. But uncomfortable. The other thing is the bugs, and I'll just bring this up anecdotally. I have run across two people now that have developed some sort of chronic pain following a barrage of mosquito bites. What is it? No idea. Coincidence? That's what it appears to be on it's face, but the timing is the same on both people. Both have since gone on to develop Crohn's, and thyroid disorders. There is some autoimmune reaction going on with both, and it's very possible that the barrage of mosquito bites was a trigger of some sort. So do I take my 1 yo with a developing immune system out camping when it is the buggiest? No. Maybe he can't mount an effective immune response if he needs to. Plus, you can't use DEET. Just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Special K Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 Please do it. And post pictures. EDIT: As a side note, there are many pictures of my parents taking me river camping as a little baby. But, we had close access to water (so I could play in a little bucket of water to keep me cool) and I don't believe they really had to pack the equipment in and out.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rdskn4Lyf21 Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 I just think it would be more of a pain in the ass than it's worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renaissance Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 Please do it.And post pictures. EDIT: As a side note, there are many pictures of my parents taking me river camping as a little baby. But, we had close access to water (so I could play in a little bucket of water to keep me cool) and I don't believe they really had to pack the equipment in and out.... I just imagined a little baby in a bucket of water and it sounds adorable. haha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darth Tater Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 Depends, might help you if you need an alibi in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpillian Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 Definitely wait until the child is older and the weather is more temperate. There definitely is a time for it and a mode for it, but in the summer, at one, in a tent, is not it. I find, at least in the case of my lovely wife, that is more difficult for her to imagine some of these sort of unpleasant scenarios. You're going to have to paint this picture for her, or go on the camping trip. Good luck either way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elessar78 Posted July 13, 2011 Author Share Posted July 13, 2011 Depends, might help you if you need an alibi in the future. That's dark. Your soul is black, hombre. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted July 13, 2011 Share Posted July 13, 2011 the compromise trip seems much better Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elessar78 Posted July 18, 2011 Author Share Posted July 18, 2011 Just wanted to give an update on the trip. Overall it was a pleasant trip, and there was only probably 90 minutes out the 48 hours from the time we left to the time we stepped back into our front door that the kid and us were miserable. First night, it took us awhile to get her to go to sleep. She was up later than usual and wanted to explore the tent and not go to sleep. She wailed for an hour on and off, but then she slept through the night. Second day we went for a hike up the mountain and it started badly. She had a massive blowout and we had to change her on the trail. Then she was having none of being in the carry pack and that lasted for about 20 minutes of the 2-hour hike, but then she slept for most of the hike. More on the hike later. Heat and bugs were never an issue because we were up in the mountains in Pennsylvania. None of the humidity and buginess of Virginia in July. Day 1: So first night, we got in around 7 PM into the beautiful park. Our tent was already set up thanks to our friends (advance team: "Bear Grylls and Cody Lundin") who drove our gear up to the campsite. We got situated, ate dinner, and put the kids to bed. 3 of us went out for some night time fly fishing on the stream that ran by our camp site. The main tragedy that night was that we snapped a $1400 fly rod, good thing it's repairable. Day 2: Did some more fishing, lunch, and went for a hike up this mountain. The summit was great, views down into two valleys. Rock outcroppings all over the place, I can't remember the term (fault-block?) but it was just cool to see these massive rocks at these sharp angles because of the upward thrust of the mountains. The we were walking and talking along these rocks and all of sudden we hear this sound that I thought was locusts that just came out of nowhere. For those that have encountered it, it's distinct. I'd never heard it before but there's something primal about hearing this sound and that "it's not right". It was a timber rattlesnake! It sounds weird, but it's pretty cool to see one in the wild. It was about 50 feet off the path. My buddy who was the last one in the group, my wife and I were in front, said that when we turned around our eyes were as big as dinner plates. Neither of us had ever heard one—but I guess on some level you just know. That was at/near the summit and about 30 minutes later we descended off the mountain. It was a quick descent and very steep. Having a kid on your back makes you a little more focused on how you step down the path. The rattler put us on edge and noise off the path illicited a sharp turn of the head. Our reward at the end of the hike was we got to cool off and swim in a mountain lake before heading back to camp! Day 3: Breakfast, A little more fishing, broke camp, and drove home. All in all, I'd have to say the hardest part was constantly shepherding a 1 YO that can walk away from the fire and keeping an eye on them so they don't play in poison ivy or wandering off. I'd suggest a portable, sizable enclosed play pen for the kids if you bring some so they can be monitored. We didn't have one, but you can attach a gps tracker to your kid. As far as mother nature, the baby dealt pretty well with it. I got cold in the morning, so that was a concern about her comfort (not safety) but we had her bundled up pretty well. I think it's definitely doable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedskinsFan44 Posted July 18, 2011 Share Posted July 18, 2011 Good job! It can be challenging camping with a small kid, with mine we have always done car camping for the safety factor of being able to get out quick if someone gets hurt. It pays off if you keep taking them though, all of my kids started camping at less than 6 months and they love to go - very rarely do they complain about heat, bugs, etc. I think taking a ten year old that had never been might be harder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Posted July 18, 2011 Share Posted July 18, 2011 Very cool, and very cool for your friends to go ahead with gear and get your tent set up for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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