San Pedro Parks, NM
In preparation for the AT, we figured we needed to see if we could handle backpacking for a few days in a row. Could our bodies handle it? Would we be too sore the next day to get off the floor of the tent? How far could we go each day without dying?
We decided to test ourselves in a great area a few hours from home. So we packed up all of our stuff and headed out!
San Pedro Parks Wilderness area is a beautiful place indeed! It is full of rolling hills, little streams and green stuff everywhere which is rare for NM!
One of the challenges of backpacking with kids is weight. We have to bring enough gear for everyone and mom and dad tend to be the pack mules. We don't want to make it hard for them to enjoy themselves. They love the independence of carrying their own things, so we did get them packs. They carry their own sleeping pads, base layer, headlamp, snacks for the day and the water they are currently drinking. They usually weigh in around 4-6 pounds each.
I've seen a few different recommendations for how much weight a child should be able to handle. The max I have seen listed is 20% of their body weight. So for my 40 pound 5 year old, that would be 8 pounds! 8 pounds may be fine for a day hike (though why would he need that much for a day? he does like rocks though....) but for long distance hiking I know 8 pounds would make a very whiny boy indeed!
Around here it's not common to find trails with reliable water sources. And for a long distance hike, you need lots of water! Water is heavy, especially when you are carrying enough for 4 people for multiple days! Those pounds add up quickly. Thus why we chose San Pedro Parks where the water is plentiful if you have a filter.
Day 1
Day 1 was an easy day. We packed, drove a few hours and then hiked about 2.5 miles in and found camp.
We decided to test ourselves in a great area a few hours from home. So we packed up all of our stuff and headed out!
San Pedro Parks Wilderness area is a beautiful place indeed! It is full of rolling hills, little streams and green stuff everywhere which is rare for NM!
One of the challenges of backpacking with kids is weight. We have to bring enough gear for everyone and mom and dad tend to be the pack mules. We don't want to make it hard for them to enjoy themselves. They love the independence of carrying their own things, so we did get them packs. They carry their own sleeping pads, base layer, headlamp, snacks for the day and the water they are currently drinking. They usually weigh in around 4-6 pounds each.
I've seen a few different recommendations for how much weight a child should be able to handle. The max I have seen listed is 20% of their body weight. So for my 40 pound 5 year old, that would be 8 pounds! 8 pounds may be fine for a day hike (though why would he need that much for a day? he does like rocks though....) but for long distance hiking I know 8 pounds would make a very whiny boy indeed!
Around here it's not common to find trails with reliable water sources. And for a long distance hike, you need lots of water! Water is heavy, especially when you are carrying enough for 4 people for multiple days! Those pounds add up quickly. Thus why we chose San Pedro Parks where the water is plentiful if you have a filter.
Day 1
Day 1 was an easy day. We packed, drove a few hours and then hiked about 2.5 miles in and found camp.
Camp on day 1
We enjoyed a gorgeous sunset!
Day 2
We got up with the sun, made breakfast, broke up camp, and started our day. We knew the route we planned to take, but didn't really have a plan as to how far we would go. We figured we would follow the popular advice of "Listen to your body" to decide how far was far enough.
We ended up going about 9 miles! By the end of the day we were all pretty worn out!
We hiked on the CDT for a little while. The kids were so excited to see blazes on a trail! They know there are white blazes along the AT, but this is the first trail we have ever been on with a blaze!
Boo soaking her feet in the cold snow melt off on a snack rest.
We saw hundreds of elk! This is a few of them.
We played in snow at about 10,300 feet
And finally we had some food!
Day 3
We got up to a beautiful sunrise and again did breakfast, camp and got started for the day. The kids slept in while we made breakfast and packed up most of our stuff. But surprisingly no one was overly sore! I was expecting that my feet would hurt something terrible, but I actually felt fine!
We cranked out the miles and got 3.5 done before we even stopped for a morning snack. Boo proclaimed that she got her trail legs already haha! We planned to camp one more night and then hike out the 4th day, but once we got to where we had planned to camp there were about 300 teenagers there with a youth group summer camp. That quickly swayed all of us to just make it the last 3 miles out to the car and heady home a day early!
We ended up doing about 10 miles on day 3! So total mileage for our 3 days was about 22 miles! Not so bad for our first time out for that many days in a row! We've done 2 days before but never 3.
Day 3 sunrise from camp
A lot of the terrain was like this...flat grassy meadows. There was some ups and downs and we had to walk through some pretty yucky swampy areas but all in all it was lovely!
Boo helping dad filter water
Crash found the perfect resting rock!
We learned a lot on this trip. We CAN make some miles day after day (huge confidence boost, at least for me!). Dad wants to make some sort of pump for the sawyer squeeze filter. Squeezing that much water through the filter sure wears out your hands! Our tent works, but it is pretty crowded. We are looking at the possibility of buying a second tent and either doing 1 adult and 1 child per tent or making a kid tent and an adult tent.
One last note. I got a new pair of shoes for this trip. I have plantar fasciitis in my left foot. So the more I am on my feet one day, the more they hurt the next. That and my Vasque boots rub on my little toes, I didn't want to end up with blisters. I got a pair of Altra trail runners. They by far exceeded my expectations! LOVE THEM! I have never loved a pair of shoes like I love these, seriously! No squished toes (they have a very wide toe box) and....drum roll please.....no heel pain in the morning!!! They are zero drop shoes. They have great arch support but they don't lift your heel like typical shoes. If you deal with plantar fasciitis, I highly recommend trying these shoes out! I seriously may never wear anything different, for trail or everyday life!
Love my trail runners as well! Loving your blog and can't wait to see you and your family hike the AT. It is my partner and is' ambition as well. We currently have a 7 & 5.5 and 4 month old. Would love your breakdown of gear as you go and figure out what you like and don't. I'm from Northern lower Michigan and do a lot of NCT hiking with the wonderful blue blazes and my sons love looking for the next blaze.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I will most likely end up doing a few gear breakdowns as time goes and as any gear changes. We have a few pieces of gear now that I am pretty sure will make it as far as we do on the AT because they work so well! My kids loved the blazes, it seemed to motivate them while they searched for the next. I sure hope that they like the white blazes as well!
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