Solo Backpacking with a toddler

[Humphriesre]

I have been solo hiking with my 18 old son for about 5 months. We have slowly been increasing the length of time we spend out on a trail and have currently hit the 8 mile marker. I grew up hiking/ backpacking and car camping and I really want my son to love it too. I’ve recently got back in backpacking but since I’m a working mom I hate taking to much time away from my son. I’ve thought about taking him on an overnight backpacking trip but I’m not sure how to start. Is there anyone who has done a solo backpacking trip with a toddler? Any suggestions would be great. We are currently using an Osprey Poco carrier but it is the smallest version and doesn’t have much room to pack things. My usually baseweight is around 14 pounds currently.

[balzaccom]

It's a big challenge.  The only time I have seen people successfully backpack with a toddler, it involved one parent carrying the child, the other parent carrying all the gear for all three of them. 

[jay]

I used to take my daughter out and we had quite a few adventures when she was younger.  My best advice is let your boy pretty much set the pace and let him explore what he finds interesting, within reasonable limits.  My daughter usually crashed out shortly after we set up camp.  The biggest challenge I had was keeping her drinking fluids and no forgetting it.

[Humphriesre]

On 7/23/2019 at 11:35 AM, jay said:

I used to take my daughter out and we had quite a few adventures when she was younger.  My best advice is let your boy pretty much set the pace and let him explore what he finds interesting, within reasonable limits.  My daughter usually crashed out shortly after we set up camp.  The biggest challenge I had was keeping her drinking fluids and no forgetting it.

Would you backpack out to a camp site or drive? What age was your daughter when you started camping with here?

[jay]

It depended on the place as to whether we drove or hiked.   A short walk by adult standards was ok if the trail was pretty easy and free of stuff like thorns and poison ivy.