(Lasted updated in May 2024)
I've been wondering exactly where I'm going to start with this as I feel there is quite a lot to cover. If you are interested in reading about my journey as a parent and how I've managed to get my now four year old to climb mountains with me, then please get a bowl of popcorn or glass of wine and tune in. This will also have helpful links to save on your AllTrails or list of hikes to do in the future for you, if you haven't heard of them!
I never really dreamed of being a mother, yes that's right. I was different then most little girls, I didn't fantasize about getting married or having kids. I was actually afraid of babies, still kind of am. I always feel so awkward holding them or feel I might drop them. Don't worry though if you have a baby and we are friends - I probably won't ask you to hold him or her for the first twenty minutes. I've just never really been that maternal or thought I lacked it. I'm telling you this because I feel it's an important part in this blog to help you understand why I'm different with my son and why I'm not afraid to do certain things with him that others may think is dangerous or something they would never do with their own kids.
If you tuned into my Hiking into Parenthood blog you know excatly how my pregnancy journey went and if you haven't read that I encourage you to do so. It will help you also get an insight on how that all started with getting my son outdoors. Before he was even born, we were crushing mountains together.
I am the kind of gal, if I get invited to your baby shower I would probably bring you a gift as well. The kind of gift that says "don't give up on your own dreams too." I believe that when you become a parent, we often can get lost in who we are as people. I never wanted to give up on my dreams or passions when my son was brought into this world, so I made it my life mission to look up what I needed as far as gear for him, that I would need and that's where we begin his hiking journey with me.
It all started in the carriers, I miss those baby wearing days. I had an Infantino 4 way with a Ergo Baby insert. Funny enough I thought I owned an ergo carrier but it was just this cheaper version lol. I loved this carrier, we went a lot of places in it. I do not recommend you start hiking after 3 weeks of giving birth, I was hard on my body back then. Wanting to prove to the world I was badass, I mean let's be honest, it is pretty badass. However don't do that, let your body heal - your pelvic floor will be thanking you. I always wondered why I pee when I sneeze or if I laugh to hard, I will literally piss myself. So let's all just heal and then proceed to be badass. Still I did feel pretty dang strong after 3 weeks and I was going a little crazy inside with a new baby. I needed fresh air, so our first real hike was Lone Tree Hill in Nanaimo, it's a nice view of Brennan Lake and the Coastal Mountains.
Hiking with a baby is not a walk in the park, I was not used to this crying little wildabeest on my chest. I would have so much anxiety at first and be thinking is he breathing? Why is he crying? I would have to stop and change his diaper and bring all of my stuff with me in my backpack that I was carrying on my back. I applaud those new parents I see on Instagram bringing their babies into real moutains overnight with their newborn. I could'nt get comfortable with that until Graeson was over a year old. If I ever had a second, which would never happen - I would do it as I now sort of know what I'm doing in that sense, not so much newness of being a mother with a second.
I would start driving to trailheads right away, I knew if I wanted to get on board with the adventure lifestyle, I wanted to dive in right away. There were many times I would get my family to come with me during those early covid days, where at least someone or me could be in the back with him. My child never slept in the car on the way to these hikes, he would always start sleeping once he was in that carrier on me. He would have that newborn cry in the car and it made me so anxious, new mother vibes. I don't really know if I miss those stages, I miss him being little and cute but those newborn cries? Yeah I'm good.
Packing my backpack with diapers, wipes, creams and all of that became part of my new routine, I was lucky enough to breastfeed and this made my hikes a lot easier. I couldn't imagine doing bottles, koodus if you do because that would be more work. I was happy to whip out my boob and call it a day. It is a lot of work, I'm not even going to sugar coat it, takes a lot of patience to hike with babies or toddlers to kids. I love hiking and being outside, I truly feel it helped me heal and become the mother I am today. The forest is a place where I felt the most happiest and at peace with my baby. Whenever I felt stuck or overwhelmed I would go outside and instantly felt better. Graeson could feel that too I like to think. I would always point out the wind I would feel or the crow I would hear and sound of the waves if we were by the beach to my little cooing baby. Precious times, If you have a baby right now and are reading this - please kiss that little baby and know it goes by fast. I can see why people have more kids, you never want them to grow up. It's bittersweet really.
I was eager to tackle most of the local hikes near where I live in Nanaimo first as it wasn't to far of a drive with the newborn cries in the back lol, so we tackled hikes such as Ammonite Falls, Westwood Lake Ridges, Lanztville Lookout, Notch Hill, Wesley Ridge, Roberts Roost, Heikkla's Canyon, Knarston Creek, White Pine Trail, Bonnell Creek Falls, & Heart Lake. These were all a milestone for me as I knew I wanted to do these ones first and work my way up to longer - further and eventually harder hikes. This is where I was gradually giving myself time.
Graeson still being in the carrier we did hikes around the Island such as Mt. Tzouhalem, Stoney Hill, Mothers Lookout at Westwood Lake, Enos Lake, Triple Falls, Nile Creek, Mad Dog Trail, Devils Ladder, Trent River Falls, Flynn Falls, Rosewall Creek, The Waterfall near Mt. Benson, (Can't think of the name of this one lol) Loon Lake, & Port Alberni Lookout. I was happy to get all of these under my belt as I started to feel more and more confident and Graeson was doing so well out here too that I felt ready to take on our first bigger hike.
It was my birthday and my sister and I decided to do the CPR Trail, I'll give my husband credit he carried him most of the way up, I'm still recovering OK, I gave birth in February it is only June LOL! We then did Upper Bannon Falls, Cougar Bluff on Benson, Cox Bay Lookout, Gowlland Todd, Mt. Welsey, & Mt. Benson Summit.
Which now Graeson has crushed a lot and I didn't even include some, those are just the ones I'm most proud of. He is getting heavier now and I introduced the backpack a lot earlier as I wanted him to get used to it right away. He was 8 months old, he could barley even see out of the thing, but I read about it lots from other parents who hiked on different blogs - I would read, they said to get them in it soon! So I did just that and took him around Lost Lake a short little walk to see how he would do and he loved it! I was relieved, so I started putting him in that for bigger hikes and also to start training myself for heavier weight.
I brought several toys and even attached some to my osprey carrier, I also brought a towel for him to lay on whenever we would get to a viewpoint or our destination.
From here we did the Maple Mountain Trail, Paradise Meadows, Comox Lake Bluffs, Morrell Lake Santurary, Robertson River Falls, Great Central Lake Lookout, Browns River Falls, Blindsman Bluff on Quadra & Many more when I was visiting there in November of 2020, Old Baldy Mountain, Stokes Falls, Upper & Lower Weiner Falls, Sarita Falls, & Trout Creek Falls.
From here we completed bigger hikes such as Mt.Mark at Horne Lake, that was a grind, it was super rainy too and Graeson was such a happy little bean. This makes our hiking a-lot easier as I know some kids really don't like being in the carrier. When we are not climbing mountains, you can find us checking out emerald waters in the summer & chasing several different waterfalls. I love to find all the outdoor swings for my son, I even have put my own swing up at Notch Hill, this is the best playground in my opinion.
It's 2021 and now I'm starting to bring Graeson on his second time to multiple places such as the Westwood Ridges to now present day he hiked the whole thing by himself. It's pretty cool to see it come full circle like that. The moment Graeson could walk, I got a leash for him and we practiced almost every chance I got. Yes I got a freaking leash for my kid, don't judge me LOL. That leash was everything though & totally recommend it. Once he was out of the backpack I would let him out and get him to walk along rocks and uneven terrain. I taught him pretty early on how to suck water out of my bladder too. I've had to replace several nozzles lol.
I also started to camp with him pretty early on to get him used to a tent, he now can pretty much go to sleep in one without me being in there and pass right out. He's had pretty cool vistas to wake up to that's for sure. I think my favourite places have been Landslide Lake and Nahmint Lake to wake up to with him. Packing my osprey and a child to Landslide was crazy and I wasn't sure how I packed enough food and diapers for that but I managed, we didn't even have a GPS at the time either, we just went for it. Here's my blog all about that trip here.
Graeson started to hike a little bit on little hikes in Nanaimo such as Radar Hill in the Linley Valley area and Ammonite Falls, he was just over a year old. When it's winter, time outside doesn't exactly stop but the hiking slows down, we focus on wintery neighbourhood walks and building snow mans.
We've completed Broom Hill in Sooke, Sandcut Beach, Mount Hankin Bluffs, Roberts Roost from Westwood Lake. This is where I'm really starting to feel him on my back as he is two years old. My chiropractor is always telling me to stop but I wasn't ready yet.
You see if I stopped then, I wouldn't have been to the several other places we got to go and if I stop, it will hinder where we hike as Graeson can't hike the whole thing yet by himself. I wasn't ready to give up that sort of freedom for myself, so I endured it and it prepped me for the biggest hike I've done to date being the Golden Hinde.
I ended up getting into a car accident in 2022 and I had to give up carrying Graeson for awhile. I was actually told to stop packing him all together but I'm stubborn and don't take no for an answer. So I got my husband to pack him to the Woss Lookout, Looper Creek Canyon and various waterfalls that summer. I slowly started to make recovery and progress to carry him again.
We went to many cool waterfalls (feel free to check my OnlyHikes for those.) I always felt super strong when I would go on overnight hikes because nothing was as heavy that summer than my two and half year old on my back. My 45L or 65L pack was super light compared to him LOL! That summer my sister and I hiked our kids to Cobalt Lake at 5040, which was so dreamy. We did most of the hikes on Gabriola that November and Graeson is nearly 3 now. I am starting to really feel how heavy he is and would often use the pack as a last resort for when he is tired.
We went to Christie Falls, Matheson Lake (cougar bluff), drove up Mt. Prevost (does that count) haha it is still a mountain he's been on top of! Alright the year I train for the Golden Hinde, it was my goal to carry Graeson on several harder hikes so I carried him to the Mt. Mark roped trail, Gowlland Todd, Comox Eco Bluff Lookout, Mt. Wesley & Bog View Trail near the Strathcona Lodge. When it was hot out you could find us at the Sooke Potholes or paddle boarding on the Nahmint River. Graeson also went to his first hot-spring over on the mainland called Sloquet and loved it. I'm happy because I want to bring him to more, we also did a hike over there such as Jurassic Ridge in Murrin Provincial Park.
I try to camp a-lot in the summer with Graeson and he seems to enjoy it for someone who has no say in the matter. He's pretty content the whole time, minimal meltdowns and if he does, I'm a better parent to deal with it because I'm out doing what I love.
I have to give my son a-lot of credit, I felt so strong on my hardest hike I've ever done being the Golden Hinde, I have that mountain tattooed on me because - it meant I can accomplish anything that is hard in this world. The five days I was out there, when hiking 20K everyday got hard, I thought about my son and what he has taught me. To stop and appreciate the small things, admire the ant hills, the bugs and every weed. His weight made me strong for the best experience I've ever seen in the back country and I can't wait to tell him all about when he's older to understand just how much it meant to me.
We have done some pretty epic things together, sometimes it's not always the best trails to bring him along, as it requires some bushwhacking to get to some waterfalls with him on my back. However the fact that Graeson has gone to some places that no child has ever gone, makes me feel some type of way. He's so cool and I want to be him when I grow up.
We did an overnight hike to 5040 that summer of 2023 and I carried my 3 year old up, BRUH 3 YEARS OLD to the summit and it was a proud moment for me. He WAS SO HEAVY AHHH LOL. (He is going to be taller than me one day). I carried him up Mt. Kiltsa that summer as well, we had no view but I point to that mountain while I'm in Port Alberni and say "We were up there." and my son will say "We sure were!" That hike, I could feel my days were getting numbered with him on my back as it was - not going to lie BRUTAL. My sister and I hiked to Jewel Lake near Mt. Arrowsmith with our kids shortly after. When I'm not killing my back, I'll drive to cool cabins such as Mt.Hall and spend my days doing easier things, it's a nice break for my back.
My story is coming to an end and I'm sorry it's so long, this is just the surface of where he has been but the ones I am most proud to talk about. The very last hike I believe I carried him fully was to Henry Lake near Mt. Arrowsmith this past fall. I thought I was going to pass out going up there LOL! Graeson is pushing 3 and half+ and I'm still carrying him, it's nuts. I even swapped out my old osprey for the newer one that was lighter but still I had to face the music that it's simply not going to be OK for me to continue to carry him. I started to use my TrailMagik as really I only have to carry his weight and then if someone can carry our snacks, etc it wouldn't be as bad. I converted it with backpack straps and it's amazing. That November of 2023 we hiked up to Bald Mountain in Cowichan, he hiked most of the way down, thank god.
At this point I'm starting to not pack any kind of carrier and hope for the best, which is always a bit dicey. However he is 35 pounds and he needs to start hiking more on his own. I bribe him with snacks now, I pack A-LOT of snacks and we stop frequently for breaks. I have to have a lot of paitence. Knowing I can't really carry him much, I bought a drone so I could be content doing less impressive to me hikes but still seeing them in a neat way. This has been a great balance as I can see these smaller hikes or ones I've done already in a new way. Change my perspective, whatever helps me get over the fact I can't carry him anymore LOL!
We hiked to a lookout near Horne Lake and Graeson always surprises me when I put him on honestly sketchy stuff, he'll freak out a little and say "that wasn't so bad."when we are done. Touché Graeson - don't we all feel that at some point when we hike? We re-did all of the smaller hikes around where I live in Nanaimo and I'm feeling more and more confident. Graeson is hiking without a carrier which brings me to present day in 2024. This kid of mine has hiked 5, 6, 7K hikes all by himself and I'm so proud of him. Sometimes we get out there every day off I have. I do push him and probably tire the poor kid out. He always tells me though when I ask what do you wanna do on my next day off with you and he goes "Go for a hike" so he obviously enjoys it. Thank you lord and please stay this way for a while before you no longer want to hike with your mother.
I always pack my TrailMagik in my own backpack just incase but I haven't carried him in months now and it's a bittersweet feeling. I've had to shift in what we do now and it can't nearly be as steep or long from when I could carry him but I'm grateful for how long I got. I'm sure I will have severe pain when I'm older but this was all worth it - to show my son my world.
I am still going to try to carry him this summer as I am determined on some of the alpine hikes but it will be my last resort and I'm excited to see where we will go this summer. I hope this inspires others and parents to know your life doesn't end with kids. Bring them, show them and include them in your hobbies. It's sometimes the most beautiful thing to witness when they grow to like it and well if they don't? You can always sell them on marketplace. I'm just kidding but seriously I feel like I won the lottery with my son. I feel like every parent ever saying that but I truly do. I love that kid so much.
Cheers to you Graeson and to all the places we have been and will go.
See you all out there and from the bottom of my heart, if you got this far, thank you - you can go to bed now or whatever your doing now, go do. Have a great day!
LYSS XX
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