Topic: Hiking
by Taylor Eisenman
Hiking for the Heart Pack the Walking Boots on Your Next Family Vacation By: Taylor Eisenman
I always seem to lose my breath hiking. It could be high altitude, or maybe the vigorous walking. Probably it's both. But, I like to think it's the scenery that takes my breath away more than either of those things. Growing up, my family would go to Winter Park, Colorado, nearly every summer. We would hike in and around Rocky Mountain National Park, experiencing the thrill of reaching stunning elevations with amazing vistas, and everywhere you looked, 360 degrees, there would be mountains. We would hike in fields of wildflowers, searching for Indian Paintbrush and Elephant Head. My sister and I would rock hop in ice-cold mountain streams trying to see how far we could get. In the mornings, my parents made sandwiches to take along, so we could stop to have lunch next to an alpine lake or waterfall.
We could have traveled to other places. My family loves the beach, too. But, something brought us back to Colorado year after year to hike old favorites and find new trails to accomplish together. I'm sure we argued about stuff -- what family vacation is complete without some fighting -- but I don't remember any of that. All I remember is being immersed in a beauty that I can't describe, and experiencing all of it -- good, bad, and otherwise -- with my family.
"Walking or hiking together is the perfect chance to talk to each other and interact with the environment -- whether it be your neighborhood, a park, or on a trail," says Wendy Bumgardner, a certified marathon coach and eight-year board member of the American Volkssport Association, the largest walking club in the U.S. Hiking is one of America's fastest growing recreational activities. According to a study done in 2002 by the Outdoor Industry Association, nearly one-third of all Americans went hiking, and the USDA Forest Service is predicting a steep increase in backpacking and hiking, especially in the Southern and Pacific Coast where they are forecasting an 80 percent increase over the next 50 years. If hiking becomes as popular as predicted, it could be mean great things for the health of Americans, as well as the state of our natural areas.
Hiking for Awareness A resounding theory exists among most nature lovers, including myself, that when people experience the wonders of Mother Nature firsthand they will be more likely to want to preserve and protect it -- making it available for future generations, like their grandchildren, to enjoy. "I think we will lose our natural parks and trails if families don't unplug and get out and enjoy them," Bumgardner says. "Unless children experience nature on their own two feet, they won't value it, and when they are adults, they will be less likely to protect it."
Now, I know what some of you are thinking: How am I going to take my little one hiking when we can barely make it through a trip to the grocery store? Hiking with children is not as hard as it may appear. Whether you're hiking in a park close to home or along the ridge of an 11,000-foot peak, you and your family can be free of worries if you are prepared and have planned ahead.
Anticipate, Arrange, and Advise Anticipate. The hike you choose should not be a mystery to you or your children when you arrive at the trailhead. Researching everything from the expected weather conditions and insects in the area, to knowing the elevation gain, mileage, and difficulty of a hike are all going to play important roles on whether your hike is fun and safe. If the weather forecast says sunny and 75 degrees, that's doesn't mean you shouldn't expect rain and 50 degrees. In the mountains especially, weather can change in an instant, and if you're not prepared, you'll be in for one cold and miserable hike with kids who have every right to complain. In Colorado, we hiked in layers with raingear. It seemed that almost every afternoon around one o'clock it would rain for about an hour and then go straight back to being sunny again. And then there were those days when we looked out from the top of a peak as dark clouds and a blanket of rain came toward us in the distance. You just never know what the day will bring, so you have to be ready for anything.
Arrange. What are you going to bring? Food and water are the two most important items you can have along. Remember a hike that was suppose to take two hours could take four or more, and having enough food and water along can be the difference between happy, healthy hikers and dehydrated, overheated hikers prone to fatigue and crankiness. Besides snacks and drinks, Bumgardner suggests being sure to bring along a small first aid kit with bandages, insect repellent, bee sting treatment, and sunscreen.
Finding the perfect location for a hike, whether it's your family's first hike or just one of many you've accomplished, is pertinent to having a good experience. For a family on their first hike, Bumgardner recommends "a mostly-level trail that goes through woods or along a stream," and, in case you are worried about keeping the little ones entertained, she says to look for a hike with informational signs about the plants and animals of the area. Breaking up the hike by stopping to read the signs and looking for various plants and animals are great ways to keep everyone happy and learning at the same time. The American Hiking Society advocates the use of games, like I Spy, to play on the trail. My personal favorites in Colorado were the 20 questions game and the alphabet game... "I am going to a party and I am bringing a, for apples," and so on until you get to z, for my pet zebra.
Advise. So now you know where you're going, what you're bringing, and how to keep the kids entertained. But, what about keeping them safe? "Parents need to teach their children basic trail courtesy," Bumgardner says. She recommends talking to them about no running, staying on the trail, and not taking shortcuts off the trail. No rock or pinecone throwing or disturbing their surrounding environment. "Teach them to leave only footprints and take only memories," she says.
Involving your children in planning the hike will help them feel like a part of the process, and teach them about where they are and what dangers are possible. Hopefully this will influence them to make good choices, such as listening to directions. Letting them carry items like trail maps and snacks in their own mini backpacks is a great way to show them how important they are to the hike, making it even more necessary for them to be on their best behavior.
One way to help you keep track of your little ones is by dressing them in brightly colored clothing so that they are extremely visible. On one Colorado trip, my family and I hiked a trail where a mountain lion had just killed a child a few weeks previously. The child had run ahead of the family and crouched down in the grass off the trail to surprise them as they came around the corner. The mountain lion thought the child was prey and attacked. That tragedy could have been easily prevented had the parents made sure everyone stayed together and stuck to the trail.
Benefits of the Heart A good walk not only does wonders for your emotional heart (strengthening your family's bond), but it also bolsters your heart's physical health.
Only 15 percent of the U.S. adult population practices sufficient moderate physical activity, reports The National Center for Health Statistics. And while the fact that more than 60 percent of adults in the U.S. are overweight or obese is alarming enough, child obesity is on the rise affecting more than 13 percent, starting as young as two years old. Bumgardner sees walking/hiking as a way to combat this epidemic. "With both childhood and adult obesity skyrocketing, every family needs to find an activity they enjoy that can set a healthy pattern for lifelong fitness," she says. "Even slow walking is excellent exercise, especially compared to other common forms of entertainment such as video games or watching movies."
A study conducted by the National Park Service found that people who exercised compared to people that lived a sedentary lifestyle had 14 percent fewer healthcare claims, 30 percent fewer days in the hospital, and 41 percent fewer claims greater than $5,000. "Walking 30 to 60 minutes a day significantly reduces risks of Type II diabetes, heart disease, stoke, and cancer," Bumgardner says.
Not only does hiking increase emotional ties, help prevent disease, and promote physical fitness, but it also puts you in a better mood. Nutricise.com finds that mood elevation is one of the most noticeable benefits of walking. The releasing of endorphins that occurs when walking helps to boost your self esteem and lift your spirits -- who wouldn't want that for themselves and their children?
Taking your family on a hiking vacation could be one of the best decisions you ever make. It will benefit the health of your family physically as well as emotionally. And, it will help your children understand the importance of nature, so that as adults they will make conscious decisions to support and save our earth. They'll remember how wonderful it was hiking with mom and dad, and they will want that for their children. I'll never forget Colorado, and I want to give my children the chance to hike to the top of a peak, seeing nothing but mountains and sky.
About the Author
As a child growing up in the exciting suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, I was fortunate that my family liked to travel. Every year we made plans to go someplace new, but wherever we ended up, nature was almost always some part of the journey. From the hiking in the Canadian Rockies to snorkeling in the azure waters of Cancun, Mexico, my family and I have an affinity for the beauty and adventure of nature-based vacations. One vacation we took over [hiking] [backpacking]
