Hiking Ten Essentials for Families

My Mountain Fam is full-time RVing through the US right now and recently spent a lot of time hiking through New England. Whether we were trekking through the Adirondacks in upstate New York or scaling Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park, we came prepared with the hiking ten essentials in our backpacks.

What are the Hiking Ten Essentials?

If you’re new to outdoor exploring you may not of heard of the ten essentials before. Basically it’s a list of emergency preparedness items you should always carry with you.

The original Ten Essentials for Backpacking list was developed in 1930 by the Mountaineers, a Seattle-based hiking club. Over the years the list has changed to a more systems approach. Here’s the hiking ten essentials systems.

1. Navigation: map, compass, altimeter, GPS device, personal locator beacon (PLB) or satellite messenger
2. Sun protection: sunglasses, sun-protective clothes and sunscreen
3. Insulation: jacket, sweater, extra layer of clothes
4. Illumination: flashlight, headlamp, lantern and extra batteries
5. First aid supplies: including foot care and insect repellent as needed
6. Fire: matches, lighter, tinder and/or stove
7. Repair Kit and Tools: knife
8. Nutrition: extra food
9. Hydration: extra water, water filter
10. Emergency Shelter: carried at all times can be a light emergency blanket

Hiking Ten Essentials for Families

Since the ten essentials systems were originally developed for backpacking, at times hauling all that stuff on a short, kid-friendly hike seems like overdoing it to me.

Hiking with kids usually involves me carrying all the gear AND the kids, so I typically only hike short, well-developed trails so I feel comfortable not bringing all of these emergency items on every hike.

With those factors in mind, I’ve developed the a Hiking Ten Essentials list for families. These are the actual items I bring on hikes with my kids.

I list five of the essentials here, but would love for you to get the whole list. Just sign up for the Mountain Mom and Tots email list below and I’ll email you the complete Hiking Ten Essentials for Families pdf.

Easy peasy.

Adjust as needed for what works for your family

1. Navigation

Bring a smart phone for mom and dad and a whistle for the kids.

A smart phone with google maps, or AllTrails is my go to navigation system, but in addition to that I typically only hike with kids on short, well-developed trails where it’s hard to get lost.

Another important aspect of navigation is knowing what to do if you or your child get lost in the woods. We recently had search and rescue trained Wendy Lee from Utah Campfire Adventures give an exclusive facebook live chat in the FREE Helping Families Explore Outdoors facebook group all about this. Join the FREE group here to watch the replay (I’ll approve you within 24 hours) – you won’t regret it.

One thing Wendy recommended was to give your child a whistle if they’re old enough to use one. Pin it to their clothes, or make it into a necklace and teach them to use it ONLY if you get separated on a hike.

Whistling children get really annoying, really fast.

2. Sun Protection

I learned a great tip at a baby shower for Big E that really helps when it comes to dressing my kids for sunny, windy, rainy and cold days. It is this:

Dress your child like you dress.

So when it comes to sun protection if you’re wearing a hat and sunglasses, your child should probably too. If your last sunburn turned your skin the color of a ripe tomato, be sure to apply sunscreen to both you and your child.

I keep a bottle of sunscreen in my car and apply to everyone before the hike as well as a little sunscreen stick in my hiking pack for reapplying. In a pinch you can use SPF rated chapstick on your skin as well – that’s saved my fair face more than once.

And don’t forget – You need sun protection in the winter too! If you hike in snow country you could get burned worse in winter than in summer because UV rays reflect up from all that sparkly whiteness. So no matter what time of year you hike, always have some sort of sun protection.

3. Insulation

When we talk about insulation it’s worth repeating this quick tip for dressing kids for weather.

Dress your child like you dress.

On our recent fall hiking adventures in New England my family wore merino wool base layers, wool socks, winter caps and rain jackets. I like to be warm so I dressed my kids likewise. Apparently they didn’t need all those warm clothes though because on one hike, once we reached the lake we were hiking toward they all decided to go swimming.

That’s when real-life mothering kicked in and Baby L ended up wearing my Buff polar tube as a mini skirt tube top combo. Buff is all about one cloth tube becoming versatile headwear but I doubt anyone has worn it like this.

And don’t worry – on the paddle around the lake and on the hike out she wore my extra puffy jacket.

That’s what this ten essential system is all about. Insulation means not just wearing appropriate clothing, it also means bringing EXTRA clothing and insulation.

Parents of potty-training and diapered tots will of course want an extra outfit in case of potty accidents.

In addition to that, on every hike, even warm summer ones, I bring an adult-sized fleece or insulated puffy jacket. Temperature changes quickly when you’re exploring outdoors, especially in the mountains, so I use this for emergency warmth for the coldest family member and then book it back to the trailhead.

It’s easy to fill a backpack full of extra jackets for the whole family, but I prefer to balance the need for extra insulation with the bulk of carrying all the extra stuff. For me that means I bring ONE extra puffy jacket for my whole crew.

4. Illumination

This essential item is easy to bring along since every smart phone has a flashlight. Just make sure your battery is charged.

If I’m planning an afternoon or sunset hike I, of course, bring a headlamp, but on quick hikes where I don’t expect to stay out past dusk I trust the flashlight on my phone.

5. First Aid and Diapering Supplies

To keep my load light for short, family-friendly hikes, I typically bring just three essential first aid items on my hikes.

First, a few band-aids. It’s amazing how quickly a magic band-aid can help a scrape or bump feel better.

Second, a handkerchief – it’s useful for so much more than wiping noses and sweaty foreheads. Just watch my youtube video here on why I love bringing a handkerchief on outdoor explorations.

Finally, I bring my son’s Epipen. It could save his life in an allergy emergency so it goes with him everywhere.

In addition to these three first aid items, I keep a full first aid kit in my glove box, as well as sun block and a bottle of insect repellent.

Now you can’t talk about first aid items without talking about diapering. Diapers and wipes are those essential items all parents of babies and toddlers keep on hand. When you’re hiking be sure to change baby’s diaper before hitting the trail. Then bring one diaper and wipes for every 2-3 hours you expect to hike, plus one extra.

I also recommend bringing a plastic bag to put used diapers and garbage in.

Hiking Ten Essentials for Families Printable

Now these are just five of the ten essentials for families I have written up for you. To get the rest, as well as my bonus eleventh hiking essential for families, just sign up below and I’ll email it directly to your inbox.

It’s always worthwhile to be prepared when exploring outdoors. Download my hiking ten essentials for families printable then email me back and let me know what you’d add to the list!

Seriously, I love hearing from Mountain Mom and Tots readers and I read every email I get personally.

I hope these ten essentials for families list helps your family explore outdoors.

See you in the outdoors,
~Mountain Mom

Psst…This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase something after clicking on them I earn a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Sources and More!

See all the hiking gear my family uses and recommends here.

Learn a New Survival Skill October 2018 monthly outdoor challenge
Baby Safety: Hiking and Biking
National Park Service 10 Essentials Article
Moutaineering: The Freedom of the HiIlls, 8th Edition, 2010 – This is where the official 10 essentials list is found.