By Shawna Andreasen
One of my favorite things about having kids is finding fun outdoor equipment for them. A Camelbak is cool for adults but when you find a miniature sized one for kids it’s….”Ah cute!” We bought a kids climbing harness about the time when our oldest turned three. I think I like it more than he does. It stabilizes their bodies in an upright position, preventing them from flipping upside down.
I just get so stinking excited when I can have our kids participate in the activities that my husband and I love to do. The people who make these things are genius in my book. What better way to bring a family together!
We set up a top rope climb (the rope is anchored to the top of the climb so if you fall you’re not going anywhere) and let the kids have some fun. We usually don’t need to use a belay device for our youngest because he’s so light. We just do a hip belay (rap the rope around my big bootie). The kids really like the overhang climbs. It allows them to swing more!
We’ve tried to teach them the correct lingo for safety reasons: On belay, climbing, slack, tension, rock! and etc.
Eventually they usually end up saying their own climbing lingo though, things like…”I want to do spinners” or “Where’s the spiderman chalk?”
We’ve taught them the basic rules for safety too:
Mom or Dad must double check harness before you climb
Don’t use your knees
Don’t step on the rope
Don’t put your fingers in the lead climbing bolts
wear a helmet
use your legs (they’re stronger than your arms)
*The key thing I’ve learned while climbing with my kids is not to force them to do anything they don’t want to do. Our oldest began crying on one particular climb because he got up as far as he wanted to go and didn’t want to go any further. We were encouraging him to go a little further because he was so close to the top, but he was definitely scared and ready to come down. We let him know that we just wanted him to have fun and he didn’t have to do anything he didn’t want to. He quickly calmed down and was eager to do it again the next time we went. I think it easily could have turned into a negative situation for him.
*We take small toys with us on our climbing trips. That way whoever isn’t climbing can play with trucks in the dirt or whatever.
*Our second child is 3. He doesn’t necessarily like to climb up but he likes to swing on the rope. He pushes off the rock with his feet and spins and hangs upside down and traverses across the rock wall. As long as he’s having fun that’s fine with me. That’s what Nature For Kids is all about.
We have a 23 month old daughter who loves the rock wall at the YMCA, upuntil last week she just went up about a foot or so (the bottom “rock”) and came back down. This week she has started really climbing, to the point she is almost over my head. We have to find a good harness for her since they don’t have them that small at the Y. (I love our Y and they are AWESOME with her!) We don’t mind at all buying her one ourselves we don’t want to stop her in any way! I just don’t know one that is small enough for her little body. Is there a particular brand that you have found works with your little ones? Thank you for what you have written it is nice to see!
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aaaaw, your babies are cute! can’t help but earn a smile on my face as i look at the ppictures!
nice to know you guys find time to share your rock climbing interests with them..
i can only imagine how cute your 3-year old son is whenever he spins as he hangs in his rope.. really cute!
Excellent pictures! One thing that I noticed with our kids is that they seem to like to advance incrementally… they climb up 6 feet, come down, then 10 feet, come down, then 20 feet…. I think this goes back to your point about encouraging them but allowing them to move at their own pace. I totally agree.
Those kids are having fun. Would have loved doing that when I was a kid.
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Great post and great site – glad I stumbled across it! Hope it’s ok, but we just linked to this article off our soon-to-be-launched site CAMPERKIDS.org; thanks! -B
Hey thanks Ben! followed the link to Camper Kids and love your site as well! Hopefully we can keep each others creative juices flowing
Very good and extraordinary your message, when I’m no cost I will stop by your webpage. Thank you for sharing.
Myself and my husband are keen climbers and hikers. We live in the UK on the border of Wales so it is ideal for our pursuits.We now have a 20month old son who we carry everywhere in our child back carrier, anoher wonderful piece of equipment. Great photos.
Sounds like I need to visit Wales! Have fun with that little guy! And thanks for stopping by!
Love to see other parents outdoor climbing with their kids. Check out my blog if you get a chance! http://www.thekidproject.com
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So glad I came across your blog! Love seeing your boys climbing, so cool! I have been trying to figure out how to start up rock climbing with my 3 year old, it’s all she talks about. I thought we would have to wait till she was older so it’s neat to see they have equipment for kids! I haven’t rock climbed myself but have always wanted to, any advice for how to get started? I think it would be so fun for us to do together.
Thanks so much Andrea! so glad your little one is already into the good stuff
I would just suggest going to your local recreation department through the city. Sometimes they’ll have rock climbing classes. Or a local indoor climbing gym could give you a great start!