Fun game for kids on hikes: Nature Toss

Could you toss a pine cone into
this target from three feet away?

Generally, exploring and discovery is enough for kids, but sometimes even they can grow bored with that and become restless. Remember that they naturally have shorter attention spans than adults.

Fortunately, there are lots of tried and true activities you can do on the trail that’ll keep kids from getting bored. Among them is Nature Toss.

While children are hiking between rest stops, have them look for six sticks about a half-foot long, and for each of them to find a small stone or large pebble (If rocks aren’t readily available, pine cones will do.).

At the next rest stop, arrange the sticks into a hexagon (a six-sided shape).

Have each child stand the same number of feet away from the hexagon – the older the children, the farther they should stand away – and take turns attempting to toss (underhand) their stone into the hexagon.

Turn it into a competition by awarding a point for every successful toss that hits the target.

Materials: Six sticks, stone/pebble/pine cone

Ages: 3 and up

Learn about more than a hundred other hiking diversions for kids in Hikes with Tykes: Games and Activities.