Fun game for hiking kids: Chestnut People

Chestnut people

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 Chestnut People.

During October when chestnuts have fallen from their trees, you can tie over a rest period by making stick people. During the hike, have each child collect four chestnuts and five straight twigs of about equal length with one shorter than the other four.

At the rest break, use a chestnut for the head, one for the torso, one for the left foot, and one for the right foot. The twigs connect these chestnut body parts or serve as limbs. Use the shortest twig to connect the head to the torso. Use two twigs coming from the torso to be the left and right arms. Use the remaining two twigs as legs connecting the torso to the left foot and the right foot.

Materials: Four chestnuts, five twigs per chestnut person

Ages: 5-12

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