Fun kids game for day hike: Gargoyles

"No, I'm not moving!"

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 Gargoyles. This game works best with a group of five or more children. You’ll also need to have a clearing.

During a rest break, have the children stand in a circle with you in the middle. Mark each child his or spot spot on the circle with a stick. Next, have them back up 10 steps.

The objective is for each child to creep back to their stick without you seeing them move. When they are not moving, they need to “freeze” and take a stance or make a face that looks like a gargoyle, the statues of bat-winged troll-like monsters that guard castles and cathedrals. Superstition stated that gargoyles sometimes would move when no one was looking.

If spotted moving, the child is “out.” Any child making it back to his/her stick or the last one still in the game wins.

Materials: Sticks

Ages: 4 and up

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