When not to take kids hiking in certain areas

Avoid desert hikes during summer and the wet season.

As selecting a trail to day hike with children, you can eliminate those in certain regions when specific weather conditions prevail:
g Coastlines – Always check local tide tables if walking along beaches and coastlines, as you don’t want to get stranded in the ocean or large lake by rising water.
g Cold climates – Winter and spring will be chilly and often wet.
g Deserts – Avoid them during the wet seasons as flash floods can occur, sweeping down sandy washes and canyons, leaving you stranded, wet, or worse drowned. Outside of the wet season, avoid any days in which rain, high wind, and hot temperatures are forecast. This makes summer a bad time for desert hiking. Late autumn and early spring usually are the best times to hike deserts.
g Forests – Spring usually is a wet season to avoid. Summer and autumn make for the best hiking.
g High altitudes – Whenever high winds, precipitation and cold temperatures are forecast at lower elevations, they will be worse in the mountains. Winter, early spring and late autumn are dangerous times to hike high mountains. Low mountains and hilly country are best hiked on pleasant spring days; late summer is best for high mountains.

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Keep in mind local weather, seasons when selecting day hiking trail for children

When selecting a place to day hike with children, always check to see what the weather will be like on the trail. While an adult might be able to withstand wind and a sprinkle here or there, for children it can be pure misery. Dry, pleasantly warm days with limited wind always are best when hiking with children. That eliminates some climates during specific seasons; deserts, for example, are verboten in summer as are high mountains in winter.

The age of your child also matters. Generally, older teens will be able to handle inclement weather better that younger children. Cold weather is a no-no for infants.

That being said, hiking in winter is quite popular in Northern states and mountain areas where outdoor activities are common year around. Not being able to hike in winter would limit the activity to a few months out of the year. Winter hiking has its advantages, as well, such as no bugs and smaller (and often no) crowds. It also is more of a challenge and arguably requires more preparation than a summer hike.

Consider what the trail will be like as well. If it’s open, as would be one in the desert or a meadow, you can expect a lot of sun and probably wind. The sunshine may be just fine on cooler days. During the hot days of summer, though, look for tree-lined, shaded trails.

Read more about day hiking with children in my guidebook Hikes with Tykes.

Avoid day hiking through fog when with kids

Image courtesy of dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Banks of fog can quickly roll in on mountains and coast-lines, making travel difficult and disorienting. Fog will obscure landmarks that help you navigate and the very sights that motivated you to hike the route. It is wet, generally cold, and even can be windy, quickly lowering enthusiasm and potentially resulting in hypothermia. This is where having GPS is particularly beneficial in navigation. Make sure the group stays close together and return to the vehicle as quickly as possible.

Read more about day hiking with children in the guidebook Hikes with Tykes.