Does anyone have one of those hiking type baby carriers? The ones with the metal frame- is it worth buying or borrowing one for carrying a 15 month old?
Background: we are going to be visiting some national parks. Big kids are 4 and 6, so any hiking we do will not be too long or too strenuous, but DH and I are going to be carrying the baby plus water, and the usual "stuff". Would it be worth it to invest in one of these or will we be fine with an Ergo? Any opinions/advice welcome!
pear / 1955 posts
We've used both a hiking backpack and a regular structured carrier, and I would probably say to just stick with the Ergo. The hiking backpack is great if you're hiking pretty rocky/intense terrain (they're really strapped in and protected in there) but if you have a 4 and 6 year old, I'm assuming you won't be doing anything too strenuous. When DS1 was 15ish months, it was nice for him to be able to get in and out easily to explore too.
Our usual setup now is that I wear the baby in our Beco Gemini, and DH wears a backpack with water/snacks/supplies, and he does most of the herding for our older kid.
apricot / 488 posts
I asked this last year (here is the thread if you want to read the answers: http://boards.hellobee.com/topic/light-hiking-with-lillebaby-complete )
I used a lillebaby and it was fine. We hiked about 3 hours total and it worked great for me.
pomelo / 5258 posts
I bought a used Deuter II but DH and I both preferred our regular Ergo. If we were taking lots of gear the backpack may have been worth it.
honeydew / 7235 posts
How old is your baby?
We got one of those baby hiking backpacks handed down with our first, and we used it for local hikes, etc, and we found we used it A TON even in the house. I would cook dinner most nights with a kid in that backpack (with my first, then my second). They have a good vantage point to see whats going on, and we didn't have an ergo, so it worked well for us even when we weren't using it for hikes!
grapefruit / 4903 posts
If you can borrow one, I would. We did a national park trip with a 16 month old and 3 year old and having them in hiking carriers was so much more comfortable and convenient for them and for us. We could have just used our Beco, but the hiking carriers positioned them with a better vantage point, kept us cooler, and were generally more ergonomic for longer wear. (We were with my 85 year old grandmother, so it wasn't vigorous hiking either, for a frame of reference.) All of that said, I don't think I would invest in one if this is going to be the only time you'll use it.
grapefruit / 4584 posts
Will it be warm? We have an Osprey Poco Premium backpack, and do like it over the Ergo for hikes, even though we have our 3 and 5 year olds with us so aren't doing anything crazy. It's nicer because it has a place for my husband's camelbak pouch, plus pockets for supplies. It is SOO MUCH BETTER in terms of ventilation for both the baby and the wearer than the Ergo. Best of all, it has a "footrest"/stand thing, so that you can set down the pack upright with the baby in it (kind of like a high chair/bouncer).
That said, they're expensive if you have to buy outright - I want to say our was over $200...but I don't remember since we bought it probably 4.5 yrs ago.
As far as a one-time investment....DH used to use ours in lieu of a carrier in the city all the time - he liked it better. I don't know that he's used it as much in the suburbs, but if he was going somewhere where he needed to carry the baby (just not that common these days) and have his hands free - like a plant nursery, or Home Depot - he'd still use it I'm sure.
persimmon / 1064 posts
+1 to everything @PinkElephant mentioned. We also have an Osprey Poco Premium and my husband MUCH prefers that to any of our soft structured carriers. We actually scored it off a B/S/T group--brand new with tags for $100! I feel like I'm always seeing barely used hiking backpacks for sale, so maybe you can find a used one before your trip?
grapefruit / 4361 posts
Definitely try to borrow one. It supports the weight nuch better and there is significantly better airflow.
pineapple / 12053 posts
it's worth it if you're going to use it more than the once. i would try to borrow! we did for our first trip with our oldest and then bought one at the REI garage sale the next year!
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