Babies and winter

[snowshoe]

I have been taking my 6 month old out on the trails. She seems to be fine in the cold although her hands, face and feet get cold even when budled up. I usually dont do more than an hour, I have to get get use to it and I dont want to overdue it. I also did my first XC ski with her and I enjoyed it a lot. She either sleeps or just looks around without any fuss, unless she gets hungry. I used a front carrier that way she has my body heat to keep her warm. Only problem I found was her face is exposed and gets cold. I could use my Kelty Kids pack with the rain hood for added protection. Any way my main concern is what is the best way to bundle a 6 month old up and keep her face covered without having to worry about blocking up her breathing. This is a whole new experince for me. Anyone with experince in this would be great help to me. Thanks

 

[Skyclimber]

I'm sorry I can't be of much help, but why are you taking a 6 month old outside in the middle of winter for walks for?
I would take my granddaughter out for walks but I stopped once it got to cold!
Maybe a bug net over her stroller would help. As with the mesh, not so much cold air will get into the stroller and with the mesh she could breathe too.

 

[Rick]

Hi Shawn,
I hope everything is going well. I used to take our little one (When he was between 8 months and 2 years) on walks in the kid carrier in winter. I always used the hood on the kelty kid-carrier and loosely wrapped a scarf around his head. I would also bundle his arms all the way up to his shoulders with my ski mittens over his knitted mittens. I also pull a pair of wool socks over his booties and over the socks, put my goretex shell overmitts (they went almost to his hips) This setup worked fine for taking him out on hour long walks.

He mostly just fell asleep after 45 minutes and I would be talking and pointing things out to him and then suddenly realize all I'd hear was gentle snoring. Great Memories!!!!
Hope you are having a great first year with her.
Cheers
Rick

 

[percious]

I put a fleece balaclava on my son in the winter. Also, if you use down booties covered with a pair of your wool socks, her feet will stay warmer. I suggest putting a pair of socks over her mittens over her hands too. This worked really well. Also, if you put her in a pair of snow pants, and a down jacket, her core will stay warmer, and therefore her hands/feet will. A jacket with a hood is preferable. Warm bottles/milk are also good. I take my son out down to 20 degrees at the lowest. We have stayed at these temps for up to 3 hours with the wool sock trick.

Hope this helps.

-percious

 

[professor]

Another concern- keep in mind that you may be staying warm due to the fact that you are exercising. Your child doesn't have this advantage.

 

[Greg]

I take my one year old out, but since it's now in the teens/twenties, I keep it to under an hour. The only thing I've noticed is that his eyes water from the cold and his cheeks get cold, but he is very warm and always has a smile on his face. He wears a light jacket/fleece under a thick snowsuit with hood and fleece hat. He especially loves it when it's snowing and we walk. I don't know if he'd keep a balaclava on, but it's worth a try.

 

[dug]

One of my good climbing friends took their infant out one winter for a snowshoe, and they had a front-loader (?) harness setup, hooked off his chest. Kept the Gore-Tex over with some venting. She slept the whole time. She was warm and she had plenty of people checking in. I don't see a problem with it, but obviously you are taking the steps to ensure safety.

 

[percious]

i *just* thought of something... perhaps since you are using a front loader, you can put her inside your jacket with you? Talk about custom heater!!! Warm Daddy=happy baby.

Oh, and your kid cant take his/her balaclava off if they have socks on their hands!!! Bring an extra one just in case they figure it out anyway (they probably will).

-percious

 

[weatherman]

Make a "tent"

I saw someone who looked like a Norwegian grandmother pulling a baby on a pulk (sled) with a setup that looked kind of like a bivy sack yesterday. The baby looked quite comfy and not cold (it was about 20). Our experience with our little ones was that the wind on their face was the biggest issue as they had no clue how to protect their faces from it. So a decent windbreak plus bundling=good.
Fast forward 6 years from the last 2 sentences: So today I took them skiing with temps in the low teens, wind chills about -10 and guess who had cold toes? Not the kids. (they are 5 and 7 now) Guess who has to ski faster to keep up? Not the kids.
Enjoy.

 

[spider solo]

...off hand I would say there's a big bifference between going for walks and taking her out on the trails. How low temps are you anticipating ?

 

[VTskier]

Kids and skiing

I've gone thru this twice, first with my daughter and now with my son. I started taking my daughter out with me xc skiing at 6 weeks old. I used a front carrier, she wore lots of fleece. As has been noted, I wore a large GoreTex shell that covered her. This traps your heat, so they stay much warmer. That was the best winter of skiing. We always made sure she ate before heading out (the sleep factor), put some Chapstick or Windblock stick on their checks. After the first year, we moved up to the Kelty pack for a few years. Same thing, lots of fleece and some windproof shell that covers them. Remember they are not generating the heat that you are. After the Kelty pack, I made a homemade pulk from a cheap sled and some PVC pipe and pulled them for a few years. Along the way, about 2 years old, they get their own skis. So an outting would be some skiing, then riding on dad, then skiing, then riding.

Just keep at it and share the joy of the outdoors. That little kid of mine is now in highschool and is on their Nordic ski team.

 

[Brambor]

Bundle them well

I have two sons and both of them were out in the winder during their infancy. I grew up in the Eastern Block where people walked out of necessity. Everything is ok as long as the baby is insulated from wind and has enough warm clothes to keep him/her comfortable.

 

[1ADAM12]

I have been taking my 6 month old out on the trails. She seems to be fine in the cold although her hands, face and feet get cold even when budled up. I usually dont do more than an hour, I have to get get use to it and I dont want to overdue it. I also did my first XC ski with her and I enjoyed it a lot. She either sleeps or just looks around without any fuss, unless she gets hungry. I used a front carrier that way she has my body heat to keep her warm. Only problem I found was her face is exposed and gets cold. I could use my Kelty Kids pack with the rain hood for added protection. Any way my main concern is what is the best way to bundle a 6 month old up and keep her face covered without having to worry about blocking up her breathing. This is a whole new experince for me. Anyone with experince in this would be great help to me. Thanks

MY daughter is now 14 months old and my wife will not let me take her in the woods or for a hike unless she is in her stroller. My wife says i am to clumbsy But you can guarantee that she will be hiking with me once she gets walking better and of course if she wants too. HAve fun and charish the good times. They grow up to fast

 

[jbreen]

Taking a baby out in winter...

To Skyclimber...
The year my daughter was born she caught a real bad cold. That winter, as instructed by the pediatrician, my wife and I took turns taking her out at night. This did clear her head and save her from the dreaded aspirator (I hated that thing).
Of course, the Dr. did instruct us to *not* tell grandma.

Jim

 

[crazymama]

Snowshoe,

I think its great that you are taking your baby out with you even in winter. I think I would go with the balaclava for protecting the face.

Another thing to keep in mind is that infants are more vulnerable to hypothermia than adults due to limited body fat, and higher ratio of surface area to body mass. (And as others have already mentioned they are not exercising as you are.) So you really need to bundle them up much more than yourself. I'm sure having the baby against your body helps a great deal too.

Have fun!

 

[frytz]

Sierra!

I have been taking my 6 month old out on the trails. She seems to be fine in the cold although her hands, face and feet get cold even when budled up.

Since I have hiked with both of you, and since I risked my kids to a little less extreme conditions, and they are now close to your age, I think you are doing almost everything right! As long as you keep her unexercised body warm she's probably okay (watch for windy days for the face!). She is probably a lot more acclimated than would be expected - babys are remarkably adaptible! - but bundle the body, and don't tell the grandparents (and since I am privy to inside info, gloss it over to the other parent!).
Hope to hike with Sierra in the snow this winter!


Fred

 

[Pete_Hickey]

Another thing to keep in mind is that infants are more vulnerable to hypothermia than adults due to limited body fat, and higher ratio of surface area to body mass.

Yes. Very important. This can be illustrated by a simple experiment you can perform at home.

Take a 1 pound hunk (the baby) of ground beef and a 5 pound hunk (you) and put it in your freezer. Come back in an hour or two and compare them.

Those who can handle abstraction a bit more can do the experiment with a large turkey and a small chicken thawing. (Heat transfer is heat transfer.) Notice how quickly the chicken is ready compared to the turkey. Just imagine the process in reverse, and that the chicken is the baby.

 

[snowshoe]

Thanks for the tips. This last week has been a little too cold for her but as soon as the temps gets back into the 20's we will be back out.