The Hiking Family

Summary: Hiking is an increasingly growing family activity, many parents report that hiking with their children creates a sort of communal task that everyone has to achieve, and that family bonds are stronger then ever due to this family activity. The challenge of the hike combined with the effect that the time the family spends together is in the outdoors with a kind of "mission" is great for creating stronger relationships and trust between family members, especially among siblin...

Hiking is an increasingly growing family activity, many parents report that hiking with their children creates a sort of communal task that everyone has to achieve, and that family bonds are stronger then ever due to this family activity. The challenge of the hike combined with the effect that the time the family spends together is in the outdoors with a kind of "mission" is great for creating stronger relationships and trust between family members, especially among siblings. Hiking is a great way to get exercise, experience the outdoors and spend time with your loved ones. The wilderness is jammed-pack full of scenes and animals you may never have had the options to see before. You can do things the good old-fashioned route, or you can take an already made trail. Either way, there is a lot to be experienced with nature. The natural environment provides the perfect setting for quality family time. Much has been said about the effect that hiking has on the mental and spiritual side, the psychological significance of the modern man against the force of nature, all this becomes even more important when thinking about a family unit performing the hike. Hiking can even be a spiritual process as we are all a part of nature, and if you can see this, you'll discover there are many small wonders you haven't even noticed yet. The spectacular colors you can see when you are hiking are breathtaking. Everything from flowers to the autumn leaves. Some hiking expeditions are more strenuous than others. So it depends on your physical side just how much you want to endure. If you just want a friendly walk without much effort, you may want to stay on a state park trail. If you are thinking about trying the hiking for your family, you should try and make everyone a part of the team, even in the preparation phase, try and have a family meeting, decide what food you want to take with you, how many stops you want to take, what are the goals of the hike and more issues that you do not want to leave for the final moment. You can also try and create a sense of challenge by setting a clear goal (reaching the top of a hill, overlooking some nice view, or just starting a trail and finishing it), and plan a moderate celebration once you are successful. What is awesome when you are hiking is if you can find places that are high up in the air. This gives you the options of looking down upon a vast amount of land, more importantly is that you can use this to show your kids how the effort has paid off, and teach them an important lesson about effort. Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words. Imagine what could be said about the ones you take when you find something that just stands out. Once you have had a few hikes with your family you may want to consider becoming more professional, again - you can use every step to increase the "togetherness" and the family bonding process, you can discuss what equipment you need, assign a research task to family members and have a second meeting after a few days to agree on the budget and spending and go get your hiking equipment, the only thing you need to remember is that you can not get better equipment for one member only, you can set to phase, the adult equipment phase and the kids hiking equipment phase, but try not to get new things to only one of your children, this may create jealousy. Join the adventure and go hiking with your family, you will be surprised how much it can bring into your own family cell. Good Hiking!