Overlanding with a Toddler- Scott Parker

Overlanding with a Toddler

PART 1

Although I’ll be discussing overlanding with a toddler, I thought I’d start at the beginning: what is overlanding? There are lots of interpretations about what it is or how you do it, but my definition is that it’s whatever you want it to be; don’t let someone else define it for you. With that out of the way, the most common interpretation is adventure travel with a vehicle, where the most important part is the journey, not the destination. I’d like to say that is true, but not always; there are many factors that can affect this and one of those factors is traveling with a toddler. My wife and I have been overlanding or adventure traveling since we met thirteen years ago, and now that we have a fouryear-old, our goals and ideas of adventure travel or overlanding have had to change slightly. No more spur-of-the-moment trips to the mountains, no more extended cross-country trips with long days in the Jeep, and more often than not, we find ourselves spending our time closer to home enjoying a few days at a time with other couples who have kids. Whether we are by ourselves or with others, the important things are that we are watching our son grow up in the outdoors and sometimes even sharing those moments with other like-minded families.

So, let’s start with what it takes to get out the door. If you’re like us and have most of your camping gear already stashed away ready to go, all you need to do is pack your clothes, grab your food and you’re out the door. But now we also have a toddler to contend with, and his needs are drastically different. As adults we learn what we can live with and without. We can occupy our time reading a book on long drives or we can just enjoy nature and beautiful scenery as we traverse a mountain pass, but a toddler’s needs and wants are vastly different. To start with, they eat all the time, they have short attention spans, their moods can change in an instant, and when they need to go potty, they need to go. So how to do you prepare for adventure with a toddler, especially when space is limited, or you need to travel across country to get to your destination that you’ve been longing for? Patience, lots and lots of patience. Now that you know the secret, we’re done! Not quite, but it’s a good starting point.

I can honestly say, my wife is better at it than me; I can get hot-headed and disgruntled very quickly. She, on the other hand, can take a calming approach that almost always seems to work. My downfall is that I like schedules, but when traveling with a toddler, forget it. However, there are some tricks that can keep you

on track and keep the mood light. First off, lots of snacks. Kids love snacks. I’m not talking about Ho Hos and Ding Dongs, but somewhat healthy snacks such as fruits, veggies, dehydrated fruits, shelfstable pepperoni sticks, and occasionally crackers. My wife always packs great snacks. That’s not to say that we don’t give our child sugar-filled snacks; we do, but we also try to mix in some healthy snacks along the way. You’ll also want to have a good supply of those snacks, because one minute your little monster may love one thing and the next…they wouldn’t eat it to save their life. If you are traveling for an extended time, you definitely don’t want to load your toddler up on lots of sugar … imagine being locked into a fivepoint harness for hours on end and you just chowed down on a bunch of sugary sweets and the vehicle overlords say you can’t do anything for next few hours or more. I don’t know about you, but I’d go crazy. Little kids are the same way; they are stuck in their car seats for extended periods of time and it’s our responsibility to make this trip fun and entertaining, otherwise it could lead to disaster.

So now that we have snacks out of the way, what else can we do to keep them entertained? If your toddler can read, great, maybe bring their favorite books. Most toddlers are just starting to read at this point in their lives, but that doesn’t mean you or another passenger can’t read a book or two to them. Bring their favorite toy or toys, maybe a favorite stuffed animal or some cars that they like to play with. Do not bring LEGOs, that stuff goes everywhere, and you’ll never find the piece that falls down between the seats (yes, we are speaking from experience). As you can see there are lots of ways to keep your child occupied. Sometimes we play games like we did when we were kids, such as the first one to find a red car wins and maybe gets a treat. I’m not saying that everything that works for us will work for you, but these are some good tips to get you moving in the right direction. One final point I’d mention is to build in extra time for stops and breaks; what may normally be a four-hour car ride can easily turn into 6 or 8 hours, no joke.

Let’s talk potty time, we’ve all been there. Does your child still wear diapers or pull-ups, are you in the process of potty training, or is your child reliably using the bathroom all the time? If you’re potty training or trained, what do you do when you’re out in the woods and miles from the nearest bathroom? You may be of the mindset of letting them go in the woods (for boys its easier, pull it out and let it go). But what about girls, or if they have to go number two? To help us with this concern, we bought a portable kid’s potty. It’s been a lifesaver and we take it everywhere we go (we keep one in each of our vehicles), since as I mentioned before, when a little kid needs to go, they need to go! Yes, it takes up space, but they are fairly small and instead of trying to find a place to go, we can pull over wherever we are and set it up for him. For cleaning we keep disinfectant wipes and doggie bags with us at all times and it makes cleanup a breeze. Now that my son is potty trained and he’s gotten a little older, he’s able to tell us if he needs to pee or poop and it makes things a little easier, but I can tell you from experience that when its 15 degrees outside and the wind is blowing, having a potty you can set up in the seat next to him is a game changer…Just don’t spill it!

Now that we have talked about snacks, keeping your little ones occupied on a long drive, and peeing and pooping. Let’s dive into clothing and other accessories. So how to do you pack for little kids? If you child is anything like ours, we bring lots of backup clothes, as he tends to get dirty fairly quickly. Luckily though, their outfits are fairly small and don’t take up a ton of space. Now I’m not saying that we change his clothes every time he gets dirty, but there are times when a kid just needs to get changed and having a good supply of extra clothes can be useful. This is also critical if you are potty training but out of pull-ups; make sure to pack enough extra bottoms to handle accidents. Packing for extreme weather changes can be hard, unlike adults we can get some quality technical gear that can shield us from the elements and dress in layers to keep us warm and dry. Kids’ clothing, although it’s getting better, is big and bulky and when you start layering up a toddler, they start to look like that kid from A Christmas Story. The warmer months are usually easier, more shorts and t-shirts and maybe a few sweatpants and hoodies for those cool nights and you’re usually set, but if you’re traveling to those higher altitudes also be prepared for those freak storms that can drop the temperature. Basically, what I’m saying is whatever you bring for yourself, bring more for your kid. They are not little adults, kids can compensate for a long time, but when they crash, they crash hard and if you can keep them comfortable, warm and dry they will be happier, and you will be happier.

So, you’ve made it to camp, now what? Little kids need to be watched, now I’m not saying you need to be a helicopter parent, but a watchful eye will keep them

from getting into trouble or even hurt. Camping is time to explore; these little kids are like sponges, they are soaking up information, so let them explore, even let them get a booboo or two. If your kid is like ours, he probably wants to go go go and once he’s out of his car seat its go time. For us it usually means that one of us is setting up camp and the other is off wandering through the woods or watching him ride his bike down the trail (yes, we bring his bike everywhere). By giving them time to explore this lets them get some energy out, while you are getting camp set up. Maybe you have a happy helper who loves to be a part of solution (not my kid, but maybe yours is). Let them help; as they get older, they will become an integral part of the team and make things easier for everyone. Try to make camp early, because setting up camp with a little kid at night can be draining, and usually if there is a problem with your equipment, nighttime is not when you want to find out. Neil has his own headlamp, he loves playing with it, and it’s a great way to keep him in sight when it starts getting dark.

Now that camp is set, and dinner is going …. Oh wait, meals. That’s another whole topic to discuss. What about meals? Having a variety of food can keep a toddler happy. I’m not saying you have to bring extra food just for your little monster, but having a variety of food, especially things that you know they like, can be helpful. Luckily, we try to encourage him to eat all types of things at home, especially things we make out on the trail, so he isn’t crazy picky when it comes to food, but having some of his favorites can be helpful when he’s in a picky mood. For us, keeping a healthy supply of mac-n-cheese and hot dogs can save the day. We also keep a big supply of yogurt pouches and yogurt drinks available; this has saved us on more than one occasion. Easy singleserve snacks like hummus and pretzels are also a go-to for us. It’s amazing how many calories these little bottomless pits can burn in a day, and we can definitely tell when he starts becoming calorie deficient, the hangry monster comes out. This leads me to one of our favorite pieces of Overlanding gear, our SnoMaster fridge. It is permanently mounted in the Jeep for a reason: I always carry drinks and snacks every day, so it doesn’t matter if we are out in the backcountry or headed to the store, I always have a fresh supply of snacks just in case he (or my wife) starts to go downhill. Now I’m not saying you need a fridge to have a great time with your family, far from it, but for us a fridge has been a lifesaver. We no longer need to worry about food going bad, or worrying about buying ice. Having a fridge is just one less thing to worry about when you’re away from civilization, and if I can minimize what we need to worry about then it makes our lives much easier. So, what I’m saying is, bring the food you know will work for you, and when you’re planning your trip think about the setup you are using, and prepare your meals and food around what works for you and your kids.

Now that the light has faded and its nighttime, we usually end our night around the campfire, but depending on how the day went, your little one may not be tired yet. Maybe it’s time to take a short night hike, or let them run around camp for a bit to get that extra energy out - just be careful of tent and awning lines. Once they’ve expended that extra energy, we like to listen to music around the fire, maybe make some s’mores and hopefully end the day on a high note. So once those little eyes get heavy, now what? Everyone is a little different when it comes to sleeping arrangements. Maybe you have a slick sprinter van that everyone sleeps in, or you’re old school and have a ground tent that you’ve been using for ages, or maybe you’re part of the roof top tent club. It doesn’t matter, what matters is that everyone gets a good night’s rest. Each of these methods has its own ups and downs and you’ll need to figure out what works best for you, but here are some things to think about. Is your child wearing a diaper at night, or are they potty trained, and how will they go to the bathroom at night if they need to? Kids can be scared of the dark, so maybe you need to have a small night light of some sort. If it is raining or snowing, or the wind is blowing, just remember noises can scare a little kid. Does your little monster have his or her own sleeping bag (and if so, are they warm enough?), or do they sleep in a big bag or under the bedding with you? These are all things that can affect how your child will sleep. Remember this is a new and exciting adventure for them, you want it to be memorable and positive.

A few final thoughts: build in time for adventures and activities, no one wants to be couped up inside a vehicle for hours on end. If you’re traveling across the country, pull over and make time to stretch, run and play. Try to have patience (I’m still working on this myself), and make the most of your time. Things do get easier as they get older, and your trips can get longer and more remote, lean on your friends for advice, and just have fun.

Scott Parker

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