Tent camping with an 8 month old?




ANG


Has anyone been tent camping with a young baby? Any tips? Is it a bad idea?


Answer
When our kids were little we took them tent camping many times. We camped in Yosemite, Devils Post Pile and even Borrego Desert Sites. We kept a play pen in the tent with us. When they would wake up at night the wife would get them out nurse them , burp them and put them back to sleep. Those were the days of cloth diapers too. Most of out camp sites had a laundry close by. Our oldest now almost 48 started camping at 6 months, as did our 46 and 44 year old. Our youngest now 38 was a bottle baby, saw 4 month old on her first camping trip. We kept the bottles in our sleeping bag to keep them warm. One night the temp was 21 and I rolled over and found a very coolish bottle in my back. Now that is one way to wake up with a start. camping never was a problem with us. take plenty of diapers, try to keep them on a normal schedule as much as possible. Have fun, take them often. My kids now take their kids camping and some times they will use the tents. Grand parents are great when camping out too, extra child care and most will help with the cooking and dish washing . But we do have problems with sleeping on the grouond. lol

camping TENTS??? (pic)?




Madison B


Can i get those cute little kids camping sets a like wal mart? Or where else?
ones like these:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51mZEsbU36L._SL500_.jpg
or
http://www.bossgoo.com/photo/product4/775319/product-Kids-Camping-3pcs-Set.jpg
and also: it doesnt have to be all cutsey, just like a smaller sizze.
thanks in advance



Additional Details
also, are they like SUPER small? cause its for my 13 year old, she said she wanted a tiny, cozy and content one like that. (x

ALSO: cause i am pretty sure i have seen them in the wal mart stores but they are not online so i was a little worried.
thanks guys.



Answer
These kinds of items like in the picture, including anything with a cartoon character on it, are more of a toy than a serious piece of camping gear. They probably are not weatherproof for one, and I bet they aren't very durable.

But you can get "real" tents that are kid sized for different amounts of money. Here is a youth tent from TexSport

http://www.amazon.com/Texsport-Brookwood-Youth-Dome-Tent/dp/B001C0GWUE/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1269683114&sr=1-14

You can also get an authentic bivy shelter or a backpacker's or bicycler's tent. These are all small, lightweight, and minimalist design so they are easy to carry. They are used by adults with almost no room to spare, but for a child, they would still be pretty cozy, and they are meant for real camping. Note that the term bivy is used to describe both a sleeping bag cover, which you don't really want for this, and a narrow tent. Here is a search result page for those.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dsporting&field-keywords=bivy&x=0&y=0

You also may have some luck with a beach type shelter, including some pop up cabana type things which tend to have a small footprint, since they are used by people in a sitting position. These are meant for real use, but not necessarily camping. Many are meant for shade, but may not be waterproof or durable enough for any sort of campsite other than sand.

Just make sure whatever you get is meant for real use as a camping piece, that is has all the right working parts just like a grownup's, and is meant to be used outdoors instead of being set up in the playroom, etc.

EDIT: Your 13 year old will not fit in any play tent I have ever seen unless she is super small. Even if she did, she is bound to hit a growth spurt any day now. Go with a backpacking tent or a bivy shelter! It will be plenty cozy...this is past the age of toy tents in my opinion. If she is showing interest in camping, get her some real gear and teach her how to do it right!




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