This is a question only you can answer, although you may want to include your doctor in the conversation to confirm that there aren’t any unique considerations for your child (all babies are different!).
With the above said, there are no rules with how old your newborn should be before you take them on a hike. The simple answer is that, you can go hiking with your newborn as soon as you feel confident in their safety (and your sanity) on the hike.
Still worried? Well, there are some general age determination guidelines we can reference that will hopefully put you at ease a bit.
The governments Consumer Protection Safety Commission (CPSC) has age determination guidelines for toy use AND play behavior. While your infant won’t come in contact with toys on a hike, these determination guidelines are helpful in pinpointing what level of movement and support a baby will have when moving during play, or in this case, during a recreational hike. Here are some helpful take-away’s from page 178 of their Age Determination Guidelines:
- 0 to 4 months old: Infants enjoy movement, but cannot sit-upright, and apparatuses must provide complete support during movement.
- 4 through 7 months old: Infants can sit with support, enjoy motion, and can handle being pushed in a swing with support.
- 8 through 11 months old: Children at this age begin to crawl, and walk, and climb.
- 12 through 18 months: Children gain confidence in their walking and climbing, but lack awareness of consequences with regards to falls.
Hopefully the above provides you with a little more confidence that your baby can handle a well planned hike.
For any moms or dads out there who want to take their baby on a hike between the ages of 0 and 4 though, take the suggestion of the Consumer Protection Safety Commission into account and be sure that there is continual and complete support for your baby during any hike. No worries, below we cover some of the gear needed for hiking with an infant.
Comments are closed.