MySwag.org The Off-road Camper Trailer Forum
General => General Discussion => Topic started by: D4D on September 18, 2010, 06:32:37 PM
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We're a month or so away from having number 1 baby. We've upgraded to a Goldstream for a little more civilisation and we plan to stick to caravan parks with ensuite sites to start with. What are people’s thoughts and tips on taking a baby camping? Oh and we're having a boy ;D
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We spent three week up around Cannia Gorge, Gladstone etc when Cam was 2 Months old. We had a great time and have never let the kids stop what we want to do and we think they really enjoy it and get used to it a little later in life. Obviously we didn't do any diff lock hills as you have to worry about their neck etc but We enjoyed it. I reckon you guys will as well
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Firstly, congrats for when the little fella arrives. Another up and coming camper.
We have four kids ranging from 10 down to two. They have camped from the age of 2 months, with out a worry. Personally I think its pretty easy when they are young, but when they start crawling it a different story.
Start them young and they will love!
Dazza
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Congrats on the newbie.
In my opinion get them out camping the sooner the better. After all, all they do when babies is eat, sleep and poo.
Its a bit like my kids and the boat. Get them out early and they haven't been sea sick at all.
Good luck
Mark
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Hi D4D, look we took our kids camping at a young age (3 under 3, two girls and a boy) it was no worse than being home, the first time might be a learning curve but after that you'll want to go even more than ever. Our kids are in there teens now and still love camping.
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Thanks for the good wishes, its coming down to the business end so the excitement is starting to ramp up.
How do you get them used to and keep them occupied on long trips?
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Congratulations D4D
We have 3 kids and they have always gone everywhere with us, including camping. I think you are onto a good thing with the Goldstream and I guess on-suite sites are good to make it just that little more comfortable. So in short, don't be too concerned, they are pretty ruggered when new ;D, we then condition them :-*
Edit: to answer your last question, the best thing is regular breaks and regular feeds. It is a bit tough up to age of one (sometimes longer) as some can become very unsettled being in the car for too long.
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Soon as they start breathing, the earlier the better! ;D
The younger they are the quicker they get used to it.
Keep them entertained the same way parents used too do it, games, being an idiot and whatever else you can do, but most importantly enjoy it! :laugh:
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Congratulations, it's the best thing you've ever done.
Don't be too stressed, they are tough little critters and adapt really well. The first 4-5 months of their lives is probably the easiest on the parents ever (you'll realise this when you have your second child). They just seem to sleep, eat and pooh - that's it.
Wait till he starts talking!
Our son (2.5) just chews my ear off all day every day and our daughter (1.5) is an angel in the background.
But I wouldn't have it any other way.
(PS: We purchased the Jayco for the same reason (kids - comfort etc) but we ended up happier in the soft floor strangely enough - go figure!)
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We are on our fourth and dont go during winter. We have found the cold night air can give them a chesty cough.
Other than that, no worries at all.
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We were in the same boat, once we had our little guy we stopped camping until we were happy he was big enough to cope with a change in his routine. We took him to tallebudgera and stayed in the soft floor with a powered site so we could heat bottles, use a fan heater at night etc.
At times when he woke during the night or early morning I felt bad foe my fellow campers as there is some noise involved but we had great neighbours so to speak and they enjoyed playing with him. He was 9 months old when we took him so walking etc which kept him a tad cleaner!!
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I reckon kids are very adaptable creatures. Our son has been camping since he was 6 wks old (he's now 10) so he is very used to it and loves it. Treat it as a big adventure and they'll really get into it.
Our first big trip was when he was 2 and as long as you stop every couple of hours and get them out of the car seat the kidlets will be fine. I used to go the cheap shops before the trips and get a few cheap little surprises - toy cars, animals, games, etc. So each day when he was getting a bit "restless" he got a new toy.
PS - congrats on the upcoming new arrival
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Our eldest, now 5, went on his first trip when he was 4 weeks old and the second one was 2 months old before his first trip.
They absolutely love camping and 4wdriving so the earlier the better.
One trick we did was to sleep them in the porta cot we were taking away with us a few days before we left so they got a bit used to it before we actually went away.
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We have 4 kids from 3-9yrs old and another 1 on the way (and NO we are not crazy) and none of them have ever slowed us down bush camping with little or no amenities other then what we take.
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Congrats on the new baby mate, Richard is a great boys name ;D ;D
I went camping for the 1st time when me and cruza driver (twins) were about 4-6 weeks old in the back of a 40 series cruiser, I have done the same with our 2 girls. The oldest was born in winter so she was a little older. When camping in the warmer months just need to watch the flies ect around there eyes ears and nose as there to young to swat them away. Being young say before they crawl we bought a large cover screen net type of thing girls like above there beds and hung it from a tree to keep the flies out. The porta cot was used as a bit of a play pen, again before they were crawling ect. once they were crawling a off they went playing in the dirt or grass depending where we were camping at the time.
We used to have the stove ready to heat up the bottles ready for the middle of the night feeds.
Get the new baby used to hats froma n early age too. As for ensuites the baby wont need one for a while! ;D
Best of luck look forward to hearing how you go on your first big "family" adventure!!
Cheers Rich
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My experience mirrors everyone above; I took my now 7.5 yo camping at 6 weeks and it was fine. In fact Kate used to sleep better when the roads were rougher.
I've got the next one on the way now, and looking forward to taking this one camping too. The attitude of the mother is the key I think; I'd love my wife to meet other mums who've taken their bubs out camping.
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Congratulations...
We took our kids from about 6mths, #2 was an unsettled colicky baby & I didnt think it was fair to subject our mates to him at ungodly hours of the night so we waited until he "outgrew" it at 8mths with him, or we went by ourselves but didnt venture into the remote.
As a mother it takes a bit of careful planning of trips around times for immunisations etc & then what to pack etc.. but if your not doing huge trips its fun make it over two weeks and it can become a nightmare....
As a mum who is an ambo I now advise everyone, look at where you are going,how far are you going to be from a hospital if the baby gets sick & what are the capabilities of that hospital... if the baby is in need of urgent attention its a scary thing having to wait for RFDS to land to get you to a decent hospital. (Especially in remote locations! The amt of distraught mothers I have tried to console in the back of the ambulance lately is just ??? {and they live here, so know how little our hospital can do})
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Don't look too hard as there is another thread around complaining about crying babies!!! Can't please everyone :)
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Start them off as young as possible, my 5 and 3 year olds can do 8hr stints when needed with minimal breaks and no electronic gizmos. Let them get used to it early as possible and it shold make it a bit easier for you.
GG
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We took a 4 month old camping for 2 months. only bit of advice is think about temperature control. we spent a few nights in Canberra in April, and she ended up not sleeping - she is a thumbsucker, but we wrapped her in so many layers that she couldn't bend her arm - no thumb, no happy baby.
Also spent several hours trying to find a doctor that could see her the next day, as her hands and feet swelled to twice their size due to the cold then heat of buildings.
One nice thing about camper trailers is you can always leave them in the middle of the night if you really are worried about something. there aren't many places more than a few hours without a clinic or doctor or hospital that can respond. But is was really nice to have a satellite phone as backup. We didn't need to, but we did consider that when we bought our CT.
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That leads to another question, first-aid kits. We carry a St-John remote area kit however what should we add for the baby?
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What we carry is different to most (both Jase n I are level 2 Ambulance officers with ST John Ambulance here & Jason is an Industral Medic) so we dont have a typical kit.. ours is more of a trauma / emergency response kit
but a thing to make sure of is that you dont get led into buying more stuff than you need or can use.
Most places that do snr first aid will also give you basic courses in remote first aid,child first aid etc, so its always worthwhile to look into that. As horrible as it is & you may never need it but a course in basic resuscitation for children & babies is always money well spent.
A normal basic off road first aid kit , with a few extras, such as a thermometer,baby panadol is probably the main things to have. One of our ruggies is Asthmatic so we carry salbutamol (ventolin puffer) and a space chamber with a mask attached as well. As your kids get older you can get other paracetamols & medications but there isnt much you can buy for the real littlies..
With a sick baby the hardest thing to regulate if you dont monitor it is their temperature a cheesecloth blanket dampened with water & rungout is great to pat down with to help cool a fever BUT dont do the old submerse in ice water as that is no longer recommended. (We had one lot up here stick a feverish baby in an esky full of icewater :o it bought the temp down alright.... but then it was the opposite..
Just making sure you know where you are & what the capabilities are of yourselves to act in an emergency & how to get to help if you need it are the best things too.
Jacq
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You have made the right move with the camper, if the other half feels comfortable then you can go many places.
As long as you are there and they are warm and fed there is no different to being at home. We went to the Kimberleys with a 3 month old.
Christian
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Hi D4D,
We have two little ones Currently 2.5 and 5. They have been camping with us since the missus was pregnant and soon after the first was born we took her to Exmouth with us. It never stopped us.
A few pointers though.
Maybe bush camp whilst real young as your fellow campers will be less amused than you if the baby wakes every few hours for a feed.
As others have said, regular breaks. I used to drive throughout the night as the kids sleep most the night, but too dangerous here in WA and now do short stints of 3 hours or so and pull up for the night, there is adventure in every camp spot, even if it's on the side of the road.
Make sure you allow each other to get enough rest (difficult in the 8 months) as one dog tired partner is no barrel of fun.
The kids are tough, they'll adapt, just go for it and have fun. OPur kids love camping mostly in the bush, we rarely do tourist parks but the kids find adventure there too in simple things like double bunks etc.
Cheers,
DJ
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All the best with the new arrival.
We took our second child camping (soft floor camper) when she was 4 weeks old. In terms of the nighttime sleeping we let her slip in her capsule as she appeared most content with that. We had a porta-cot which acted as her play pen when weren't giving her a cuddle and she wanted some down time.
When we use to do long travel trips we would limit the travelling to about 4 hours a day. We would time the travel normally around her sleep times. We also could travel much more than this becuase her older sister is not one that likes to stay seated; she loves camping and getting out there in it.
As she got older she just started sleeping in the porta-cot.
When our baby reached 16 months old we did a trip around Australia in a Coromal Silhouette. We graduated her from a cot to the push out bed at the opposite end of the camper; it had a child mesh on it to stop her from rolling out. This was challenging as she clearly didn't adjust to all the new found space. After 3 months though :( she settled and was fine.
Also we needed to do quite a bit of walking around the camp ground with her in the stroller. We had a cheapy and I lost count of how many running repairs I did on that ride, but it served the purpose well.
I think you just go for it and let her tell you what works by the way she adjusts.
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Took my kids camping from a very early age. It did them the world of good. My son is still very outdoorsy, prefered camping to nintendo. As a soon to be grandfather for the first time and having a son in law who is an avid gem hunter, the whole cycle is about to start again.
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We have four kids ranging from 10 down to two. They have camped from the age of 2 months, with out a worry. Personally I think its pretty easy when they are young, but when they start crawling it a different story.
This was our experience as well, they where easy until they started to crawl, then camping becomes much harder over night, but as they start to walk, then grow out of nappies it all becomes easier and easier until then they are starting to help set and pack up camp!
The other note is to be very flexible with driving distances. Some days we could get a solid 8 hour driving leg in, others you only get a hour or so here and there. But the more you try to push on, the worse it gets so it is often better to just find a camp.
- David.
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My kids love camping... because I tell them they have to :)
The photo below is from our most recent trip to the Flinders. It was cold but they still seemed to enjoy it. The only problem I find is that by the time morning comes around, all of you are in one bed. This does not make for happy sleeping.
The youngest was 8 weeks old on her first camping trip to Phillip Island for the MotoGP. She's an old hand now.
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My brother carted his youngest (now 14) across The Simpson when she was 9 weeks old.
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Congrats dad to be, we did 6 weeks last year with an 8 month old who started to crawl whilst we were away. We did the outback in the middle of winter, and a couple of hints from our trip were:
Have a thermos and boil your water before going to bed, that way you can make the bottles and add the hot water to your semi filled bottles till they are just the right temp without having to go out in the cold to boil the kettle.
We used the porta cot at night, with a cellular blanket drapped over the top so that it was like a cacoon to keep the warmth in and cold out. Worked a treat used a little low power led light as a night light (battery powered) so you could see what you were doing in the middle of the night.
During the day we used the porta cot when we got sick and tired of chasing our daughter through the dirt and wanted to have a cuppa.
We also used a portable dvd player when doing the long hauls, I think we know "In the night garden" back to front now. She was just at the stage where she needed a little more interaction than just looking out the window.
Most of all "Enjoy your time with your kid/s" they grow up way to quick and the sooner you can get them out in the bush travelling the better I reakon.
Give me the cruiser, camper and the road anyday over 9-5 :)
Hope that when you do get to go on your first trip that you really enjoy it, and remember if it doesnt work, just try something else till you find what works for you and your family :)
:cheers: Pat
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One thing you will need to consider on a remote trip is what to do with the nappies. (Burn-bash-bury doesn't work)
Also, babies should not be kept in a capsule for hours on end, its not good for their backs.
As Jacq said, temperature regulation is not something they are good at. We all know not to leave a baby in a hot car. That may also apply to one that is moving. Remember the link between hyperthermia and dehydration; keep up the fluids.
It may be tempting to dose them on phenergan so that they "travel better" but it may just stop them letting you know when all is not well.
Both my kids were camping at 6 weeks without any dramas but only for short trips (eg Easter). You need to ask yourself whether a long outback trip is really a benefit to them in their first 6 or 12 months.
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Thanks for all the ideas and tips, it gives us confidence that we can do it.
As far as trips are concerned we don't plan any big outback trips until he is older. We'll stick to a 4-6 hour max driving distance and only a couple of nights, just enough for us to get out there again and for him to become accustomed to traveling.
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:D Congrats for the new one. Just got back from the Gulf where we stressed the others out ;D. The heat was the worst thing, and not being able to cool her down continually was a big worry. It was hot and not very good for bub for heat stress. She is one now but still has bottles which have to be cleaned etc, porta cot, etc. You are limited severely by their sleep patterns and they don't like being hot. Definitely powered sites the go, and fans (or better). Got out at Lawn hill for 15mins and she just went red even in the shade.
But in saying that we got out and saw, and except for megaphone Matt (our 5yo) and the fact the it took an hour longer than anyone else to pack we didn't disturb the others too much :angel: (at least I hope not :-[)
:cheers: Paul
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Hey d4d, I have a 3 and 18 month old and another due on the 15th of this month. What works for us is to either leave early morning 3 4 o'clock and travel while they sleep. I always try to arrive at my destination at approx 7 am. If that's not possible plan your trips around nap times. The other thing you will find is the first night is hell. Always has been for me and my kids. To the point I think what am I doing. My mate just got home from Morton island with his first trip with his 6month old and same thing happened to him . His wife wanted home on the first night. Good luck
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I agree if you can get through the first night it's a breeze after that they get into the rhythm of camping. We took our now 3 yr old on his first trip when he was 5 mths old to Beachport. The first night I think we kept the whole park awake with his crying, we were waiting for him to start the second night but he slept like he should as a baby! Think it's just a case of different surroundings puts them out a little bit.
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Congratulations with the baby.
You got a whole heap of responses, and no one seems to say taking the kid camping is a bad thing.
What you need to do is worry more about yourselves.
Based on our experience, babies are lazy little tykes for the first few years.
Can't chop wood, fetch water, cook, or anything.
If you are prepared to put in more than your fair share of the work, take then kid. Bonding in any situations is better than offloading junior to relatives, and far better than curtailing your own enjoyment.
Cheers
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Make sure you take familiar blankets and don't wash them. The smell seems to settle them more. When young they can't define shapes to well so a night light is a good idea if you have one at home or at least allow a similar light. we did all that and never had any issues camping. We would get 4 hours out of cam before he wanted a feed. We kept going while he sleep and stopped when he needed a feed or a change. Make sure you change them a lot and use a barrier cream even if you don't think they need it. There is more pressure in the nappy in a capsule than in a cot etc at home and it will not help if they feel un-comfortable. Also leave space for Mum or Dad to sit in the back for some periods so they get to see your face for time to time. We did this when we were say 30 mins for the destination and didn't want to stop.
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we took all our kids camping from very early age (our latest is 15 months old now but he was born at 1980 grams) when we had him out for the 1st time about a month old. as previously said,take some familiar toys/blankets with you forr them and they wont know any different. in fact all our little ones accually slept better in the camper trailer than they did at home.
just take them along and relax with them and enjoy the outdoors,cheers.
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;D Don't go to Ayres Rock.
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Pressing the unlike button (furiously)
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We take our kids camping a lot now. The first one went on a round Australia adventure with us at then age of 18 months. We spent 3 months on the road (although we did stay with a few friends along the way), we camped the last 4 weeks of it in a tent. When the middle one was little we lived in NT on an island and we were a little afraid to take the little ones camping near croc infested rivers and beach (we even had crocs on the golf course every breeding season). Being back on the mainland we restarted camping again and our youngest had her first camping trip at 6 months.
Nothing to dislike about it. The kids love it. The dirtier they get the happier they are.
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4089/5064653818_ae7a1979b1.jpg)
Rachael at 9 months having a bath at a rest stop halfway between Alice and Darwin...
Some hints
- For feeding we took a walker (just remove the wheels if on unstable ground). They are compact and easy to set up.
- Dirty nappies - must say that utes are very handy - all the smell is out the back
- camping in caravan parks - most people get anoyed by crying babies, so we made sure that the little one slept between us so that we could comfort her very quickly and not disturb too many people.
- Picnic rugs are great for them before they walk - also keep them dry of the ground is wet
- time travel when you want nap time if you can - don't travel at witching hours, makes for a bad trip
Peter
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Go for it , when our kids were small we camped in a tent for about their first 6 years, they were the best holidays we ever had with the kids, they mixed with the other kids at the various camp sites and remained friends with them for years. Now they have grown up and have families of their own they are continually asking when they can borrow our camper trailer so they can introduce their kids to the lifestyle
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Firstly, Congrats on the impending expansion of the family! :cheers:
Secondly, we started our kids camping in caravan parks at 3 weeks old, each of them had their first trip away early and gave us time to bond as a family without everyone else dropping in all the time. It is amazing to see the kids grow with the lifestyle, enjoy every moment of it. Ensuite sites are nice if they make you more comfortable, but we hardly ever used them.
Good luck and as per the NIKE ads...JUST DO IT!!!!
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We have camped since Nicholas was 3 months old.
Short trips only until he was about 12 months.
He has grown up with it and now ( at 6 ) is the one bugging me to go away camping all the time.
We camp as part of groups ( small and large ) alot, and the exposure to children of all ages in an environment away from computers / Nintendo etc , with the kids just using their imagination and playing has been fantastic.
We implement things like ' Go around the outside of the chair's around a campfire' and ' stay away from the river when not with an adult ' policies and stick to them with serious repercussions for breaches . Nicholas had to miss a trip once because of a previous infringement. harsh, but he never did it again.
Go for it :)
Dale
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This is an excellent thread and well worth reprising.
We have a 5 month old whose been camping once, at 4 weeks old, and away a couple of times. I must say, this one has been much harder than the first child. I'm working on the mother to not bail out of the two weeks away in Sept/Oct.
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The more you travel & camp, the better it will get. Our 3 were all different, still have trouble with car sickness with #2 ( & #3 sometimes), but once we are out & going camping all is well. A friend once said to us "we control the kids, the kids don't control us". I think he was on the money. Pick some nice spots to go to with as much as possible to make things easy, then wean them off the luxuries with more bush camps. It will get better with time mate. If the above doesn't work, chuck a hissy fit, shove em in the car & TELL them we are going >:D. Good luck BJ :cheers:
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We've actually just booked our first trip, he'll be 11 months old. We booked an ensuite site to ease into things. I've started a list of stuff to take already.
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We've actually just booked our first trip, he'll be 11 months old. We booked an ensuite site to ease into things. I've started a list of stuff to take already.
Inverloch ?
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Inverloch ?
Nah Porepunkah http://www.porepunkahmill.com.au/
Although the RACV club park is our backup
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We bought our camper just before winter this year so have only got out for a couple of overnighters before the frost turned up.
The MWF doesnt like camping with ice hanging off anything especially when our young fella was only 18months old he is now 2 1/2 and could talk the leg off a chair like his mother. The biggest worry we found was keeping him away from the camp fire but he is now old enough to understand hot, burny and doesnt go near it which is great just got to keep an eye on him cause likes to talk to anyone and explore but nothing most kids wouldnt do.
Previously we had a goldstream on road camper which was good as his porta cot would fit where the table was once I took the base out, we also took our fold out gazebo which also had walls and just used a picnic blanket for the ground then loaded it with a heap of toys which kept him occupied for ages we also found simple items such as plastic bottles, tupperware containers and the like seem to have more entertainment value then the expensive toys kids get bought for them.
We spent 3 weeks at fingal bay caravan park a couple of years back before we sold the goldstream and the gazebo worked a treat just got to find somewhere to pack the extra bits needed for the littlies but its all good fun as they grow up so quick so enjoy it!