Author Topic: Camping with Very Small People  (Read 2379 times)

Julian

  • samoture
Camping with Very Small People
« on: 20 April, 2015, 04:44:32 pm »
If you were going camping with a small baby (5 months) what would be your essentials?   (Other than food / nappies / a million spare outfits which are obvious things for going anywhere!)  And what do you wish you'd known prior to any camping with VSP?

And any hints or tips from the experienced as to what might come in handy as said baby grows?

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #1 on: 20 April, 2015, 04:50:39 pm »
Earplugs?

Oscar's dad

  • aka Septimus Fitzwilliam Beauregard Partridge
Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #2 on: 20 April, 2015, 05:05:49 pm »
Earplugs?

Plus earplugs for everyone else on the site as well  ;D

JJ

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #3 on: 20 April, 2015, 05:30:46 pm »
Cycle camping or camping-camping?

Everything seems to revolve around being warm, fed and clean at that age!

Mine were blissfully happy in a bike-trailer, but as young as 5 months they need to be very well supported.  by about number 3 we got a Chariot trailer with a sort of hammock which worked really well.  The first two made do with lots of cushions and stuff.

A cheap tarp was a blessing, to make an instant free-of-the-mud spot for crawling around in less salubrious stops.  I'm thinking of a very dog-doo ridden site in France.

By 5 months we were supplementing with formula, and maybe some pureed stuff (memory fades).  We had a big tupperware pot for the powder, and that was much easier to pack and more robust than the containers it's sold in.  We also had a small pot divided into 3, that would take 3 pre-measured doses.  With that and a thermos of hot water, you could produce a feed very quickly, which made for happy babies.

Oh, yes - we had a container that we put Milton tablets into with the bottles and teats and shook (again, memory fades).  You can see how feeding entirely from Mum simplifies things though!

I remember we had to very quickly readjust our notion of a sensible mileage between stops, so a good map of nearby campsites, though that's probably on your phone now I guess.

Plenty of wipes and Sudocreme, and those single-dose sachets of Calpol were really handy to have as a backup too.

Too many suggestions, but I hope something above helps.

JJ

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #4 on: 20 April, 2015, 05:34:46 pm »
Also, we had to readjust our notion of a reasonable distance between stops quite sharply!  A handy map of the nearest sites and a workable bailout plan are good to have.

Kim

  • Timelord
    • Fediverse
Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #5 on: 20 April, 2015, 05:40:07 pm »
To my inexpert eye, it seem that a chair you can sit in while feeding / rocking / burping / whatever else people do with very small people, and a tent/tarp/awning that'll keep you dry while you're sitting in it, ought be fairly high up the list.

Ortlieb washing-up bowl, in case the very small person wants to go for a swim.

Wipes, lots of wipes.

Minions.

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #6 on: 20 April, 2015, 05:55:13 pm »
Some people might already carry Johnson's baby talcum powder in their puncture kits...   ;)

Lots of things to wipe sick from the shoulders of the willing volunteers.

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #7 on: 20 April, 2015, 10:30:15 pm »
Fleece or padded sleepsuits, that can be worn over ordinary babygros.

All in one waterproofs. lined ones if it's cold.

Sun suits x several if it's warm.

Sun cream.

Tights. Extra socks.

Extra layers.

Blankets (fleece, cot, picnic all work) that can be added on top or that a baby can be laid on as appropriate.
Quote from: Kim
^ This woman knows what she's talking about.

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #8 on: 20 April, 2015, 10:38:41 pm »
If you can't take a pushchair / carrier whatever, how about one of those non-swaddling bands that strap them in fore or aft?

CrinklyLion

  • The one with devious, cake-pushing ways....
Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #9 on: 20 April, 2015, 10:40:01 pm »
For formula feeding in awkward places I thoroughly recommend those ludicrously expensive miniature cartons of ready-mixed baby milk, especially if they can be deployed in conjunction with a VSP who has been habituated to room temperature rather than warmed up bottles :)

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #10 on: 20 April, 2015, 10:50:16 pm »
You can get formula milk with screw in teats, to avoid having to sterilise stuff.  Good for a one-off

woollypigs

  • Mr Peli
    • woollypigs
Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #11 on: 20 April, 2015, 10:56:28 pm »

Dog Anchor and 30 yard rope?
Current mood: AARRRGGGGHHHHH !!! #bollockstobrexit

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #12 on: 20 April, 2015, 11:14:21 pm »
It's easy if they're not mobile and entirely mum - fed. No1Daughter was pretty much weaned a couple of weeks before but went back to it for camping, the first time, she was 10 or 11 months I think, it was just after my finals.
Subsequent children started under canvas earlier. Crawling babies on campsites was, with hindsight, more work than fun unless the weather was glorious.
Depends a lot on what kind of baby you've got. One and two were far too adventurous and no 4 very clingy and resistant to changes to routine. No 3 was pretty easy and loved it.
We only ever car camped in quite big tents, so they were plonked in a baby car seat when not carried. 

Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #13 on: 20 April, 2015, 11:54:58 pm »
A decent chair for mum and young un.
Get a bicycle. You will never regret it, if you live- Mark Twain

Otto

  • Biking Bad
Re: Camping with Very Small People
« Reply #14 on: 21 April, 2015, 06:41:19 am »