The Kids' First Backpacking Trip on the Coast (Part 1)

This was the summer to take the kids on their first backpacking trip. We took a recommendation from my Aunt Kirstie and Uncle Peter for a short (1 mile) hike to the coast on the Olympic Peninsula. The exact site is on the northern mouth of where the Hoh River empties into the Pacific Ocean. Edison used his new backpack and helped carry not only his own gear, but also some of our food. Charlotte helped out by carrying all of her gear plus Reed’s mattress pad. And Reed carried all his own clothes in his pack. The kids appreciated the challenge and didn’t complain during the hike which was pretty awesome and even a little surprising to me and Eben.

The site where we were camping was on the high dunes of the river delta and there were a ton of driftwood logs piled up everywhere. Previous campers (my aunt and uncle included) had contributed to making a fort with the driftwood. It had a kitchen with a counter and walls that functioned as windbreaks and an American flag stuck on one of the posts. We had a living room with a firepit and we added a lounge with a pole to suspend a lantern over a card table (read flat stump). It was pretty rad. We took two small backpacking tents which ended up being a little cramped, but served their purpose well.