It was an hour into our hike through Southern Konnevesi National Park in Finland, and neither of my 7- and 10-year-old daughters was complaining. It was glorious.
Normally, within the first hour, I would have already heard the question “How much longer?” One of them would also declare, “It’s boring. We’re just walking.”
So what was different about this hike? Why weren’t they complaining? It’s because I took a different approach to this hike than I have with past ones — and it worked. Here’s what I did.
A stranger motivated them more than I ever could
For this hike, we had a local guide with us, and my kids hung on her every word. They were asking questions non-stop and following her down the trail without a single complaint.
I almost laughed when I saw them literally stepping in her footprints and mimicking every move she made. This is not what my husband and I were accustomed to.
When she leaned on a rock to hear “the whispers of the forest,” my kids did the same. When she found edible berries, my kids rushed there to try them first.
I do my best to make hikes interesting for my kids, but I am also a first-time visitor to most of the places we explore. No matter how much I research beforehand, I usually can’t predict what they will find interesting along the trail. By contrast, this local guide knew exactly how to keep them excited, which kept them moving along.
Having a job kept them interested
I also noticed that the guide occasionally gave them “crucial” jobs along the trail. Who could find the next patch of berries, who could spot mushrooms growing on a log, or who could hear a bird singing?
When we are alone, I try to do these things too, but I cannot always answer the questions that ultimately follow: “Are these berries edible?” “What kind of mushroom is that?” or “Which bird is singing?”
I know my kids are naturally curious, but I wondered why my kids seem uninterested when it’s just us. I began to realize they stopped asking me questions because they knew I didn’t always have answers. Since our guide did this time, they asked her. They were eager to learn.
I tailored the goal to their needs
I also noticed they had not asked the dreaded question, “How much longer?” Not even once on our 2.5-mile hike.
I kept thinking about my usual responses. I say things like, “Look at the beautiful forest. Just enjoy the view and breathe in the fresh air,” or, “Come on, we’re almost there. It’ll be worth it when we arrive.”
Kids care about what’s happening in the next five minutes in a way that’s different from how my husband and I approach things. I was expecting them to hike like adults, getting from one point to the next. If they can discover something new at every step, they will relish the journey and won’t feel time passing slowly. That’s something I’m planning to incorporate into our future family hikes.
On a different trip, we tried forest bathing with a local guide in Austria, which lasted over three hours. When it ended, my kids frowned and said, “That was so short. Can we keep going?”
We allow time for free play along the way
After these experiences, I became much more careful about which trails I choose when hiking with my kids.
I know now that the best trails for my kids are the ones that offer exciting experiences along the way: a lake where kids can swim with tadpoles, a stream to cross, or rocks to scramble over.
I’ve also learned not to rush the stops. My daughters love spending time throwing rocks into a lake, sending leaf rafts down a stream, balancing on fallen logs, building hearts from flowers, or watching frogs or insects.
The biggest change for me has been to stop measuring a hike’s success by how far we get and start measuring it by how much fun we had.
In Finland, I realized my kids already enjoy hiking. They just enjoy different things during a hike than I do as an adult. I should never forget that sometimes the part they remember most has nothing to do with the trail itself.
