Try not to get too wet! Photo via Flickr.
Hiking in the rain can be a memorable and fun experience if done right. These tips will help make sure you get the most out of your hike in the rain.
A friend recently wrote a book, There’s No Such Thing As Bad Weather. That title sums it all up. You can always get outside. It just requires a little bit more planning to make sure you and your kids still enjoy yourselves. I hope that you find these tips useful and will choose to go hiking in the rain rather than sit inside at home.
Photo via Flickr.
The Ultimate Guide To Hiking In The Rain
Most Important Tip – Keep A Good Attitude!
This is absolutely the most important of all the tips I am offering here. As with most anything we do with kids they will see how we behave and feed off of us. If we begin feeling dejected, bummed out, and grumpy they will begin to feel bad too.
It is crucial when hiking in the rain with kids that parents keep a good, positive attitude.
Try and laugh at yourself if you slip in the mud or a big puddle and get totally wet and muddy. You may be uncomfortable, but really it is pretty funny. You aren’t dying or you didn’t break anything. You are just a bit uncomfortable. Show your kids that it’s OK to get wet and muddy. In fact, it is kind of fun.
A perk of hiking in the rain is the you may get to see rainbows!
In a few hours, after your hike, you will be back to the car or home where you can change into dry, warm clothes, and take a hot shower.
Good rain gear is important. Photo via Flickr.
Have Good Rain Gear
The quality of the rain gear you need depends on how long of a hike you are taking, how long you will be in the rain, and how heavy it is raining. For more on the different types of rain gear you should go back to earlier and read the tips on rain gear.
Regardless of the quality of the gear, the four main pieces of rain gear are a raincoat, rain pants, a backpack cover, and good hiking shoes that are waterproof.
Choose The Right Trail
Hiking in the rain can be fun still as long as you pick a good trail. Avoid trails that head to the top of a mountain or spend a lot of time in open, exposed areas as you will have no view and will just be getting hammered by the rain.
One other important thing to keep in mind when choosing a trail is to pick a shorter trail. If you are just going for a day hike then you probably won’t want to hike all day in the rain. It is better to pick a shorter trail to keep everyone happy and everyone’s spirits up.
Granola bars and other easy to eat snacks are good when it is raining.
Bring Easy To Eat Snacks
When you are hiking in the rain you will not do as much sitting around soaking in the scenery. This is both because it is raining so there aren’t views to look at, and because the ground and everywhere is wet.
You still should bring along snacks, but since you won’t be sitting around to eat them you need to bring snacks that you can easily eat while walking on the trail. Some good ones include granola bars and balls, nuts, trail mix, chocolate (always good, but more so when raining), and fruit snacks or treats for the kids.
To Use An Umbrella or Not When Hiking?
This is a good question. Personally, I have never used an umbrella when hiking, but I have seen others do it and I’ve read about those that use them. I will give you the pros and cons here and let you decide because some people like them and some don’t.
A benefit of using an umbrella is that you won’t need a serious rain jacket and pants as the umbrella should keep you dry. This means you won’t get as hot and sweaty as you would with the jacket and pants on, so you’ll be more comfortable.
A possible downside to the umbrella, at least as I see it, is that it may not keep your legs dry. Also, if it is very windy then the umbrella may not keep the rain off you and it may even break in the wind.