This summer we returned to the site of our first family camping trip (the one that started our 1-night-with-a-1-year-old, 2-nights-with-a-2-year-old, etc tradition), and found a way to up the difficulty a little. Instead of a long car camping trip, we did our first family backcountry camping adventure with our 10-year-old daughter.
Golden Ears was perfect as an introduction to backcountry camping – with a hike that was just hard enough to challenge a 10-year old with a full pack, but also interesting so she never got bored.
There are 5 backcountry sites along Gold Creek and 3 of them are only a few hours away along relatively easy, flat hikes – Viewpoint Beach, Hiker’s Beach, and Alder Flats. We stayed at the closest one – Viewpoint Beach.
It took us 2.5 hours to get to the campsite (5 km) and 2 hours to get back, which included plenty of breaks and a longer rest at the picturesque Lower Falls.
Astrid did awesome on the hike! I’m so proud of her. Her pack weighed 20% of her body weight – the same as everyone else. And she carried all of her own clothes, sleeping bag, sleeping mat, and a chair. She definitely pulled her own weight and had no problem with the hiking.
Most of the hiking trail was relatively flat and easy. The only challenging part was the connector trail between Lower Falls and East Canyon Trail – which was pretty rugged and steep.
You need a reservation to camp at Viewpoint Beach and they give out 20 “tent pads” spots each night. But there aren’t any actual tent pads. It’s more of a first-come. first-served pitch a tent where there is space situation with a limit of 20 groups per night. Most people found spots on the beach next to the creek, but we found an awesome little area just inside the trees.
This year we invested in a new 3-person MSR Hubba Hubba tent, and it’s awesome. Half the weight of our old car camping tent and super spacious. I love all the pockets for keeping gear organized. Now we have to go on more adventures to justify its cost. 😉
Astrid had a blast playing along the creek – floating logs, making dams, precariously walking on wet rocks. It’s too bad it wasn’t 10 degrees warmer when we were there because we definitely would have spent time in the water.
This trip was the perfect start for a new family tradition. Next summer we plan on doing more backcountry adventuring – hopefully with another family so Astrid has a friend to run around with. Is it too soon to start planning for Juan de Fuca or West Coast Trail?
Canadian Veggie 