Cahore Beach Cliff Walk location

Cahore is about 20 minutes south of Courtown. The village of Cahore is best known as a fishing and holiday destination.

The starting point of the Cahore walk

We started the cliff walk at the pier here. There was lots of parking when we arrived but it was a cold windy December day.

As we parked at the pier and we brought a buggy with us (there are steps at the start) we walked back up the road to the strand Cahore restaurant and started our walk beside the coffee shop.

About the Wexford Cliff Walk

• Very Good path over 2 meters wide and perfect for a buggy.

• The walk is 2.5km out and back

• There are Great views of the coast filled with wildlife, beach and Cahore beach

• No large drops, it’s relatively safe for small kids

• Food is available at the start/end. The kids loved being able to get hot chocolate at the end of the walk. We were too early for the Pizza :(

• Lots of parking on the pier and the Strand restaurant

• Beach section optional- You can walk down to the beach at the turn around point

• Loop walk option is also available

• Buggy Friendly- One of our children is 2 years old and is out of her hiking bag and the buggy but the buggy is still being used.

Would we recommend the Cahore Cliff walk?

Yes, this cliff walk is perfect for families, our children are 4 & 2 years old at the minute and they loved this walk. At the end of the walk, you can walk down to Cahore Beach or just return the way you came.

Our Instagram Reel of our Cliff walk

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We have put our hill walking to one side for another year as we are in the middle of Autumn and the weather is getting colder and the evenings are getting shorter. At this time of year, we are always looking for interesting looped walks, forest trails and close walks to home that don’t require too much driving.

We found the Dunbrody forest walk after a bit of Googling ‘Wexford walks’. We previously did a tour of the Dunbrody famine ship so we found it interesting to discover that there was a walk around the woodland that the timber came from to make the ship.

Carpark to start the walk

If you put “Lacken Fairy Woods” into Google maps the Dunbrody Forest carpark will be shown. The carpark for this walk can also be found here.

Key Information about this Wexford Walk

• It has a fairy village at the start of the trail
• Great Autumn walk
• Amazing views on Lacken Hill
• Young kids love all the hidden fairy doors
• Fairy doors the whole way to the top of the hill
• Short walk to Lacken hill & Cross
• Sign posting to the Cross location could be better
• One of Wexfords best Autumn walks
• Hard to find on Google Maps- Click the link to go to Maps.

Starting the Dunbrody forest walk

We parked our car at the gates of the forest which probably has room for about 8 cars. There is a large timber sign at the start of the wood saying “forest of the Dunbrody”. We looked at the information board and decided to do the small loop walk around the wood and then walk up toward the 1798 monument.

As we walked into the forest, the Red arrow pointed right at the Y junction. There is also a sign pointing up the steps toward the 1798 memorial.

We followed the red arrow looped walk through the beech forest. As it is Autumn we were showered in fallen multicolour leaves, Ourlittlehiker was amazed by all the colours. She has become so independent lately and doesn’t want to be in her hiking bag as much anymore. We left her bag in the car for today. She loves hiking and walking and even insisted that we all have hiking sticks from fallen timber.

At the end of the long straight that cuts through the beech forest, the path started to rise gently and turn back toward the direction that we started from. We walked for about 5 minutes through a pine wood and then started to walk back down toward the beech forest again.

The trail then cuts through another pine tree section that is filled with amazing fairy doors, this was a lovely surprise. We played and knocked many of the doors but all the fairies must have been asleep.

From here we walked over a sty and fence and up a lane which then cut back into the woodland. The trail follows the natural lines of the trees and bends and rises around all the mature pines overhead. We eventually come back out onto a larger woodland road similar to the one we were walking on previously. We follow this road uphill until we come to a dead end. A smaller trail cuts off to the right through a freshly planted forest, we follow this for 5 minutes until we reach the monument at the top of the hill.

Lacken Hill 1798 Rebel Camp memorial

At the top of the hill, a metal cross and large stone mark the place where many died in the 1798 rebellion. From the top of the hill, there are lovely views of Wexford. We decided to not continue on the Blue loop as the second part of the walk goes onto a road and Ourlittlehiker hasn’t mastered the skills for road walking just yet.

Map to Lacken Hill

The walk to Lacken Hill is less than 1km. this is a perfect distance for a Sunday stroll with the kids. this is one of our favourite Autumn walks with the Kids, they love it.

Thoughts on Lacken Hill and Dunbrody forest Walk

It is very obvious that the local community take great pride in this lovely Wexford woodland walk. The Red loop walk is a lovely easy walk for a young family. Most of the walk can be accessed with a buggy with about 100m near the end that would require the buggy to be carried. The wood has loads of fairy doors scattered throughout and the paths are in superb condition.

Overall this is a very easy Sunday stroll that has a nice bit of history scattered through it. We easily explored the whole area with a toddler insisting on walking most of the trail in around 1 hour and loved every second of it.

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Truskmore mountain has two county high points on the summit. County Sligo high point is beside the TV mast compound and sits at an altitude of 647m. Leitrim’s county high point is about 200m away from the TV mast and on the edge of a steep vertical drop and sits at an altitude of 631m.

To reach Sligo and Leitrim high points was a very easy hike. We just had to follow the mast access road to the summit of the mountain. Leitrim county high point was slightly trickier. On the summit if you are standing with your back to the TV mast compound and Sligos highest point is to your left, then Leitrim’s high point will be to the RHS past the boggy area. Care should be taken here in fog as there are large cliffs right beside Leitrims high point stone marker.

Driving to Truskmore Mountain

The access road to the TV mast that is used to climb to the Summit of Truskmore mountain is located on the Gleniff Horseshoe driving loop. The looped drive brings you underneath the bottom of Truskmore and along the bottom edge of the valley. If time allows, there is an old mill along the loop that is a perfect location for a small picnic area. When we reached the RTE Tv mast access road we noticed that there is limited space to park our car safely. We squeezed in beside the gate on the edge of the road and the grass ditch. There is only enough room here for 1-3 cars maximum, so come early.

We arrived at around 9 am to start our hike. We were only on the road for a few minutes and about 4 cars passed us driving up to the summit of Truskmore. One of the workers even stopped and asked us did we want a lift to the summit. Maybe they felt sorry for two very pale people carrying a baby on their back up a massively steep hill in 25-degree heat. Obviously, we said we were here for the walk but thanked him for asking.

Hiking Truskmore Mountain County Sligo and Leitrim highest point

We recently took a small break from hiking for two weekends, as we felt all the driving in between all the mountains with a toddler was really tiring us out. Over the past two weekends, we stayed at home and done loads of house chores that were being neglected because of our hiking hobby. While we were home, not hiking, we got our hands on an old campervan and done a small restoration. We decided to do a small retro campervan holiday, see here. After our break from hiking we both expected to feel really unfit and sluggish but the minute we put on our hiking gear and started walking on the road, we all felt refreshed and ready to hike. Maybe the break was a good idea.

To start the hike, we climbed over the TV mast gates. We used the gate design as a ladder and climbed over the top of the 2m high gates. Ourlittlehiker is growing up extremely quick and we are seeing changes daily at this stage. There was a stage where she would find her Deuter hiking bag and try to get into it to go hiking but at the start of this hike. She didn’t want to get into her bag today. As there was a good road surface on this route, we decided to let her walk until she wanted to get into her hiking bag.

She walked up the road for about 150m and then she got tired and looked to get into her backpack. I think she wanted to get a better view of the sheep, she calls them ‘Baaaas’. She shouts as loud as she possibly can the minute she sees them, it’s very funny.

The road to the summit of Truskmore zig-zags up the side of the mountain and is a very easy walk. The hike is not too steep and cuts through the edge of the mountain. On the ascent to the top of the mountain, we pass through unused livestock grates.  The road curves around to the side of Truskmore and then the ascent angle increases significantly with tighter zigzag patterns up the road.

We finally reached a point on the road that we could see the TV mast compound, from here it felt like a Sunday stroll. At this stage of the day, the sun was extremely hot, we expected a bit more wind on the summit but there was no more than a small summers breeze. We took out our hiking umbrella and put it over Ourlittlehiker to help keep her covered in the shade. The umbrella worked a treat and she loved it.

When we reached the TV mast compound, we walked around to the rear using the RHS footpath. We immediately saw the County high point Cairn marker underneath some large cables used to secure the antenna. We relaxed here for about 30 minutes, as the county high point was shaded by the large antenna above.

While we were relaxing in the shade, a group of workers started to use the wire elevator to go to the top of the antenna. Ourlittlehiker loved looking at the antenna workers, they were all waving to her, it was so cute. One of the workers came over to us and said that they had never seen anyone use an umbrella on the mountain, he said, there is usually gale force winds up there, and “after 40 years of working up here you get to see everything”, we had a good laugh at this.

After looking at the brave workers on top of the antenna, we decided to leave them alone and walk over to Leitrim’s highest point. We walked over to the other side of the compound and took out our Viewranger app and could see that the county high point is over near the cliff edge. We walked in the direction of the high point while trying to navigate through the boggy peat. It’s amazing that this area is still boggy as we are in the middle of a heatwave and a drought. This summit must be extremely boggy throughout winter, so take care.

We reached Leitrim’s county high point which is marked with a pile of stones on the edge of the cliff looking over Sligo and Leitrim. There are some pretty impressive views of the plateau below. We returned back to the road and walked back down toward the car looking out for sheep on the descent.

Our Verdict on Truskmore County Sligo and Leitrim’s highest points

This is another easy access road hike to the summit of Truskmore. It is probably the toughest access road hikes out of all the county high points. The only area that requires navigation on Truskmore is the Leitrim part but on a clear day, it should be very easy to find.

The Sligo Cairn has nice views over the Daltry mountains but the antenna wires ruin them slightly. Leitrim’s highest point is right beside a cliff edge, so take care here. The views from this section are amazing and worth sitting and taking a break to admire them.

We hiked to the top of Truskmore mountain under 1 hour and returned back to the car in around another hour. We took lots of breaks in the shade and drank lots of water.

Overall this was a nice easy hike, just take care when parking the car and trying to find County Leitrim’s high point.

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Galtymore and Galtybeg are the highest points in County Limerick and Tipperary. Galtymore sits at an altitude of 917.8m and Galtybeg sits at 799.2m high. We packed all our hiking bags Friday evening after we got home from work, as we knew we would have an early start on Saturday morning if we wanted to achieve our plans to Climb the 2 high points.

Our Journey to the Galtees

We left home at 6:00 am as it was a 2-hour 15-minute drive to the Galtee mountains from our house. We arrived at the Galtee mountain carpark at 8:30 am, slightly later than we had hoped but we had a few stops on the way down the road. While researching this route many people seemed to walk the Galtee’s from the other side of the mountain or they do a looped route but we wanted to summit the 2 high points and then also summit Knockmealdown in Waterford too.

When we got to the carpark there was only 1 other car there but there seemed to be enough parking spots for 15-20 cars. Our guidebook says to follow the tarmac lane up the hill but while researching online we found that many other people went through the wooded area to the right. We walked up the tarmac lane passing many rural houses along the way. There is no parking up this lane so DO NOT drive up here as you will have to return back down to the carpark.

Starting our Hike up Galtymore and Galtybeg and Mountains

It was such a lovely quiet lane to walk on, we even met a local farmer that gave us advise on the route to take up the mountain. We got fantastic views of the mountains on our right-hand side and we were surrounded by fields of sheep to the left side. It was one of the hottest days we had this year, so it was so nice to feel the heat on our faces. This section of small rural roadway reminded us of the Kerry Camino.

Pointing out the two beautiful mountains we were about to climb.

After 30 minutes the road turns 90 degrees and the road climbs towards a small rural bungalow on the RHS of the road,then stops with a gate to a farm on the left and a gate on the right leading into a small wooded area and then into a boggy field (full of very nosey sheep).

Cross over the metal gate and walk into the field, there is a fence on your LHS follow the line of the fence up to the corner. The ground here is extremely boggy so try to walk on the higher section in the middle to keep out of the stagnant water. The sheep here were extremely nosey and basically followed us halfway up the mountain and were virtually on our heals. Ourlittlehiker absolutely loved the sheep and she was busy pointing, waving and baaing at them. It was so cute to watch and it was a welcomed distraction from the climb ahead.

After the corner of the fence, walk in the same line as the fence which should aim for the passing between Galtymore and Galtybeg. The below image shows the route that we took after leaving the wooded area. We aimed for the low point between the two mountains until we reached the lake. we kept left of the lake.

We crossed many small streams while walking up to the lake. The route is reasonably straightforward up to the lake and not too hard. After we reached the lake we stopped and sat on an old broken stone wall and had a little picnic and changed Ourlittlehiker into her warm hiking overalls and put the wind cover on as we knew it will start to get colder as we reach the summit.

Breastfeeding in the mountains.

The angle of the hill increased significantly and it felt like we were walking on a 45-degree pitch in places. We aimed for the middle of the Galtybeg as our guidebook said there were cliffs to the left after the lake. When we reached the same height as the passing between Galtymore and Galtybeg we started walking over toward this area as it is easier to walk up Galtybeg from this side of the mountain.

While on the saddle Galtymore was on our right and Galtybeg was on our left.

Galtybeg sheltered us massively from the wind so when we reached the low section of the 2 mountains we immediately felt a windchill, this didn’t affect Ourlittlehiker as she was fast asleep in the kids comfort 3 hiking bag. We walked to the top of Galtybeg fairly easily from the col, we followed the trail through the peat. Care should be taken here as the peat is very boggy after the winter we had (we nearly lost our boots a few times).

Galybeg County High Point

There is no high point marker on the top of Galtybeg, so we just walked along the top of the ridge until we started descending again on the other side, we then turned around and started walking toward Galtymore. The views on Galtybeg were amazing but when you look over at Galtymore our focus quickly shifted to climb the higher mountain.

It was a very easy descent back down to the col between the 2 mountains. When we reached the bottom of the Galtybeg we followed the trail up the edge of Galtymore, it was very nice to have a good firm trail to follow for a few minutes.

The trail eventually disappears and we start walking up toward the high point but keeping away from the right-hand side as there is a large cliff edge there. It is a nice walk up Galtymore that is not too long after leaving the path. We were really lucky with the weather, as we reached the top of Galtymore we seemed to get a really strong blast of heat, so we could spend a little bit longer on the summit instead of rushing off to keep out of the wind. The summit of Galtymore provides an unbelievable panoramic view of Tipperary and Limerick. On the top, there is an old concrete wall, the Trig point and a white cross.

We descended from our summit by going down the way we came up, a tip with going downhill is to sometimes walk in zig-zags and to use hiking poles. We had a small picnic halfway down which was lovely as we got to sit back and take in the amazing scenery. The sun was shining with a slight warm breeze. Before we had Ourlittlehiker we would never really stop or take breaks but now by doing so, it makes the hikes more special. As one of my favourite quotes says;

”Memories made in the mountains stay in our hearts forever”

How good was Galtymore and Galtybeg hike?

Overall this was a spectacular hike. A great mixture of small old quite country roads used by friendly farmers that will more than likely stop for a quick chat. It’s filled with extremely green farmland over-friendly sheep that are very vocal and interested in strangers. The hike up the side of Galtybeg gives stunning views of the surrounding counties and the cliffs to the side of Galtymore. You will need loads of energy to keep climbing up the side of Galtybeg but the views from the top are 100% worth the climb.

The Galtee mountains gave us a stunning hike and we highly recommend it to everyone looking for an adventure.

Our Tips for hiking in the Galtee Mountains:

• Go early to get a parking space and to have extra daylight on the mountain
• Bring hiking poles
• Bring a compass and maps
• Gaiters come in handy as some areas are boggy
• Have Good supporting ankle hiking boots especially for going downhill
• Check the weather forecast before going, you would want a fine clear day
• On a windy day make sure to take extra care and stay away from any cliff edges
• Bring your Guide Book as it tells you exactly where to go
• Bring lots of water and snacks, spare clothes, 1st aid kit etc
• Tell someone where you are going and what time you expect to finish it,
• Have fun and stop every so often to enjoy the mountain air and beautiful views.

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How to get to Glenbarrow Loop walk

The hike carpark/start point is really well signposted and provides a breakpoint if you’re driving the N7 motorway from Dublin to Limerick. We got off the motorway in Portlaoise and drove to Rosenallis and then followed all the signposts for Glenbarrow waterfall, it took us 30 minutes to drive from Portlaoise.

There is a really good size carpark at the start of the trailhead that could easily accommodate 50 vehicles, so parking should not be an issue. At the start of the walk, there is an information board detailing 3 looped walk options. We walked the blue looped walk which was called the “Glenbarrow Eco Walk” this was 7km long and we walked past the lovely Glenbarrow waterfall.

Starting the Glenbarrow Loop Walk

The Glenbarrow walk starts by walking down a small lane that is sandwiched between two moss-covered stone walls. The small lane leads down to the start of the eco trail into the pine forest.

Most of this section of the trail is walked parallel to the river, while also walking slightly uphill towards the Glenbarrow waterfall. The trail is surrounded by mature woodland that’s covered in a blanket of green moss that has even started to creep up every tree, it felt very lord of the rings here.

Most of the trail has a good hardcore surface or railway sleepers but there is mud covering some sections. We have just had a large amount of snow here so every trail that we hike lately is like this. The forest section has lots of small streams and alcoves to explore while walking towards the waterfall. After walking for about 200m the trail elevation started to rise uphill slightly and we enter Glenbarrow woods via wooden railings.

We passed a wooden hut on our left and continued along the well-worn path up the river. We started to walk on small paths cut into rocks that lead up toward the top of the beautiful 3-tiered Clamp Hole waterfall.

There was a wooden barrier/handrail alongside the waterfall with some steep rocks to climb. There are two options here, you can climb the rocks beside the waterfall (about 1.2m high) or take the path on the left-hand side which will meet at the top of the waterfall. We chose the one beside the waterfall as it looked like fun. We love climbing as its all part of the adventure.

After we admired the beautiful waterfall we continued our hike, this time on wooden railway sleepers. The sleepers cut through the woodland area and we climbed up until we reached a foresty road. We took a left here and continued along the road until we reached a 3-way junction, we veered right here and continued uphill until we reached another forestry road that had an option to enter a woodland footpath, we took a left here downhill on a lovely boardwalk.

We followed the boardwalk through a mixture of natural woodland and coniferous trees. Near the end of the walk, there was a plastic box full of leaflets on the Slieve bloom walks. We taught this was a great idea.

This path leads us back to a little lane straight to the car park. We had our lunch and enjoyed looking at the horses in the field beside the carpark.

 Conclusion on the Glenbarrow Loop Walk

The Glenbarrow Loop walk offers everything for a good Sunday adventure with the family. There are forests, rivers and waterfalls all crammed into an area filled with natural wildlife. You will need good hiking boots in winter months but there are also sections with boardwalks that has a very good surface.

The walk is extremely well signposted and there is very little chance of getting lost, trust us were experts at taking the wrong turn.

It would not be possible to hike the Glenbarrow loop walk with a toddler if you did not have a baby backpack as a buggy would not work on the railway sleepers.

The Glenbarrow is a lovely walk and a true credit to the people that maintain and operate it. This is one of the best walks in Ireland, that we have done this year. We had great fun on this trail and cannot wait to come back and explore more.

More information and maps can be found on the Slieve Bloom website here.

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Where to start hiking Arderin Hike

We started at Glendine Gap which is on the Offaly/Laois border. There is a carpark behind the lovely border statue seen in the picture below. We parked our car here while climbing the mountain, there seems to be parking for only about 5 cars so come early or you might have to park on the road.

Hiking Arderin

Looking towards Arderin Summit to your right, just beside the car park entrance is a path that descends through a shallow bog. Be careful climbing down here as it is a little steep and the path is very slippery from water flowing down it. From here you then cross the flat part that was very wet when we walked through it and then climb up the mountain following a dirt track through the heather.

Arderin hiking Path

The path through the heather is quite worn from other hikers walking the trail and it is easy to see where the trail is leading. As the path starts to rise out of the flat section, we passed a nature reserve sign to our left. We walked through a few larger puddles that we couldn’t walk around and we couldn’t jump over either so we had to get wet feet early.

We followed the path through the heather and purple grass that lead us all the way up to the cairn. This high point is very easy and it only took us 25 minutes from leaving the car to walk to the two counties high points. When we reached the top the cairn was marked with a wooden stake and the high point had an OS marker pin in concrete.

Arderin Peak- Laois and Offaly County High Point

Arderin is an extremely easy hike for a high point but it is very enjoyable. On the way up to the cairn, you walk through heather, bogs, streams, and wild purple grass. When you reach the top you get panoramic views of the Slieve Bloom mountains while also looking across numerous other counties.

This is a great hike and our only advice would be to try to go in a dry spell as the ground is very wet.

We lost ourlittlehikers favourite Flamingo teddy while walking up the mountain so the whole way down we traced our footsteps but luckily we found the teddy about 20 meters from the car, since then we tie the Flamingos leg to the bag so we won’t lose the teddy in future.

Additional hikes and information

See here for more information about the Slieve Blooms. The Glenbarrow and Monicknew hikes are worth visiting after this hike.

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Having a baby doesn’t have to stop you hiking and enjoying the outdoors, in fact, they will add to your adventure and make it an enjoyable and memorable family experience. Here are some tips that we have learned while hiking with our daughter, aka “ourlittlehiker” to help you get started hiking with your baby or toddler.

Invest in a good baby carrier backpack

Once your baby can hold their head up you can go from carrying them in a sling to sitting them in a backpack carrier. Deuter kids comfort III is the carrier I bought for my husband as a Christmas present from our baby. I felt a little pressure picking out the “perfect” bag. My husband Paul is great for researching stuff like this but as it was a surprise I had to do my own research. Deuter kids comfort III got great reviews and I have no regrets, it was the best buy ever. I use it more than our pram. Ourlittlehiker absolutely loves been in the bag, she gets so excited when she sees the hiking rucksack.

Here is an REI link to the backpack. We bought ours in Ireland’s 53  Degrees North Adventure store in Dublin here.

Wearing the carrier around the house: 

This is a great way to help both you and baby get used to the carrier backpack. Sometimes when I do the housework like hovering, sweeping the floors, preparing the dinner and hanging out the washing etc I put her in the rucksack and she does be so happy. It is great because I know she’s safe, and she is getting to see what I am doing and she gives me the odd little kick if I slow down. She’s like my little cheerleader and we are always having a sing-song. These are the memories I will treasure forever.

Hiking with the baby carrier: 

Wearing the Deuter kids comfort III allows you to hike and adventure in places where a pram won’t allow you to go. You can climb mountains, steps,  and go through narrow trails and muddy paths basically, you can go where your two feet will take you.

Yes, they can nap in the carrier: 

This was one of my concerns when buying the bag and going on long hikes. Well do not worry ourlittlehiker has had the best naps and has slept through some pretty great views too, it’s ok we took pictures so she can look back on the views and memories when she’s older. There is a padded cushion built into the bag that they can lie their little head on but a tip I recommend to do is roll up a little blanket and have it placed around the back of their head so they can lie their head back or either side for more comfort. This works best when the rain cover is on as it holds it in place better.

What clothes to bring for the Baby?

When out hiking the weather can change at any moment especially when hiking in Ireland. You could have rain, sun, and wind all rolled into one hike. So we always bring extra clothes and towels.

We find baby and toddler jackets with built-in mittens/gloves are great because it keeps their little hands warm and you are not worried about them losing the gloves or throwing them away. (We learned the hard way)

We are after buying an all in one Columbia suit which is waterproof and fleecy on the inside, it also has a hood and flaps to cover over hands and feet if needed.  We bought it on sale in 53Degrees North, It cost us €34, We put it over her base layers so she is extra cosy.

DIY TIP-

If you didn’t want to spend money on something like that you could always bring a spare warm hiking jacket of your own and put your child’s legs in the sleeves of the jacket and zip it up. Put an extra cosy pair of your socks over theirs and use their own warm jacket and it can be a DIY all in one hiking suit for them, along with blankets and rain/wind cover on your hiking bag, they will be happy campers and hikers.

What’s in our Deuter kids comfort III baby carrier:

• Nappies, wipes & creams- Always bring extra nappies and it is no harm to bring some reusable cloth nappies just to have. We use the disposable as we only go on day hikes at the moment with ourlittlehiker but we plan to go on longer hikes and camp during the summer so we are looking into biodegradable nappies and the cloth nappies and wash as we go. We use the water wipes and we also pack nappy cream and powders just to have.
• Her favourite toy- She got a pink flamingo while down in foto wildlife zoo, she picked it out herself and it has come on all our hiking adventures since. We lost it a few times but luckily after backtracking our steps we found it. So since then, we tie the flamingo’s leg to the bag so she can hold it and then if she falls asleep and drops it then it will still be hanging in there.
• Her beaker of water- There is a section where she can store her water bottle and as she has grown she can reach it and take a drink whenever she gets thirsty.
• Extra blankets and a spare change of clothes-  There is a deep pocket in the back of the bag where its handy to store her extra clothing so if there is a windchill you can pull out an extra blanket and make her cosy.
• Rain cover/windbreaker. We also store this in the front pocket and it is fantastic as it keeps out the cold wind and rain. It is a must.
• Snacks- There is another small pocket which is handy for small fruit and baby biscuits. It saves you stopping and searching your food bag, you can just snack on the go.
• Mirror- There is a little mirror that comes with the rucksack and is kept in the front pocket where the bag attaches around your waist. The mirror is so handy, if your hiking on your own with your baby.

Checking Ourlittlehiker sleeping in her baby backpack

• Thermometer- I keep this handy in the bag so I can check if she is too hot or cold. Of course, you use common sense and your own instincts but it’s nice to have an option to check the temperature.
• Sun hat & woolly warm hat- As the weather changes so often I keep a few different types of hats to suit all weathers.

Below are pictures of Ourlittlehiker reaching for a bottle of water.

Heres whats in our own Deuter backpack:

As there are generally two adults hiking, we take turns carrying a smaller backpack for additional supplies.

• Compass and Maps
• Sleeping Bag
• Poncho
• Extra clothes
• Food and Water
  • Our First aid kit has:
    • needle and thread (helps with blisters)
    • blister plasters
    • hand sanitiser
    • plasters
    • Scissors
    • CPR small mask
    • tinfoil blankets
    • bandages
    • vaseline (helps prevent blisters and helps stop a bleed)
    • wound dressings
    • would closure strips
    • painkillers for adults
    • pain relief for babies and children
    • kinesiology tape
    • aloe heat rub
    • Suncream (child-friendly)
    • insect repellent (child-friendly)
    • survival bracelet that can turn into cord rope
    • whistle
    • splinter tweezers
    • antiseptic wipes
    • waterproof matches
    • firefighter
    • chapstick

Bring plenty of water and snacks (Top tip for hiking with a baby)

I am currently breastfeeding so that makes hiking so much more relaxed for me as I am not worried about time, bottles or sterilizing bottles. So if we happen to be out hiking longer than planned I will always have milk for her. I have seen in some chemists and supermarkets that you can buy ready-made prepared bottles designed for on the go so if you are bottle-feeding, you could look into buying a few of them for backup. I think they’re more expensive than the formula powder but the peace of mind would be worth it.

Snacks and food ideas for babies and toddlers: 

Once she became six months we did a mixture of BLW (baby-led weaning) and spoon-feeding and after a few weeks she was feeding herself and didn’t want to be spoon feed, she loves picking up the food and feeding herself. We found the handiest foods to bring hiking were fruits like bananas, oranges, strawberries, and raspberries which we kept washed and chopped up in a plastic airtight container. avocado, cheese, yoghurt and chopped tomatoes are handy to have in a small lightweight cool bag. We find the organic baby biscuits are very handy and also tasty for us grown-ups too. Tins of tuna and a few forks and rice cakes are also a handy snack for everyone.

Ourlittlehiker eating a Bananna on Croagh Patrick Mountain

Food for the grownups: For us, we like trail mix, protein bars, a few sandwiches and if you have followed our journey you will see I love ice-cream and chocolate, oh and crisps.  What can I say the mountain air makes me hungry, although I try to eat healthier now that I have little eyes watching me from my backpack.

Water, water, and more water: And of course, the most important thing on a hike is water. We fill our girl’s little beaker up, our own bottles and also our Hydration packs as well. The packs are handy as they have the plastic straw so you can keep walking and taking sips as you go along. If you are going on a longer hike you can bring the tablets to purify water so if you do run out you will have safe water if drinking from a river or stream.

Start hiking with babies on small adventures.

• Start with walking around your garden, local parks or someplace close to home. This will help you and your baby get used to the carrier/backpack.
• We used a front carrier when Ourlittlehiker was small.  We bought it in Aldi and also I bought a sling at the pregnancy and baby fair. Then once she was able to support her head up we used our Deuter kids comfort III (They recommend around the 6-10 months) every baby is different.

Our final of the tips for hiking with a baby

Get outside as much as you can together and have fun. It’s easy to find an excuse and no time is perfect but when you are outside hiking, you will be wondering why you don’t do it every day. Happy Hiking.

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