Mt Whitney Zone Forums Trip Reports 6 year old on Baldy

My wife, daughter and I hiked Mt Baldy on Saturday.
My daughter is 6 now and some of you may remember her climbing Langley, last year in September.
We started at 8:30 AM and got to the top at 1PM. I took a chocolate milk to the top, as a reward for her.
She really enjoyed it!!


One interesting fact about the trip, we were at the top, at the same time, with a 75 year old hiker.
Young and old at 10,000 feet, what great thing to see.

Here's a picture of both of them




We are doing some local hikes in preparation for Whitney this summer. I applied for permits for mid August.
Let's hope we get them.


Our family at the top


http://jsclimbs.zenfolio.com/p244680039/slideshow
Link to slideshow

See you on the trail.
Julius

Amazing! Congratulations!

Forget the choc, some kids will do it for sardines.

It's absolutely amazing the difference between kids. This girl is tough, loves to hike up the mountain and enjoys being with family.... Last year I saw a man with his appx 12/13 year old son, and on the final stretch of the backbone before it gets steep, he laid down and started crying! The dad seemed to be handling the situation well, as in not forcing the kid to hike any farther, but the kid just cried and cried. BTW.... they both turned back at that point.
And my kids.... they're a bit older, but they figure that once they've started, they might as well make it to the summit. It's the getting them started that's hard :-)

She is tough when it comes to hiking/climbing, but sometimes I forget that she is a little girl and still have here "princess moments".
I think that is good for kids this days to put some effort in, and to be rewarded at the end.
Not everything gets accomplished in an 1 hour TV show, or Disney movie.
J

Well done! I looked at the slideshow. Even near the summit, your daughter didn't look the slightest bit tired. Coming down the backbone, you could see that she was a bit spent.

By the way, great pics. You have a nice eye for composition.

Brent

Thanks Brent,
it did get a bit windy and cold, that's the reason for the upside down smiles on the way down. By the time we got to the car she was jumping and singing again.
Julius

Good for you, Julius! Start 'em young and they'll keep hiking at least as long as the 75-year-old you encountered. It's always a joy to see the awe and wonder of the eyes of kids, when they're exposed to the wonderful world outside of cities.

this is such a great story. thanks for sharing. kudos on exposing your child to more than just t.v. and video games and showing her the world is out there to be explored. of course, princess moments are to be expected. heck, i have princess moments when my knee goes jink and i'm an adult!