Child tent and lights

Camping With a Baby: How We Shared Our Love of the Outdoors With Our Son

ByRenee Sand

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When we told our families we were going dispersed camping with our three-month-old baby, they thought we were crazy. Turns out, they were wrong. 

When my husband’s usual ski trip buddies invited us on a camping trip for Father’s Day, we obviously couldn’t say no. One evening of the trip, I was lounging in our tent, with our baby asleep on my chest after an exciting day of new sights and sounds beyond his wildest little dreams. The setting sun was flickering through the mesh tent windows, and the rushing river served as nature’s white noise machine for my baby’s nap. Our dog was also taking a snooze in his cozy crate next to us, and I could hear my husband laughing with his old friends by the campfire. I was overwhelmed with gratitude in that moment.  

Just a couple of months earlier, I had been feeling a little trapped in our suburban home with a newborn baby. Now, we were camping together as a family, doing something my husband and I (and our stinky little dog) have always loved. 

Accept (and appreciate) that camping is going to look a little different nowadays. 

My husband and I have been known to take things a little to the extreme. The weekend we got engaged, we climbed Mt. Whitney, the tallest peak in the continental U.S. The first summer we lived in Colorado, we spent July 4th getting snowed on at Engineers Pass on the famous Alpine Loop offroading trail. These kinds of adventures have always been a huge part of our relationship, but we knew things would need to change when we welcomed our son into the world.

We used to be the people who would set up camp in a new, more remote spot each night. But on this trip, we spent three days in the exact same spot. As we caught up with our friends, we traded parenting tips, listened to the river rushing by, sipped coffee, cooked hot meals, and enjoyed seeing nature through the eyes of our children. We joked about “cage matching” the two youngest babies, who were rolling around in their separate playpens in the middle of camp. 

Our first Father’s Day trip looked a little different than how we used to camp. Diapers and wipes were packed alongside our camp stove and propane tank. Tiny onesies and socks were shoved into a waterproof duffel bag with my down jacket and my husband’s wool socks. But we didn’t miss our “old” life at all—we were absolutely thrilled to be sharing our love of the outdoors with our son, in this new and more relaxed way. 

Make sure to follow basic camping safety guidelines. 

As experienced campers, there are a few core safety rules we stuck to even on this more relaxed, baby-friendly trip:

Choose a strategic location that is accessible, safe, and comfortable. 

Our group is pretty familiar with the National Forest Service land off of Highway 395 in the Sierra Nevadas. We chose a campsite that was far enough off the beaten path to feel like we were getting “out there”, but truly only a few miles from the main highway if we needed to get out quickly. It had plenty of shade coverage throughout the day, and flat areas to set up our tents. The nearby river was also perfect natural “white noise” for the babies. 

Let a trusted loved one know where you’re going. 

We like to camp with our Starlink Mini (powered by an EcoFlow battery bank) so we can have satellite phone service basically everywhere we go, but before the trip we still sent the exact coordinates of our planned location to our families so they would know where we were if there was some kind of emergency. 

Check the weather forecast and pack accordingly. 

The weather forecast for our trip included highs in the 70s and lows in the 40s. My biggest concern was keeping our baby warm at night, as he had never experienced temperatures this low while sleeping. Our friends recommended these cozy merino wool sleepers from Woolino, which we layered over a long-sleeve onesie and socks, with one of his usual Velcro transition swaddles on top. He ended up being plenty toasty with this setup, but one of the other families also brought us this hand-me-down North Face fleece jumpsuit if he needed an additional layer. He was too small for it on this trip, but we would love to try one of these Little Mo infant sleeping bags when he is a little older. 

Be aware of natural dangers and wildlife. 

Especially for the other two kids we were traveling with who were on the move, all of us parents were hyper-aware of where the kids were in relation to the nearby river. We also made sure to keep them away from the campfire, hot coals, plants, and bugs. Before bed, all of the dads packed up the trash to keep bears and other wild animals from scavenging through our camp in the middle of the night. 

Create a comprehensive packing list ahead of time. 

While planning for the trip, my husband and I created a shared Apple Reminders packing list so we wouldn’t forget anything crucial. It also gave us an opportunity to decide what we definitely needed to pack backups of, and which baby items we could live without for a weekend. Besides the usual gear (tent, sleeping bags, etc.), here’s everything we packed for camping with our baby:

  • Bold items: Must-have, most essential items we packed. 
  • Italicized items: Didn’t end up using for this trip but would still plan on packing again in the future. 

Sleeping

Feeding

Diapering

Clothing

  • Sun hat
  • Beanie
  • Jackets
  • Long-sleeve onesies
  • Short-sleeve onesies
  • Pants
  • Socks
  • Booties

Activity

Health & Safety

  • Touch lamps/night lights
  • Baby Tylenol
  • Gas drops
  • Thermometer
  • Electric nasal aspirator
  • Electric nail file
  • Pacifier + clip + case
  • Owlet Dream Sock (Pro tip: Without WiFi, you won’t be able to see live updates on your phone app, but the base station and sock can still “talk” to each other to monitor your baby and alert you via lights and sounds from the base station if needed. We powered ours using our EcoFlow battery pack.)

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Remember that babies are more adaptable than we give them credit for. 

I’ll admit I was hesitant at first when my husband first suggested we join his friends’ families for this Father’s Day camping trip. I was picturing our baby screaming in our freezing tent in the middle of the night, followed by us feeling dirty and exhausted during the day. Instead, our baby loved cuddling under our wool blanket in the mornings, playing in his playpen below the giant Sequoia trees, and napping in my carrier as we slowly strolled around camp. 

Parenthood hasn’t taken away the life of outdoor adventures we love. It has simply added one more tiny adventurer along for the ride, which makes these experiences infinitely better. If you’ve been pushing aside your favorite hobbies because having a baby has changed everything, I hope this encourages you to give them a try in a new way. 

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Camping with a baby checklist with tent
Camping with a baby view of trees through tent