HAPPY (LITTLE) FEET.Byline: Mike Stahlberg The Register-Guard Hikes with young children can produce happy little feet, or they can lead to trail tantrums. Parents who want to avoid the latter and assure more of the former on their family outings could pick up some helpful tips from Bonnie Henderson of Eugene. Henderson is an expert on kid-friendly hikes from the coast to the Cascades. A third edition of her family hiking guide that first hit bookstores 15 years ago was published earlier this month by The Mountaineers Books. Her "Best Hikes with Kids: Oregon" (264 pages, trade paperback trade paperback n. A paperback book that is typically of better production quality, larger size, and higher price than a mass-market edition, intended for sale in bookstores. , $16.95) was originally issued in 1992 under the title "Best Hikes with Children in Western and Central Oregon Central Oregon is a geographical region lying near the center of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is commonly considered to include Deschutes, Jefferson, and Crook counties. Primary cities in Central Oregon are La Pine, Sunriver, Bend, Redmond, Madras, and Prineville. ." It includes 100 hikes selected for their appeal to and suitability for children. The key to producing happy young hikers is to plan outings with the kids' attention span and interests in mind, Henderson said, "You want a hike that's geared to their age and ability, number one," she said. "So you're not under-challenging them or over-challenging them." Henderson said some modern parents make the mistake of viewing a family hike as "a way to get exercise for yourself. It's not. Go to the gym first, get your workout in, then take a hike at the kids' pace. ... Reaching target heart rate has little allure for children." Henderson said it's also important that adults have the patience to allow young hikers to tarry tarry /tar·ry/ (tahr´e) 1. filled with or covered by tar. 2. thick, dark; resembling tar. tarry said of feces that are black and glutinous. See also melena. over things encountered along the trail that raise their curiosity, even if it means you wind up turning around before reaching trail's end Trail's End is a brand of popcorn produced by the Weaver Popcorn Company that is provided to Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts in order to assist them with fundraising. The Scouts get prizes and get more as the sales from the popcorn increase. . "Some people decide the goal is to get to the top of the mountain, or whatever," Henderson said, "and the goal really should just be get out there and enjoy the out-of-doors." Henderson is an avid outdoorswoman out·doors·wo·man n. A woman who spends considerable time in outdoor pursuits, such as hunting and fishing. Noun 1. outdoorswoman - a woman who spends time outdoors (e.g. who worked as a whitewater raft guide A Raft Guide is a name given to a White Water Rafting Guide. He or She is a trained professional that is capable of guiding on commercial white water rafting trips. Most raft guides are employed by rafting companies. , a wilderness youth leader and a cross-country ski guide before settling into a writing career. She has bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Oregon The University of Oregon is a public university located in Eugene, Oregon. The university was founded in 1876, graduating its first class two years later. The University of Oregon is one of 60 members of the Association of American Universities. and worked for several years as an editor for Sunset magazine. She gave up full-time work for the magazine shortly after her son was born in 1989, but has continued to be a regular freelance contributor to Sunset. Henderson also works part-time as a writer for Sacred Heart The Sacred Heart is a religious devotion to Jesus' physical heart as the representation of the divine love for humanity This devotion is predominantly used in the Roman Catholic Church and also used in the Anglican Church. Hospital's in-house publications. A second hiking book of hers, "120 Hikes on the Oregon Coast The Oregon Coast is a geographical term that is used to describe the coast of Oregon along the Pacific Ocean. Stretching 362 miles from Astoria to the California border, the Oregon Coast is unique in that the whole coastline is public land. " was recently re-issued by The Mountaineers Books under a new title, "Day Hiking: Oregon Coast." Henderson's fondness for hiking can be traced to her growing up in a Portland family that spent most of its vacations hiking or backpacking in the Mount Hood Wilderness The Mount Hood Wilderness is a protected wilderness area inside the Mount Hood National Forest which is located in the U.S. state of Oregon. The area, about 47,000 acres (190 km²), includes the peak of Mount Hood and its upper slopes, and ranges from temperate rain forests at the Area. Henderson remembers her childhood hikes tended to fall into two categories: "tedious goal-oriented hikes or fun-exploratory hikes." Needless to say, the hikes she recommends in "Best Hikes With Kids" are of the "fun-exploratory" variety - such as through a lava tube Lava tubes are natural conduits through which lava travels beneath the surface of a lava flow, expelled by a volcano during an eruption. They can be actively draining lava from a source, or can be extinct, meaning the lava flow has ceased and the rock has cooled and left a long, , to a mountain of glass (obsidian obsidian (ŏbsĭd`ēən), a volcanic glass, homogeneous in texture and having a low water content, with a vitreous luster and a conchoidal fracture. ) or behind a waterfall. Henderson said she had prior personal experience with many of the trails selected for the book, and learned of others "by trial and error" or from interviewing Forest Service personnel. Henderson hiked every trail included in her book, sometimes in the company of children. "I don't hike all of these with kids because there are too many - sometimes I'll do three hikes in a day," she said. "I did so much hiking as a child myself, and having had a young child, you get to know what to look for." To help assure hikes are enjoyable for younger children, Henderson said, avoid trails with long, monotonous stretches - especially in the hot sun. "What I look for in a longer hike is you don't have to go more than maybe a mile before you get some kind of payoff" - such as a great view, a lake, a stream or other fun natural wonder, Henderson said. "Water, water, water is always popular - especially if you don't tell 'em, `Don't touch the water!' I'm always amazed at how many parents don't want their kids to get dirty or wet.' But playing with a floating twig TWIG - Tree-Walking Instruction Generator. A code generator language. ML-Twig is an SML/NJ variant. ["Twig Language Manual", S.W.K. Tijang, CS TR 120, Bell Labs, 1986]. or leaf "boats" or with bugs found beneath a rock can turn a boring walk into a fun adventure, as far as young ones are concerned. Henderson said she's "often been surprised how far kids can walk on an interesting trail, under good conditions - and at how quickly they can tire or lose interest if they're bored." Children can be introduced to hiking as soon as they're old enough to be carried in a baby backpack, Henderson said. In fact, her son John, now 18, rode along in a baby carrier while she researched several trials for the first edition the book in the early 1990s. "Certainly a 2-year-old can go on short trails," she said. "It's all a matter of keeping their interest." Not all kids' hikes are created equal. Henderson divides the ones she recommends into three levels of difficulty - easy, moderate and challenging. Most range in length from less than a mile to about six miles. A hike selection chart provides info on the round-trip distance, elevation gain, hike highlights and best season to go. Maps and suggested turn-around spots (should little feet start to get tired) are also provided. The book includes recommendations on what to pack for even the shortest hike ("the 10 essentials") and what not to pack (mp3 players or other electronic gear). Electronic games Electronic Games was the first video game magazine published in the United States and ran from 1981 to 1985. Co-founded by Arnie Katz, Joyce Worley and Bill Kunkel, it is unrelated to the subsequent Electronic Gaming Monthly. , cell phones and GPS devices may be fun "but they tend to distract kids from what's right around them," Henderson said. "One reason for hiking is to unplug, at least for a little while." But the biggest mistake people can make, Henderson said, "is to not go" hiking with their kids. "I think a lot of people are losing sight of the importance of being out-of-doors ... and a lot of kids simply aren't getting that experience, which is something you can fall back on throughout your life." KIDS HIKES FOR ALL SEASONS, ALL REASONS Author Bonnie Henderson recommends hikes for kids in several different categories. Among her recommended hikes in the Lane County area are: Woodpecker woodpecker, common name for members of the Picidae, a large family of climbing birds found in most parts of the world. Woodpeckers typically have sharp, chisellike bills for pecking holes in tree trunks, and long, barbed, extensible tongues with which they impale Loop: 1.2-mile Finley Wildlife Refuge wildlife refuge, haven or sanctuary for animals; an area of land or of land and water set aside and maintained, usually by government or private organization, for the preservation and protection of one or more species of wildlife. hike; among "Best Hikes in Winter." Tamolitch Pool: 4.6-mile round trip to a "lake" along the McKenzie River For rivers name "Mackenzie", see . The McKenzie River is a tributary of the Willamette River, 86 miles (138 km) long, in northwestern Oregon in the United States. It drains part of the Cascade Range east of Eugene into the southernmost end of the Willamette Valley. Trail; among eight "Weirdest Hikes." Mount Pisgah: 2.8 to 3 miles; one of 11 "Best Summit Hikes." Fall Creek: 3.5 miles one-way; among "Best Hikes to a (Brisk) Swim." Mary's Peak: 1.4 to 3.5 miles; among 12 "Best Hikes to See Wildflowers." John Dellenback Trail: 5-mile round-trip hike; among six "Best Hikes to Beaches and Sand Dunes." Brice Creek Falls: 2 miles, with longer options; among three "Best Hikes to a (Walk-Behind) Waterfall." |
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