Young kids and climbing

Anyone have any suggestions for good places to go climbing in northern Colorado with young children (i.e. 2 yo) in tow? Ideally, good areas would be those with wide, flat bases nearby and host a multitude of single pitch routes. Two areas that come immediately to mind are the Ironclads near Punk Rock and Mt. Boner and Lily Lake. Anyone who has children and climbs probably knows the pain of trying to find a place to climb where your newly walking wee-one can run around, nap, etc. without the fear of them tumbling down a steep incline. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Matt, We have a 6 year old that has been climbing outside with us since he was 3 weeks old. We have done a few trips to the ironclads areas (great in the hot summer months) and we've spent a lot of time at places well south of you like Shelf, Penitente and Castlewood Canyon. Vedauwoo can offer some pretty good spots for kids, but you have to narrow your scope down a bit.

When my son was small (pre-hiking days) we tried to climb with a third so that my wife or myself could watch the little guy while the other belayed or climbed. It also helped with carrying all of the junk that you need into the climbs.

I was just at Rifle and besides the water being a bit high (which made a few creek crossings difficult) it is a pretty easy place to have a kid. Camping close by, virtually no approach, and you can walk/stroller the kids up and down the road...now if the climbing were as easy!

I can't comment on N. CO but in the South...

We have 2 kids (4 & 2) and have been climbing with them since the first one was 6 mos old. Penitente takes the cake for most kid friendly area. Just be careful about overheating on summer days. Climb early- long break then climb late and be happy to get in a few routes instead of sitting at home.

Witches is the best w/kids esp the first bevy of climbs which has a big shade tree and fun little rocks for them to scramble on.

Of course, there is the occasional rattler so don't play off in the untrodden areas!

Shelf is OK but longer approaches, a lot of cactus, rougher bases to climbs and steep drops off some trails make it tougher on kids, esp 2yr olds. It can be done but Penitente is the bomb compared to Shelf from a kid friendly perspective.

We've tried the desert with about the same results as Shelf for the most part except Potash when they were really small. The best desert spot is likely the Ice Cream Parlor in the Moab area. Ive heard there may be some spots in the S. Platte that would work but have not been there yet. Id be interested in checking out Indep. Pass since its higher and cooler in the summer. We have been surprised by how fast our kids will throw in the towel in hot weather even with shade and cool stuff to drink if we are not careful and then no one is happy!

Good luck!

Matt,

You may find some spots up Boulder Canyon. The Dome comes to mind.

Vedaewoo would fit the bill. Lots of choices for climbing and genreally flat in the area.

The Ironclads is a great choice.

Good luck.

Brad Brandewie wrote: Matt, You may find some spots up Boulder Canyon. The Dome comes to mind.

Cover the kids with Ivy Block to ward off the poison ivy, and show them what the plant looks like.

I've been taking my younger brother to the Crown rock area on Flagstaff in Boulder since he was 3 because of the ample top rope and short hikes. Also try the Elephant butress in Boulder canyon

Ideally you would need a 3rd person. I don't think there is any area that is really safe for a 2 year old to be wandering while one person climbs and the other belays, but that's just my opinion! We're in the same boat as well and so far we haven't taken the kids to any crag. We are planning to though this summer as long as we have someone else with us. You should look into the yahoo group "climbing with kiddos". We would certainly join up with you sometime and we could help each other out with the little ones!

Matt,

I've been taking my 5 year old out since he was an infant, and here are a couple of things I've learned

1- Always have a third. When things happen with kids, they often happen fast, and a third person it a much safer, and more comfortable thing for everyone.

2- crash pads arent just for bouldering. These things are awsome for letting the young'uns nap, bounce around on, and even try a little unroped climbing themselves.

3-Sadly, Colorado is a hard place to climb with little ones. I went to the Ironclads a few times, that was good. Castlewood Canyon was always a favorite (watching for rattlers the whole time). Red rocks open space park down in the springs is a pretty nice place to climb with kids also. I found bouldering to be the easiest way to climb with kids.

hope that helps.

RRCOS is probably the best place for kids overall, but then part of your question is "up north". Can't help you much there.

I learned the hard way about having someone dedicated to kid watch while you climb. Early in my marriage I took my wife and her 1-1/2 yr. old son out to Castlewood. While I was belaying her, the boy wandered off about 50' along the wall. A nice woman from a group climbing there said she'd go and fetch the boy. While she was coming back, she gasped out that they both had strolled past a pretty fat rattler. Fortunately, it was sleepy.

Richard Wright once witnessed a child falling into Clear Creek with his dad nearby during high runoff. He was lost. There is a lot to consider: drop-offs, rivers, animals, poison ivy.........

Tracy Roach started up a Yahoo groups site for climbers with kids. It is kind of dormant right now, but will pick up soon I'm sure.

groups.yahoo.com/group/colo…

The good thing about a group function here is that there is a lot of supervision. but you are probably going to have to drive. Might as well plan camping a lot more than day-tripping. You'll be amazed how much dirt can adhere to the little buggers.

Oh, and Ryans comment about crash pads; they are KEY w/ young ones (nap time).

Thanks for the resources guys. I guess that I had never looked into any Yahoo groups. The book looks awesome - a friend and I had talked about the need for this.

For us, a third is always a must. My little boy has a strong sense of adventure and an uninhibited wanderlust. Given his high energy, it's nice to have a place to run around. I have never tried to drag along a crashpad - with my wife or I hauling the child and the other hauling the gear, I am not even sure how we drag it along on longer (i.e. greater than 15 min) approaches. We typically role up a light bed comforter (my wife's from her childhood) for him to lay out on (luckily he's pretty good about crashing anywhere, so we don't have to go to any extraordinary measures to get him to sleep).

Anyway, thanks for all of the suggestions thus far. As any parent will tell you, they are much appreciated.

Dudes and Dudetts,

Letting your kids sit down and watch you sport climb is like putting them in front of the TV and making them watch Boy George and Dave Hasslehoff videos over and over ....

Don't under estimate them, let them climb and they can develop hair on their chest at a young age. This is what we do with Aidan who now has hair on his butt ...

youtube.com/watch?v=cSKY3Uh…

Haha...nice! Can't wait until my boy is of age to start roped climbing (although his bouldering is impressive). However, my boy is probably is not yet climbing at Aidan's level given that he is only 21 months.

Kevin - Great video!! Your son is crankin' hard dude! I love the System soundtrack, too! They are my 6 year olds favorite band. He was bummed when they broke up, but he still likes Serj's music.

I'll show him the vid tonight (might inspire him to climb a little more...)

Kevin,

Having a son who will be 1 next week, I thought that video was AWESOME!

Brad