Parents often go hiking with their children at a young age. But what happens when the kids get older? Parents then often tend to simply organise longer hikes. Unfortunately, this is not always in the children's best interests. In the worst case, this leads to children turning away from the mountains.
Why is this the case? Children seek adventure as they get older. Sitting around the campfire in the evening and telling others about their experiences. To achieve this, at some point you should switch from hiking to mountaineering with your children. But many parents often don't know what's involved. That's why, together with our partner abenteuersuechtig.de, we have summarised helpful tips on the subject of mountaineering with children.
LET THE CHILDREN MAKE THEIR OWN EXPERIENCES
Older children in particular increasingly like to go on small adventures, have their own experiences and expand their skills. I should encourage this on a tour. This keeps things exciting for children and I can pass on my knowledge. After all, children are naturally inquisitive.
Tip: One option is to teach the child under supervision and control how to belay someone from above in a climbing area.
DO NOT TAKE ANY RISKS ON THE MOUNTAIN
Children are generally reluctant to move out of their comfort zone and are often even bigger "creatures of habit" than adults. Familiar people or familiar surroundings give them a sense of security and security. It is therefore important that we give them a sense of security, especially in an unfamiliar environment. This is the basis for them to venture out of their comfort zone. How can we support this?
In order to be able to convey safety, it is important that the adults themselves feel safe in their environment. Adults should therefore develop certain skills so that they can take responsibility for the children not only in everyday life, but also when climbing.
There are basically three ways to do this. One is that I acquire this knowledge myself or have already acquired it over the years through my own mountaineering. Another option is to attend courses organised by the DAV, SAC or ÖAV, for example. There are now also family mountaineering programmes that explicitly focus on tours with children. The third option is to go on a guided tour with a mountain guide, who will provide me with the professional knowledge that I can learn on this occasion.
Tip: Join up with another family. This way, the children have friends with them and the costs for a guided tour can be shared.
THINK ABOUT SUITABLE CLOTHING FOR MOUNTAINEERING
In general, you need similar clothing for mountaineering as for hiking in an alpine environment. This includes suitable rain protection, hats, gloves and various insulating clothing, which should ideally be combined according to the onion principle.
In addition, appropriate footwear is also required for mountaineering, which is suitable for scrambling and, to a certain extent, for crampons. These should have as stiff a sole as possible and the shaft should go over the ankle to provide sufficient protection. For older children with larger feet, appropriate shoes for adults are already available.
Technical equipment is also required for mountaineering. This always includes a climbing harness. A via ferrata set is also necessary for climbing a via ferrata and crampons and ice axe as soon as you reach the glacier.
Tip : When choosing a climbing harness, just as with a via ferrata set, it is essential to ensure that it is suitable for children in terms of construction and safety aspects (shock absorber on the via ferrata set, etc.). Advice should be sought from a specialist retailer before purchase.
HAVE FUN TOGETHER
It's more fun together. It's therefore best to arrange to meet up with other families who also want to discover mountaineering for themselves. The children usually motivate each other best and can develop real team spirit... and who knows, maybe you'll be part of the first steps of a future rope team.
Tip: When choosing families, make sure that the children are of a similar age and fitness level. Otherwise, over- or underchallenging is inevitable.
THINK ABOUT THE RIGHT WAY TO DEAL WITH FEARS
As already described, fun is the most important factor in mountaineering. However, since we are also moving in exposed terrain more often than when hiking, there are always fears that you should know how to deal with.
The most important tip is probably that you should never overtax children and accept it if they don't want to go any further. The mountains are still a long way off and perhaps today is simply not the day for this tour.
Tip: Take a break before the key sections. Sometimes this leads to new motivation and the key section no longer looks so tragic. And if not, then don't force it.
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