Child carrier security question

[Chabela]

Hello!

We have a 5 months old baby, and we bought a child carrier backpack (Kelty FC 3.0). I tried it a couple of time in the house and in the yard, since the baby is a bit too young yet to go on a hike.

This afternoon, the baby felt asleep in the backpack, and I saw that its head was falling on its chest, which is normal since he is sitted down in the back.... As a normal mother (!), I am a bit worried that he might stop breathing in that position....

Does any of you have a trick to try to hold its neck / head straight while he is sleeping ??

Thanks ! (and sorry for the English, it is not my first language)

 

[smitty77]

Hello!Does any of you have a trick to try to hold its neck / head straight while he is sleeping ??

We used to bring a small pillow with us and place it between his head and the frame tube. Along with the head drop, we found his head used to bounce against the metal frame on the descent if he was sleeping. The pillow helped some, but it wasn't anything that would hold him in place. We also found that when he sleeps, he didn't have the ability to hold his bottom centered in the harness, and would start to slide out of the pack from the bottom. Fortunately I rarely hiked solo with him, so the other person could adjust him as needed without having to remove the pack.

Another tip - bring a small mirror with you to make checking on him easier. A small one from an old makeup compact works well.

I have a few friends that bought a Deuter child carrier (Percious on here recommended that brand at one time), and they say this pack is more comfortable for the child and the adult because of the different position the child is in. With the Deuter, the child is held a closer to your back, unlike the Kelty which is more chair-like in how the child is seated. You might want to check those out if you are still able to return the Kelty. Nothing against Kelty, as I had one, but I could never find a position that worked for me. It always seemed to pull too much on my shoulders.

Good Luck.
Smitty

 

[TrishandAlex]

Have you tried using a sling? There are a million different varieties, for different aged babies and kids.

I hiked with Alex in a sling until she was 18 months old -- also used one with Sage until she was a year old -- not just hiking, but around the house too.

Different types can be found here:

http://www.theslingstation.com/ergoproducts.html

 

[sardog1]

I sell child carriers, including the Kelty line. A five month old infant is too young for a backpack carrier, IMO. Take a look at the safety instructions for guidance on this point. I think a front carrier would be better right now.

 

[Early Bird]

I don't have a 5 month old, but would lean towards what Sardog1 said from what I've researched. We use a front carrier with our baby, the Ergo with the infant insert (sold separately). She's been on three small hikes (Pack Monadnock, Wachusett, and N. Pack) so far starting at 5 weeks old. (She's 9 weeks old now.) I have a sling too, that I use for errands mostly. It's very comfortable, but I've never used it hiking or even for a long walk.

 

[Chabela]

Hi everybody,

Thanks for the answers. I already have a baby sling, that I use a lot, mainly inside, since its birth. I guess I will have to use it for the first hikes, although I am affraid it will be warm / hot for the baby and for the carrier.

And after, I will try the pillow trick!

Sardog1, I read that, normally, the recommended age is 6 month old.. I will still have the head problem when he will sleep, event at 6 ??

Thanks!

 

[sardog1]

The key question for me is: Can this particular child sit upright unassisted? If not, it's too early, according to the instructions. A minimum weight of 16 pounds is also indicated.

Personally, I wouldn't hike alone with a backpack carrier until I was very sure that the child would be safe. I don't know of incidents involving backpack carriers. I do know of incidents involving very young children in pulks (boat-like toboggans.)

 

[smitty77]

Personally, I wouldn't hike alone with a backpack carrier until I was very sure that the child would be safe.

I wholeheartedly agree. I always felt more comfortable with someone else's eyes on my cargo. We never had an incident, but there were several times where an adjustment was required that I may not have caught until the baby was wedged in the pack sideways.

And we started using the rear carrier at around 9-10 months. He was born in July and I wasn't about to take him hiking at 6 months in January, so hiking season just happened to coincide with him reaching the correct size and weight.

 

[kevinmac]

Backpacking with Baby

I stumbled across this over at TrailSpace and thought some of you may be interested since some of the article is about carriers:

http://www.trailspace.com/gear/guide/backpacking-with-baby.html

 

[evilhanz]

To echo the others, until your baby exhibits good head control, she doesn't belong in a backpack carrier. That may happen by six months, but that's optimistic in my opinion. I wouldn't before 8,9,10 months old or around the time she becomes a good crawler.

 

[Jim lombard]

The Kelty version of baby carriers have a built in pillow which they rest their heads on. I've used mine many times and Elizabeth loves sleeping in it. She had her first ride at about 7 months. The roof keeps the sun off her and we bought a fine mesh net which keeps the bugs off her. It's a great way to introduce the young ones to the outdoors and keep them safe.

 

[weatherman]

Yeah, good head control, sit unassisted for a few seconds, typically 6 months though may be earlier. OK, so I'll give it away, I'm a pediatrician. Ours did OK at 5 months but he was an early sitter. Don't worry about suffocating when he's asleep in the carrier at this age, worry more about overheating (if it ever gets warm!!!) or, in the winter, getting too cold. Or, um, bushwhacking through brambles - the kid is taller than you typically... nuf said...

Our first was a BIG HOT kid, so the front pack was not an option beyond 4-5 months because he was already up to 20 lbs. There was a small window around that age where basically nothing worked.

Weatherman

 

[Stash]

I'm beyond the small child stage but have a question on these carriers in general. How do they affect your balance? Does the weight sit mostly low on your hips like a backpack? I always had the concern with bicycle child seats of a fall and the relative height of the fall, opting for the lower trailer style item. How does the child fare with a fall of the parent? The one in Jim Lombard's avatar almost seems to have a "roll cage" to protect the child.

 

[Jim lombard]

I'm beyond the small child stage but have a question on these carriers in general. How do they affect your balance? Does the weight sit mostly low on your hips like a backpack? I always had the concern with bicycle child seats of a fall and the relative height of the fall, opting for the lower trailer style item. How does the child fare with a fall of the parent? The one in Jim Lombard's avatar almost seems to have a "roll cage" to protect the child.

The weight is more on your shoulders although the hip belt does help. With Elizabeth inside, this weighs about 37lbs. Balance is very good. But you do feel it most when descending if they're squirmy.

The top covering is not a roll cage, think of very thin flexible tent poles. The child is harnessed in but I would never take this on a rough steep trail. I saw someone once go up Flume Slide with a 2 year old. Not something I'd feel comfortable doing.

 

[kaseri]

Tough Traveler carriers get very high regards.

http://www.toughtraveler.com/

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

Our daughter had very good head control and could sit unassisted around five months or so. We had tried a Kelty frame carrier and she rode in it okay, but we ended up getting an Ergo carrier that we still use (she's 19 months now and around 24 pounds).

We like the Ergo because it's so much easier for her to nap (she would just lean her head against Steve's back and we'd snap the piece of fabric that would help hold her head in place). Being close to Steve's body is useful for balance and for the rugged trails in the Northeast. The Ergo is also nice because you can use it as a front or back carrier, so besides hiking I would often use it for errands or short walks carrying her in the front (when she was smaller).

The drawbacks is that it can get pretty hot with her body against the person carrying her and there isn't a shade for sun protection. We haven't tried the Kelty since last year and will likely break it out again this summer to see how she likes it. We'll be doing a lot of hiking out west and I think the Kelty might be good for the trails out there.

I had a hotsling that I used all the time for around the house, errands, short walks, but I never used it for hiking.

I've also heard good things about the Sherpani carriers and we are looking at those too.

 

[weatherman]

The Ergo does indeed sound very cool! (though maybe very hot sometimes!) I've always found the kid carriers to be like wearing an external frame pack with the weight distributed too high... in other words, I'd think twice about trails where footing and balance are tricky. Falling would NOT be something I'd like to try with one of these. Your balance may vary, of course. And the weight shifts as the views do! Whoops, there goes a squirrel... whoops, my pack just shifted!!

Maybe the Ergo is like an internal frame pack. My kids are too old now but I wouldn't mind trying it out.

 

[smitty77]

The weight is more on your shoulders although the hip belt does help. With Elizabeth inside, this weighs about 37lbs. Balance is very good. But you do feel it most when descending if they're squirmy.

The top covering is not a roll cage, think of very thin flexible tent poles. The child is harnessed in but I would never take this on a rough steep trail. I saw someone once go up Flume Slide with a 2 year old. Not something I'd feel comfortable doing.

As stated, it all depends on your comfort zone. I climbed Monadnock via the White Dot and descended the White Cross with this little guy in tow at around 13 months old:


and I didn't have any problems other than his body slouching sideways in the pack as he slept on the descent. But, I'm a very sure-footed hiker and my descent was slow and deliberate due to the precious and sleeping cargo.

Here's another pic of us near the summit picking some blueberries on that trip:

 

[pudgy_groundhog]

Weatherman, Norah does sit a lot lower in the Ergo. Balance hasn't been an issue at all for Steve. We've done some pretty steep hikes with her (probably the steepest was OJI in Baxter) and it was never a problem. I imagine the Kelty will work fine too, although he will have to get used to a different distribution of weight.

Here's a pic of Norah in the Ergo (she was about seven months old at the time):

 

[Gwynna]

Be really careful about adjusting the pack to the adult, too. DiamondRidge has a carrier that seems to be perfectly suited for someone 5'7" - I'm 5'10 and she's 5'4. It didn't really fit either of us well, and limited us in what we could do. We made it work, though - the mountains bring out the creativity in us.

Also, I have very nearly fallen face-first with the carrier on. I tripped over a root and with such a top-heavy load just couldn't right myself. DR turned to see what was happening and braced herself so that I could fall into her, thus staying upright. Another reason to have someone else along!