How old were your children when you first took them hiking (on trails)? DH and I have missed out on hikes the past couple of years with two infants (though we did go w/ds in a baby backpack a couple of times). We're thinking of a short trip to Hocking Hills, OH where there are lots of hikes to waterfalls and caves (I realized we'd want to rule out anything lengthy or treacherous). Our kids are almost 3 and 4 and very active. I suppose I won't really know how they handle it until we actually give it a shot, but if anyone has any thoughts to share from personal experience I'd love to hear them.

Age 7 was the turning point for both our kids. Before that we kept 'hikes' to under an hour in length and usually ended up carrying them for the last stretch!
Take candy ,drinks or whatever bribes work with your kids ... my 7 year old daughter hiked for over 3hrs down into the Waipio valley in Dec. and back up and the 'carrot' was a disposable camera to snap anything she wanted!

I agree with highflyer. We hike in the Adirondacks and when the kids were really small we could carry them in the backpack. Then they get to the age where they want to be on their own, but they're really slow. At that point we did very short hikes with destinations - a pond or a waterfall. Around that age we started staying at some cabins that had a lot of property (all wooded) with little hikes. They liked that a lot. Mountains didn't reappear until the youngest was 7 or 8. Unfortunately, he has hated hiking from the get go. The oldest loves it. Youngest made us miserable, and a little later my husband's bad knee made doing steep hikes pretty scary (coming down). I'd suggest lots of juice/snacks and bug netting (be really sparse with insect repellant on the little ones!). I always had my kids carry something that was theirs. I'd buy little fanny packs at K Mart or someplace and they'd carry water or whatever. I know families whose kids all have loved hiking, so HIKE ON!

We started with our kids in bakcpacks when they were infants. As soon as they said they wanted out of the backpack (I think both were 2), they were on their feet.

At 2, they would go about a mile. At 3, they were each at 1.5 miles. At 4, they could hike 2 miles.

We take a backpack with water and snacks. Sometimes, they have their own fanny packs with treats.

Hikes to waterfalls and lakes are good because there is a destination and something interesting for them at the "end" (the car is at the other "end").

We took our kids to Rocky Mountain National Park and Yellowstone on separate trips the year they were 2 and 4. We did a couple of hikes a day. The pace was slower than if we didn't bring them of course, but we all had a good time.

At 3 and 4 my two son's were doing short hikes or a mile or so on their own.

Utahtea

When our kids were 1-2, we carried them. Age 3-4 usually can hike but may get bored. We would play alot of games on the hikes when our kids were young. we would swing them and play a game out of getting to the top of the hill. Also, games like we would play on car trips ("i see something... guessing game, alphabet game, etc)

When the kids were 6-7, we were backpacking with them. their favorite hikes always ended ontop of rocks. (they love rock scrambles).

We are taking our "kids" (16, 18 & 21) to glacier this summer for more backpacking - they still love it!

We've been hiking with our kids since they were newborns (they're 6 and 10 now). They each rode in a pack until they were about 4 years old. As we live in the Rockies, most of our hikes are at altitude; steepness doesn't seem to effect them at all, but distance does. The older can hike almost anything, but not longer than about 6-7 miles roundtrip; we do shorter hikes with the younger one.

I echo a lot of the previous suggestions - hiking to a destination, such as a waterfall, old mine, or cave is good. We have a goody bag for each kid, which they can fill beforehand - mostly various nutritious breakfast cereals, with raisins and M&Ms mixed in. If you're hiking to places where the kids can play in the water, bring water shoes and/or small towels to dry feet off.

Lots of good ideas here. We have been hiking with our kids for as long as I can remember. I won't repeat all the good suggestions, but the only different idea I have is that we take a few snacks that are strictly hiking/backpacking snacks. The kids look forward to that, even though the foods are always on our gear shelves. Pixie Stix is one...yes, those little tubes of flavored sugar. It helps when they need a bit of quick energy. Also beef jerky and our own version of trail mix (what each of us likes in it). Kids will surprise you with what they can do!

Like a lot of people on this board, my parents took me hiking and backpacking from the time I was very small. I was 6 years old the first time I carried my own pack on an overnight trip - I carried my fishing pole as well, with which I managed to catch a fish for dinner