So far in Aífe’s lifetime, we’ve taken her on numerous hikes in the Lakes, on a bothy day-trip in Scottish winter, to a mountain refuge in the Alps, to the summit of a 3000m Italian peak, river swimming in the Yorkshire Dales, to an off-grid cabin in the North York Moors and cycling to Alpine lakes with Matterhorn views. She’s had her nappy changed in a stone cave while icy winds blew outside and I’ve breast-fed her just about everywhere! We were never not going to get outside on adventures with our daughter, but there’s definitely been some items that we have found both useful and essential in allowing us to do so.

When I was pregnant, I read numerous lists of ‘baby essentials’ covering everything from travel systems to cots to whether to buy baby grows with zips of poppers... Reading lists like these and preparing for baby’s arrival actually got me really excited and I was in full nesting mode as I entered the late stages of my pregnancy, but what I didn’t find was a lot of information out there on what gear I might need to help me get outdoors with my baby. For Harvey and I, preparing Aífe for hikes in the hills with us has involved a lot of trial and error. But now, as she’s 9 months old and we’re out hiking in her fourth season, I feel like we might be in a good position to offer some helpful tips for those of you hoping to do the same with your little ones.

I just wanted to put a little disclaimer before going into our list that a lot of these items are quite expensive. That absolutely doesn’t mean that if you don’t have them you can’t go outdoors with your little ones. Personally we chose to spend more on outdoor baby items than other items. We’re quite minimal with Aífe at home, but in the hills we wanted to make sure that we were prepared and comfortable with what we have for her (it’s also our job to be outdoors). What I would also say is that the only absolute essential we have for our daughter is ourselves — for comfort, love, safety and food. I will try to put less expensive alternative items in this list so you can see other options, but I’ll also give you our personal opinion on the items we have and use ourselves so you can get a solid review before buying yourself.

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Baby carrier — Ergobaby Omni Breeze

In the first 6 months of Aífe’s life, I think we used the Ergobaby everyday from when she was just 2 days old and we went for our first short walk by our local river. For us, the Ergobaby was an absolute essential in allowing us to get out on walks early on, as well as to calm and console Aífe on some of those difficult evenings in the very early days (the magic of baby-wearing!). We opted for the Omni Breeze model from Ergobaby because it’s their most breathable baby carrier and we knew we’d be doing a lot of hiking with our daughter. Harvey and I are obviously very different shapes but we both find the Ergobaby very comfortable and Aífe has always been happy in it from when she was tiny to today.

At first we always used the ‘normal’ carrying position which is inward-facing on the front. We then started doing some periods in the forward-facing carry position and now that Aífe is heavier I usually use the back-carry. We love how versatile the Ergobaby is, with an in-built sun-shade that also protects against light rain, reflective strips and a little detachable zip-pouch that is handy for carrying keys, phone and dog-poo bags. All in all, we love everything about the Ergobaby Omni Breeze and couldn’t recommend it enough.

Tip — I always liked to wear Aífe underneath a coat or jacket, especially when she was a newborn in winter. I used to wear Harvey’s jackets zipped around the Ergobaby. When Harvey’s jackets got too small to fit around Aífe, I used a Zipusin panel which was so handy for extending my jacket and allowing me to keep Aífe protected under a coat (I have the universal one as I mostly wear Patagonia jackets which have the zip the opposite way around, but for other jackets the normal version works). Harvey also bought himself an XL raincoat from Ebay that he wore to keep Aífe protected from the elements. You can also buy baby-wearing coats if you’re a keen baby-wearer but we found these options worked for us.

Our Outdoor Nappy Bag

Change Mat — We really liked this travel change-mat from Close Pop-In. It’s really lightweight, easy to use and the fabric on the outside is waterproof so you can easily change baby on wet ground without any issues. We also got the stuff sack that we use for spare clothes or dirty clothes when we had poo explosions when she was younger.

Wipes — We try to use Cheeky Wipes as much as we can, which I soak in water before we go out and roll-up and put in a Stasher Bag (snack size). I also like Water Wipes if we can’t use reusables.

Bag — For a nappy bag, I’d just say use whatever you have. A dry-bag would work fine, or any light, waterproof bag would be ideal for being outdoors. I already had a Patagonia Medium Black Hole Cube that I had previously used as a packing cube and decided to use this for all Aífe’s spare clothes, nappies, wipes and change mat when we’re out and about. I like it because you can open it out flat and it has two compartments with mesh so you can see inside — great for organisation.

Baby Backpack (from around 6 months) — Osprey Poco Plus

When baby can sit up independently (and reaches a certain weight limit which for our pack was 7.25kg) you can transition from a soft baby carrier to a baby backpack. We opted for the Osprey Poco Plus carrier which has 26L of additional storage space, a sun shade, waterproof rain cover and loads of handy pockets and features that we love. We chose this carrier due to the additional storage space which we knew would be useful for us for camping trips or if either of us wanted to do any solo hiking with Aífe. The Osprey Poco Plus also has an adjustable back length so both Harvey, who is 6’2” and myself at 5’7” can wear it comfortably.

The only downside to this carrier is that there isn’t really anywhere to store walking poles, which we find essential with such a heavy pack, and due to the additional storage space and hard frame the pack is heavy. It’s also one of the more expensive baby backpacks due to all the aforementioned features. If you’d prefer something more simple and less expensive, the Little Life carriers look like good options.

Merino Wool Baselayers

When we are out in the hills with Aífe, we tend to opt for Merino wool baselayers as wool is temperature regulating, warm when wet, quick-drying and has so many other great properties.

Our favourite baselayers are from Dilling but we also really liked trying some different ones from Mama Owl such as this one from Siskin. You only really need a couple of wool bodies that you can save for when you go out hiking, otherwise normal cotton is absolutely fine!

We also really like the wool onesies from Dilling as pyjamas for when we are camping. Just ensure you wash wool products on a low heat with wool wash to ensure the longevity of the product (and so they don’t shrink!).

Fleece Suit

We’ve tried a number of different cosy fleece suits with Aífe, but there were probably two that stand out as the ones we used/still use the most. A fleece suit is useful all year round for hiking with a baby as it can always be colder on a summit, so it’s handy to just put in your bag in case the weather worsens. For the first 6 months when Aífe was exclusively in the Ergobaby carrier, we always opted for a fleece suit with Merino wool baselayers underneath and then Aífe would share our down or waterproof jacket on top. Now as Aífe is in the Osprey backpack more, and therefore not able to share our layers and body heat, we do also use an insulated suit which I’ll talk about further down.

The two fleece suits we loved were this Infant Tiny Bear Bunting from Columbia, which is made from polyester, and then when we got into the depths of winter I bought this 100% organic wool suit from Engel which we loved (I’ve linked the green one we have but they have so many beautiful colours).

Outdoor socks & Booties

We have a lot of different types of baby socks for Aífe, but these merino wool socks from Mama Owl by Joha are by far the best we have come across so far. They are thick, warm and cosy and really good quality — made from 90% merino wool. They have lots of colours but we’ve linked the green ones that we have!

Aífe is 9 months at the time of writing this and not yet walking so we have had no need for any kind of walking shoes for her, but we have found a couple of types of warm and waterproof booties that we really like. Firstly, in the photo above (on the left) you’ll see Aífe wearing some wool booties from a brand called Pickapooh. These are great and have been used extensively! We usually put them on over a pair of socks which also ensures her socks stay on.

We were also given a hand-me-down pair of Spotty Otter waterproof boots which we really like for wet days. We think these will be great for wet days in the backpack as well and for wearing on top of some really warm socks or the Pickapooh booties in winter. I can’t find these online so they might be an old model, but these look quite similar.

We’ll update any other shoes we find useful when Aífe starts walking.

Insulated Suit

When we transitioned Aífe into the backpack, we knew we would need some really warm layers to keep her warm and protected from the elements when she was no longer hiding under our jackets. We haven’t done a winter with Aífe in the backpack yet, but we bought this Columbia Powder Lite Reversible Bunting All-in-One which we have so far used in the Alps as a really warm outer layer.

The reason we opted for this suit is because it’s synthetic rather than down. While down is generally warmer, synthetic is better in wet climates (like the UK!) as it stays warm when wet. I’ve linked the suit we have but there are other colours and patterns available.

Bike Trailer — Thule Chariot Cross

It took us over a year to decide whether to buy this item due to the price, but once we took the plunge and bought the Thule Chariot Cross, we have since used it probably every day and had so many fun adventures with it. If you’re a keen cyclist and want to get out on bike rides with your little ones, we would really recommend this bike trailer. It’s so well-designed (those Swedes certainly know what they’re doing!) with a rain cover and sun shade, some boot storage (albeit not a huge amount), loads of space for your little one until they are 22kg (which is the average weight for a child at aged 7!), adjustable handle-bar and both jogging and skiing kits that you can buy separately. It really is an incredible piece of kit which, though pricey, can provide many adventures for your family. It’s worth saying that there are of course much cheaper bike trailer options available. I know Halfords do a very basic but completely adequate one if you’re only planning on doing the occasional bike ride.

Family Picnic Blanket — PACMAT

Our PACMAT comes just about everywhere with us! Whether we’re going out for a picnic, a hike, a river swim or a bike ride — it’s so handy for nappy changes, feed stops and just about any other time we need to sit down. We love how lightweight the picnic mat is, as well as packing down really small, being waterproof on the bottom and easy to stick in the washing machine.

Baby Sleeping Bag — Morrison Outdoors

I spent a long time looking up camping sleep systems for babies and toddlers, and decided that giving Aífe her own sleeping bag designed for babies would be the safest option that would also ensure she would be warm enough camping all year round (I’ll do a full blogpost about camping with babies going into this in more detail soon!).

We opted for the Morrison Outdoors Down Sleeping Bag which came from the States, but had excellent reviews and seemed like it would suit our needs exactly. The down sleeping bag has a -7°C-16°C temperature rating and is super light, also packing down really small, to just a little bigger than the size of a Nalgene bottle. You can slo use the code RAMBLEFAM for 10% off!

We’ve used it a couple of times now and Aífe seems really happy in it. Despite the fact we co-sleep at home, she doesn’t seem to mind having her own sleeping bag and sleep space (albeit right next to mum and dad!).

If you’re not keen to spend over a hundred pounds on a sleeping bag for your little one (which is totally understandable), and you think you might only camp in spring and summer anyway, you could use any kind of warm onesie or blanket, as long as baby safe. If you want to camp a lot and throughout cooler seasons, I’d really recommend the Morrison Outdoors sleeping bag which will also fit your little one until they are 2.

Websites & Brands We Love for Baby outdoor Gear

Little Trekkers
Mama Owl
Kidunk — not tried yet but keen to get a suit for Aífe when she is 1+
Babipur
Patagonia Kids
Spotty Otter
Frugi — more everyday wear but we love the puddle suits
Little Green Radicals — also more casual, but with some great warm suits for winter and linen for summer