Going on biking trails in nature presents incredible benefits for the entire family. It helps bring the family closer in a fun way, while also providing a good exercise at the same time. Even if you’ve got young members in your family, such as kids and toddlers, it doesn’t mean that you can no longer enjoy a good bike ride. Being out in nature presents an excellent opportunity for kids to enjoy the great outdoors.
That said, however, it’s also imperative to note that for you to have the best fun possible, you’ll also need to prepare for it. In doing so, you can better ensure that every family bike ride stays smooth, safe, and fun. Here are some handy tips for you to follow:
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Choose the proper bike
Going on a biking trip to any natural location, such as Lake Mountain Alpine Resort, isn’t really like biking around your neighborhood. Naturally, this would be more challenging for your kids. A good starting point for ensuring that your kids have fun is to have them use the proper bike for their age, so it’s easier for them to get through the mountain bike trails. The appropriate bike type for each kid changes as they grow, learn, and develop new skills. You also don’t want to make your nature trip unsafe for your child.
Here are biking guidelines to abide by:
- If it’s your child’s first time, and they’re aged 0 to 6 years old, bike seats or trailers work best.
- When your child is around 3 to 6 years old, a balance bike is good enough so they can also practice steering and balancing, to transition to another bike later on.
- When your child is between 6 to 7 years old, they may already know how to balance well enough for them to now ride on a “real” bike.
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Pass through puddles
Going on a nature trip can be a fun activity for the kids. There’s just so much for the kids to explore and see while in the great outdoors. Whilst it is important to stay on the trail, you may like to enjoys the bumps too! If there are little puddles here and there that you can pass through, do so. Your kids will surely have fun doing so!
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Bring the right gear
As parents, it’s natural that you’ll always want to keep your kids safe at all times. This fact is also why you need to let your kids wear or bring the right gear.
- Make sure your child is wearing a helmet at all times, and it’s appropriately fastened on their head.
- Equip your kids’ bikes with headlights and taillights, especially when you’re biking in low-light areas, such as dark forest paths.
- Dress for the weather.
- Bring some refreshments with you, as it’s also essential for the children to stay hydrated.
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Go up the hills
If the nature trail that you’re going to has hilly areas, don’t shy away from heading up the hills. It’s going to be extra fun for the kids to be able to practice going up and sliding down again. Plus, should they fall, it’s not going to hurt as much.
While you’re at it, make a few videos, too. Your kids will surely enjoy seeing later on how cool and fun the activity was! Doing this is also a way to show them that biking and outdoor activities are still much more fun than staying indoors with their gadgets.
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Practice safety guidelines with your kids
You can never enjoy a biking trip or trail if you’re always nervous and concerned about the safety of your kids. Especially when you’re out and about in nature, you can expect a bumpy ride. But, when you know that your kids are safe, then you can focus on enjoying it rather than being too worried.
Safety guidelines or measures that you ought to apply include the following:
- Always stick together as a family while biking. Check regularly that all your kids are still with you on your path.
- Teach your kids proper hand signals, so they also know how to apply these and how to communicate with you even when you’re still biking.
- Let your kids wear bright-colored clothing, so it’s easier for you to spot them.
- Always check the condition of your children’s bikes before heading out on your trail.
How To Enjoy Nature on Biking Trails with Your Kids
Riding a bike outdoors is one of life’s greatest pleasures that can be enjoyed by all generations. Unfortunately for today’s children, this may not always be the case. Nowadays, many children are so drawn towards their gadgets that they no longer find nature bike trails fun.
This presents a more significant challenge for parents to re-introduce these kinds of activities into some fun family time together. If you’ve long been wishing to do this, keep the tips enumerated above in mind to make sure that you have an enjoyable experience.