Child Carrier/Backpack 20-35lbs

Troll Craiglist and Facebook baby groups like mad for a used Osprey Poco.  The Deuter carriers aren’t bad but I like the Osprey kid holding harness much better.  Just think of it as your kids first proper backpacking pack and the 200+ retail price isn’t so bad.  Our Poco AG has been the most important item in the garage since we got it.  Constant use over the past 10 months.

If you are moving from the Los Angeles area I’ve got two.  I’ll sell either one (or both!) for cheap ($20).

Used is a good way to go with these.  There is such a short window kids use them that they really get much use.  I bought one used and it was a much better deal than the new one I bought.  Craig’s List is the way to go (as mentioned above).

Thanks for the tips – there’s one a Poco on craigs for 100 around here – I guess I should have mentioned I’m 6’7″ – will go and try it on :)

For day hiking I would suggest just using a normal soft carrier such an an Ergo. I’ve tried two or three different Deuter & Kelty child carrying backpacks and while they certainly work for day hiking they put the weight of the child pretty far our from your back which is not as comfortable. And, the backpacks themselves add pretty significant weight. With the Ergo his weight would be directly against your back and at this time of year it would help both of you stay warm. (I also use the Ergo for cross country skiing when my younger daughter gets too bored to ski.)

The only situation in which I think a backpack works better is if you are out with your kids by yourself because then you can pack snacks & warm stuff in the bottom. But, if you already have a stroller along for your 3 year old you can pack snacks & warm stuff in there. Or, if you are traveling at 3 year old speed hand carrying a bag with snacks isn’t that difficult.

I have taken a couple of overnights on trails that were compatible with a jogging stroller. The set-up went like this-

Parent 1- medium sized backpack with child in ergo on the front

Parent 2- larger backpack pushing stroller with the toddler.

And, sometimes the toddler would walk and we could stash one of our packs in the stroller.

Have fun with sticks, rocks, and worms!

I had a Deuter. It was the most overbuilt model. It was monstrous and unwieldy. I sold it.

Soft carriers, like the Ergo, described above, are better. Really nice to have the flexibility of wearing them on your front or on your back. And they’re more cozy and seem more comfortable for the child.

What’s the best? Woven wraps. With the caveat that there’s a learning curve. And a ton of possibilities — from what brand of wrap (Vatanai), to length (long), to how you tie it (“double rebozo size to side”). Make sure it’s a *woven* wrap. “Stretchy,” i.e. jersey knit fabrics are only good for little babies. In other words, it’s a big ole rabbit hole. But worth going down.

I used soft carriers around town, but found them way to hot (both for me and my kids) hiking long distances and up and down hills.  The sun shade that many had was nice in CA sun.  They are certainly overbuilt and a bit unwieldy but I found them very useful over the alternatives.

The ergo was my favourite up to around 30lbs.  Beyond that it was an REI backpack carrier which didn’t work that great but was only used half the hike so I got breaks.

i also ran ergo on the front with a 10 month old and backpack on the back with a 2.5 year old and suffered but still got to go hiking.

but I highly recommend the Ergo carrier until it becomes uncomfortable.

I have spent hundreds of hours carrying kids in multiple types of carriers. I found the Ergo to be fine up to about 1 year old with them in the front and a backpack to counter their weight. Totally uncomfortable when warmer conditions on my back though so I switched to a Kelty backpack style carrier for more serious hiking and trail work. Between my two kids, I did everything from all day hikes to trail work and even working on a BMX track for hours a day. The full backpack style was a much more comfortable solution for me and the kids enjoyed it much more and would happily look around and even nap, something they never did after the carrier in strollers. Learned that the hard way with the first and got the second kid into the pack as early as was possible.

You’ll probably run into problems with your height finding one used as you will definitely need a longer size torso model. I’m not sure who makes a tall model as most are adjustable but few I’ve found go past 19″. Also, note that unlike a regular backpack where you want very little weight on your shoulders, with child carriers you generally want a little bit on there (10-20% of total) for stability.

I had a similar experience to Colin- the ergo was not comfortable for me once they got past about 18 months old. We’ve done 100s of miles (largely overnight trips) with an 8lb (!!!) Deuter kid carrier, and while the pack itself was heavy, it was comfortable for me.  Everything else we carried was pretty light, but I couldn’t do much about the kids…

So, my advice: try a few options if you can.  The wraps and Ergo styles dodnt work for me.