Baby carrier packs

[clicker]

My wife is 1 week past her due date, so the moment is going to be upon us any minute now. Anyways I am planning on getting a baby carrying backpack and liked the Deuter Kid Comfort 1 but have not found any reviews. So I was wondering if anyone had any experience with it, or if there were other packs I should look into.

[JAK]

Dog packs are questionable, but getting a baby carrying a backpack is just wrong.

[flemdawg1]

I used a Tough Traveler Kid Carrier for my last 2 kids. Very comfortable.



http://www.toughtraveler.com/comparecarriers.asp

[JAK]

Seriously though, I never used one when my daughter was an infant/toddler, but we looked at them. The 'good ones' are built very heavy. My friend had one and they were OK for day-hikes, but didn't have much room left for overnights despite being so heavy. I used a simpler carrier for dayhikes, and carried a small pack with it. I think a front carrier is best, so you can keep an eye on them when they are sleeping. The small carrier I used could be used in front or on my back, even though it was built to be used on my back. Similarly my daypack could be slung front or back. When she was young I carried her in front. When she was a toddler she was still light enough to carry, and I carried her on my back when she wanted a break. I could carry her on my back and make up time especially while she slept. She walked alot though, even then, despite being small. She would always want down if we had a small bridge to cross, or stairs to climb, or something like that. In retrospect as a rough guideline I guess she liked to walk about a km a day for every year of age from age 2 through 8. Now at age 10 it is getting harder to get her out with me, even though she could easily outhike me if she put her mind to it and I carried everything.

Enjoy lots of hikes while they are light and small. Overnights are tricky, carrying everything, so keep things simple and pack as light as you can. Best wishes.

[ShoelessWanderer]

Dog packs are questionable, but getting a baby carrying a backpack is just wrong.

lol. Thats awesome.

[JAK]

I used a Tough Traveler Kid Carrier for my last 2 kids. Very comfortable.



http://www.toughtraveler.com/comparecarriers.asp

That looks very similar to the simple design that I used. Might actually be the same. I think this is a much better way to go than the more expensive LLBean or whatever type, which tend to be overbuilt and very heavy and still don't have much room for other stuff.

[JAK]

I miss those days. She would carry the compass and navigate.

[turtle fast]

I am in the same boat....er...on the same trail here. I was looking for a child carrier as well. I have not found any comments on the Deuter kid carrier either. The similar constructed packs by other companies I have seen the folks say is difficult to get your kid in and out of it. The framed Sherpani and Kelty carriers are bulky and some places like museums won't let you use them. The Kelty child carrier 3.0 I tried at REI fit like a glove though. Like you I am still wondering which way to go.

[clicker]

For front carrying I have an Ergo Baby, and an infant insert for it. I was more looking at the backpack style for day hiking and such. I am not planning on doing overnights on the trail for a bit, just going to do some remote car camping with the young kid. We get up to Michigan's Upper Penninsula alot so I get to car camp some great locations.

The Deuter is carried by a local outdoors shop that I frequent, and the owner actually let me try his with his own son in it. I really enjoyed the style. I also tried a Kelty that he carried in stock and my issue with that is that all the weight is up top, the gear pockets are on the top area with the child so the weight is concetrated to the top area. The Deuter has all the gear pockets down below the child so the weight is more evenly distributed. I know that the child will eventually outweigh the rest of the gear in the bottom, but having all the weight at the top doesn't seem like the ideal situation for me.

Thanks for the input from all of you, I will look into the tough travelers FlemDawg.

[gravityman]

Ergo is excellent for when they are younger (pre 6 months or so before they can hold their head up). We also used a moby wrap for that time frame.

Our backpack of chose is a Sherpani. We were able to do overnights with it and a smaller baby ( up to 1.5 years old). Now that we have two we are stuck car camping although we hope to do a really short overnight this summer... It's held up fairly well and carries well.

Gravity

[couscous]

"Enjoy lots of hikes while they are light and small." - I'll second this. I used a front carrier much like the http://www.babybjorn.com/en/American/products/Mobility/ models for the first year. My "little" ones have all passed 5' 10" and 230# so it's been a l-o-n-g time.

[maddi]

Just got back from a weekend in the Shenandoah with our three month old boy. We took the easy route and had a cabin for the weekend.

You probably know, but for younger than 6 months, you have to go with something that will support the kid's head. The way we worked it out, to hike in to the cabin and on the dayhikes (where you have to carry lots of stuff for the kid, such as diapers and whatnot), I carried the pack, and my wife carried Jurian in a Baby Bjorn.

For when he gets older, we have one of the REI kid packs that a friend of ours gave us. Haven't gotten the opportunity to try it yet, but it looks reasonable weight-wise, and looks like you could put all of his necessary items in the pack part. It also stands up, so when you want to put the pack down, it stands on its own.

[JaxHiker]

I have one that's brand new I'd be willing to sell. Still has the tags on it. My son was too big for it and I was too lazy to send it back. It's a name brand, just don't remember off the top of my head.

[jersey joe]

I'm now in the market for a kid carrier backpack. Instead of opening a new thread I thought I'd re-visit this exisiting one.

I'm looking at:
Kelty K.I.D.S. FC 3.0 Frame Child Carrier
or
Kid Comfort II (2010)

The goal is to use the carrier primarily for day hikes.
Recommendations??? Comments???

http://www.amazon.com/Kelty-3-0-Child-Carrier-Blue/dp/B002YXY0AC/ref=sr_1_2?s=baby-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1301833481&sr=1-2

http://www.amazon.com/Deuter-Comfort...833949&sr=1-18

[pcasebere]

I don't know if you all are dead set on the framed packs, but my wife loves her Didymos wrap; I do too when I get her to help me tie it, but for ease of use I'm liking the Ergo. We had the Moby wrap originally, and it was great, but it was stretching causing us to opt for the Didymos.. Either way, my wife has learned much from this forum of folk: http://www.thebabywearer.com/forum/f...nd-Using-Wraps ..mind you, it's a different world. ;o)

[jersey joe]

I don't know if you all are dead set on the framed packs, but my wife loves her Didymos wrap; I do too when I get her to help me tie it, but for ease of use I'm liking the Ergo. We had the Moby wrap originally, and it was great, but it was stretching causing us to opt for the Didymos.. Either way, my wife has learned much from this forum of folk: http://www.thebabywearer.com/forum/f...nd-Using-Wraps ..mind you, it's a different world. ;o)

I feel like these types of wraps are good for smaller children. If your kid is pushing 25-30lbs, I think the framed pack is more the way to go. I'm trying to graduate from a Jeep brand front carrier that has worked very well so far.

[IceAge]

I have an Evenflo Trail Tech that I picked up at the local consignment store, still works great with a 30 pound baby.

The torso length is adjustable, so it works for my wife and me. I recommend it