8 Activities to get your kids into hiking

Materials:

- A very long and strong branch
- Two strong Y-shaped branches
- Branches of different lengths



Duration and number of people:

- 30 min / 2 people



Stage 1: Look for very solid wood, a long branch for the top of the shack, two Y-shaped branches to support it and many branches in different sizes to make the two walls.

Step 2: Plant one end of the longest and strongest branch and support the other end with two Y-branches.

Step 3: Cover the sides with all the other branches.

Step 4: Cover the frame with leaves or snow, depending on the season.

Materials:

- Your two hands
- An open view



Duration and number of people:

5 min / 1 people



Step 1: Find an open place and stand facing the sun.

Step 2: Place your hand with your palm facing you, fingers together, with the base of your little finger on the horizon.

Step 3: Place one hand over the other until you reach the sun.

Step 4: Count the number of hands and fingers between the horizon and sun, 1 finger = 15 minutes.

Materials:

- A plastic bottle
- Scissors
- Gravel
- Sand
- Charcoal
- A piece of fabric



Duration and number of people:

1 hour / 2 people

Warning, always do this activity with an adult.Do not drink filtered water if you have the slightest doubt.



Step 1: Cut the bottom off the plastic bottle.

Step 2: Place the bottle head down and in this order, place the piece of fabric, a layer of charcoal, a layer of sand, a layer of gravel.

Step 3: Pour water through the top of the bottle and wait for it to pass through the bottle. Collect it in a container.

Step 4: Do not hesitate to re-filter it as many times as required.

Materials:

- A round cheese box
- A wooden crate
- A wooden skewer
- A saw
- Glue
- Two Y-shaped branches of the same length



Duration and number of people:

45 min / 2 people including an adult



Step 1: Cut the crate to make 8 strips, add a notch to assemble them to the cheese box.

Step 2: Make a hole in the middle of the cheese box and fit the skewer through it.

Step 3: Insert and stick the strips of wood on the cheese box.

Step 4: Place it on the two Y-shaped pieces of wood in a river, low enough for the water to push on the strips.

Materials:

- Sheets of thick paper
- A pencil
- Scissors
- A box cutter
- A smartphone



Duration and number of people:

- 30 minutes or until the day of walking is over / 1 or more



Step 1: Cut out the names of objects or colours to find during the hike (example: a pine tree, bark, bird, water, blue, green, etc).

Step 2: Hand out the cards to participants.

Step 3: Take a photo of the things behind the photo to see them through the cut-out words and share with friends on Instagram.

Step 4: Reward the most beautiful photos and the ones with the most likes on Instagram.

Materials:

- Daisies~ (or any other flower if they are not a protected species and have long flexible stems)



Duration and number of people:

10 min  / 1 person

Materials:

- A printoscope (download below)



Duration and number of people:

-Throughout the duration of the hike / 1 person minimum



Step 1: Keeps your eyes open and look for animal prints in the ground or snow

Step 2: Look for the matching print in the printoscope. The one who finds the most prints wins.

Materials:

- A smartphone
- The geocaching application (download below)
- A pencil or a pen


Duration and number of people:

30 minutes - 1 hour / 1 person minimum


Step 1: Connect to the application and look for hiking places near you.

Step 2: Solve the puzzle to get to the hidden object.

Step 3: After finding the hiding place, note that you have been there on the paper and put the box back in its place for the next Geocachers.