All terrain pushchair/getting outdoors in winter with LO

[localbunny]

Already have a pushchair for daily town life but want something REALLY good at handling outdoor life and fun: woods, beach, gravel, mud etc. If you've loved your pushchair please loop me in? Bonus points if it has some kind of ride on element for an older (small) child for the future, but that's not a dealbreaker. Any other tips on good outdoor kit for babies gratefully received - finally ready to get out and about a bit with LO and miss the outdoors so much!

You can’t go wrong with an out and about nipper. They’re super robust and almost every spare you’ll ever need is available online.
The newest version can have a handle on the front to make a seat for an older child but a common hack is a Babystyle Oyster buggy board or a Lascal Maxi board.

Out and About Nipper Sport with the big inflatable wheels. Works very well on all terrain. Don't think there's a ride on attachment but maybe the newest model does.

Thanks both! What are the air-filled wheels like to live with? Worried about punctures but maybe I shouldn't be...?

Following with interest. Last time I used a sling lots as it was all-terrain but my pelvis is already complaining at 6 months pregnant so might not want to carry as much this time!

We've got the Thule Urban Glide which I love. We previously had a very old Thule Chariot but the axle pins rusted away. It could handle anything I the it at. That was even more practical on bikes and we could even take it skiing, but it took up too much room in the shed. I might get a new Chariot double if we have a second.

I had a baby jogger Summit X3, which lasted through 2 babies to 4 years and then I sold it on. They’re excellent. If you aren’t going to get lots of use out of it, I’d look secondhand (we live rurally and it was our only pushchair) because they aren’t cheap. But I couldn’t fault it.

We have the Thule urban glide and a nipper double.

The nipper is a compromise on the smoothness off road but smaller and lighter

The Thule really does glide it is an order of magnitude nicer to use than the nipper but heavier and larger when folded.

Deciding factor is probably how much storage you have in your car boot and where you store it indoor. Thule is more expensive but the build quality is amazing

I live on a farm and also did a lot of rural off road walks because there’s nowhere else to go and the bouncy style silver cross chassis was great. Solid tires so no puncture risk. Mine was second hand and I used it for 2 DC
babystyle do a similar chassis, it’s the prestige classic but I have the silver cross version.

I’ve filled the tyres with slime puncture stuff but in over 10 years I’ve only managed to puncture twice!

I’ve also got a BOB/britax all terrain which is the beaten up farm buggy - cheap Facebook market place replacement for the also cheap facebook market place out and about nipper my FIL reversed over - but find the frame too tall for me, but it is good off road too.

Mountain buggy has been great at handling all kinds of terrain for us (apart from sand at beach).

My little boy has an off road 3 wheel wheelchair, I had Kevlar tape put in the tyres and it has been better than Slime.

Okay so slime filled tyres sounds like a good solution!thank you everyone for the input! I think I'm between out and about nipper plus, Thule urban glide (although the urban is confusing!), baby jogger summit X3, mountain buggy terrain and (wildcard) the uppababy ridge - which incidentally is the only one with solid tyres. Anyone have one of these with a really tall LO? Mines already off the charts lanky like his Dad so I have a feeling he'll be a bean pole soon...

I think basically you want the proper inflatable tyres (not solid ones) for off-road but in particular beaches and gravel. Any of the running buggies tend to cater for taller children because even when your toddler can go on walks, they still aren't big enough to go out running with you. So those buggies are designed for older children.

I don't have the specific models you mentioned, but I have a fleet(!) of other multi-terrain buggies and chariots and I would say if space is not an issue, the bigger the wheels, the easier they will be to push off road. Smaller wheels are a compromise so you can fit them in your car boot without dismantling, but they are not as good on the beach or on gravel.

Thule UG much bigger than nipper.

Mountain buggy was really bad in a test run in a shop, compared to nipper.

The reason most don't have solid tires is because that will mean a much more bumpy ride.

Also for off road, if you look at them in person, check out the suspension. That will also make for a huge difference in my experience. Again that's why the Thule is much smoother (plus the quality of their bearings). The downside of Thule is the cost and folded size, that could be a deal breaker but otherwise it's the best by a mile

The outnabout nipper is unparalleled imo 😂 but Hauck also do some excellent all terrain prams and they are such, such good value. I have a double nipper and a single hauck so can vouch for both!

I’d not buy a Hauck; there’s an issue with the brakes that Hauck won’t acknowledge-
my running club friend thought it was her neglect until she mentioned it to another club member who’d had the same issue then I saw this BBC article: www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cze3nz57wj6o.amp

Babyjogger city mini GT

Love that pushchair I do

Out and about nipper too. Have had one for 4 years and it was second hand and it’s great. We go to country parks and off-road over tree roots etc. not had a puncture but do leave a bike pump in the car to top up air.

i got mine when I had a 3 year old and 6 month old. To start the 3 year old would sit on the front pointy bit to have a rest and later used to sit astride the top bit (canopy thing).

I can’t rave enough about them. Children are now 4 and 7 and we take it to theme parks where often when they are both tired they both get in ( 4 year old on 7 year old lap) and it is still going!

The Urban bit in the Thule is because the front wheel unlocks so you can just about take it shopping. They have another Glide which is lighter with bigger wheels and non-folding for really hardcore runners. The front wheel doesn't unlock. The locking front wheel is really important because otherwise they spin at speed or on rough ground. Having tried a few, it's really the best in the market, excluding the specialist trailer ones. The Nipper is great for National Trusting and cobble stones, but I wouldn't take it on much more adventurous terrain.