Three Peaks, but slowly! Advice please...

[topbannana]

DS has expressed an interest in doing the 3 peaks
It's something I have always wanted to do but never got round to so I am enthusiastic, DH not quite as much git So I am after any advice or tips you lovely lot have to give...
It would be next year, DS would be 10 by then. Is this too young (he climbed Snowdon at 7) We had discussed taking 3 days at each, a day to arrive and prepare (obviously weather dependent) a day to climb, a day to recover then move on the next day. Is this realistic for a fit 10 year old? (We can obviously abort our plans if necessary)
Obviously we would make a lot more plans than outlined above but I am really after an opinion as to whether it sounds feasible or of we should abandon the idea for a couple of years until he is a little older?

[pofacedlemonsucker]

Of course, it's fine. At 10 we were on walking holidays and climbing a mountain or two each day.

It's a bit of a pita logistics-wise, but if you fancy it, why not? Presumably he's used to being on a walking holiday for consecutive days in any case.

I prefer less time travelling with kids, so we choose a place and then walk/ climb there for a week.

The three peaks is okay as a box tick, and fun to say you have climbed them all for a kid, but I'd be trying to persuade him that having a proper walking holiday in each place is better, and then telling him you will do it properly in a few years time (ie the whole challenge thing).

Has he been up them all individually at different times?

Dd1 was up Snowdon at 3mos lol. It seemed like a good idea until it started snowing.

[pofacedlemonsucker]

Have you got other kids, btw?

We found having children of different ages made mountains an, um, interesting proposition? If he's an only, and you can pretty much cater to his every whim, then why not? Our third has a physical disability. It makes for interesting times in the mountain aspirations camp.

[topbannana]

Thanks po
DS is an only child, and a very determined one at that!
He has only done Snowdon, an idea he came up with to raise money for the East Africa Crisis Appeal (effectively meant he could not back out once we had started :o) We are an active family and do spend a lot of time aimlessly wandering the countryside so, while it would be a challenge, I don't think it would be physically beyond us :)

[pofacedlemonsucker]

Maybe get him to plan the other two as separate holiday targets then - for other charities. We used to do our walking holidays in May half term, and one in the summer. Plenty of mountains to hike in each place, and then once he has climbed them individually, he can plan his 'three peaks challenge'.

Do you camp whilst you are hiking, or stay in b&bs etc? Might be worth introducing him to backpacking now if he's a keener. He can't carry much at this point, but it adds an extra element to have to walk in to your campsite at the end of the day and set up your tent!

Snowdon is by far the easiest and least threatening, with the added advantage of an easy escape route lol. The others are a step change and seem more challenging.

Get him up to the Lakes and climb a few. And introduce him to all of the fabulous books so that he can dream up his next projects. There are loads of Munro bagging types about.

[topbannana]

We do glamp camp po though if we were to attempt the 3 Peaks I think we may look at B&Bs just to give us a little more luxury between times.
Incidentally we are going to do a Famous Five style hike in the summer (just the two of us, DH has gallantly offered to stay on standby with the car in case of catastrophes!) so it will be his first experience of backpacking.
Like the idea of splitting the holidays, particularly as you say Ben Nevis & Scafell are so much more than Snowdon :)

[pofacedlemonsucker]

Cool - have fun! In a few years you can do the west highland way ;-)