Recently my family was discussing two options for a vacation in a few months: the choice was between a place we used to live with lots of commercial activities to do, or a quiet resort town known for its picturesque natural beauty. After lots of discussion, my teen finally reminded me, “Mom, commercial fun isn’t really our family’s style.” And they were right!
Over the years, with intentional effort, we have made exploring natural places part of our family culture. It took my kids repeating my words back to me to remember that we chose this.
Building a Family Culture around Exploring the Outdoors
A decade ago, with young children, I came to realize that our family was energized more by being out in nature than the manufactured fun of visiting a theme park, even when we lived in central Florida and they were right in our backyard.
Being a neurodivergent family has something to do with preferring the natural spaces. When we are outside in nature it’s quieter than a playground or amusement park and there is always plenty of space to move instead of being crowded or waiting in lines for a short thrill.
Two years ago we leveled up our family adventures by buying a pop-up camper. We see it as extravagant tent camping. We can leave it stocked and just pack clothes and food to be ready for our next adventure. We had a very specific experience in mind when we bought it: we wanted to head west and see the national parks.
Practicing for the Big Adventure
While my husband and I both had done our fair share of camping, we hadn’t done a lot as a family, so we began a summer of “practice” camping trips. We wanted to work out the details for supplies and set ups before heading west.
Along the way we had new adventures with our three kids. We bought everyone hiking packs and they learned to pack them and keep them stocked, which taught them independence alongside outdoor skills. We had to improvise when one of the kids got a bloody nose in the middle of the 2 mile hike. We worked as a team to problem solve and use what we were carrying to help them. A bandana and the plastic bag from the trail mix came in handy that day.
We also observed our kids acquiring new skills and confidence, which they applied to other situations, such as school work and sports. On one hike, not wanting to hear the complaining before we started, we intentionally didn’t tell them how long the hike was, and along the way gave them vague answers when they asked how much longer. At the end we told them they hiked 3 miles and the pride showed. They learned they could do more than they thought.
They also developed new interests as we spent more time outside. My youngest looks for turtles in any body of water we see, and my oldest has taken a new interest in star gazing and astronomy.
Discovering International Dark Sky Parks
After several practice camping trips locally, we set out on our big trip west, and the kids helped plan the details. They researched the parks, understood their trail limits, and selected our activities at each park. Star gazing at Arches was quickly added to the list after we learned it was an International Dark Sky Park.
During our stay in Utah we spent two nights driving into Arches National Park so our oldest could see the stars. We could see the cloudy haze that is the milky way and used an app to identify a variety of constellations. As we compared notes with other stargazers we learned and saw more things above us. The moon was close to full so we could see plenty well without flashlights. When you really stop to look at the sky it’s easy to feel small compared to the vastness of space.
When it was time to leave the only question from my teen was, “where else can I see stars like this?”
Illinois only International Dark Sky Park
As we began to research her question we discovered that Illinois had only one International Dark Sky Park and it was close to home, only an hour away. We looked at our family calendar and the moon cycle and planned a trip this past summer to Middle Fork Forest Preserve.
We camped for two nights, which gave us more than one chance for a clear sky to see the stars at their brightest. We lucked out and had a clear night the first night to look around. The second night was cloudy.
We used our park map to find the best place to look up and made sure we had our Star Apps downloaded. We like to use SkyView and Star Walk 2. Simply adding these apps to our phones has taught us a lot about the sky and helped us find interesting things whenever we are out after dark.
We started by finding Mars and Venus and then started looking for constellations. We were surprised by how many we could identify before we checked on the app to see if we were right. I don’t feel like an expert at all, but we were able to share some of our findings and tips with another group who were glad for the insight.
Watch this Rec-lebrity Interview to learn more about what it took for Middle Fork to be a Dark Sky Park.
Other activities at Middle Fork Forest Preserve
The downside to stargazing as a hobby is that it’s limited by the time of day and the weather. During the daytime, we enjoyed other activities. Our campsite looked across a prairie so we could see various animals throughout the day.
There were also hiking trails we could access from within the campground, which we always enjoy instead of having to drive everywhere. The trail we took followed a river and we could hear a lot of birds and saw animal tracks.
In the heat of the day, my boys’ favorite thing at Middle Fork was the newly refurbished beach. There are several small lakes in the forest preserve which attract waterfowl and are good for fishing.
It was a great weekend getaway for us with many activities to do so close to our campsite. It was refreshing to slow down our pace of life, stop to smell the flowers, and enjoy the small surprises you are bound to find when you are outside.
Benefits to Camping as a Family
As we teach our kids to adventure and appreciate the outdoors, we are also teaching them important life skills that they will need later in life, like reading a map and carrying the right gear for the situation.
We’ve had to deal with bad weather while out camping and first aid on the trail. In each situation, we get to help our kids learn to adapt and think on their feet, to use the resources they have to solve the problem instead of rushing to the store or even using the internet to solve the problem.
Building Nature Lovers for Life
As a family we want to create experiences that our kids will remember and that matter. My husband likes to tell the kids when they are hungry, “It’s actually a good thing to be hungry, you are teaching your stomach that it’s not in charge.” Spending time in nature plays a similar role, teaching us that there’s more important considerations than our comfort. When we can create outdoor experiences with our kids and help them appreciate nature, they see how little the world revolves around us as humans and that they have an important part to play in it as good stewards of nature.
I am noticing my kids, who are now teens, internalize this respect for nature. It’s common now that when visiting a park or are on a hike that one of them will independently pick up trash we encounter on the trail or at a campsite, before us adults even notice.
Years ago on one of my first adventures, taking my preschoolers to the National Seashore, I saw a book in the gift shop that caught my eye by Dr Scott Sampson. He is known to moms of preschoolers as Dr Scott the Paleontologist, on PBSKids Dinosaur Train. He wrote How to Raise A Wild Child: The Art and Science of Falling in Love with Nature.
The title alone intrigued me as I was forming my own parenting philosophies and watching the positive influence nature was having on my kids. The fun part was that his expert advice was confirming what I thought we should do. My husband and I both had formative experiences in our youth through camping, backpacking, and hiking, which still influences us today as adults and parents.
Dr Scott shared this study in his book which my own experience confirms. “A study of 2,000 urban adults from across the US ages 18-90, found that experiences playing in wild nature prior to age 11 were particularly critical to shaping both environmental behaviors and attitudes during adulthood.” How to Raise A Wild Child pg 39
As our kids are entering their teen years, we are excited to continue to take outdoor adventures as a family. We can take bigger adventures with our bigger kids and do new things. We’re confident that at least a few of the trips and memories will impact them for the rest of their lives to love nature and be good stewards to the next generation.
Cynthia Heren is a digital marketing specialist and homeschool teacher. Cynthia specializes in web design, email marketing, and social media, giving her clients more time to focus on serving their customers well at Cy Creatives. She is a veteran home educator, teaching her 3 children at home for the last 10 years. She shares their neurodivergent homeschool experiences at Inside Our Normal. When she isn’t working, you will find Cynthia tinkering on the family camper while planning their next adventure or watching Illini football.
