We just got home from a quick trip down to Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks. After a busy semester and work schedules, we were ready for a little break! It sure was wonderful. We are just amazed by the spectacular beauty that is so close to our home here in Utah. Anywhere you go, nature continues to carve remarkable landscapes. I am so grateful for this beautiful world we live in!
When we first planned for this camping trip I was maybe 16 weeks along in our pregnancy. I was feeling great! I had experienced almost no morning sickness at all and things were looking up from there! I did all the research I could, but could hardly find any blog posts about camping when pregnant/what to expect/what hikes to do. Those I did find went up to about the fifth month of pregnancy. Women planning to hike at that point in pregnancy were a bit nervous about some hikes. What was I going to do at 7 months??
I hadn’t really heard many people talk about the symptoms of the third trimester. Everyone seemed to talk about the terrors of the first trimester but talked relatively little about the other two. All I knew is that at this point I’d be quite a bit larger and maybe a little wobbly. But I really had no idea what to expect!
So with that being said, here are some things to keep in mind when planning for a trip (whether camping or not) this far into pregnancy.
Every pregnancy is different. Even though this is my first, I can already testify of this because even in this first pregnancy every day is so different! A couple weeks before our trip I started getting awful leg cramps at night, sciatica, and lower back pain. Some days I could barely walk around the house or fill my duties at work! I was so blessed to feel awesome our entire camping trip. And then today (our first full day home) I woke up with tight muscles and back pain again. Pretty sure God was watching out for me on this trip and helping me hike several miles a day. But it’s important to realize that from day to day you never know how you will be doing. Sometimes yoga helps, but hiking still sounds like a terrible idea. Take it one day at a time and listen to your body.
Flexibility. With that being said, plan on being flexible. At one point I was stressing over finding family or friends to camp with us and keep Carter company, because I was sure I’d be sitting in a camp chair beneath a shade tree for the majority of our trip. I thought we’d maybe do a mile or two a day. But I did the research and had options up my sleeve. On day one we walked about 18000 steps… about 5 miles of steep, flat, and stream-bed hiking. And I felt great the whole way! (although we were both exhausted by the evening). Had we gone a few weeks prior, I’d have been eating a milk shake at a tourist cafe and maybe hiking a flat, paved mile. Keep it flexible.
Bring plenty of snacks. Camping and hiking already make me more hungry than normal. Put the pregnancy need to constantly eat on top of that, and it’s a crazy mix! Just be sure to account for the extra exercise and bring plenty of extra snacks for the trails and drives. I couldn’t do my normal go-to of several smoothies a day, so I had to substitute smoothies with apples, cliff bars, trail mix, and muffins. It worked out pretty well. The more snacks the merrier! If you are feeling great, you don’t want hunger to slow you down. Keeping a variety of snacks on hand gave us the opportunity to stay out and about much longer than had we been less prepared.
Remember to plan for potty breaks. The need to pee has become very real. Especially with the extra hydration you need while out hiking and playing in the sun! Keep this in mind when planning your daily outings. Are there bathrooms at the trailhead? Where are the closest bathrooms? If planning a longer hike/venture away from bathrooms, what does the bathroom situation look like on the trail? I will definitely pee in the woods if need be, but some of those hikes are very populated and it’s a bit more difficult to get off the trail and relieve yourself! This stopped us from going on some longer day hikes. We opted to go on several shorter trails throughout the day. This ensured that a bathroom was never too far away. It was also nice knowing that if I did start feeling light headed, dehydrated, or back/butt/leg pain, I was never too far from the end of the trail. We were never miles away from a bathroom, water, or additional snacks. The security is just nice when you’re this far along. Every hike we went on was under 2 miles, most closer to 1 or less. This allowed us to see tons while also keeping that added security.
Bring comfortable clothing. Hopefully by this point most pregnant women are allowing themselves the luxury of comfortable clothing. Especially when road tripping and then going on activities, just make sure whatever you wear will be comfortable for however many hours you will be wearing it! For me the big thing is bras… It’s just become very uncomfortable to wear most of my older bras at this point! Make sure that your bras are the right size and not uncomfortable after hours of wear. It definitely makes for a happy camper.
Be mindful of how much you are drinking right before bed. I absolutely hate getting up for the bathroom in the night while camping. In the dark, cold, wind, etc., getting up and finding the toilet is never fun! And I’m sure you know that while pregnant this is almost inevitable. So just be mindful of this in the final hours before bed. Try to avoid eating salty foods that will make you thirsty for more water! Getting up may be inevitable, but at least you can reduce it to as little as possible!
Don’t scrimp on whatever bedding you need! I think many women are building their “nest” of pillows before bed each night and sleeping on their side. Don’t underestimate the hardness of un-padded ground when sleeping on your side. We tried camping with thin self-inflating pads two months ago and I was miserable that night! Sweet Carter agreed to bring the air mattress (which he doesn’t love as much..) and also patiently packed my stack of pillows for the trip ;). It took a bit of space, but I’m so grateful I brought those extra pillows! The air mattress was still a bit uncomfortable after several nights on my side, but not bad, considering! I’d do it again. Pillows are definitely a good idea.
Just enjoy! If you, like me, are expecting your first, this is precious together time before baby comes into your life. I absolutely loved the time with Carter before our family grows. While we are so excited for this little one to come into our lives, we try to savor these last moments of it being just the two of us. We know our world will change tons once baby comes into the world, so taking some time for each other was an important thing to do as our baby’s arrival draws closer! Carter and I love each other lots and we definitely enjoyed this one-on-one time together.
Interested in our itinerary? Click here for a day-by-day itinerary from our 3 days in Zion and Bryce 🙂
Comments