Fun Hiking Games for the Trail that Kid’s and Adults with Love

I often get asked, “ What are some good games to play while on a hike?” I thought I would compile some ideas to help take hiking up a notch, beat boredom, and make hiking enjoyable for kids, teens and adults. If you hiked very long with your children, I’m sure you’ve all experienced a time where your child refuses to walk one more step, begins to complain about being bored or is just plain hot and tired. One of the best ways to distract them from the distance remaining is to play a game. So without further ado here are the best fun camping games and activities to enjoy while hiking.

Things to Bring: Before You Go Hiking

First off, before you even step foot on the trail, make sure you are adequately prepared before setting out. Check out my Hiking with Kids: Tips and Day Pack List to make sure you have all the essentials and gear for an enjoyable hike. Okay, now that you’re set with snacks, water and gear, here are some trail games the entire family can enjoy from toddlers to teens.

One quick tip is to bring a hiking backpack for your child like the Osprey Daylite Kid’s Backpack, so they can feel independent. Plus this allows them to be responsible for their own water bottle and snacks, plus a place to stash their rocks, acorns and treasures they collect along the way, which means your pockets won’t get weighed down.

Hiking Games for Young Children & Toddlers

Red Light, Green Light

Take the classic game of Red Light, Green Light and incorporate the premise while hiking. If you don’t want to be stopping constantly, add in other colors like black (skip), purple (dance), blue (hop). This is especially helpful game to teach young children to listen to adults and notice when there is danger (stop=red light). Plus, notice when it is appropriate to speed up on flat, wide trails and when to slow your pace on steep, rocky terrain or slopes.

Tag

This simple game is ideal for younger children. Simply name specific items along the path that your child should touch up ahead on the trail. For example, can you tag a specific tree, the bridge or the next trail marker sign. This allows little legs to run ahead with a purpose.

We’re Going on A Hike - Alphabet Game

Working your way through the alphabet, each person must say something they would bring on the hike. “ We’re going on a hike and I’m taking an “Apple.”

Then the next person must think of an object that starts with the letter B, and so on. Examples A= Apple, B=Bear Spray…

Name things that start with each letter in the alphabet that you see.

Follow the Stick Trail

Drag a Stick to create a Path children can follow

This activity is quite simple to execute. Find a long stick and walk ahead of your children. Drag the stick in the ground and make a snaking path with curves, zig zags, and loops that the child can follow. Challenge them to walk directly on the drawn line without stepping off.

Sing Songs

When my children were young, we often would sing and allow each child to be a leader for a bit. The game was based on the song from Peter Pan.
”We're following the leader wherever he may go
We won't be home till morning, till morning
We won't be home till morning
Because he told us so…

"Tee Dum Tee Dee Tidledubmp de day… “

At random, I would select a new person to lead and would insert there name into the refrain - We’re following NOLAN, wherever he may go….That person would come to the front of the line to lead when we shout their name. They may lead however they would like from skipping, jogging, or walking in a zigzag.

Another fun campfire/ hiking song we’ve chanted while we march. You can’t ride in my little red wagon, the wheels are busted and the axels saggy, chug, chug, chug. Second verse, same as the first. Little bit louder and a whole lot worse.

Go ahead and ham it up. The more you get into it, your kids will follow suite.

Duct Tape Bracelet

Take a strip of duct tape and wrap it around the wrist with the sticky side out to create a bracelet. Children can then find special treasures like leaves, berries, small sticks and place them on their bracelet.

Make Hiking Snack Necklaces

Any time food is involved, my kids are 100 percent happier. With a bit of preparation, making snack necklaces is an enjoyable activity that distracts my children while hiking. Here is a simple tutorial for snack necklaces, which honestly everyone in your hiking party will love.

Hiking Games for Older Children, Teens, & Adults

Next Line in the Story

To play one person will start telling a story, then the next person in line continues it until each person has had a turn to add a new sentence or two. Once it gets to the end of the line, it jumps back up to the lead person who continues adding details and plot twists.

Listen to a Podcast & Audiobook

Let your family get lost in a good story. One of our favorites is the Meat Eater Kid’s Podcast which does fun nature related stories, trivia all the while you’ll learn tons about nature, plant life and animals.

Tell Personal Camping/ Hiking Stories

Allow each person to have an opportunity to share memories from the past. Maybe it’s mishaps, injuries or scar stories, or just plain funny moments that have occurred on the trail or while hiking.

Brain Teaser Games

“I’m Thinking of an Animal”

This simple game can be played by everyone, no matter the age. One person says I’m thinking of an animal… and then starts giving clues. Examples include I’m thinking of an animal. 1. that lives in the water and on land 2. Is black and white 3. The males take care of the eggs.

Answer: Penguin

Name that Song

One person will think of a line from a song, without singing they must say the phrase and the other members of the group must try to guess the song. This always ends with the group belting out songs during the hike and added pep to their steps.

One Doesn’t Belong

One person lost three things. The rest of the group must decide which one doesn’t belong. There could be multiple interpretations of the answer so it sparks interesting conversations.

20 Questions

This classic game is a fun one. One person must think of a person place or thing and the other individuals must ask yes and no questions until they solve it.

Guess The Time

This is a great way to help distract yourself and your kids for a bit, especially if it’s a really long trail. Try guessing the exact time that your group will arrive or finish the hike. Sometimes we guess certain markers along the way, other times we guess the ending time.

Themed Hikes

An easy way to add interest to any hike is to have a theme or purpose. Below are some creative ideas while out on the trail. These are fun hikes for a wide variety of ages.

Geocaching

Unbeknownst to many, there are thousands of hidden caches along trails, campgrounds and state parks. Geocaching is a modern day treasure hunt that is quite widespread throughout the United States. By utilizing GPS coordinates on your phone and following simple clues you can search for the hidden spots, which hold hidden containers or caches. The caches vary in sizes from as small as your finger to large containers.

Photo/ Video Hike

Let your child become a photographer/videographer on a photo Hike. Grab an old camera or give your child a phone. Allow them to become the official family photographer for the hike or trip. Documenting the experience via photos or videos. After returning home your child or teen can create a photo book or Instagram reel right from your cell phone.

Scavenger Hunt Hike

Create a list of items to locate on your hike. This can be as simple as acorns, bugs, trees, mushroom, birds, animal print or squirrels. You can organize it by age or interest. Improve your kids scouting ability as they search and become aware of the various fauna and flora in the area. Take along a bag to collect the items, your own hiking backpack, use a phone to snap a picture or simply check them off a list. Depending on the time of year, will ultimately dictate what items will be part of the scavenger hike.

Mushroom Hike

Finding fungi in spring and autumn is a favorite activity while hiking. Trying to spot unique colors and types of mushrooms is an ideal way to improve observation skills. Sometimes we’ll even take pictures and make a photo collage. Once we return from our hike, we look up the specific names of fungi or utilize a mushroom field guide, like Peterson’s Field Guide to Mushrooms, while on the trail to help learn the names.

Colorful Leaf Hike

Without a doubt our favorite time to hike is in the fall when the ruby reds, vibrant oranges and yellows are showing off their colors and our a delight to the eye. This is an ideal time to go on a hike and collect these colorful leaves. Once you return make a leaf crown, nature mandala or fall leaf crafts.

Litter Hike

Give your children an altruistic purpose. This can be done in your neighborhood, nearby park or on special day such as Earth Day. Come prepared with gloves or a garbage to hold the trash you collect.

Plant & Animal Identification Guide

Become a guide while on a hike. Allow the child to be the designated leader and share about what they observe, smell, hear or notice along the trails. To aid in this, purchase a field guide and begin to learn together about trees, plants, and animals found along the trail. What joy and sense of accomplishment you’ll feel when you can properly identify flora and fauna while out in nature.

Once you begin to identify plants, trees, and animals, the intricacies of nature become enchanting. Some distinct plants, my kid’s have learned quickly is trillium, skunk cabbage, mayapples, and sycamore trees. Whenever you notice something interest in nature, take the time to find out more about it.

Personally, we appreciate these laminated tri-fold pocket guides. They are lightweight, inexpensive, and don’t bombard children with too much information. As an added bonus, they are laminated so water will drip off. They come in a wide range of topics including: trees, North American birds, animal tracks, wildflowers, & mushrooms.

We often rotate which field guides we bring in our day pack, depending on the seasons. For example in the winter, we reference our animal track guide to identify snowy prints of animals. Check out this guide for identifying animal tracks with kids.

Personalized Hiking Sticks

Our family loves to search for a good hiking stick whenever we venture out on a hike. My children’s imaginations have soared thanks to the help of a simple sticks- which have transformed into horses, swords and even dragons. While camping at a Michigan State Park one year, we made personalized hiking sticks. Decorating them with twine feathers, and colored duct tape. Here is a tutorial on how to make your own DIY Hiking Sticks: Craft Activity for Kids.

I’m delighted you stopped by Discovering Anew today! Let us know if there are any activities that you do with your children to help keep those tiny legs moving while hiking. Don’t forget to save and pin for later to utilize on your next hiking outing. Follow Discovering Anew for more Michigan adventures and beyond!

Hiking Games & Activities to Keep Children Engaged While on the Trail

Fun Hiking Games for the Trail that Kid’s and Adults with Love

Things to Bring: Before You Go Hiking