{"id":15732,"date":"2018-03-06T09:00:49","date_gmt":"2018-03-06T17:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/community.nrs.com\/?p=15732"},"modified":"2022-01-05T09:30:37","modified_gmt":"2022-01-05T17:30:37","slug":"ten-things-for-family-rafting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.nrs.com\/duct-tape\/2018\/03\/06\/ten-things-for-family-rafting\/","title":{"rendered":"Ten ‘Things’ For Family Rafting"},"content":{"rendered":"

First, you fell in love with the river. Then you met your special so-and-so on an overnight Westwater trip, and they pulled your ass out of the Room of Doom at 9:30 in the morning the next day. It was destiny.<\/span><\/p>\n

Or maybe it all started with a blind date in college. Either way, you made a life together, had some wild adventures, and eventually decided to start a family. <\/span><\/p>\n

Then things got complicated. And it\u2019s been a while since you were at the put-in. Or maybe not, of course. Maybe you never missed a beat and were nursing your one-month old under a new bimini top while floating the Colorado.<\/span><\/p>\n

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But maybe the fact that you now need three diaper bags just for an afternoon at the park is intimidating enough to keep you away from the river because, let\u2019s face it, kids are very, very gear intensive.<\/p>\n

And you are very, very tired.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s true that the effort required to just get out the door can be daunting when you have kids of any age, but especially when they\u2019re very small. Yet, we know that there\u2019s no better place for them to grow and explore their world than on the rivers we love. So get back out there! You can do it! (Rah-rah-rah!)<\/p>\n

After four years of rafting with (very) little ones, lots of trials and even more error, I have compiled a non-exhaustive list of must-haves for your next, or first, river adventure with the kiddos. If you can remember these ten things, you can style out your family on the water and be the envy of every other sleep-deprived, former dirt-bag parent out there.<\/p>\n

Thing One: The PFD<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n