Yosemite Sam, Part 1 — Preface

The conversation went something like this:

Me: "So how would you feel about me going to Yosemite for a long weekend?"
Wife: "You can go anywhere you want, as long as you take Sam."

Suuure, take Sam to Yosemite with me. An absurd idea (as absurd as me leaving Mindy with all three kids for four days, I guess), so of course I took it as a challenge. Then my mind quickly jumped from "I'll take Sam camping" to "I'm gonna figure out a way to get Sam into the backcountry with me." Oh boy....

[For anyone reading this who doesn't know Sam, he's our sweet, lovable, but severely disabled three-year-old boy. He doesn't walk, can't sit up on his own, can't feed himself, doesn't talk, is prone to apnea, and has a host of other medical and non-medical issues that make his day-to-day care a big physical and emotional challenge. Taking him away from home for any length of time is usually a pretty big undertaking, so that's why a camping and hiking trip with him seemed so outlandish. We have two other kids: Jackson is 6, and Clara is 3 months. I knew that leaving Mindy with all three of them for any longer than a work day was probably out of the question. But hey, can't hurt to ask, right? More about Sam and the rest our family on Mindy's blog.]

So setting aside the Yosemite trip idea, I started thinking up schemes to somehow tote Sam along on some real hikes. Just think... — I started hearing the voice of a madman in my brain — ...solve this little problem and you'll be able to get out every weekend! Week-long backpacking trips in the Sierras! Trekking in Nepal! Freedom, sweet freedom! Yes!

Ahem. Anyway, I quickly came up with two obvious options:

• A child-carrier backpack
• A jogging stroller

I nixed the backpack idea pretty quickly, mostly because with Sam's low muscle tone, I thought it would be too hard on him to bounce around on my back for long periods of time, having to keep his head up. And Sam weighs 30 lbs. now, so his weight plus the pack plus our food and gear for a climb up Kilimanjaro day's hike and I'd likely have close to 50 lbs. on my back. Not terrible, but not ideal either. I'm also not a big fan of people puking on my neck. Kids, always looking for new and interesting ways to throw up on you.

The jog stroller idea didn't thrill me either, for a variety of reasons. We currently have a nice jog stroller that we paid way too much money for, and Sam doesn't do well in it at all. It's just not supportive or adjustable enough to make him comfortable for any length of time. Of course there are dozens of jog strollers on the market, so I'm sure that I could find one better suited for him. But jog strollers become pretty hard to push when the going gets steep, or sandy. That got me to thinking though — when I'm pushing a kid in a stroller across some sand, like at the beach or the park, I often turn the stroller around and pull it. Much easier that way. I wondered if there was some kind of contraption I could put Sam in and pull over rough terrain. Hmmm....