Simplifying Family Adventures on the Sea to Sky Highway
Exploring the Sea to Sky corridor in British Columbia is in our family’s blood. Dad grew up close by on the North Shore, and moved to Whistler as a young buck out of college. He met mom when she took some time away from city life to recalibrate… and the rest is history.
Now with two little ones, we try to get out as much as possible. We love exploring the BC outdoors and sharing our love of hiking, biking, and general outdoor adventure with our kids, hoping some of our passion rubs off on them. By all measures, it seems like it has.
The Problem With Planning Family Travel in BC
We started Excellent Family Adventures to help families explore the outdoors, find the best kid-friendly places to go, find outdoor gear that lasts, and to instill a heart that goes beyond the self; helping to preserve the planet for future generations.
Along the way, we found out that planning a day out to explore can be overwhelming, even when it’s in our own backyard. Between endless blog posts, conflicting trail reviews, and unpredictable mountain conditions, finding reliable family itineraries is tough. We wanted to get something out to the world to help other families explore the Sea to Sky without the travel planning overwhelm.
Our Solution: The Sea to Sky Family Navigator
So we built the Sea to Sky Family Navigator. It’s a free digital guidebook and interactive planning app designed specifically for parents looking to explore from Horseshoe Bay to Pemberton, including Squamish, Whistler, and everywhere in between.
How the Family Navigator App Works
Whether you are looking for a stroller-friendly walk, a rainy-day stop, or a full-day family bike ride, the Navigator simplifies your weekend. You can filter by activity type, duration, and kid-tested effort level to show only what interests your family. Browse by map if you’re a visual planner, save your favourite hidden gems, and build a custom day-trip planner in seconds.
Sharing the landscape with bears is one of the most profound parts of living and playing in the Sea to Sky corridor. Whether you are navigating the mossy old-growth around Whistler (like Cheakamus Lake) or heading deeper into the backcountry, encountering a black bear or a grizzly is a reminder that we are guests in a very old, very active ecosystem. For families, “Bear Awareness” isn’t about fear; it’s about competence. It’s about building a set of habits that allow us to move through the mountains with respect and minimal impact. Here is the essential framework for staying safe in bear country.
Credit: Topazladygem on Flickr
The Prevention Mindset: Don’t Be a Surprise Bears generally want as little to do with you as they do with a noisy leaf blower. Most “aggressive” encounters are actually defensive reactions to being startled.
Make Meaningful Noise: Forget the bear bells—they are often too quiet to be effective. Use your voice. Call out “Hey Bear” periodically, especially near rushing water, in dense brush, or when moving against the wind.
The Group Shield: Keep the family together. For a bear, a group of four people is a large, intimidating presence. For kids, make it a game: “No one gets further than a ‘high-five’ distance away” when in thick cover.
Situational Awareness: Ditch the earbuds. You need to hear the snap of a branch or the “woof” of a bear before you see it. Look for scat, turned-over logs, or marks on trees.
Bear Spray is Non-Negotiable
If you are on a trail in the Sea to Sky, you should be carrying bear spray. It is a highly effective, non-lethal tool, but it is only useful if it’s accessible.
Placement: Do not put it inside your pack. It belongs in a holster on your hip or your pack’s shoulder strap. You have roughly 2–3 seconds to react in a charge; you won’t have time to dig through your bag.
Know the Reach: Most sprays have a range of about 5 to 9 meters. Understand that wind will affect the cloud.
Practice: Buy an inert “practice can” to understand the trigger mechanism and the force of the spray without the risk.
The Encounter: Calm is Contagious
If you do see a bear, your primary job is to remain the “calm adult” in the room. Your children will mirror your energy.
Stop and Assess: Do not run. Running triggers a predatory chase instinct.
Identify Yourself: Speak in a low, calm, firm voice. This tells the bear you are a human and not a prey animal.
The Slow Retreat: Back away slowly, keeping the bear in your sight but avoiding direct, aggressive eye contact. Give the bear a clear exit route.
Pick Up Small Children: Do this immediately to prevent them from running or making high-pitched noises.
Quick Identification: Black Bear vs. Grizzly
Feature
Black Bear
Grizzly Bear
Profile
Straight face profile
“Dished” or concave face
Shoulders
No prominent hump
Distinctive muscle hump
Ears
Large, pointed
Short, rounded
The Camp: Attractant Management
A “fed bear is a dead bear.” In the Sea to Sky, our bears are highly intelligent and opportunistic.
The 100-Meter Rule: If you are backcountry camping, cook and store food at least 100 meters away from where you sleep.
Zero Trace: This includes “organic” trash like apple cores or orange peels. These scents draw bears to trails, creating “food-conditioned” animals that eventually have to be destroyed by conservation officers.
Storage: Use bear-proof lockers where provided, or a proper bear canister. If you’re hanging food, it needs to be 4 meters high and 2 meters out from the tree trunk.
The Big Picture: Respect over Fear We don’t go into the mountains to conquer them; we go to participate in them. Teaching your kids how to handle a bear encounter is an analog skill that builds confidence and stewardship. It turns a “scary” animal into a respected neighbor. For more deep dives into mountain safety and family logistics, check out the rest of our Sea to Sky Family Navigator series. Have you had a bear encounter while out with the kids? How did you handle it? Let’s keep the conversation going below.
We saved over $1000 by not renting beach gear in Hawaii last year. A bold claim, yes, but if you see how much we packed into a 100L duffel below, it’ll start to make sense.
One of the most surprising expenses on a beach vacation is renting beach gear. If you get the good stuff, you’ll be paying $50-100 per day. And if you cheap out, you will probably end up with gear that is a pain to lug around and set up.
By making an upfront investment and bringing your own gear, it’s possible to have a complete beach setup that will last many years, ensuring that no matter where you go, the family will have a comfortable time all day at the beach. And being able to maximize beach time is what we’re all about! So read on to find out more on the ultimate beach setup that can fit on one checked bag.
It really is amazing how much can fit inside a 100L duffel bag!
The Math: Why Checking a Bag is Cheaper Than Renting
Beach days require a bit of gear if you want to spend all day out there. You’ll want shade, blankets, towels, a beach tote, chairs, and a cooler as a minimum. Companies exist that rent beach gear, but even a basic package can be $60 per day, with more premium offerings like shade fetching up to $200 per day.
Instead, you can check a duffel bag full of your own beach gear, and have it be under the 50lb limit. If it goes over, the $100 oversize fee is still much cheaper than renting a daily rate.
Read on to see what we pack that made our two weeks in Hawaii a bit more affordable, thanks to our own gear that will last for many years to come.
It’s essentially indestructable and can be tossed around without worry of too much damage. The recycled, PFAS-free materials is weather resistant yet strong enough to take a beating. Plus, without any hard frame to content with, it’s really light. It also gets good bonus points for packing up into its own pocket when not in use to stay out of the way.
The bag also has two backpack style straps for relatively easy carrying. Alternatively, it’ll fit nicely on the luggage cart. It’s pretty amazing how much you can pack into the bag when you start getting into it.
This is our powerhouse when on the road. It does take up a bit of space, but it’s well worth it to have your own shade canopy to use on demand. Being inflatable, it has no frame so it packs up super well. It also helps it be more resistant to the wind. We love this thing, and it’s helped maximise our time on the beach when the sun is shining hot up above. Especially with little ones, it’s important to stay out of the sun midday. This makes it so we don’t have to pack up and leave, we can just have a nap in the shade. Doing so allows us to go to more remote places, away from crowds who are lugging big pop-up shade canopies or need to stay close to vegetation midday.
We made a ton of friends during the Eddie Aikau surf contest at Waimea Bay with our Soli air canopy!
There are a ton of options for packable chairs out there, but we are big fans of Helinox. The chairs are well made, pack up easily, and are relatively lightweight at around 2 lbs a piece. There isn’t much bad to say about these chairs… we’ve been using them for years and they hold up well. They do get a bit sun bleached, but think of that as a bit of a badge of honour to show that they are actually getting use.
The festival blanket is easy for sand management, while the puffer blanket can double as a bit of body warmth when it’s windy and you come out of the water. Both of them pack up nice and small, and weigh next to nothing. If you have to choose between the two, the puffy blanket is lighter while the festival blanket is more versatile.
Doubling as a waterproof dry bag that floats, the Icemule Jaunt keeps drinks and food surprisingly cold, while at the same time being able to pack away into the duffel with minimal space. It weighs only 1kg, which is pretty darn good for a cooler.
The Allpa is one of the top picks in our list of the Best Beach Totes for good reason. It fits a ton of stuff, offers multiple pockets on the lining, is weather resistant, and has gear loops on the outside for extra attachments. All in all, it’s a secret weapon at the beach, and allows you to organize your stuff. It’s also great if you just want to have a lighter kit without taking the entire duffel’s worth to the beach for days when it’s not an all day mission on the sand.
(Budget Alternative Tip: If you are slowly building your kit and don’t want to invest in the Cotopaxi just yet, a heavy-duty reusable IKEA blue bag packs completely flat and makes a surprisingly great, sand-proof beach hauler in a pinch!)
The Entertainment: Helinox PLAY Backcountry Games
Total Weight: 2 lbs
Traditional beach toys like massive plastic buckets take up too much volume. Instead, we pack Helinox PLAY Backcountry Games, which use the same ultralight shock-cord frames as their chairs. They keep the kids entertained for hours. HeliDrop is one of our favorites, where all ages can find a bit of challenge, even the littles.
Towels are essential, but a normal beach towel is large and heavy. Our family loves the sand-resistant, rolls-up-small, stylish-looking towels from Nomadix. It might not be as warm and cozy as a cotton towel, but the ability to compress small and fit in the duffel with everything else makes them a big hit. Plus, they are made from recycled waste, so you can feel good about helping remove stuff from the ecosystem rather than adding to it.
There was even room in the bag for some workout gear. Dad got to pack his TRX and Jump Rope to stay fit while everyone got to lounge on the beach. It’s a nice addition for those who don’t want to let vacation time ruin a good routine!
The Final Weigh In:
Patagonia Duffel: 3.5 lbs
Soli Canopy: 18 lbs
3 Helinox Chairs: 6 lbs
Nomadix Blankets: 3 lbs
Icemule Cooler: 2.2 lbs
Cotopaxi Tote: 1.5 lbs
Helinox Games: 2 lbs
Total Core Weight: 36.2 lbs! > This leaves almost 14 pounds for towels, sunscreen, and dad’s workout gear before hitting the 50lb airline limit.
Final Thoughts: Minimizing Overwhelm
There’s no doubt that it’s a bit of an investment in time and money to put together a beach getaway kit that you can put in your checked luggage. But once you’ve got it, you’ve got it, and you have a stress-free beach setup no matter where you fly.
Always check the limits of the airline you’re flying on in case there are different restrictions, however you can usually bet on a 50lb weight limit on major airlines. And if your beach vacation is actually a road trip, then weight isn’t as much of an issue. Still, it’s nice to set the duffel as the limits so that you don’t overpack. 100L is quite a bit of volume, especially if packing well.
Our goal is always to make sure that you have an excellent family adventure, full of memories and good times, learning and growth for the whole family. If you would like to know more, please sign up for our mailing list and stay tuned to more great tips, ideas, and getaways. We hope to see you out there!
Finding an affordable vehicle for Overlanding in Africa can be the hardest part of the trip planning process. Aside from navigating the rules of a foreign country, trying to rent a vehicle can be quite expensive. A Toyota Hilux with five seats and two rooftop tents can cost $135 USD per day, or $4,000 per month. This does not include insurance or other fees.
Buying, and then selling a vehicle afterwards isn’t much easier. You run the risk of buying something that has issues and will break down, and there is no guarantee you can sell it quickly when it’s time to leave.
Plus, if you’re getting the vehicle in South Africa where you have the most options, foreigners can’t insure vehicles. So, unless you have a local friend to help out, that option is nearly impossible.
The Best Way To Get An Overlanding Vehicle in South Africa
Thankfully, we found the perfect solution with Africa Overlanders. We got a great off-road vehicle that could handle most everything for just $1,400 per month, including repairs.
Africa Overlanders offers a unique buy-back program where they sell vehicles at cost and handle the insurance and licensing. When you return, they charge a service fee and repair any damage (because, trust us, you will damage it!). The labor rates they charge is fair and affordable, and their skilled mechanics can get a vehicle road-ready in just a few days.
Beyond that, they are also a fun family—adventurers themselves who offer camping and accommodation on their property. They originally started by helping travelers import vehicles, then expanded into mechanical services, full rebuilds, and eventually, a fleet of high-quality overlanders.
See the vehicle we got from them and follow our Africa Trip 2023 episodes here. And if you’d like to read about our three month trip to Africa with our three girls, check out our post.
Feel free to share any insights in the comments, ask us some questions, and share the excitement for family adventures in Africa! We’d love to hear what worked and what didn’t work for you.
Planning a trip is mostly a fun exercise. But booking the trip can be a stressful chore, especially on limited time as a parent.
Any chance to save time and effort is most welcome, and Flighthub knows this. We’ve used them to book travel many times over the years, and they do a great job of laying all the options out easily and with as little brain damage as possible.
Today, Jan 15, 2025, Flighthub announced a partnership with Turo, the car-sharing service that has been a major disruptor in the car rental industry while also enabling individuals to rent out their cars and generate a bit of income. We’ve used it many times before and it’s super easy to use, offers great value, and is just as convenient as booking a regular car.
Quick and easy booking in a flash! Turo and Flighthub joining forces.
One Less Step In Booking
If you’re like us, any time saver in booking gives that much more of a chance that it will actually get done. Sometimes a simple booking can take several tries with our kids pining for attention. So any opportunity to streamline the process makes booking so much easier.
The Burn is an inhospitable place on a good day, and downright life-threatening on a bad one. Having been to four burns in the past, I thought it would be a great idea to bring our daughter there to celebrate her first birthday. My partner was into checking it out but we got a surprise a few weeks before heading to Black Rock City that changed everything.
She was pregnant.
Again.
Baby number two on the way, and we were planning a month-long road trip culminating in Black Rock City. We found out only days before leaving and my partner ended up somehow saying yes to continuing on.
For that (and many other reasons), I love her so much. She put up with it for the entire month and it only got worse. Our daughter’s birthday ended up being the marquee rainstorm, but more on that later.
I don’t care how young she was… She’s going to remember it.
It’s certainly not the way most people do Burning Man, and I wouldn’t recommend bringing kids if it’s your first burn. It’s such a sensory overload and test of survival skills that you need to at least know what to expect to be able to give your kids a comfortable existence.
For as inhospitable as the Black Rock desert is, nobody should risk that with their kids. In many ways it’s an ultimate test of one’s parenting skills, and the willpower to put them first amongst a sea of distraction and temptation. It certainly made for a much different burn than the other four times I’d been.
The Camp Setup
Ideally you have an RV, but that gets expensive really quick. So if you’re adventurous (and let’s face it, why else would you be spending your time reading a blog post on Excellent Family Adventurous if you didn’t identify so), you can do it in a tent.
One such family showed up in a Honda Accord and had a tiny nylon tent parked behind it, and they not only survived the week, but both dad and his daughter were beaming from what fun they had. And on the other end of the spectrum there were more than a few camps that looked like they had been doing it for a few years. So, Ideally, this is up to you.
What to Pack for Burning Man
You can have an entire post dedicated to what to pack for Burning Man if you have kids, and perhaps, someday, we will. But for now let’s just go through a few essentials:
Kodiak Tent
Kitchen Tent: Either a Kodiak utility tent (like we had) or a Costco Carport (which our neighbours had, and saved us all from boredom in the rainstorm)
Water Jug + 40 oz water bottles + water reservoir for your backpack
Potty: for the ladies, a kid’s potty was a lifesaver.
Folding table
Cooler
2-burner stove, pot, pan, knife,
propane
all kinds of food: Another blog post we could easily do someday
Sunscreen
Bike + attachment for kids
Sleep Schedule
With so much happening day and night, it’s hard to find a sleep routine that makes sense. We found ourselves letting our little one stay up a bit later than usual to take in the city lights and sounds, which led to sleeping in a bit more and longer afternoon naps. Everyone and every kid is different of course, but we found this to make the most sense instead of being up all day and sleeping all night… if you miss out on Burning Man at night you’re really missing a ton of what it’s all about.
The Kidsville Community
We camped in Kidsville, a dedicated section for burners under 18. It’s like a little mini burn inside the big burn. I was jealous of the kids who are regulars for having this be a staple of childhood. It would be paradise to an impressionable mind.
The village is sectioned off into quadrants based on age. Our little one was in the 0-5 age category and thus we were placed in the “dingo bait” quad. Most places around Black Rock City have incessant noise, and Dingo Bait was no different… although instead of techno beats we were kept up at night by incessant crying cascading from one camp to another.
The interactivity of the camps is what makes Black Rock City unique. “Radical Inclusion” is one of the hallmark principles for the citizens to abide by, and the camps people offer are a key example of this. Some had food on offer, others ice cream, and some were just a fun place to play in a giant pit of balls or stuffed animals. It really is one of the hallmark aspects of Burning Man that sets it apart from anything else.
Art
The art is unlike anything else in this world. People come from all over to erect big structures, play music, and make an otherwise inhospitable atmosphere beautiful. The best part of it all, is that it’s interactive. Nowhere do people just sit and observe. All of the art is (mostly) climbable and has an element that encourages people around to participate and co-create. It’s one of the best ways to get kids to feel a part of the process.
Deep Playa is where the larger-than-life art lives, and is worth the journey out there. But if packing up the kids for a jaunt into the open expanse is ovewhelming, fear not, for there are art cars that are happy to bring you along for the ride, and they themselves are works of art. They come in all shapes and sizes, and can fit a few people or dozens. Some are janky, others ornate… as diverse as the burners who make them.
A Giraffe moving sculpture comes to say hello at Kidsville.
Final Thoughts
Burning man truly is for everyone. It will push you to your limits and make you question why you came in more ways than you even knew possible.
Despite biblical rains, we experienced a new side of the community that took away the urge to explore the vastness and get down to neighbourhood vibes. Each year is different, and the lessons you learn will spill over into everyday life… if you let it.
So come with an open mind, an appetite for adventure, and a creative personality, and you’ll do just fine. Your kids will gain a whole new perspective, and I’m willing to bet that their grown ups will, too.
![the helinox chair one [re] for beach days](https://excellentfamilyadventures.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Helinox-chair-one-re-835x1024.jpg)
