What is old enough to go backpacking? I want my boys to be old enough to go backpacking with me.

Almost seven and four, and we're heading out for two nights to the St. Croix bluffs just east of St. Paul on Father's Day weekend.

I rigged up an old bike trailer with a harness to pull essentials like my Sierra Designs Meteor Light and overnight diapers. My boys were going to have an awesome beginning to their backcountry experience that would spur them on for years.

It's not the Idaho wilderness, but they need to start somewhere. Good plan until the harness pins bend resulting in complete lack of control of the trailer. Pushing 87 pounds up a rained-out dirt path 300 feet isn't the beginning I was hoping for.

Got to camp after dark, son #1 didn't like the dehydrated spaghetti and son #2 got a blister. Not awesome.

But it's now 2:33 am. I lie between them with our heads at the full mesh end. Neither of them can sleep because the stars are so bright. The youngest decides that fireflies must get their fire from the stars. Awesome.

I think they're old enough.

Click here to see how Sierra Designs was used by Chuck Friedbauer and other people in the know.

The boys swimming in the St. Croix.

With the bike trailer and our Meteor Light tent.