Child Carrier Recommendations?

[fluffhead]

My 25 pound daughter is getting too big for her soft carrier, and I really like going hiking with her. Anybody have recommendations for a backpack type carrier? I'd like to start doing some longer hikes with her. Online research I've done today says Kelty and Madden are the way to go.
Any experiences, positive or negative?
Thanks

[DCJenn]

I'll ask my friend who has used the same, seemingly indestructable carrier to hike with all three of her kids. I think she may have found it at REI but I'm not sure. I will ask though because she and her husband are big camping and hiking people and it's been used a LOT!

Jenn

[Amiens]

We looked at the Kelty backpack at REI and it is nice! I tried on an Eddie Bauer brand at Target and it was hard to get Emma in and out of it. We want to take Emma to REI sometime and try the Kelty on. All of the moms I have talked to have raved about Kelty. They carry a hefty price tag- they start out at $99. But I have heard it is well-worth the investment. I heard the same thing about the Baby Bjorn, and I don't regret my purchase on that one at all.

Hope this helped,
Crystal

We have the Kelty and used it so far for both kids. We love it! We took it camping alot. It also "stands" once you set it down and can double that way as a high chair when you are out and about. I loved that part b/c we could strap my kids in there when they were babies and feed them w/o having them get all dirty (if we were camping) Hope this helps~

Jessica

[fluffhead]

Thanks for the advice!
I'll plan a trip to EMS next week and try it out.

[fluffhead]

followup

Just wanted to say "thanks" for the advice - I tried the kelty at EMS, and then shopped online for the best prices.
Once the baby got used to it, it worked out great - especially after the big snowstorms when people don't clear the sidewalks well and a stroller wouldn't cut it.
It also took awhile for me to adjust it to where it was comfortable.
The only problem is she always tends to fall asleep with the bouncy bouncy motion of my walking.

[peggyfromwastate]

We have 2 Kelty kids carriers for our twins- the "Town" version is not as comfortable as the "Country". To save money, we got them from Ebay- they are still expensive, but the Town carrier was brand new, and we got it for about $50. The owner never used it and had received it as a gift. Check out Ebay- if money is an issue. These carriers are nice- we used them lots last summer and our twins were 18 and 24 lbs respectively. We plan to use them again this summer- and they weigh 25 and 30 (my husband gets the 30-pounder!) We tried Gerry backpacks with the aluminum frames, and those aren't nearly as comfortable.