Hiking the Thorsborne Trail with a Toddler: 4 Days on Hinchinbrook Island

There are some adventures that sound slightly ridiculous when you say them out loud.

Hiking the Thorsborne Trail on Hinchinbrook Island with a toddler was definitely one of them.

Four days. Three nights. Around 32km of remote hiking. Everything we needed carried on our backs.

Oh, and I had my 13kg toddler riding on my back for the entire trail.

I’d done plenty of hiking and backpacking before becoming a mum, but multi-day hiking with a toddler adds a whole new layer to the adventure. There are nappies, snacks, extra clothes, entertainment, sleep arrangements and the small matter of carrying an actual human on top of everything else.

But I really wanted to prove to myself that becoming a mum didn’t mean adventures like this had to disappear.

So, with my friend Alana carrying a heroic amount of our shared gear, we boarded the boat to Hinchinbrook Island and started walking south.

Here’s how our four days on the Thorsborne Trail unfolded.

Day 1: Ramsay Bay to Little Ramsay Bay

Distance: 7.5km

Time: 9:30am to 4:30pm

We had some rain on the boat ride over to Hinchinbrook Island and I spent most of the journey worrying about the forecast and whether I’d packed enough warm clothes for my toddler.

Meanwhile, she was sitting in the middle of the boat absolutely vibing, eating a lollipop and playing with a patch from my jacket. Clearly only one of us was concerned.

We arrived at Ramsay Bay, covered ourselves in bug spray and took the obligatory photo with the famous Hinchinbrook Island sign.

Then we put on our packs.

Mine weighed around 25kg including my toddler, while Alana’s was around 23kg because she was carrying our food, tent and clothes! What a hero!

We groaned. And started walking.

As we headed along the beach we were treated to a rainbow, which we decided had to be a good omen.

An optional climb that was harder than expected

Not too far into the trail we reached the junction for Nina Peak.

We dropped Alana’s pack and I emptied most of the gear out of mine, getting it down to a much more reasonable 16kg... including the toddler.

We started climbing. It quickly became more of a scramble in sections and I started feeling uncomfortable with my toddler on my back. We made it to the second summit before I decided that was enough for me, while Alana continued to the top.

By this point the weather was starting to turn, so we began making our way back down very slowly. Alana was basically holding my hand and giving me something to lean on through the scrambly sections.

My toddler? Asleep. She slept through the entire descent.

By the time we reached the bottom, it was raining properly. I covered her up and we continued hiking. This was the moment the day officially crossed over into Type 2 fun.

We were wet. We were tired. We were carrying ridiculously heavy packs.

And we still had a long way to go.

We reached Nina Bay campground and sheltered under the verandah of the toilet block with another couple while we ate lunch. Laughing cow cheese, crackers, meat sticks and mini capsicums had never tasted so good. After about an hour the rain finally cleared.

We knew we only had around 2.5km left to Little Ramsay Bay, so mentally I thought we were nearly there. We were not.

That 2.5km took us close to two hours. The trail became boulders, rock hopping and scrambling along cliffs beside the beach. With a toddler on my back, I found this section particularly stressful. The rocks were slippery and there was no option to slip because I had very valuable cargo on my back!

Eventually the rock hopping ended, we headed back into the bush and finally caught sight of Little Ramsay Bay. I don't think I've ever been so happy to see a campsite.

We arrived around 4pm, set up our tents and hung everything out to dry.

Alana made tuna pasta for dinner and we ate it on the beach before crawling into bed around 7pm.

My toddler fell asleep instantly. The ocean was incredibly loud and the wind kept waking me up throughout the night, but I must have slept more than I thought.

I finished Day 1 feeling sore, tired and very accomplished.

But I’ll admit it. I found the first day hard.

Watch the Day 1 Reel on Instagram here

Day 2: Little Ramsay Bay to Zoe Bay

Distance: approx. 12km, plus the return walk to Zoe Falls

Time: 9:30am to 3pm

Day 2 started with wet feet almost immediately as we crossed the creek runoff near camp. Then came another rock hop and scramble.

Thankfully, this would be the last major beach rock-hopping section of the trip. I was very happy to see the back of it.

The added stress of having a child on your back completely changes these sections. A scramble I might normally enjoy becomes something I have to think through much more carefully.

Once we reached the forest, the trail began a steady uphill slog towards the saddle.

We stopped at beautiful Banksia Creek, where my toddler had a nap. It would have been a gorgeous spot for a swim, but we continued climbing.

There weren't many views from the saddle, and soon we were descending through the forest and hitting creek crossing after creek crossing. This was going to be a wet feet all day kind of day.

Luckily, I don't mind that. It's one of the reasons I hike in trail runners rather than trying desperately to keep hiking boots dry.

We stopped for lunch at Fan Palm Creek before heading into the swampier sections of the trail. This was where I became VERY grateful for the orange trail markers. Trying to navigate through some of that swamp without them would have been a nightmare.

Pushing on to Zoe Bay

We eventually had about 4km left until camp. We really wanted enough time to swim at Zoe Falls that afternoon, so we pushed on and covered the final section in around 1.5 hours. That felt speedy considering we'd been averaging around 2km an hour.

The Thorsborne Trail is rough.

Distances that would normally feel quite manageable take much longer because of the rocks, roots, creek crossings, mud and uneven terrain. Add a very heavy backpack and a toddler to that equation and you're definitely not breaking any speed records.

We reached Zoe Bay, quickly set up the tents, hung our flys out to dry and headed straight for Zoe Falls. Part of me really didn't want to put my pack back on. But I am SO glad we went. Nobody else was there.

We had the waterfall completely to ourselves and the swim was exactly what my body needed after a long day of hiking. The walk back to camp somehow felt like it took approximately three years, and my back was absolutely furious with me for putting the pack on again.

Dinner was nachos on the beach before we retreated to the tent around 6:45pm because the mozzies were relentless.

It had been another huge day. Surprisingly though, I didn't feel anywhere near as destroyed as I had after Day 1.

What backpacking with a toddler actually looked like

By this point, my toddler had been an absolute dream.

She never complained. She had also eaten more lollies and chocolate than she probably had in her entire life, but no rules apply on these kind of trips.

She hadn't walked any of the trail and was genuinely excited to get into the carrier each time.

No carrier accidents (she's only half toilet trained and I was stressed about her wetting herself in the carrier and getting all of our gear wet too)

No major meltdowns.

She was just happy to be somewhere different, seeing different things.

She loved being in the tent and playing on our sleeping mats.

At one point she spent ages taking photos of the orange trail markers with her little digital camera.

Honestly, she was just a very chill little hiking companion.

My only regret?

I should have packed more lollipops.

Those things can provide about two hours of toddler entertainment and when you're backpacking with a toddler, that is very useful!

Watch the Day 2 Video on Instagram here

Day 3: Zoe Bay to Mulligan Falls

Distance: 7.5km

Time: 12pm to 4pm

It rained all night. At one point the tide came surprisingly close to our campsite, too.

Thankfully the rain finally stopped around 7am and when we emerged from the tent, the sun was shining and Zoe Bay looked completely different.

We spread our tents out in the sunshine to dry while we had breakfast.

My toddler woke up and immediately started campaigning for chocolate for breakfast. I had also left her nappy on from the night before as I had suspected she might need to do a poo. And then I noticed her hiding behind a pole.

Any toddler parent knows the stance.

Yep.

Massive poo.

We had breakfast and coffee on the beach, found loads of sand dollars and eventually packed everything up.

Alana went ahead to check out the Zoe Falls rock pools because we'd assumed they were off the main trail.

She returned with some news.

The rope climb we'd seen in photos?

It was on our route.

I was climbing it whether I liked it or not.

Thankfully, it ended up being easier than I'd expected. Some of the beach scrambling we'd done earlier in the trip had felt much sketchier.

My toddler and Alana chilled beside the pools while I went for a swim.

WOW.

Now I understand why people spend two nights at Zoe Bay.

Swimming in those infinity pools was easily one of the highlights of the entire Thorsborne Trail.

Eventually, we had to keep moving.

The trail followed the creek before beginning one of the steepest climbs of the trip, around 2.5km uphill.

We decided we'd stop for lunch at the saddle.

When I realised I needed more food

By Day 3 I was starting to feel a bit weak and fatigued.

I noticed myself tripping a little more often, which scared me because I had my toddler on my back. That was my sign.

EAT MORE!

We had a big lunch and I made sure I was getting plenty of food into me.

Cream cheese and salmon corn thins were a winner.

Cream cheese with mini capsicums was also surprisingly good.

Plus peanut butter crackers and fake Oreos.

Fine dining, Hinchinbrook Island edition.

At another point I bribed my toddler to do a bush wee with the promise of a lolly afterwards.

Parenting rules had officially left the building.

Not long afterwards I knelt down to climb off a large rock step, fell backwards slightly and became completely stuck in a crouched position.

Alana had to physically help lift me back up.

I felt approximately 70 years old.

The trail continued through rainforest with plenty more rocks, roots and climbing before we finally started getting some ocean views again.

Eventually we reached Diamantina Creek. We only had around 1km left until camp, so obviously... We went swimming. After cooling down, we tackled the final rough and rocky section towards Mulligan Falls. We could hear the waterfall before we could see camp.

We set up the tent, organised our gear and then I headed straight down for another swim while collecting our water for the night.

Dinner was Pad Thai. My toddler had crackers and lollies. And, as usual, by around 7pm she was absolutely desperate to get into the tent and go to bed.

Watch the Day 3 Reel on Instagram here

Day 4: Mulligan Falls to George Point

Distance: 7.5km

Time: 8:30am to 10:15am

Our last morning on Hinchinbrook Island. For the first time on the trip we actually set alarms because our boat was picking us up from George Point at 11:30am.

Missing that boat was NOT on the itinerary.

Looking at the map, we knew most of today's walk would be along the beach, but first we had around 2km through the forest. My toddler had been so relaxed throughout the entire trip. No crying. No proper tantrums.

But that morning we finally had our first little meltdown.

Looking back, I think I was asking too much of her at once.

Put your shoes on.

Eat some food.

Do a wee.

Get ready.

Pack up.

It was a lot.

So I gave her some time to have her feelings, then we finished getting ready and headed off.

We crossed a few creeks along the way. Everyone else carefully tried to rock hop around them because they wanted dry feet for the final day.

Me? Straight through. At this point, what difference did wet feet make?

Eventually we hit the beach. We saw two women we'd been chatting with over the previous few days and knew the difficult walking was officially behind us.

Looking back along the beach, it was strange seeing multiple groups of hikers following behind us. After days of feeling so remote, suddenly we were all heading towards the same finishing point.

Finishing the Thorsborne Trail

And then we were there, George Point. We dropped our packs and immediately started eating as much of our leftover food as possible while waiting for the boat.

From George Point you can see the mainland. Lucinda suddenly looked VERY close.

The boat needed to make two trips and we joined the second trip with some of the new friends we'd made along the trail. It felt strange watching Hinchinbrook Island disappear behind us. I was sad to leave.

But I was also thinking very seriously about two things we'd seen advertised at the cafe in Lucinda:

A full-sugar Coke.

And a chicken parmi burger.

After four days of hiking?

Trust me.

They lived up to the hype.

My toddler also absolutely loved the boat ride back.

What hiking the Thorsborne Trail with a toddler taught me

Before this trip, I knew multi-day hiking with a toddler would be physically hard.

What I hadn't fully appreciated was how much the mental load changes too.

You're not only thinking about yourself.

Every slippery rock, creek crossing and scramble becomes a calculation.

Can I do this safely?

Where will my foot go?

What happens if I slip?

Is she comfortable?

Is she warm enough?

Has she eaten enough?

Do we need to stop?

There were sections of the Thorsborne Trail that I genuinely didn't enjoy because carrying my toddler made them feel much more stressful than they normally would.

But there were also moments I will never forget.

Watching my toddler happily taking photos of trail markers.

Eating dinner together on the beach.

Listening to the ocean from our tent.

Swimming beneath waterfalls after carrying everything we needed through the rainforest.

Watching her happily climb into the carrier each morning, ready for another day.

Seeing other hikers do a double take when they realised there was a toddler on my back.

And finishing the trail knowing we'd actually done it.

Watch the Day 4 Reel on Instagram here

Can you go multi-day hiking with a toddler?

Yes. But I don't think the message should be that everyone needs to take their toddler backpacking through Hinchinbrook Island.

This was a big adventure.

The Thorsborne Trail is remote, rough and physically demanding. Carrying a toddler made some sections significantly harder and meant I had to make more conservative decisions about what I was comfortable doing.

But hiking with toddlers doesn't have to look like this big adventure

It might be a 1km bushwalk.

It might be a night camping somewhere close to home.

It might be your first overnight hike.

Or one day, it might be four days backpacking through Hinchinbrook Island.

For me, this trip was proof that adventure after becoming a mum might look different.

It might require more snacks, more planning, a ridiculously heavy backpack and an alarming quantity of lollies.

But it doesn't have to disappear.

And your toddler might handle the whole thing better than you do.

If you're interested in what we packed for the trip, I have a blog detailing everything we took with us here.