Back carry/carrier for a 6 month old?

[mckittre]

I've been wearing him in a Moby wrap on the front his whole life, but he's getting too big! (16lbs or so). We got given a very nice frame backpack, but it's too large and bulky and puts him so high up I worry I'll hit him with bushes.

Do you think it would be easier/cheaper to learn back carries with a wrap? (I realize I probably have to get a less stretchy one, but I'd like to learn with my moby first to see if it works before buying).
Or would it be better to get an Ergo or something similar?

We do a lot of hiking, including some bushwhacking, so I regularly carry him for hours at a time, and through places with obstacles...

[Carrruth]

Whether you buy a wrap or a soft structured carrier like an Ergo is totally a matter of which you prefer. I loved my Moby, but never got into wrapping. Some people love wrapping and never use any other kind of carrier. There are a lot of wraps out there that are really supportive and can be used for all kinds of carries.

I personally prefer soft structured carriers because I find them comfortable and convenient. They fit like a back pack and are quick and easy to put on. I personally don't like putting on a wrap in a parking lot and having it all over the ground, and I find them to be more bulky than a soft structured carrier. But I'm sure you will find someone who loves wrapping and thinks they are the best hands down! So it really comes down to personal preference and what you think you'd like best! So I guess I'm not much help!

[Drummer's Wife]

I would get either an Ergo, Beco, or Mei Tai. I have all 3 and back carries are very comfy. I do have a wrap that I used when DS was a bit younger, but he's heavier now and I prefer the quickness and ease of a buckle or tie carrier.

[ecstaticmama24]

For back carries I like my Mei Tai, SSC, and woven wrap (no stretch). I had a hard time deciding between them at first and then it became a question of which one I'd buy first, LOL!

[tankgirl73]

Back carries can be quite tricky to learn with a wrap. If most of your hiking is going to be starting from home, where you have a mirror, bed to help support while you're getting up, etc, especially when it's new -- then a wrap might be a good idea. Being able to spread the fabric over the shoulder (as opposed to a backpack strap) is great, and you also have a wide option of ways to tie in the front (tibetan tie, backpack style, crossed straps, etc).

But if you're going to be putting it on when already out in the woods, by yourself, no mirrors -- I would recommend a mei tai. Or a buckle thing, sure, but I prefer the tie-on types myself.

A wrap is GREAT but if you do happen to get a 'bad' wrapping job on your back, baby will be slipping and you'll be fidgeting with it and you'll be insecure and uncomfortable. A mei tai is a guarantee. And there's no risk of "pressure points" like you can get with a mediocre wrapping job (where one 'strip' of the fabric somehow seems tighter than the rest and no amount of adjusting will get rid of it!)

There are also mei tais out there now with wrap-style straps. Best of both worlds!

Of course a mei tai won't be quite as versatile as a wrap, but it's the way I'd go for hiking. If you want to really be sure, then by all means try learning some back wraps with your Moby before deciding whether to get a good woven wrap or something else.

[greeny]

My ds spent probably half his life in the Ergo on my back till he was about 2 years old! I LOVE the Ergo for the back carry. So does my dh.

[baturay]

In my experience teaching moms to use carriers, I think the shortest learning curve for back carries has been a buckle carrier or mei tai. The downside of a buckle carrier is that you can't do high back carries with most of them. So, your little one rides lower on your back in a buckle carrier, whereas he'd ride higher in a mei tai or a woven wrap. He could ride high enough to peak over your shoulder and for you to turn your head and see his little head on you. Whether to use a buckle carrier or mei though really depends on your own personal preference on whether you want to put on and click and not have long straps to tie or you are ok having to tie straps. Mei tais also fold up smaller than buckle carriers, so that's something to consider if you'll be packing up the carrier at any time during your hike. And there's the price difference, with buckle carrier being sometimes twice the price of a mei tai. So, those are things that will hopefully help you choose!

You've been wrapping with your Moby, so you are not a brand new wrapper...you hav experience wrapping. Wrapping with a stretchy wrap will be different than using a woven wrap, but since you are not starting from scratch, you have less of a learning curve than someone who is starting to wrap for the first time and jumping right into back carries. You could definitly learn to do back carries with a woven wrap in a week or so of practicing at home. Practice over something soft and once you feel comfortable back wrapping without a mirror around, you'll be able to do it outdoors too. The benefit of using a short woven wrap when going hiking is that you can do at least one back carry, comfortable hip carry, front carry, and also use that same woven wrap as a picnic or resting blanket!