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Reviews > Packs > Infant and Child Carriers > Kelty Kangaroo Child Carrier > Owner Review by Colleen PorterKelty Kangaroo Child CarrierName: Colleen Porter Age: 28 Gender: Female Height: 5' 8" (1.7 meters) Weight: 130 pounds (59 kg) Email address: tarbubble at yahoo dot com Area: Orange County State: California Country: USA Date: December 9, 2002 Bio: Married since 1995, I now have a son, Paul, born on April 24th, 2002. I would classify myself as a modestly experienced backpacker, always open to new techniques & ideas. Most of our hiking is done in the Cleveland or Angeles National Forests, and I frequently hike (with Paul on my back) at regional wilderness parks. It is my dream to hike the John Muir Trail, the length of California on the PCT, and maybe the Appalachian Trail if I can talk my husband into it! Since my baby was born I have come to realize that the only way to take him along is by slashing packweight, so I've been looking into going as light as I can while still being safe. Kangaroo Child Carrier Manufacturer: Kelty Year of manufacture: 2001 URL: http://www.kelty.com/ Listed weight: 2lbs. (900 grams) Weight as delivered: unchecked Product description: a soft, frameless, front-riding child carrier, designed for infants & babies up to 28 pounds (13 kg). The infant rides in a pouch, which clips onto a harness worn by the adult. It features a small detachable zippered pocket with a claimed capacity of 100 cubic inches (645 cc). There is a small sun/rain shade that rolls up and zips into the carrier itself. Field Information: This carrier was tested in town and on the trail. My husband and I used it on Wild Horse Island and in Glacier National Park in Montana, in downtown Chicago, in the Angeles and Los Padres National forests and on countless trips & walks around town. The level of terrain has varied from flat to steep, easy to strenuous. Weather conditions varied from cold & windy to hot & dry. It was never used in rain. Since baby Paul was unable to ride in a backpack-style carrier until he was able to sit up, I thought the Kelty Kangaroo would be the perfect solution. He could ride facing me until he could support his head, then face out until he was big enough to ride in the backpack-style carrier. The Kangaroo promised a comfortable ride for both of us: the pouch for the baby is padded & very adjustable, and the harness for the adult had both shoulder straps and a waistbelt that secured to the pouch the baby is carried in. Kelty's literature indicated that the Kangaroo's waistbelt & harness were designed to carry the baby's weight on the hips. Initial uses around town were satisfactory. Getting the baby clipped into the harness takes a few steps - the baby is placed into the pouch, which is velcro-adjustable & reinforced with webbing straps, and then the pouch is clipped onto the adult harness at 4 different points. At first the process seemed to take forever but I quickly memorized the routine. Paul was still very small when I began using the Kangaroo, around 8 pounds (3.63 kg), and it worked very well while he was around this size. Paul seemed very comfortable and slept most of the time while riding in it. However, as Paul grew (which most babies tend to do) the Kangaroo's performance began to decline. Kelty indicates that the carrier can be used for infants up to 28 pounds (12.7 kg), but by the time Paul weighed 13 pounds (5.9 kg) the carrier was getting distinctly uncomfortable. Often, I could feel no weight at all being supported by the waistbelt. I cinched it as tightly as I could around my hipbones, sometimes painfully tight, and it consistently slipped upward and came to rest at the bottom of my ribcage. I felt all of the baby's weight pulling my shoulders and neck down, much like a biblical millstone around my neck. I attempted every adjustment I could, and briefly had some success with adjusting the baby pouch so that the baby rode slightly higher on the harness, but as he kept gaining weight I soon came to realize that I had made every adjustment possible, and that the carrier was just not working as it should. One time in particular was misery - a 3-night trip through the Sespe Wilderness in Los Padres National Forest, in October 2002. The Kangaroo refused to stay in place, the day was hot and dry, and about 4 miles in my shoulder muscles just gave up. I looped both arms underneath the pouch and basically carried the baby's weight in my arms. My poor husband hiked ahead, dropped his pack & then came back to get mine. Our planned loop trip became a 2-night campout at the first suitable campsite we found. That was the last time I used the Kangaroo. I e-mailed Kelty customer support (handled by Summit Hut) to ask if they had any suggestions for me and received a very polite response indicating exactly what I suspected, that the Kangaroo simply didn't work for some people. They suggested that I visit my local Kelty retailer & have the employees there assist me in adjusting it, so that they could observe if I was doing anything incorrectly. I opted not to do this, as it was pretty clear to me that even the good folks at REI were not going to be able to get the Kangaroo to work properly for me. The attached sun/rain shield is a piece of water-repellant polyester with hook & loop fasteners on the corners. It rolls out from the front of the baby's pouch and attaches to the shoulder straps, over the baby's head. I never used the carrier in heavy rain, only light mist, but I don't believe the cover would keep a baby dry for long in any real rain. As a sun cover it is functional, but I believe a baby could easily overheat in warm weather. Paul was always a bit sweaty when we used the shade during the summer in very warm temperatures. Remember, he was already riding right against a hot, sweaty adult body. Given the front-carrying design, it is possible to wear a backpack while using the Kangaroo. I did this frequently, and while the backpack & carrier do not interfere with each other, I frequently found myself overheating, as both the front and back of my torso were completely covered, offering no ventilation. In the cool, windy environment of Glacier NP, the combination kept me very comfortably warm, but in the mountains of southern California, I was quite miserably hot. Summary: I do not believe the Kangaroo would be such a failure for everyone. I have what would be regarded as a very common feminine figure - my hips are wider around than my waist is. Given the construction of the adult harness, if the waistbelt slips up (as it would be very prone to do if one's waist tapers in above the hips) then all of the weight will transfer to the shoulder straps. My husband has no trouble with the Kangaroo, but he has a bit of a belly that keeps the belt firmly in place at the top of his hips. I believe that when carrying a baby of any significant weight (13 pounds/5.9 kg and over) the Kangaroo is incompatible with some body shapes. Read more reviews of Kelty gear Read more gear reviews by Colleen Porter Reviews > Packs > Infant and Child Carriers > Kelty Kangaroo Child Carrier > Owner Review by Colleen Porter | |||