24Apr2019
Camping at Keuka State Park NY: Making Memories in the Rain
The wholesome family experience of camping is not limited to clear starry nights and chasing fireflies. In 2004, a stormy night on a hill gave camping a whole new perspective for this mom from New York. Jackie was determined to make camping a part of her children’s lives. School was still in session and preparations had begun several weeks earlier. Jackie booked a tent-site for a weekend in l
Continue Reading19Apr2019
RV Camping: Hold Down the Fort
Whenever my husband or I would leave our house, there was always the admonition to the other to “Hold Down the Fort”. This past weekend we went RV camping at our favorite spot; this spot is an RV park with a cement drive-through pad, water, sewage, electrical, and cable hook-ups, a pool, and a McDonald’s within two miles. RV Camping After setting up camp, hooking up the air conditioner,
Continue Reading15Apr2019
“Okay, God, I Get It: It IS a GRAND Canyon!”
My roommate, Jenna, and I view nature in two forms. First, there is “nature” which consists of flowers organized in dainty rows, zephyrs blowing through oak leaves and air conditioned buildings within reach. Then, there is “THE nature”; cruel and biting, layered in sweat, and bears attacking humbly constructed tents. So when we were required go hiking the Grand Canyon in Arizona, USA for a
Continue Reading14Apr2019
Camping Memories: The Beauty of Camping
In our dimly lit basement I recently opened a photo journal; instantly, I was transported back to the time when my children were eleven and fourteen. The journal was full of so many great camping memories! Pulling a beat up camper trailer behind our truck, we set off to experience as many national parks as we could in one summer. I planned to infuse history, geography, geology and nature into my c
Continue Reading11Apr2019
A Camping Misadventure: The Perfect Failures
Mmmm camping. The crisp pine-cone incense surrounds me, the feel of forest floor between my toes, the mystery of freshly falling fog… Smudge. Five-year-old Leslie walks across my perfect picture with our mud-pawed retriever, Rocky, in tow. With twinkling jade eyes and a smile that’s too pure to pay for, he exclaims, “We’re going camping!” We? I hope Mom and Dad knew what they were
Continue Reading11Apr2019
Camping in the Atacama Desert, Chile: Outside the Tent
They tell you there’s nothing like the great outdoors: the wild and the beautiful, the remote and the other-worldly. Being under canvas, cooking over an open fire; sharing the environment, respecting and understanding the earth. All of this gives you a sense of coming together - to be one - with nature. But I have camped in a place where I realised the exact opposite, and in that realisation, I
Continue Reading09Apr2019
Camping in Oliver BC: Know Before You Go!
When we were both about 21, my girlfriend, Liz, and I hopped into my car and drove from Burnaby to the Okanagan to go camping in Oliver BC, Canada for the weekend. Being young and naive and unaware that there was a HUGE music festival slated for that very same weekend, we zoomed off! Camping in Oliver British Columbia, Canada Upon our arrival, we found every hotel and motel booked. Our only opti
Continue Reading07Apr2019
Plan and Prepare for Your Camping Trip
A camper's delight can easily start off on the wrong foot if proper planning is not undertaken. My favorite experiences in nature always start off with the right planning. No one wants to start a trip and realize halfway that the car is out of oil, or that when you've gotten to your perfect spot, you discover that you've forgotten the bug spray. Minor annoyances can add up quick; and enough of t
Continue Reading