Camping With Kids: Touring the USA
Camping with kids could be either a nightmare, or an experience of a lifetime. When my boys were ages 6, 8 and 10, I loaded them up in our SUV with nothing more than a tent and a cooler, and headed west. I knew I would be camping with kids in the USA but I had no destination, no expectations or time frame. It was summer vacation and I was about making memories. In my mind, I was going to make a bi
Continue ReadingFour Essentials When Hiking
Camping is exhilarating and fun. But keep it safe – especially if you have youngsters with you. Teach them now and they will cherish the lesson for life. Here are some essentials when hiking to help you prepare for your next hiking trip. Essentials when Hiking: Communication Study the area you are camping, speak to locals if you’re unfamiliar with it – get authorization if needed. Map
Continue ReadingGhost Stories for Camping
Think campfire. Think toasted marshmallows. Think ghost stories. These are some of the best-loved images associated with camping, and for very good reason. My own personal favourite is the ghost story, told with such contagious enthusiasm when we are young and camping with friends, torches held under our faces for effect, imaginations racing. There is no better place for the ghost story t
Continue ReadingThe Summer I Camped Like a Hippie
It was 1972 and it would be the best summer of my youth. It was the summer I camped like a hippie. I had turned twelve that year and middle school had proven to be a culture shock for me. I had never been a hip kid. I recall that was the year I had gotten my first pair of bell-bottom pants; Mother had been apprehensive about buying them - even though they had been all the rage for years and wer
Continue Reading3 Tips to Enjoy Camping With Kids
I'd been camping for a long time before I had kids. Then three little darlings came along and it seemed that camping would have to sit on my 'things I gave up' pile. While camping solo I had seen too many harassed parents, usually mothers, trying desperately to force their offspring to enjoy life under canvas. I wasn't going to be one of those campground screechers. Nor would I be one of the fa
Continue ReadingCamping 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 ReadingRV 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 ReadingCamping with Family
You are prepared and informed. You’ve packed and you’ve planned. The only thing left to do is to get you and your family out the door and to actually, well, camp. If you're not feeling overly prepared read the article Preparing: Camping with Kids and Safety for Kids Before Camping. Here are some more camping with family tips to help you have a smooth journey, have fun cook-outs, what to do w
Continue Reading