Insects

Pitch Imperfect: The Wrong Place to Pitch Your Tent Thumbnail

Pitch Imperfect: The Wrong Place to Pitch Your Tent

Camping! Much like purchasing real estate, the three most important things are location, location and location. I learned this the hard way. It was about five years ago now, although my therapist remembers it as if it was yesterday. I'm a single dad with five children to entertain each summer. They had been nagging away at me for a couple of years to go camping and, having run out of excuses, I

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How to Avoid Ants in Your Camper or RV Thumbnail

How to Avoid Ants in Your Camper or RV

My boyfriend and I recently drove a small campervan through Australia. One thing we learned very quickly into our campervan trip was how to store food properly. If you think you can just stock your camper cupboards like you do at home, think again. Did you know that one of the smallest living creatures on the planet can cause complete havoc? What could possibly cause this terror you ask? Ants. See

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Guide to Survival: Finding Food in the Woods Thumbnail

Guide to Survival: Finding Food in the Woods

One thing you may have noticed while camping is that its either eat, or be eaten. Let's say all you've packed is three cans of beans, a tent, water and safety supplies for your outdoor trip. Unless you ration those three cans you won't be able to survive for very long if you happen to get lost in the woods. There are, however, a few things you can do to ensure you survive....and thrive! Here is my

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Preventing and Treating Insect Bites & Stings Thumbnail

Preventing and Treating Insect Bites & Stings

His skin had turned a pasty pale gray and he was sweating profusely. He collapsed to one knee and gasped for breath, grabbing his throat, just before hitting the ground nearly unconscious. Within minutes an ambulance was transporting him on a stretcher. The rest of us, many still seated around the campfire looked on in disbelief. Here I will share my story and my tips in for preventing and trea

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24Feb2024
Pitch Without the Itch: How to Avoid Bugs When Camping Thumbnail

Pitch Without the Itch: How to Avoid Bugs When Camping

Insects love me.  It’s all to do with smell.  They are attracted to the carbon dioxide we breathe out and the lactic acid in our sweat.  This explains why I am so irresistible to horseflies during a hot climb.  After a week of back-packing I used to count more than 40 bites which I scratched for the rest of the summer and have the scars to prove it.  Here are some tips on how to avoid bugs

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14Feb2024
My Tip to Prevent Mosquitoes Thumbnail

My Tip to Prevent Mosquitoes

What could you do this summer? A trip to Sardinia, Italy maybe. A beautiful country, great weather, clear seas. The camping there is quite straightforward. You could even do the same as I did. Perfection is Bliss You could arrive at the campsite and find the perfect spot. It’s quiet, the neighbors are not exactly next-door, and the toilet is far away enough not to smell, but close enough for a

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Garlic: The Ultimate Camping Bloodsucker Repellent Thumbnail

Garlic: The Ultimate Camping Bloodsucker Repellent

Garlic has always been recognized in myth, folklore and in Hollywood as being one of the key required ingredients to repel bloodsucking vampires.  It just may be that, hidden in all the fiction is a small grain (or even clove), of fact. It just so happens that, garlic is an insect repellant. You're On The Menu Wherever you camp in the world, living under canvas inevitably attracts uninvited gue

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Camping: Horse Flies, Cows and Cous Cous! Thumbnail

Camping: Horse Flies, Cows and Cous Cous!

So my story begins in the beautiful surroundings of the Lake District, Cumbria, England. I had embarked on a 4 day camping expedition over the rolling hills and steep mountains of the English countryside, to complete The Duke of Edinburgh Award. My Tips for Camping in the Lake District: Horse Flies and Other Lovely Insects There are a few things you should know before you go on a camping trip,

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