Camp-in-a-Box: Organized Camping
One of the benefits to car camping (loading your gear into your car and setting up camp close to where you park) over backpacking (carrying everything in a backpack to set up camp at a location that you've hiked to, further off a main road) is the freedom to bring more equipment along. This fact makes your meals at camp all the more enjoyable. Camping simply out of a backpack has its own joys, b
Continue ReadingGuide to Making a Campfire
When we were camping in the jungle, a campfire was one of the most important things we required to survive. A campfire can ward off wild animals, produce warmth, signal danger and cook food. Making a Campfire Campfire Preparation: The choice of location for a campfire. Tools and materials that are available around the vicinity of the camp area. The time it takes. The direction of the w
Continue ReadingGuide to RVing: Camping After Retirement
When we retired on Canada’s west coast and we were looking at inexpensive vacation ideas, my son mentioned tent trailers. My initial reaction was…. “I’m not going under canvas again at my age!” This all changed when I finally stuck my head inside a new tent trailer unit. You could almost live full-time in one nowadays. You have a furnace, fridge, stove; running water, electricity and
Continue ReadingPreparing to go Camping with Kids
So, you’re planning a family camp trip. If you’ve been camping before, you at least know the camping basics. If you’ve never camped before and/or you’ve never camped with children, planning this trip might seem a little daunting. For a lot of people, love of camping comes gradually and under the right conditions. You’ll want your kids to have an especially good time if you have hopes to
Continue ReadingA 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 ReadingCamping in Collegiate Peaks, Colorado
“I look like a skanked-out mouse,” my sister complained after two days without a shower. At that comment we both started to laugh. Dampened but not Deterred: Camping in Collegiate Peaks This past summer my sister and I went camping the Collegiate Peaks in Colorado. It was our first time backpacking. Everyone seemed pretty impressed that two young, inexperienced girls road-tripped it out to C
Continue ReadingThe Art of Layering While Camping
As a child, my mother always used to bundle me up like I was an Eskimo living in the Arctic. She would start with a t-shirt, then a sweater, continued by a jacket. I always wondered why there was such a need for so many layers. I realize now the importance of layering, especially in the outdoors. Being too cold or too hot can make a camping trip miserable and potentially ruin it. In the back-co
Continue ReadingTips for Camping: Be Careful and Have Fun
Camping can be fun, but only if you know how to stay safe. Here are some tips for camping to get you through a delightful time in the wilderness: Tips for Camping: Guidelines When finding a clearing to set up camp, make sure it is free of ant piles, animal waste and fallen logs Dig a hole and bury all wastes, such as unfinished food and human waste -bury wastes away from the camp area so a
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