Thursday, May 6, 2010

Camping With Kids

When planning a camping trip for the family, you want to make sure that there are fun experiences and activities that everyone will enjoy and remember. Whether it is just sitting together by the fire, singing, or telling stories, or going on hiking and exploring adventures together. This post will try to list a few tips that will allow you to have a great family camping holiday adventure that everyone will remember for a lifetime.

The first family camping tip is the prevention of setting up your tent in conditions that are unfavorable. Always make sure you set your tent up in clear daylight so that you can see the area around you and make sure it is clear of any rocks or other undesirable situations such as ant beds or bee hives.

When choosing a spot to place your tent or campsite, avoid areas without any shade or areas that have a lot of wind flow. Choosing an area around trees would be a great consideration. However, never setup directly next to a tree as a branch could snap during a storm. You will also want to set up a tarp over your tent in case of rain. This will allow your tent to avoid being soaked in the event of a rain storm.

Ensuring that you pack and carry along the proper and correct camping tools and equipment is essential in providing an incident and frustration free family camping adventure. When planning your camping adventure with your family makes an inventory list and make sure that everything that is needed is on the list. Check things off the list as you pack them. You can even have other members of the family to do a recheck of the listed inventory, to assure that everything that is needed will be available when the needs for them arise. One of the major pieces of equipment to carry with you is a first aid kit. You will need this in the event of scrapes and scratches or even bee stings and snake bites. Some campers also include such as items as citronella candles and mosquito coils to drive away these annoying pests.

Packing a second tent is a great tip for your family camping trip. When going on a camping trip with children, this can be very effective as it may serve as a play room. Also pack some toys that are simple and fun for the children to play with outside. When bringing children on your holiday camping outing, be sure to stock up on fruit and fruit or nutrition bars for the children to snack on between meals as children eat more than usual when camping.

Outdoor cooking is the most common way to prepare meals. When stocking the food that is to be used on your camping trip, be sure that the meals are ones that can be easily prepared. Don’t forget to bring any condiments that may also be needed to go with your family meals. Clean water for drinking is also very essential in food preparation.

Remember; following these steps will ensure a great camping experience that the whole family will surely remember.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

The Greatest Camping Tool: The Swiss Army Knife

With its durability and the multi-function system, Swiss army knives have become one of the most used pieces of camping equipment since its creation in 1909 by Victorinox. With the capability of becoming a pair of scissors, a can opener, a wood saw, screw drivers, or even a magnifying glass, Swiss army knives can be so much more than the average pocket knife. The Swiss army knife has been manufactured with different models, designed to be the absolute essential camping survival equipment in different areas of use. Listed in this article we will discuss “The Voyager” and “The Camper”. Two of the most popular Swiss army knife models used among campers as part of their survival gear.

With 20 different tools that can be used, the Voyager is the ultimate in the Swiss army knife camping survival gear. With all the different tools available with the voyager it still carries the same quality and durability that Swiss army knives were founded on.

Let us take a look at the different tools that are accessible using the Voyager Swiss army knife. The Voyager comes with a large blade and a small blade as well as a can opener, a six millimeter screw driver, a three millimeter screw driver, and a mini screw driver. Sounds pretty good so far, but there is more. It also has a corkscrew, tweezers, a toothpick, a nail file, a wire stripper, a pair scissors, digital clock with stopwatch and alarm functionalities, a stainless steel pin, a multi-purpose hook, a reamer, key ring, and a ball point pen.

With all of the built in features of the Voyager Swiss army knife, it is considered the perfect tool in any camp survival arsenal.

The second popular Swiss army knife model is “The Camper”. With thirteen featured tools, the Camper is designed specifically for the camping adventurer. A  small blade and a large blade, a can opener, a six millimeter and 3 millimeter screw driver, a corkscrew, a wood saw, a toothpick, a bottle cap opener, a reamer, wire stripper, a pair of tweezers, and a key ring are the main features of the Camper Swiss army knife. Being named “The Camper”, this is the one piece of camping equipment that you want to carry along on your next camping adventure.

Because of the durability and quality of Swiss army knifes and the features of each and every one, they are deemed some of the most essential camping survival tools available. Small and compact with multi-functionality is simply the best idea when it comes to camping equipment.


 

Monday, May 3, 2010

The Camping List

Going camping can be an exciting adventure for you and the members of your family, but if you are not organized and thoroughly prepared, it can quickly turn into a nightmare. This is why it is especially important to create a camping checklist. Campgrounds are often in distant places, far away from stores and other necessary locations for supplies and services. When you go camping, it is very important that you carefully select items to include on your trip by the use of a camping checklist. Here, you will find some important items to include.

1)The first thing that you will want to make sure that you prepare for your camping trip are any types of vehicles and vessels that you are preparing to take with you. A good example of these items includes recreational vehicles, boats, four wheelers, and more.

2) The second thing that you will want to make certain of is that you find a campground that fits the needs of you and your family. It is important that you make the necessary reservations once you find a site that you like.

3) Make sure that you bring your fishing license and all of your fishing gear and bait so that you can spend some quiet time together as a family.

4) If you require any type of permits, like for hunting, you should be sure to pack all of these away securely.

5) Take stock of any camping gear that you have in order to determine if any of it will need to be replaced. It is also important to make a note concerning the camping gear that you do not have and make sure that you purchase what is necessary for your trip.

6) You should be sure to include things that you will need such as toilet paper, paper towels, sanitizer, soap, sunblock, bug spray, bug repellant, and other similar items.

7) Make a list of food and similar items that you will need for your camping trip. It is important that you consider any allergies that members of your family suffer from. You should carefully plan how you will store the food that you take on your camping trip as well as how you plan on preparing the meals for your camping trip.

8) Be certain that you pack up any first aid supplies that you need. It is best to purchase a full service first aid kit to ensure that you have all the basics. Many times, you will be quite a distance from hospitals and other types of emergency assistance and will only be able to relay on this emergency kit. This is why it is so important to make sure that you have everything that you may require if an emergency occurs.

As you can see, there are many things that you can do to create an effective camping list. If you and your family are planning this kind of trip, you should make sure that you are fully prepared.

Sunday, May 2, 2010

The Right Camping Gear

When I first started camping, I was surprised by how much outdoor camping equipment costs. Although it was possible find cheap camping gear, Sometimes it was hard to come by. Camping gear stores try to sell you everything. They try to sell you all new outdoor clothes, high-tech sleeping bags, synthetic thermal underwear – you name it. What I didn't realize at the time was that a lot of outdoor camping equipment is only really necessary for difficult, advanced camping trips. If you learn what you need and what you can make do without, you can save a lot of money and make wise purchases that will help you enjoy your camping trip more thoroughly.

A good friend of mine – a serious outdoorsmen – says that the two most important things on a hiking trip are hiking and sleeping. This might sound obvious, but a lot of people don't really follow it through to its conclusion. What it means is that you need outdoor camping equipment that helps you to hike and that helps you sleep. This means that a hiking trip starts with your boots. Hiking boots are crucial. This is one area where you shouldn't spare any expense. You need shoes that are heavy and padded enough, yet comfortable to walk in. You also need a comfortable sleeping bag. You can get cold at night – especially if you are up in the mountains – so it is worth investing in a good one. You should look for a sleeping bag that is rated to 10° lower than you ever expect it to get – at the very least.

You also might need a good jacket. There is plenty of outdoor camping equipment designed to keep you warm. A thermal jacket is a good investment because you can wear it when you are not camping as well. They are usually very attractive and well made, and are getting more and more popular in urban areas. You don't, however, needs serious outdoor shirts for every step of the day. You can get by with a cotton T-shirt, khaki pants, and boxers or thermal underwear. You do not have to buy the high-tech thermals either. Plain cotton ones work well unless you are on an extremely demanding trip. Although cotton doesn't really make the best outdoor camping equipment, it is good enough for most purposes.

Finally, you need a good backpack. If you are just going for a couple days, you don't have to spend money on an expensive one. Any longer, however, and you'll be happy to have a good internal frame hiking backpack.