When you think of a camping trip, you probably know that there is a tent and the outdoors involved. Are you aware of the other aspects of camping? This article will help raise awareness of the different things involved in order to experience a successful trip to the outdoors. Use these tips to have a fun camping trip!
Bring sleeping bags appropriate for the season. You are going to roast all night long in a sleeping bag designed for cold weather that you camp with during summer. If you use a lightweight sleeping bag during the winter, you can spend your night shivering if it’s cold outside. You may even subject yourself to hypothermia.
To increase your sleeping experience while camping, bring a pad along that you can place under your sleeping bag. This pad acts as a barrier between you and the hard ground where twigs and tree knots may cause strange sleeping conditions. If a pad isn’t handy, bring a few extra blankets that you can fold over on themselves to create some cushion.
While you have this vision of a fun-filled camping trip, many times scrapes and cuts just seem to come with all that fun. Be sure you take a first-aid kit with you into nature because accidents just happen, and it’s always better to be safe than sorry. Hopefully, it will stay packed safely away, but you will have the peace of mind that you are prepared if something does happen.
While a campfire gives off enough light in the general area around it, you want to be sure you take along a flashlight on your camping trip if you plan to venture outside of the campfire’s glow. This is a definite safety precaution you don’t want to ignore. It can be quite dark out there in the woods at nighttime.
Pack additional clothes when going camping. Camping can be very messy. Children, in particular, love to get their hands in the dirt. As a result, they are going to be seriously messy by the end of each day. Be sure to pack some extra clothes for your kids in case this happens. There is nothing like being prepared!
Before you bring your dog along for a camping trip, get him used to the idea with a little practice run in the back yard. Pitch the tent in an already familiar area, and let him sleep or play in it for a while. Bringing a dog can really add to the fun of camping, so long as the animal has been adequately prepared for the event.
Attempt a “jungle breakfast” with the younger members of your camping party. Take smaller boxes of cereal, small cups of fruit and juice boxes away from your site and tie them up to treas. Once the children are awake, tell them they need to forage for their meal. This adds a little sprinkle of adventure and excitement to any camping trip.
Consider purchasing inexpensive walkie-talkies to take with you on your next camping trip to provide a way to keep in touch with everyone in your party in areas where cell phone reception may not be available. This can be especially important if you are camping with children and need to keep track of their whereabouts.
Make sure that you bring all of your camping equipment with you before you head out on your trip. You can not afford to forget an important item like your sleeping bag or your tent. Make a comprehensive checklist of all of the items you will need on your camping trip and double check items in your bags and car against the list to ensure that you do not forget anything.
In this modern age, there is no excuse for being in the woods without some form of communication ability. Of course, no one likes to receive phone calls when they are relaxing, so leave your phone off but fully charged, just in case there is an emergency, and you need to contact someone.
Never force anyone to go camping with you, including family or girlfriends. Some people just don’t enjoy being in nature, and they will be miserable and in turn, make you miserable as well. If your children are simply not interested, find a babysitter for the weekend and relax alone!
A great tool to take whenever you go camping is duct tape. Duct tape is a very versatile tool that can be used from anything to mend broken tent poles, to patching up tent holes, all the way to serving as a band aide if you get a cut.
Make sure you secure all sources of food at night when you go to sleep. There are many animals that can frequent campgrounds at night and scavenge your food, especially when left open and unattended for hours. You don’t want to wake up to your food scattered everywhere, and you left with a shortage.
After your trip, be certain you leave the campsite cleaner than it was when you found it. Bring enough trash bags for the anticipated clean up. Do not leave any left over food behind. A golden rule for departing a campsite: leave only your footprints behind.
When siting your tent at your campsite, be sure to place a waterproof tarp on the ground before erecting your tent. In this situation, size really does matter. Use a tarp that is about 2 inches smaller than the tent floor, or cut a larger one down if need be. It should never extend beyond the edge of your tent floor. A tarp that is too large can collect water that will be channeled right back into your tent.
As you can now tell, camping has a great deal more to offer than a tent and a night in the woods. There are certain safety precautions one must take in order to stay safe and enjoy the day. Use what you have learned today on your next camping trip and you can too, become a seasoned camper!
