Camping can be both the best time you ever have, or the worst. The difference can be the weather that happens while you camp, or how well prepared you are for it. To learn how to be as prepared as you can for camping, read on into the following paragraphs.
When packing for your camping trip, make sure to pack either a pair of flip flops or water shoes. These will come in handy in and around the campground. For instance, if you are staying in a campground that has bathroom facilities and you plan on taking a shower, you need to wear shoes in the shower to protect your feet from foot fungus.
When going camping, try to buy non-perishable items to eat. There are no refrigerators in the wild, so everything you bring has to be kept in good order. You can certainly bring a cooler to put food in, but the cooler will be added bulk on your trip. Therefore, make an effort to bring more non-perishable foods than perishable.
Look up grocery stores near your campsite. Make sure you know how to get to them. Particularly, if your trip is spanning more than three or four days, the food you bring with you probably isn’t going to last the length of your trip. Not only, that, but your family is going to get tired of eating the same things day after day. Variety is the key.
Know the climate of your camping area. You will want to have the proper clothing packed for the trip. Knowing how cold the nights get or how hot the days are will help you dress best. You will not want to get caught in the great outdoors with inadequate protection.
When camping, most people enjoy relaxing around a campfire. To prevent your fire from becoming out of control, you should incorporate a few safety practices. First of all, build your fire away from bushes and trees so that sparks from your fire will not start a forest fire. You will also want to use a circle of rocks to contain your campfire. Do not ever leave your fire unattended. Before leaving your campsite, make sure your campfire has been totally extinguished and that there are no remaining hot embers.
Be sure to choose the right site for your camping experience. The camping site can make or break your trip. Try to choose a site that is not too far away from help should you need it. Choose a site that is flat and somewhat apart from trees. You want a location that is far from critters and close to aid.
Remember, when you are camping you will not have access to many kitchen luxuries. At most, you will have a can opener as well as a basic burner. This means canned foods make a great meal, but even better are things that need very little preparation, like peanut butter sandwiches.
Did you know that a roll of high-quality duct tape is a great item to take camping with you? Not only is it useful around the home, but it serves many purposes while camping. Duct tape is useful for patching holes in air mattresses. It is also useful for taping up tears in tents, tarps or sleeping bags. If you are going on a long hike, you can put it on the sensitive parts of your feet for blister prevention. It may also be used as emergency bandaging.
If you are on a camping trip and forgot the bowls for stew, make your own from large plastic soda bottles that have been emptied. Just rinse the bottle and cut down the plastic to the depth you need. Lightly sand the edges to smooth out any rough spots and prepare to scoop up dinner!
Bugs can be a major problem with camping; they can cause disease, get into your food, and just be a nuisance. Take the proper measures to keep them away. This includes not putting on perfume or cologne, lighting citronella candles, avoiding swamp lands, and covering your skin, so they are not attracted to your scent.
Bring along plenty of zip-lock bags on your camping trip, for a great mixing tool with foods as well as great storage. Always make sure the bag is completely sealed, then pop in any foods you need to combine, like chicken and batter or steak with marinade! Zip-lock bags are the best at keeping anything you need water-proofed too.
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.
While creating a survival kit, include waterproof matches. Always store your matches in a container or packaging that is airtight. You don’t even have to spend a lot of money. Regular matches can be made waterproof when you dip matches in nail polish or paraffin. A great container for storage is a film canister. A plastic medicine bottle also works.
Many people associate camping with misery; bug bites, sunburns and poor food. While this can be a reality, it can also be avoided by preparing about one week ahead of time. Try to think of all the possible situations that could go wrong, and find a product to help you avoid that situation.
Pack an emergency repair kit for your tent. You can get them at any camping supply shop. These kits will make it easy for you to repair rips, broken poles and failing zippers. The last thing you want while camping is to have your tent fail and not have the tools and supplies to fix it.
Weather can ruin a camping trip, but there is little you can do about it. Poor planning can also ruin your camping trip, but there is a great deal that you can do about that. Keep in mind all that you have read in this article so that you can be prepared for you next trip.
