When my friends invited me to go mountain climbing with them, I accepted. As far as I’m concern all I needed to buy was climbing boots/shoes. I already have the basics: sleeping bag, tent and a backpack. The food I figure, I’ll just eat chips and junk food. On the day of the climbing trip, I realized I was ill prepared. The sleeping bag I have was small to me but huge in comparison to Slumberjack sleeping bag of my friend.
My bag rolled to about half the size of my big back pack. His Slumberjack sleeping bag is about half the size of mine. His bag weighs in around 3 lbs at the most and rolls to about the size of a football. Amazing! It was the first time I saw a bag like that. I checked it out when we reach the campsite. It was well insulated and can protect me from the elements. After the mountain climbing trip I bought a Slumberjack sleeping bag for myself.
LifeCamper Sleeping Bag
Camping in the wilds can get boring especially for kids who will miss their computer games and favorite TV shows. Fix the problem by being ready with these 2 camping games:
~Treasure hunts camping game. Wrap a prize that the kids can share. Hide the prize within the boundaries of the play area. Draw a map of the play area, including trees, rocks and anything significant. Draw an X over the spot where you hid the prize. Draw footsteps or arrows to indicate the path your kids are to take to find the prize. To play the treasure hunt camping game, bring your kids to the starting point. Give them the map and teach them how to read the map. Let them follow the map to the prize. Follow them around to guide them if necessary and to ensure that they do not get lost. Do not tell them what to do. Let them figure it out for themselves.~Save spot – camping gameTake a soft toy. Call it spot. Appoint one kid to be the bad guy. The bad guy takes spot and runs off while everyone counts to 10. At the count of 10, everyone chases the bad guy to save spot. Whoever touches, the bad guy first saves tag. No hitting or grabbing or any violence allowed though. Everyone takes turns to save spot.
LifeCamper Games
Before, whenever my family would go out of town or picnics, we would bring plastic spoon and forks. It’s convenient, cheap but will break easily. Nowadays, we use real camping utensils. They are very sturdy and more practical to have since they can last for many uses.
Cooking outdoors is great fun. Hotdogs, burgers and steaks seems so much tastier when cooked and eaten in the outdoors. It might be the smell of the food while it’s cooking that makes you salivate. Just make sure you have steel camping utensils. Cooking with a broken spatula or tongs spoils the fun so having a durable one is a must. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve dropped food while cooking with inferior cookware.
LifeCamper Camping Accessories
Make sure that your old equipment is still usable. Check your camping tents and make sure that there are no rips or holes. Were they stored properly after you last used it? If you just dumped it in a corner without drying it out first it could be infested with molds. Remember that your kids are bigger now. Will you still fit in the same camping tents?
Take a look at your emergency first aid kit. Make sure that you replenish the things that were used on your last trip. Check that all your medications are still good. Throw away all expired medicines and visit the drugstore for replenishments. Seems like you have too much to do; but involving the other members of your family will lessen your load and build enthusiasm for the coming vacation.
LifeCamper Tents
Keep everyone sleeping soundly during cold camping nights. Have the children bring kids sleeping bags that comfortably fit them. A sleeping bag must be snug around the camper to provide the needed warmth. Choose one with a hypo-allergenic insulation to prevent asthma attacks.
A good kid sleeping bag must have the following features:~A durable and water-resistant exterior~A silky-smooth and stain resistant interior lining~Quilted construction to make the bag extra warm and snug around the child’s body~Rolls into the hood for easy transport and compact storage
LifeCamper Sleeping Bag
My boyfriend is very fond of the outdoors. He loves to go hiking and camping on weekends with his buddies. They enjoy long climbs to see breathtaking views and eating around a campfire. My boyfriend has in his garage hiking tents, hiking boots, portable stoves, fishing rods, hats, and other outdoor gear. He practically spends whatever extra money he has on hiking and camping gear.
My boyfriend has asked me several times to go with him on his outdoor trips. Just last year he invited me to go mountain climbing. He volunteered to carry all my gear including my hiking tent and backpack. Unfortunately, I have no interest in spending time in the wilderness. I do not look forward to trekking and sleeping in tents. I want my bed and my bathroom and my cable TV every night.
LifeCamper Tents
My family and I love spending the weekends outdoors. We would get together with our cousins and go fishing in a lake. We would pitch tents and have a barbecue. After one bad trip because of fly infestation, we decided to look at screen houses. We are determined to never again share our meals with filthy flies.
It was my job to look at screen houses. I wanted a big one that can accommodate a big picnic table. I searched the web looking for the biggest screen tent/house available. You see, when we go on camping we’re about a group of twenty adults and 3 children. We have a very big extended family.
LifeCamper Tents
The adventurous camper looks forward to yet another trip into the wilds. This time it is a trip with the family. Since children are part of the camping group he makes plans for activities that will entertain the children on the road and on the camp site. It is a good idea to involve the children in the planning. This way their spirits are sustained and they will cooperate in all phases of the process.
There are many ways children can enjoy the trip. They can go bicycling, hiking, canoeing, swimming or just simply enjoying nature. Doing all these can make them hungry, so part of the planning should include what to eat. With all the cooking that is bound to happen, practical cooking implements should be on top of things to bring. A foldable stove will not occupy too much space in the car. Be sure to bring enough fuel for all the cooking that is going to take place.
LifeCamper Camping Stove
You will fill your car with just cooking gear if you let yourself be swayed by all the nice things being sold in stores these days. Being the experienced camper that you are, you know that all you need as far as camping cooking gear goes is a griddle pan and a regular sized pot. You need them to be flat-bottomed for stability and covered, to keep lizards and flying insects from diving right into your soup. If they are made of cast iron, it is so much better because then heat will be distributed evenly and cooking will be faster.
But you cannot just ignore all the novelty items that will make your cooking easier. Like the tempered steel 3-in-1 can opener that opens cans and bottles and also functions as a spoon. Or the dunk bag that makes washing dishes or clothes a snap. Put your used dishes in the bag and dunk into the river. The running water will do the clean-up for you. It will also keep cold drinks cold if kept in the water in the dunk bag. How cool is that?
LifeCamper Camping Accessories
Kids look forward to vacation time because it means camping time with the family. Parents look forward to the same vacation because of the bonding experience that they get with the rest of the family. Vacationing with children is always a wee bit more complicated than when camping with adults. Kids have different interests which should be satisfied if they are to enjoy the trip. At the same time there should be activities to be participated in by all the members, young and old.
Another area where some planning is required is in the matter of food. Look out for camping recipes that will have something for both children and adults. Everybody loves chicken, so this Crazy Chicken Quesadillas should be fun to cook on a camping trip: Crazy Chicken Quesadillas ~2 grilled chicken breasts cubed or shredded ~1-2 cups cheese ~4 tortillas ~1/2 stick butter ~2oz hot sauce and/or 1/2 cup salsa Butter one side of a tortilla and place in fry pan over the stove. Leaving about 1/4 inch of room around the edge of the tortilla, sprinkle 1/4 C. – 1/2 C. cheese (if shredded) or lay thin slices of cheese all over the tortilla. Add 1/2 of a chicken breast onto the tortilla. Once the cheese starts to melt, fold the tortilla in half and continue cooking on one side for another minute. You may need to add more butter to the pan. Flip the quesadilla and cook on the other side for about a minute. Both sides should be golden brown and crispy. Take out of pan, open up slightly, and add the hot sauce and/or salsa (as much or as little as you like). Enjoy while you cook the other three quesadillas!
LifeCamper Camping