Hot Weather Camping Tips

I don't know about you but I love hot weather camping trips. They totally rock. As long as there's a lake nearby I like to get in on these. Some people think if the weather's too hot you shouldn't be outside that much, but I just say as long as you are smart about things, you will have a ball.

Going in the water in this situation will really cool you down, but the flipside of that is that water reflects the sun back onto you, giving you essentially twice the exposure to harmful UV rays. That's why it is so essential to bring a couple bottles of sunscreen if you go camping while it's hot out. Rub it on, let it take, and then hit the water. If you're just lying out, you still should protect yourself.

Another thing to think about is making shade if there isn't already a natural canopy blocking the sun. In most areas where anyone would go camp there are trees galore, but if it's pure beach camping, you ought to put up a tent or some other form of shade.

Hot weather camping trips can truly be a blast. As opposed to their cold counterparts there is less suffering to be endured; this is the type of camping where one can relax a little bit more and simply enjoy the summer. As long as you follow my tips and avoid too much sun, I'm sure you'll have a great time. Just remember what I told you!

Safe Spring Camping

Camping can be a great activity, no matter what the season. But, to fully enjoy the wonders of nature that surround you, you need to be prepared for Mother Nature's little hazards. Novice and experienced campers alike should always be aware of seasonal hazards when going out to enjoy a weekend of solitude and comfort in nature's beauty, and so, should plan ahead, to avoid problems that range discomfort to disaster.

In the spring, the view of nature can be magnificent. This time of year the world is in bloom and beginning to green as nature awakens from its hibernation. This natural beauty could not occur without spring rains, which pose many of the problems campers may experience in this season. Many campers discover, by way of a leaky roof, that, their tent is no longer as water proof as it may have been a year before, and cannot withstand the spring rains. This situation can be both anticipated and solved with a can of Camp Dry, or any similar waterproofing and starching agent. These agents should be applied in advance to any planned outing, according to the manufacturer's instructions, to insure that the water resistance of the tent canvas is maintained. Also, spring campers should be especially careful to pull their tent's stakes and guy wires tight, and to keep objects inside the tent from touching tent walls. Walls that are not stretched tight enough, or which are making contact with objects on the tent's interior fail to maintain the level of surface tension necessary to force water to run off, rather than running in.

Spring rains also work to keep temperatures relatively low, and skies, at least to some degree cloud covered, increasing the risk of sunburn to those who would be outdoors. It is easy to assume that if you are not hot, you are not burning, but this simply is not the case. In fact, studies have shown that the UV radiation which reaches the earth on cloudy days may actually be more damaging to human skin than full sun. Campers should be prepared, regardless of the season and weather conditions to wear a high SPF protection, water proof sunscreen, to protect their skin from potentially harmful rays.

Finally, those going camping near water should always be wary of wading, and never go alone. All natural bodies of water have a current below the surface, which is often disrupted and accelerated by spring rains. The risk of drowning in the spring is extremely high because of the raised water levels, and increased current activity. Rivers, creeks and lakes should all be approached with extreme caution, and should never be entered without an appropriate life saving device.

Easy Camping Recipes - Camping Guide

If you want to go camping and you are not necessarily the best of cooks, do not worry; you will be able to spoil your family with good and easy camping recipes. Even if you are a very good experienced cook adored by your family, but you are afraid of the lack of possibilities that a camping trip will offer you, do not worry; those camping recipes available will help you deal with cooking and feeding your family on the trip. People who have made it a habit going camping, have learnt to manage the cooking problem on a camp fire or cooking gas lamp.

They have come up with wonderfully camping recipes that they are always eager to share with other people. Therefore, if you search the net you will find lots of websites providing you with countless camping recipes to make your camping cooking experience simple, enjoyable and effective. Why are they called easy camping recipes? Well, they are supposed to be as simple to prepare as possible, since you do not have all the utensils and the comfort of your kitchen at home; yet you have to feed your family.

What makes these camping recipes easy? Generally it is the fact that the preparation focuses on combining different ingredients, fruits and vegetables together to obtain some very good meals, snacks and desserts, fast and with not much difficulty. If you get equipped with some easy camping recipes and the necessary ingredients, you will not need to overburden your luggage or car with too many pots and pans, forks and spoons and the rest of the stuff.

Resorting to easy camping recipes will enable you to make all cooking and eating phenomenon during the camping holiday quite easy as you will be able to make use of plastic or paper dishes, cups and cutlery. Besides the fact that these are disposable, they are also easy to carry as they are small, compact and light. With the camping recipes and disposable dishes there comes another benefit; you get rid of doing the washing up.

The easy camping recipes you can find on the countless websites dealing with camping, are usually provided in an organized manner. You will find the camping recipes by name, by main ingredient, by the type of meal it pertains to, etc. So finding the right camping recipes should not be a problem for you. Anyway, carrying a camping stove with you on the trip will only add to the possibilities that easy camping recipes offer you and you will end up being even more appreciated by your family.

Backyard Camping Trip

Are your kids begging you to take them camping, but you just can't find the time to take them on a camping trip? Or would you like to introduce your kids to the fun of camping for the first time, but aren't sure if they will enjoy it, or might get scared? Either way, camping out in your backyard will be a fun way to spend the evening and night with your kids.

Get the kids involved in setting up camp in your backyard. Have them help you set up the tent. Put them in charge of getting their sleeping bags, flashlights and anything else they may need into the tent. If it's an option for you, you may even want to make a campfire in your backyard. Check with your fire department before hand if this is an option in your area. If not, just dig out the charcoal or gas grill. Grill some hotdogs and make some foil backed potatoes for dinner, and of course you'll need some s'mores for desert. If you are roasting the marshmallows over your grill, put some aluminum foil over the grate to keep the melting marshmallow from dripping onto your grill.

Don't have a tent, or even a backyard for that matter? That's no reason not to camp out. Just spread out your sleeping bags, or even just some blanket in the living room. Turn off the TV, radio and video games. If you have a fireplace, build a fire. Otherwise, order some pizza and pop some popcorn and you can even make s'mores in the microwave.

No matter where you decide to have your close to home camping trip, take some time to sit together and talk. Telling stories, whether a campfire is involved or not, is always fun. Your kids' imagination in creating new stories may surprise you. Don't forget to tell some handed down family tales.

Above all, think back about your favorite camping memories and recreate them with your kids. Do you remember any good scary stories? Are there any games you enjoyed playing? What's your favorite card game?

Have some fun with this, enjoy your kids and create some memories.

How to Deal With Lightning When Camping

Before you set out for your camping site, you ought to make sure that the weather for the day would be sunny. However, there are times when all your preparations yield nothing but false assumptions. In some cases, you might end up being caught up in a thunderstorm where lightning is quite prominent. Below are some tips that you should do in order to minimize the risk of being caught by a lightning in the open.

a. When in the open, you should avoid being the tallest object around. If your tent is quite firm and strong, it will be best to stay inside. If you think your tent is not safe and secure, you should consider taking cover elsewhere. Get to the nearest reliable shelter as quickly as you can. When exposed in an open field, get as low as you possibly can. Make it a point to avoid standing tall and upright. It will be better if you just squat but do not lie flat on the ground as well.

b. When you are out in an open field, you should also avoid being near the tallest object around. Although it might be quite tempting to hide under the cover of an isolated tree, it might be better if you just squat and stay away from it. The best protection would be to stay away from the peaks. The safest place would probably be depressions within a rock or a shallow cave.

c. If you cannot hide in caves or in other sheltered areas just because your camping gear or your backpack won't fit in it, you better leave your things behind. You can pick them later as soon as the thunderstorm subsides and you are safe from lightning.

d. Bear in mind that no warning signs will show up just before lightning will strike your camp site so you shouldn't wait. Be observant. If you think that it is about to rain, you should start packing up, putting your things in order, and heading for the safest sheltered venue that you can find.

e. Practice the "30-30" rule. This means that you will have to take shelter once you can hear the thunder thirty seconds or less just after you see the lightning flash. Moreover, you should not resume your activities nor should you walk out in the open field after thirty minutes have passed since you have heard the last thunder.

f. Take note of the fact that you do not have to be directly hit by the flash of light in order to be hurt by electricity. Lightning can strike something that's farther away from you but electricity can travel towards you.

g. When caught up in the thunderstorm, make sure that you avoid walking or standing near fence lines or power lines. Aside from the fact that power lines and poles are usually the tallest object around, you should be aware that the electric flash can travel along the lines and jump towards you.

h. If someone is struck by lightning, make sure that you call for medical help right away. While waiting for the medical aid, administer CPR to the victim if he has stopped breathing. Generally, you should receive a response from the victim after twenty minutes of doing CPR.

Food and Water - Camping Gear Essentials

Whether you are planning to spend a weekend or a few days in your camping trip, one of the most important things to remember is to pack certain camping gear essentials. Apart from the usual equipment such as your tent and sleeping bag, it is important to make sure that you are able to pack enough food and water for your entire trip, especially if you want to try to really rough it out in the wild in your camping trip.

Because there are now a number of different convenience stores and national parks offering camping grounds have restaurants and convenient stores where you can easily purchase supplies when your camping gear starts to fall short, it definitely defeats the entire purpose of experiencing a camping trip. After all, many people go out on camping trips in order to experience what it is like to commune with nature and live out in the wild.

Another reason to make sure that you pack just the right amount of food and water is to minimize your expenses. Convenient stores tend to mark up the prices of their goods slightly higher than the amount that you will have to pay in your local supermarket. On top of that, the amount of gas and time that you will need to spend just to restock your supply can easily cause you to spend more than what you are expecting.Another reason to make sure that you pack just the right amount of food and water is to minimize your expenses.

Tips to Get the Best From That Much Loved Camping Trip

Whenever anyone gets tired of modern life, and the constant stress caused by always being on call, people are turning more and more to nature to bring them that much needed relief. Camping is probably the best way to really get away from all that electronic babble that we are so used to, but having the right gear is also very important. For example, there will be a need for fixed blade knives or hunting knives to facilitate the killing of food or the preparation of food taken along. Of course, they come in handy for protection from wild animals too!

When we were children the art of building our own tent came in the form of old blankets and poles set out in the garden. Probably the nearest we got to having decent camping gear was the ubiquitous sleeping bag. But these days there are some really high tech gizmos on the market to make that foray into the wilds that much more enjoyable.

Lightweight and water proof materials are made into all kinds of accouterments to keep the hiker warm and comfortable. Two man tents can be found that weigh under four pounds making them a great thing to take along for overnight stops. These are easy to put up too and are not like the old fashioned Chinese puzzles that used to pass for a tent years ago!

They usually come with an integral ground sheet too and mesh windows to make sure that no mosquitoes or stinging insects can enter while we sleep. Even 'skylight' windows are incorporated so that the night sky can be observed without the risk of getting stung.

Another essential item comes in the form of a tiny fluid filled compass. This hand little gadget only costs around a dollar but the importance of having one on the trip is absolutely priceless. All the members of the party should carry one just in case they get separated of course.

Clothing for camping trips has also gone high tech too. Lightweight and airy underclothes mean that warmth is kept in while sweat is allowed to escape. This makes for a much more comfortable trip since the body temperature is kept to just the right level without having to undress and dress when the weather is changeable.

Boots are also a necessity when trying any kind of hiking or camping trip since the terrain could get quite rough. Having good ankle support in the boots will ensure that twisted ankles can be avoided. Even the socks inside should be of a similar material where sweat cannot build up and cause some rather uncomfortable problems.

These days, the array of gizmos and clothing for camping is tremendous. Try having a look around the internet to see what new innovations are on offer. But do not forget that this is supposed to be an enjoyable experience so a lot of articles may be superfluous if the trip is only a short one. However, for the sake of safety, make sure that the minimum equipment is carried along.