Category Archives: Camping

Wherein Mama Doesn’t Think We Are Funny

April 1, 2017 C Burke Leave a comment

Have you ever been to Rocky Mountain National Park? If not, go there soon and bring your sense of adventure! Fourth of July is fantastic as are the hiking options. I’m headed back at some point but a little wiser this time.

So, you know how you go camping in a national park and have large animals walking through your campsite whenever they please? Of course you do. They even join in you the town park for fireworks. After several days of this you notice that you have seen more elk than you knew existed but you haven’t seen a moose. They live in the park too and you’ve never seen one. Naturally you insist one morning that you and your husband drive around the park to find a moose, like people do. Your husband is a nice guy and agrees. After about 30 minutes of driving slowly and looking around, you pull into a picnic area. In the distance, through the trees, you see elk by the hundreds, as usual. Out of the corner of your eye you catch a glimpse of something moving in the trees near you. A large, brown animal emerges, it is a moose! Yay, mission accomplished!

You raise your camera and as you look through the viewfinder (because it it 2003 and you still use film) you notice the moose looks closer and it appears there are two. You also notice that your very even-keeled husband has thrown your new car into reverse and is kicking up gravel as he hits the gas. Your camera leaves your face and you see a mother and a calf moving towards you, QUICKLY! You have visions of hoof marks on the hood of your car, through your windshield, and probably on the humans inside. You are ever so grateful that your husband is a steady and confident driver. He peels out of the picnic area and you both breathe a sigh of relief.

Then you see it.

In the passenger side mirror, mama is not happy and both she and the calf are now chasing your car down the road …and gaining on you! Mama leaves the road and runs along side your car until she is even with the front of the car and proceeds keep up! Before she decides to dart into the road and your car, your husband gives it a bit more gas and you finally leave the moose in your mirror for good. You are grateful that you do not yet have a child because there might be some interesting language escaping your mouth.

You decide not to look for any more large game. Lesson learned folks, when the animals in the park come near you on their own, they know you are there and they don’t care. When you happen upon them and startle them, you better have skills and luck on your side. It certainly does not help that moose are the least social members of the deer family and prefer to be without the company of other moose never mind humans. (Thank you internet, I learned something today.)

Did I mention I have issues with animals? My issues precede this event by a couple of decades but this encounter didn’t help.

Moose photo credit:
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:User:Wojsyl
Poland Kampinos Alces alces 1
Caption added by DreamDepartExplore

Camping, Kids, Packing, Road Trip, Travel tips

Packing List For A Tent Camping Trip

March 6, 2015 C Burke Leave a comment

You’ve decided to go tent camping and made a reservation at a campground. Now you need to go about acquiring the items needed to make this trip work. Remember that camping trips like these are driving trips, it is not practical to fly with all of this stuff.

I cannot stress this enough, BORROW as much as you can the first time or two you go camping. Once you know you will camp regularly, then buy your own supplies. If you think you don’t know anyone who has any equipment, ask around and find a Boy Scout, particularly a Boy Scout leader. You would not believe the amount of camping equipment that resides in these homes.

What you need, in no particular order:

A tent with a rainfly (make sure that all of the seams have been sealed and the sealant has dried before packing it up, get the instructions on how to put it together too)
A ground cloth (a piece of thick plastic that is the size of the bottom of the tent, bigger is better as you can tuck in the edges)
A hammer to drive in the tent stakes
A sleeping bag for each person
An air mattress or thick pad for each person
A lantern of some kind to light the inside of the tent and the picnic table area (your site with usually have one)
S’mores makings – marshmallows, chocolate bars, graham crackers, roasting sticks
Cups, Plates, bowls, utensils (try to bring reusable ones, you are in nature after all)
Kitchen towels and paper towels
Dish soap and sponge for cleaning dishes
Garbage bags – leave the site as you found it or better
Food for meals you plan to eat at the campsite – SIMPLE is better. Your first time out it may be best to make sandwiches and things that don’t require cooking. Cooking over a fire or camp stove can be tricky and will usually take longer than you think. Delayed meals make for cranky campers.
Water bottles
Cooler – large, hard-sided with a drain near the bottom is best. You can buy ice at the camp store. (usually $1-$3 per bag)
Cooking pots, pans, & utensils if you plan to cook
Camp stove – try it out in your backyard ahead of time!
Extra fuel for camp stove
Matches or starter for camp stove as needed
Flashlights (1 per person)
Extra batteries for flashlights
Deck of cards – everyone plays cards while camping, I don’t know why
Flip flops for shower
Plastic container for shower supplies (1 per person)
Toiletries
Towels (shower and beach/pool)
Clothesline
Pillows
Clothes appropriate for your activities. Long pants and hiking boots are best for hiking in the woods in most parts of the U.S. due to deer ticks and the threat of Lyme Disease.
Extra pair of shoes per person. Shoes, especially kids’ shoes, always get wet while camping.
Day packs especially if you plan to hike.
Bug spray
Sunscreen
Sunglasses
Hats – wide-brimmed or baseball hats are best
Rain jackets or ponchos
Flexibility – this is a new experience, roll with it.
It is best to pack cooking items and food in plastic tubs (think rubbermaid products or similar)
Clothes are usually best packed in duffle bags but if you are worried about more than one day of rain, plastic tubs are best here too.
Newspaper and matches to start a fire
You generally don’t need to bring firewood (and in many places aren’t allowed to due to the risk of transporting bugs). Wood is generally available at the camp store, usually about $5 per bundle. Note, if it is a particularly dry season/summer you may find you ARE NOT ALLOWED to have an open fire even in the fire ring at your site due to the risk of wildfires.
Quarters and laundry soap – there are usually laundry facilities

Happy camping!

Photo credits:
Title picture – By Eeekster (Own work) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons, text added by Dream Depart Explore

2nd picture – By Josh Larios from Seattle, US (DSC00163.JPG) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

Camping, Road Trip, Travel tips

So You Want to Try Tent Camping

February 20, 2015 C Burke Leave a comment

You’ve decided to get out into the world and you want to try tent camping, that’s great! There are lots of reasons to do so; to get back to nature, to save money on accommodations, to have a little more flexibility, etc. This time of year, just the thought of warm weather activities brings happiness so let’s get planning.

This is what you need to know:

People who camp are almost universally wonderful people. I think it is all of the fresh air and s’mores.
Campground owners are wonderful too, though every once in a while it takes them a little while to warm up.
Bicycles, scooters and skateboards are frequently welcome at campgrounds.
Many campgrounds have pools and laundry facilities.
You are going to need bug spray! Seriously, bring it.
Some National Parks DO NOT have showers but they are available in the nearby town. (Rocky Mountain National Park is one such place but the views are worth the extra effort.) Get the details before you book.
Bring shower shoes (flip flops) and a plastic container for your shower supplies (the kind that college kids use is best) regardless of where the showers are located.
Your first time out, BORROW most of the supplies from friends (with full instructions on how to set up the tent). Please don’t spend money on new things when your friends have them for you to borrow. Save the purchasing until you know you love it, then buy what you love and use the heck out of it.
You need a ground cloth (a large sheet of thick plastic about the size of the bottom of your tent) under your tent no matter what anyone tells you. It also must be completely under the tent, if it sticks out even a little it will collect rain which will run under your tent. Disregard this if you like but I don’t wake up in puddles, even if it rains.
You MUST stake down your tent. This is to keep the shape so it is comfortable for you and to keep it where you put it.
Assess your site carefully. Do NOT put your tent at the bottom of a hill or near a body of water if it is likely to rain, rivers rise when it rains folks. If you are concerned, ask for a new site. See #2.
Many campgrounds offer some kind of community activity in the evening, usually around a fire. It is a great way to meet people. See #1.
When borrowing or eventually buying a tent, you need to know that they generally sleep fewer people than the box says. Ours says it sleeps 5 but we can only get 3 in it. The number on the box for ours is accurate if a group were to all sleep side by side, without air mattresses, didn’t have any gear/clothes in there with them and no one was over 5’6″. Did I mention that my husband is 6’3″? You will almost always need to sleep perpendicular to the suggested direction. Don’t get frustrated by the discrepancy in capacity, just know this going in.
If there is severe weather, GET OUT OF THE TENT! Find a secure building. The camp office is usually your best bet. We were camping one night in Nebraska (we were in a camper this time) and a thunderstorm came up with some noticeable winds, nothing to bother the camper but the tent in the site next to us ended up in the lake. See #10. Please note that had the winds been any higher we would have had to vacate the camper too. If you are camping out in the open in an area of the country where high winds and tornadoes occur, talk to the camp office about emergency procedures. They have them, I promise.
Tent camping usually means that you are further out into nature than you may normally be. Be careful with your food. If you leave food out, you will likely have visitors. The other humans will leave it alone but the raccoons, bears and their friends can actually smell it from a mile away. There are quick and easy ways to contain your food and prevent an unplanned run-ins with your woodland neighbors. Check with the camp office for their recommendations. Call or email them before you arrive so you can bring the supplies you need. I’m purposefully not giving specifics here as many campgrounds have their own regulations based on their facilities and local wildlife.

Next time: A detailed packing list for a tent camping trip.

Original photograph by: ByBy Kbh3rd (Own work) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons
Text added by DreamDepartExplore

Camping, Dream, Europe, Explore, Itinerary, Philosophy

Want to figure out who you are? Take a trip!

January 21, 2015 C Burke Leave a comment

Well that’s a tall order for a vacation, isn’t it?

Hear me out. Travel is one of the best ways to figure out what you’re made of. It is life, concentrated. Lots of activity, locations, emotions all in a short period of time. No matter how much planning goes into your trip, something will go wrong. When things go wrong you figure out how to make the best of it and just how resilient you are. When things go right, you find great joy in unexpected places.

Your missed flight turns into a 7 hour layover, so you learn to find fun in the airport. You play silly games with your kids or treat yourself to that bestseller everyone has been talking about and enjoy the peace and solitude you never get at home.

Your hotel overbooks or loses your reservation. You learn how to find another quickly and how to get a refund.

You get stuck in a cab in a monster traffic jam. You learn to use the subway system.

You’re super hungry and can’t find an English menu, you learn to guess at the local language and enjoy the pulse of life in a new place.

The attraction you have traveled so far to see is closed. You learn to laugh at your misfortune and go looking for other adventures. At the very least, you learn not to swear in public.

Next comes the things that go right.

You visit museums and realize there are a few artists or schools of thought you just adore! Yay, a new hobby.

You score tickets to a play, concert or ballet and find a new passion.

You climb to the top of the tallest thing in the city and you are grateful for your health. Maybe you find out you aren’t so scared of heights after all.

You happen upon a warm local restaurant on a cold night and find a brand new cuisine that you didn’t know you enjoyed.

You sit next to a stranger on a plane and meet your soulmate

You go camping for the first time and learn that you sleep deeply and fully outside. You find that you love to hike and that everything tastes better when cooked over a fire. You realize just how MANY stars there are and stare at the heavens for hours each night.

You keep up with a packed itinerary and you find that your legs are much stronger than you thought.

You test out your new camera and find out that you have a knack for photography.

You say yes to new experiences and learn that you are still young and fun after all.

No matter what happens you will come back changed. You will be stronger, wiser, and more self-reliant. You’ll have victories to remember for the rest of your life. Share them if you can, you will change other lives too!