13Jul2024
“Okay, God, I Get It: It IS a GRAND Canyon!”
My roommate, Jenna, and I view nature in two forms. First, there is “nature” which consists of flowers organized in dainty rows, zephyrs blowing through oak leaves and air conditioned buildings within reach. Then, there is “THE nature”; cruel and biting, layered in sweat, and bears attacking humbly constructed tents. So when we were required go hiking the Grand Canyon in Arizona, USA for a
Continue Reading12Jul2024
Camping Memories: The Beauty of Camping
In our dimly lit basement I recently opened a photo journal; instantly, I was transported back to the time when my children were eleven and fourteen. The journal was full of so many great camping memories! Pulling a beat up camper trailer behind our truck, we set off to experience as many national parks as we could in one summer. I planned to infuse history, geography, geology and nature into my c
Continue Reading11Jul2024
Vaude Ultra Light Air Mattress Review
If you’re going on a camping trip it is VERY important to pack light! One of the things that takes up room and weighs a lot is an air mattress. Here I will share my Vaude Ultra Light Air Mattress Review: The Vaude Ultra Light Air Mattress: A Great Buy A "Vaude Ultra Light Air Mattress" is lightweight and can be folded up very small. It weighs only 17 ounces, yet it is still as comfortable as a
Continue Reading11Jul2024
Camping: Go Prepared
A camp trip can be great fun for the whole family. That is, if you are properly prepared for absolutely anything, because a wonderful vacation can easily become a horrible nightmare. You can have a nature-filled adventure or a disaster-filled mess. Make sure when camping you go prepared. The first thing to remember is that you will be outside, so you will have to deal with all that the outdoors
Continue Reading10Jul2024
Camping 101 Safety and First Aid
Camping is meant to be an escape from the everyday use of modern items and technology. The "Ideal Camper" is one who is ready to take a break from the usual everyday type of activity. Camping can be a great family getaway as well. There are a few items that can be used depending on the nature of the trip. A trip that is well thought out and planned for can go relatively smoothly. On the other h
Continue Reading09Jul2024
A Camping Misadventure: The Perfect Failures
Mmmm camping. The crisp pine-cone incense surrounds me, the feel of forest floor between my toes, the mystery of freshly falling fog… Smudge. Five-year-old Leslie walks across my perfect picture with our mud-pawed retriever, Rocky, in tow. With twinkling jade eyes and a smile that’s too pure to pay for, he exclaims, “We’re going camping!” We? I hope Mom and Dad knew what they were
Continue Reading08Jul2024
Camping in the Atacama Desert, Chile: Outside the Tent
They tell you there’s nothing like the great outdoors: the wild and the beautiful, the remote and the other-worldly. Being under canvas, cooking over an open fire; sharing the environment, respecting and understanding the earth. All of this gives you a sense of coming together - to be one - with nature. But I have camped in a place where I realised the exact opposite, and in that realisation, I
Continue Reading07Jul2024
Camping in Collegiate Peaks, Colorado
“I look like a skanked-out mouse,” my sister complained after two days without a shower. At that comment we both started to laugh. Dampened but not Deterred: Camping in Collegiate Peaks This past summer my sister and I went camping the Collegiate Peaks in Colorado. It was our first time backpacking. Everyone seemed pretty impressed that two young, inexperienced girls road-tripped it out to C
Continue Reading