Be Careful What You Say to Your 10-Year Old
It is the spring of 2006 and we buy a new tent for the children to use for next summer. This is quite exciting and Graham, then aged 10, wants to try camping in the backyard during the school half-term, week holiday. This seems okay. He has slept in the garden before, as had his sister before him. He equips the tent with pillows and blankets and books and a CD player and so on and is very cozy.
Continue ReadingToothless Campers and Domesticated Bunnies
Some national park campsites have long waiting lists for camping reservations. When you have to wait a year to sleep next to a tree, something is wrong. -George Carlin Getting Close to Nature May Get You Closer to the Unnatural I'm telling you, the county national park campsite we reserved for this weekend outside Portland, Oregon was the absolute worst campsite we've ever seen. We got site 1
Continue ReadingThe Tornado Warning
The sky is pitch-black. It is 11:34 AM. I am huddled in a campground bathroom stall with my three sisters, two brothers, and the family dog. My sister is eleven, and she is sobbing because she thinks we are about to die, and she wants our parents to arrive so that she can tell my mom she’s sorry for misbehaving. Camping in the North Woods of Wisconsin, USA A Scary Scenario I am honestly not a
Continue ReadingHaste Makes Mistakes: Prepare for Your Camping Trip
I remember the time I was on a camping trip with my daughter and son-in-law. We had planned on camping in Acadia national park in Maine, USA. We got to the campsite in the early evening and it was just starting to get dark and beginning to rain lightly. This was in mid-September and, although it was fairly warm during the day, it had gotten pretty cool in the evening. A Nice Wet Sleep We wan
Continue ReadingKeeping Warm While Camping
Deep down I am a weather-weenie. Don’t get me wrong… I am a tough cookie in most respects. I’ll still take on an adventure in the snow, rain, or wind. BUT, take it from my experience, you’ll be much happier if you are warm on your camping trip! Tips for Keeping Warm While Camping: Layer Up: Temperature and conditions are always changing even during the summer months. The temperatures ar
Continue ReadingNew Zealand by Campervan
New Zealand is a stunning country of wild, open spaces, contrasting climates and varied landscapes. Its relative lack of development and sparse population means that even during the holiday season it is easy to get away from the crowds on a back-country road trip. Camping New Zealand: For the curious, independent traveler there is no better option than to see New Zealand by campervan. Hire a cam
Continue ReadingCigarettes for Jellyfish Stings
Crystal Beach, Texas is one of the hidden outdoor camping gems of the South. With Galveston only a ferry ride away, there is plenty of space on the beach to set up a tent and campfire without having to worry about being smothered by other campers. Most of the people who come to relax in a chair and splash in the water stick to the more aesthetically pleasing sand of Galveston; those who want to fi
Continue ReadingCamping at Fraser Island, Australia
Welcome To Paradise Midway up Australia’s Pacific Coast, Fraser Island offers a landscape you won’t see anywhere else in the world –majestic rainforests rooted in sand dunes, crystal clear lakes surrounded by snowy white sand, and seventy-five miles of uninterrupted ocean beaches flanked by dunes and brilliantly colored sand cliffs. A piney-eucalyptus fragrance blankets Fraser Island, the
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