New to camping

[Mike]

Re: New to camping

OP, David Gossit; Don't worry about a thing. No matter what you bring or forget, no matter rain or shine, food raw or burned, you will be richly rewarded for bringing your family camping.

At 49 years old, you know that the worse it is, the better it will be... In other words, your family will remember the little disasters with gleeful memories, but will disperse the perfect trips to the fog of time.

[NYCgrrl]

Re: New to camping

O and a heads up....most kids enjoy being slathered in calamine lotion...finger paint medicine, LOL!

[throathammer]

Re: New to camping

it doesnt sound like your going to do any serious humping and you will be camping 5 meters away from your vehicle.. if thats the case then you might save yourself some money by finding a few cinder bricks 3 or 4 will do the trick. arrange them upright and build a fire in the center and throw a few pieces of rebar or something to support a skillet or a pan. activities can be amazingly simple.. my friend had a lone beer bottle and a frisbee..put the bottle on one of two sticks that are 20 feet apart and try to knock the bottle off the stick with the frisbee. sounds lame but its lots of fun. how about fishing or photography or hiking?

[MinaYoo03]

Re: New to camping

Woa! why cant the wife come?!

[tplife]

Re: New to camping

Sorry, but Oragel for bites and itching? Save your money! Soap & water as always to clean the affected area. Upon allergic reaction, your body produces histamine, which causes the itching - these compounds block that. Benadryl is the best OTC itch reliever. It's safe for 3mo. and up. The dose is 1 mg/kg. To convert lbs. to kgs., take your child's weight in lbs. and divide it by 2.2 and that will give you what he/she weighs in kgs. If the mildly sedative effect of Benadryl isn't desired, Claritin and Zyrtec are you choices as an alternative, just use the appropriate dose for your child according to age and weight recommendations. And don't worry about distractions - some great dance music over the 200W stereo or a movie with the DVD player never detracted at all from our camping trips, and actually helped many of our tag-along teen groupies cut loose and experience the outdoors "on their own level".

[jmc1172]

Re: New to camping

As some who is relativley new to camping as well I'll point out a few things I think are important:

Good lighting. I've got a LED lantern which is good for in the tent, a propane which works great for outside. I've also got some oil lamps which are nice but I don't think they are a quality light source. Nothing more aggravating than not being able to see and find what you are looking for.

Keep meals simple. You can find lot's of good food ideas but for beginning, keep it simple. Hot dogs, canned stuff. Pancakes are easy.

They are dead on with 'making a list.' After a few times you'll be able to determine what you need that didn't have and what you had that you didn't need. I also recommend putting a list on the outside of your storage bins. Helps me know what is where and I can also note if I need to replace anything. It gets easier after going out a few times.

Try to be familiar with where you are going. Do they have fire pits, where are restrooms (helpful with young children, especially girls)?

Get to your camping place before dark and set up.

Have water for handwashing, etc. I use a big laundry detergent bottle that has a spout on it. Works great.

Buy bug spray, sunscreen, first aid stuff, ect. and leave packed with your camping gear. Chances are you won't remember to go get it out of the cabinet in the house before you leave.

Get a gallon size ziplock bag and fold up some garbage bags, ziplock bags, ect. in it. Takes up very little room and come in handy for trash, left over food, ect.

An extra lighter or matches.

Have extra batteries on hand.

[Joyous56]

Re: New to camping

I'm glad you received so much great good advice here! Camping can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. Basically, you need food, shelter and water. A stove is a great addition, but you can be resourceful and use the fire pit with a sturdy grill on top. There is a section on camp cooking ideas....but you can eat very simply, and preparing some things at home beforehand can make it even more simple. Foil packets with meat, potatoes and veggies are great after a day outdoors, and can be prepared ahead. Hot dogs on sticks, with a can of baked beans are yummy.

Whatever you end up doing, it's a great thing to do with your kids, and they will remember it forever. Hikes needn't be long to be great experiences. Just getting your kids outside, letting them explore on their own (with rules about how far to go, and checking in with you)...and the oh, so wonderful experience of sitting around a campfire at night....your kids are lucky that you want to do this with them.

And as others have said, something will go wrong! You'll forget something, or the fire won't start right away, or it will rain. When you say "Oh, well, let's figure out a solution", it will teach them a lot!

[MacGyver]

Re: New to camping

To convert lbs. to kgs., take your child's weight in lbs. and divide it by 2.2 and that will give you what he/she weighs in kgs.

There are 2.2 pounds in a kilogram, so it wouldn't it be multiply pounds by 2.2 to get the dosage?

[kcscout]

Re: New to camping

Fun stuff for kids seems to be cooking around a campfire... so if you can consider not doing a stove but a grill or similar and cooking on an open flame... plus always fun to sit around a fire versus a propane stove. In addition to things for the kids to do, some of the fun could be exploring the area, looking for firewood, and keep everyone busy and having fun too. Make sure everyone has a chair, a flash light, water bottle, bring extra T.P., paper towels, Make sure you have ample food / drinks and I like to try to get the kids fishing too, but that seems like more work than what I typically like to do. (From experience) Then part of the time could be them kicking around a ball / chasing each other in games of tag or made up games and you kicking back in a chair and enjoying the outdoors. I also suggest a plastic tub so that you can pack most of your stuff in it and it will all be easy to access, pack, carry, and water proof (and don't forget to have options or planning in place in case it rains so it isn't a bummer but the fun can continue)

[david gossett]

Re: New to camping

Thanks for all the great help. it is very appreciated. I will post info on the fun we have just as soon as it warms up. Do you think if is around 50 or so at night will be all right? Or should I wait a little longer? Thanks for all the help.
David

[kcscout]

Re: New to camping

Take extra blankets and extra clothes for sleeping... the key for kids having fun is not to get cold.. or they will just remember how cold they were. We are still getting lows over night of low 30s which is too cold for most kids but a little chill is another reason it makes having a small campfire fun to have. Have some good nalgene water bottles that you can boil some water and put in the sleeping bag (Ensuring that the lid is tightly closed) and it will make a toasty spot for them for sleeping over night.

[NYCgrrl]

Re: New to camping

Thanks for all the great help. it is very appreciated. I will post info on the fun we have just as soon as it warms up. Do you think if is around 50 or so at night will be all right? Or should I wait a little longer? Thanks for all the help.
David

My advice would be to take your boys out for a day trip to the park now and see if any of them gets a case of the whines during the current weather. If someone does....hold off camping until it's warmer.

[MacGyver]

Re: New to camping

My advice would be to take your boys out for a day trip to the park now and see if any of them gets a case of the whines during the current weather. If someone does....hold off camping until it's warmer.

Wow - I was going to suggest duct tape. But your idea would probably work, too. :D

[terasec]

Re: New to camping

50 degree nights should be fine, long underwear and extra blankets.
If you wait for perfect temps not too hot not too cold will limit oppurtunities and will never get out

[NYCgrrl]

Re: New to camping

Wow - I was going to suggest duct tape. But your idea would probably work, too. :D

We started making an annual trip to the summer camp ground during the winter so the grand cutie can see the landscape in a different season. It's so peaceful, quiet and a different joy to see. We give her a camera and she fills it up with pictures of vegetation, snow covered marshes and whatever kind of animals she can spot.