Camping with Kids

I recently posted an article on Ezinearticles.com about camping with kids. I have also posted the article as a new page on my website at www.youcancamp.com/campingwithkids.php


For camping tips and information, check out the rest of my site at www.youcancamp.com

Moto Trip in an RV

This past weekend, I went on a moto cross trip in an RV for the first time and I must say, it was outstanding. "Camping" in an RV is quite a bit different from tent camping. Many of the luxuries of home can go with you in an RV, which makes everything a little easier. Food preperation is easy with a refrigerator, stove, grill and microwave. The cleanup is also made easier with a sink and hot water. With a generator, you also get lights, radios and television to watch movies or play video games.

We brought 4 quads and 2 dirt bikes to ride up, down and around the park. This was also my first time riding an off road vehicle and it was a blast. The quads can go over nearly any terrain with no problem. We climbed and descended hills, raced around a moto cross track, sped through puddles and mud, and put the machines through quite a trial. They are powerful machines and should not be taken lightly. We saw enough people crash to take safety very seriously. I was amazed at the number of your children that were riding dirt bikes and decked out in riding gear - pants, jerseys, boots, helmets, and body armor.

Camping in an RV will limit the places you can camp due to the size of the vehicle. I still prefer tent camping among trees in a more natural setting, but the RV experience is worth doing every now and again.

For more camping information, visit www.youcancamp.com

Luggage Racks for Your Camping Trip

If you have ever gone a road trip with a family, you never seem to have enough room in your vehicle for everything you need. This is especially true when you are going camping, which requires a lot of gear. A solution to this problem is a vehicle luggage rack. A luggage rack can free up a lot of space on the inside of your vehicle as well as keep some of the dirty camping gear on the outside. There are several different kinds of luggage racks - hitch mounted, hard shelled rooftop carriers and soft rooftop luggage bags. There are also the specialty racks for bikes, kayaks, surfboards, etc. Choose a rack that best fits your needs. Consider the gear you typically haul and how it will fit the different carrier styles. Consider the size, and which type will work best with your vehicle.

For more information, pictures and retailers, click on www.youcancamp.com/luggageracks.php

Campfire muffins

For a simple breakfast treat when camping, you can make some campfire muffins. Simply mix up some muffin batter, pour the batter into half of a hollowed out orange, wrap it with foil and place it in the fire. Presto, great muffins!!

For some more easy camping recipes and food ideas, check out www.youcancamp.com/campingrecipes.php

Fall Outerwear

Last fall I was fortunate enough to be given some tickets to an NFL game in San Francisco. The weather called for rain and wind, typical for San Fran that time of year, and I had nothing to wear to keep me warm and dry. I found the perfect solution in a Columbia titanium jacket, which has a liner that you can zip in and out or wear by itself. It was perfect, and the jacket is very functional for other activities. With the liner in, it is warm enough for winter activities like skiing, and without the liner, the shell is waterproof for golf or other activities. It also looks good.

There is more information at www.youcancam.com/columbiatitaniumjacket.php as well as good camping info.

Stay Dry When Camping

The other day, I had someone ask me what to do if it rains when camping. One thing you will not enjoy is staying in your tent with your whole family for hours and hours. The way to give yourself more covered space is to put up a rain tarp. This can give you plenty of space to get out of the tent and have dry, usable space for a table, chairs and even a fire. In order to do this, you will need a tarp, some rope and something to tie the tarp to (usually some trees). We always keep an extra tarp in our box of camping gear. Tie a length of rope to each of the corners of the tarp. If the weather is windy, you may also want to tie some rope to the sides as well. Tie the end of one of the corner ropes to something that you can throw up to loop the rope over a branch on the tree, at least 10 feet off the ground. Pull the rope to raise the tarp, wrap the rope around the tree a few times, then tie it off. Repeat the same process with the other three corners of the tarp. Make sure that the tarp is not exactly level, otherwise the rain water will not have anywhere to run off and will pool right in the middle. This should give you a little more room until the weather passes.

For more camping tips, visit www.youcancamp.com

Pack trip camping

One of the best camping trips I have ever had was a pack trip. We did this in the Sierra Nevada Mountains just north of Yosemite National Park at a place called Kennedy Meadows. After a home style breakfast, our group loaded up on horseback and rode for about three hours. We had a guide who also was our cook for the trip and a couple of others to help with the horses, mules and anything else we needed. All of the gear was packed on the mules and carried up for us. We arrived at a meadow and set up camp along a stream about half a mile from a small lake. We spent four days hiking and fishing and enjoying the beautiful setting. All of our meals were prepared for us, which was great. The horses were available for us to ride each day. If you enjoy the outdoors, I would definitely recommend a pack trip like this. I can't wait until our kids are all old enough to ride, so we can go as a family.

For camping tips and equipment ideas, visit www.youcancamp.com

Camping information

I have been camping for many years and this year decided to share some of my experiences on a website, with a focus on helping the less experienced camper get off to a good start. I can remember way back as a child when we would go on family camping trips and it seemed something always went wrong (at least that was my perspective at the time). But the more we camped, the fewer problems we had. Experience is truly a great teacher when it comes to camping. Now as an adult with children of my own, the same holds true, and the more problems you encounter, the better you are the next time out. So hopefully, some of that information can be used by others to make their first camping trip a good experience and something they will want to do again.

There are also some useful camping equipment pages and recommendations on the site and I am building a list of campsite reviews. So please check out the site at www.youcancamp.com and let me know what you think.