Family Camping
By LaJuana Oswalt
From: NEW BEGINNINGS, Vol. 15 No. 5, September-October 1998, pp. 132-35
Our first family camping
trip started out as an unmitigated disaster. Unfamiliar with the intricacies
of packing enough camping gear for a weekend into the luggage space
of our vehicle, we crammed gear and clothing into the car. Since we'd
gotten a late start, we rolled into our campsite after dark. Setting
up the tent for the first time with no light proved to be a huge challenge.
And did I mention the temperature? It was cold. We had not brought warm
clothing. So we sat next to the meager fire, bundled in every quilt
and blanket I had packed to use as bedding.
By bedtime, we were chilled
to the bone and seriously doubting our sanity. We finally drifted off
to sleep, serenaded by the Boy Scout camp across the way. Suddenly,
I was awakened by my friend's voice. She and her three daughters were
camped in the tent right next to us. "Don't throw up in the tent!
Don't throw up in the tent!" she cried frantically. I could hear
her rustling around in the sleeping bags and piles of supplies in their
tent. She was pushing her daughter toward the opening of the tent, but
the zipper proved to be too much for a sick 12-year-old to manage. She
threw up in the tent.
What a wonderful introduction
to camping! However, in spite of this less-than- stellar beginning,
my family and I have become veteran campers. Any time we get the chance,
we load up the car and take off for some rest and relaxation in the
outdoors. After such an ill-fated maiden voyage, why would we try again?
Because everyone needs a vacation and we've grown to love the special
charms of camping.
Saving Money
Camping is an inexpensive
alternative to the vacations many families would like to take but cannot
afford. Camping equipment runs the gamut from the simple family tent
and sleeping bags to the most elaborate travel trailer or motor home.
For your first trip, try renting gear or borrowing it from acquaintances
with camping experience. That way, you can see if your family is suited
to the great outdoors without investing much money.
Campsites vary widely in
both amenities and prices. State Parks, National Parks, and the Corps
of Engineers sites offer moderately priced camping all across the United
States. Campsites with water, electricity, and sewer hookups usually
cost around $12-$15 per night. Primitive camping sites with no hookups
are available for free or for a nominal registration fee. Privately
owned campgrounds with organized recreational activities, swimming pools,
game rooms, and laundry facilities are still priced well below even
the most bare-bones motels.
Another price-saving feature
of camping is preparing your own meals. Camping meals can be elaborate
or simple. Appetites are usually keener with all the outdoor activity,
and it's prudent to keep substantial snack food on hand. Food cooked
outdoors seems to automatically taste better than the same food prepared
inside.
However, the benefits of
camping with your family go further than affordability. In today's world,
it is difficult to find a large block of time to really focus on your
family, your partner, and your children. Even when we set aside a weekend,
telephone calls, errands, and household chores intrude. At the campsite,
you can leave these things behind and instead find yourself talking
with your family around the campfire. The whole family pitches in to
do chores, and the chores at a campsite are often more fun than those
at home. Picking up kindling for the fire can turn into a nature walk
when you look for the tracks of wildlife. Setting up the tent is a study
in geometry and physics and cooperation. When you are finished, that
same tent is a brand new environment that fascinates a curious toddler
who needs to be confined while you unload the rest of your supplies.
What about camping with children?
When are babies "big enough" to go camping? Start them out
young! On our ill-fated first camping trip, Caitlin was two months old,
and she's been camping ever since. Babies do well in a sling and enjoy
spending the time outdoors. When camping with a toddler, it is best
to have someone on "toddler duty" at all times, just to be
sure your curious little one does not explore outside safe boundaries.
Have a "no-kid zone" in a wide circle around the campfire.
Children play hard when they
are camping, and once it is dark, they tend to drop off to sleep early.
On our last camping trip, I looked around the campfire at my friends.
Our laps were all full of little ones, sprawled in sleep, full of toasted
marshmallows and the contentment of a relaxing day spent outdoors with
their families and friends.
The joys of camping are not
only for children. My most treasured camping memory came one fall afternoon.
My two older children were off on a bike ride with their dad, and I
had the baby in the tent for an afternoon nap. Our portable CD player
was set up near the campfire and the strains of a lovely piano and guitar
piece were floating across the tiny meadow where we were camped. A light
breeze blew through the screens in the tent, and as my baby quietly
nursed to sleep, tiny golden leaves fell down around us like the gentlest
of showers. It was a moment the finest resorts would give anything to
duplicate, and it cost us $12 a night!
Camping Equipment
At the bare minimum, you
will need a tent, sleeping bags, and some basic cooking equipment. Most
sites have a fire pit or grill, so your cooking can be done over the
fire. The same fire will illuminate your campsite after dark and provide
an excellent setting for singing, story-telling, and conversation. Plan
ahead. Find out if the campground provides firewood (most do not) and
bring some along if necessary.
While not an absolute necessity,
an air mattress or some other sort of pad is a nice addition to your
family camping supplies. Children don't seem to notice that they slept
on the bare ground, but adults are a different story. Other items to
consider taking along are: flashlights and batteries, lanterns and fuel,
matches, hatchet (for firewood and kindling), camp stove, bug repellant,
first-aid supplies, lawn chairs, extension cords, and a portable radio/cassette/CD
player for music.
We rarely camp without our
bicycles. Campsites are generally low-traffic areas where even the youngest
bikers can ride safely to their hearts' content. Don't forget their
helmets! No one wants a camping trip interrupted by an injury.
Another camping necessity
is toiletries. A plastic tote filled with soap, toothpaste, and a small
bottle of shampoo can be carried easily to the shower house. Shower
shoes are inexpensive and can be tucked down inside the shower tote.
When selecting a campsite, take into consideration the location of the
toilets. It is much easier to be close! A portable potty is good to
have for those middle-of-the-night trips when climbing over sleeping
children and unzipping a tent zipper seems like a daunting task. Most
campers prefer to limit the porta-potty's use to nighttime and emergencies.
Cooking While Camping
On your first outings, keep
it simple. Hot dogs grilled over the fire are not only fun to prepare,
but they require a minimum of utensils. Hobo Dinners are another favorite,
and they can be prepared at home and packed in your ice chest for cooking
on the fire. Place a hamburger patty (or chicken breast or pork chop--you
choose) onto a square of heavy-duty aluminum foil, and surround it with
chopped vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, onions, bell pepper, celery,
mushrooms, or squash. Seal the packets and place them in the coals.
Eat them right out of the foil, and toss your dishes in the trash when
you are finished. What could be easier?
Breakfasts can be light--cereal
and milk--or hearty and filling. The smell of coffee brewing over the
fire will wake the sleepiest camper. A cookstove is a nice accessory
for fixing breakfast, although eggs and bacon can be cooked in an iron
skillet over the coals. Pancakes are traditional camping fare and can
also be cooked over coals.
Lunches are usually serve-yourself
affairs at our campsite. We take sandwich fixings, chips, and fruit,
and the children eat whenever they get hungry.
Meal cleanup is not difficult,
but it takes a little planning. Take along a large kettle. It can be
used for campfire chili or stew, then put to use a second time to heat
water for washing dishes. Don't forget to pack dishwashing detergent
and a dishcloth and towel. While it is more ecologically sound to wash
your dishes after each meal, it is easier to use disposable plates and
cups. Decide which is more important for your family. Remember that
many campgrounds and state parks monitor garbage and expect campers
to separate all their recyclable waste materials.
Clothing
Take a variety of clothing
when camping. Often, it is cool at night and early in the morning, but
warm during the afternoon. Layers work best. Don't take your best clothes.
Dirt is one of the main components of any camping trip. Before you leave
your house, resign yourself to the fact that your children will have
dirt under their fingernails, their clothes will be filthy, and it really
doesn't matter! Keep a laundry pre-treating stick handy to treat the
most horrendous stains right at the campsite. Take extra of everything,
especially socks. The younger the children, the more extra clothes they
will need. If they have old shoes, take those. If possible, dress your
children in bright clothing because it makes it easier to spot them
at a distance.
Things That Go Bump in
the Night
A trial run with the tent
in your back-yard is a nice introduction to camping for children who
are uneasy at night. The sounds you hear in a tent, while soothing and
sleep-inducing for many, can take some getting used to for a child.
Listen for different animals and insects. The chirp of a cricket is
easily distinguished from the song of a tree frog. Was that a bear brushing
up against the tent? More likely it was a leaf falling on the canvas
or a squirrel scavenging for the roasted peanuts you dropped.
If your campsite has electricity,
a small fan running in the tent at night provides enough "white
noise" to allow little ones to drift off but still allows you to
hear the sounds of nature around you. Give each child a flashlight of
his own. Light is a powerful tool against nighttime fears. Mix a bit
of vinegar and water in a spray bottle and make a big show of spraying
your homemade "critter repellant" around the campsite.
Finding Your Comfort
Level
Tent camping is an excellent
way to get started camping with your family. But what if a tent just
isn't for you? Maybe your family craves a few more comforts. Explore
the possibility of cabin camping at a National or State Park. These
cabins are usually quite rustic and offer the experience of the outdoors
without the setup and maintenance of tent camping.
Pop-up trailers are another
option. These are basically tents on wheels, which provide features
not feasible in a tent. For example, pop-ups can be equipped with furnaces,
sinks, even showers and toilets! Their beds are up off the ground and
more comfortable than a sleeping bag on the bare ground. They are lightweight
and easily towed behind most family cars.
Full-sized travel trailers
and motorhomes are another option, although they are a substantial investment.
Trailers and motor homes provide the maximum of luxury while camping.
Ease of setup and packing are additional advantages to these high-end
vehicles.
Final Tips
If you decide to give camping
a try, remember these tips. Have a sense of humor. Camp the first time
with experienced friends. Take off your watch. Stay up late, scold less,
laugh more. Make your packing containers do double duty--pack in trash
bags, stuff dirty laundry back into them. Be prepared; family camping
can become a passion and your whole family will be richer for it.
Babies in Sleeping Bags
Camping with little ones
requires a little attention to details. Some special areas of concern
are:
Setup: Crawling
toddlers love to explore the tent once it is set up. They may sleep
through the whole set-up process, safely buckled in their car seats.
If they are awake, they are usually so enthralled by the new and exciting
activity going on around them that they will be happy to perch, still
buckled in, on a picnic table or in the grass near your campsite. If
you're camping with friends, work it out so that one adult is available
to watch small children.
Diapers:
Most campsites will have garbage disposal available at or near each
individual campsite. Disposable diapers are easy to pack and dispose
of, but you can certainly camp with cloth diapers. Large-sized plastic
storage bags will hold soiled diapers until you return home, as will
a sealable plastic container. The tent floor, picnic table, or a sling
spread on the ground makes a changing table au natural!
Creepy crawlers:
First, remember the rule: "Your children will get dirty."
Dress the crawling ones appropriately, police your campsite for poison
ivy, sharp sticks, or anything that appears dangerous to you, and then
let them explore nature. You can spread a quilt or blanket on the ground
for their play area. You can sew old towels together for a huge, easily
washable, camping quilt. Border this play area with your lawn chairs,
some favorite toys, or a couple of adults who want to lie in the shade
and read. Babies love the company and the outdoors.
Bathing: Maybe
baby has gotten dirtier than you can live with or you've applied insect
repellant and need to wash it off. There are several ways to clean babies
while camping. The bath house at the campsite is one option. Shower
stalls designed to be accessible to the disabled usually have a tiled
bench where you can sit and hold your child while you both shower. At
the campsite, use a multi-purpose rubber bin as a tub. Heat water on
your camp stove or over your fire, then fill the tub and bathe your
baby before snuggling down to sleep.
Toddler duty: If
your toddler is an especially curious and active child, consider assigning
a responsible teenager or adult to "toddler duty." This person
keeps a close eye on the busy toddler, making sure to steer them clear
of the campfire, keep them confined to the campsite, and discourage
them from dismantling anyone's tent!
Camping trips are rarely
spent just sitting around. Babies and toddlers love long hikes in a
back carrier or sling. A bike seat for the little ones lets them enjoy
family bike rides. And there's nothing quite like nursing your baby
to sleep, surrounded by the beauty of the outdoors. /font>
Resources
Little, M. and Morava, L.
Camper's Guide to U.S. National Parks. Houston, Texas: Gulf Publishing
Company, 1994.
Logue, V. Camping in the
90s. Birmingham, Alabama: Menasha Ridge Press, 1995.
White, U. Sleeping in
a Sack: Camping Activities for Kids. Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith,
1998.
Woodson, R. and Woodson,
K. The Parent's Guide to Camping with Children. Cincinnati, Ohio:
Betterway Books, 1995.
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:29:47 UTC 2007.
