Camping

"Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident." Psalms 27:3

This is My Father's World - Hymn
http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/t/i/s/tismyfw.htm


When setting up your camp, there are very specific things to be aware of. The following are basic guidelines for choosing where to place your tent and campsite:

Look for Safety First:

Don't place your tent or campsite where trees with dead limbs or very heavy limbs may fall during a storm. Do not place your campsite or tent where flash floods can occur, such as in gullies or steep canyon bottoms. Consider lightning storms and stay away from the top of ridges, hills or mountains and lonely trees. Do not place your campsite where animals have their natural trails - you don't want to unwanted visitors or even bears, trying to gain entrance to your campsite and food.

Big Enough:

Make sure the campsite is large enough for everything you need. If you are in bear country, hang your food from a large tree at least 200 feet from your campsite and do not leave ANY food scraps around the camp to draw the bears in. Even scraps or trash needs to be carried away from camp to discourage hungry bears.

Water Supply:

Generally, unless you are backpacking into the wilds of somewhere, there will be potable water available (hint: potable will be on your quiz!). You will need to locate the water source before you begin to set up your campsite to make sure the water is available and to make sure it is not too far away from you. NEVER drink water from a stream, creek, lake or other body of water. You must thoroughly disinfect your water prior to drinking if you are using this type of water supply. Failure to do so can result in moderate to severe illness or even death. There are many little microbes, amoebas and protozoa's in open water sources that can wreak havoc in your body. The following link explains what these little critters are:

http://www.microscope-microscope.org/applications/pond-critters/pond-critters.htm

Placing Your Tent:

Assuming you won't be going in a camping trailer, RV or some other form of portable housing unit, you will be pitching a tent on the ground. When locating a campsite or arriving at a designated site, scan the area well for ant hills or holes, small rocks or twigs that can pop a hole in your tent and make sleeping uncomfortable, away from the drip line of trees so you aren't flooded if it rains, flat if possible (if you can't get a flat spot, make sure you place your tent so your head is uphill!), and away from rushing water (it can become too noisy at night when you're trying to sleep).

Once you find the perfect place for your tent, walk over the area your tent will be sitting and pick up even the tiniest little rock or stick. It might not seem big when you first look, but tents can get holes punched in them from those little stones and sticks and sleeping on them is very uncomfortable. It isn't very much fun to move or take down the tent just to pull out a few meddlesome stones or sticks - do it first!

Then place a large plastic tarp on the ground and secure in place either with large rocks on the edges of the tarps - or with tent stakes driven into the ground with a hammer. Your tent will go on top of the  plastic tarp to prevent moisture from the ground from leaking up into your tent. Also, it gives you a place to put your shoes and other items so you don't bring dust and mud into the tent.

Take your time pitching the tent because you want it done right the first time. NEVER store food in your tent - from personal experience, we had crazed squirrels chew softball sized holes in our tents looking for the food they smelled and couldn't reach!

Privacy:

Although you may not have a choice when you are assigned to a campsite in a campground, try to arrange your tents and campsite to provide your family with some privacy from other campers. Also, arrange your campsite to discourage strangers from walking through it on their way to the toilet or showers or just out for a walk. And remember that at night, with a campfire burning at your site, people can see what is happening in your campsite fairly easily. Use tents, tables, vehicles and even clothes on a clothesline to advantage to provide a little more privacy.

Stoves & Fires:

Make sure open fires or any fire is permitted where you are camping!!! Some campgrounds, especially in hot, dry summers, do not allow fire at all or only in limited ways such as camp stoves. The threat of forest fires can prevent open fires in some seasons. Most campgrounds will have a dug-in campfire ring where you are permitted to have fires. These rings often have grills on them for BBQ or to place pots and pans on for cooking. You can use wood or charcoal in these rings, but do not help yourself to the wood around you as you will probably earn yourself a ticket for destroying federal property. Instead, when you call to make your reservation, ask if you need to bring your own wood or if you are allowed to collect fallen deadwood from trees. ALWAYS ASK FIRST!

When cooking over an open fire, it is difficult to regulate the temperature so you can't leave it and walk away. Also, the bottom of your pots and pans will be liberally coated with thick, coal-black residue from the fire. Be prepared for this and wash these items last when doing the dishes - if you are able to simply scrub the pots and pans out without dunking them in the water (using a brush or dishcloth instead) you can reuse the pots and pans without cleaning off the blackish bottoms until you are ready to go home.

When cooking over a camp stove, depending on the fuel used, you will run into the same dilemma with the black residue. Propane stoves do not create the residue, but those that take white gas (Coleman fuel) or gasoline will. Depending on your stove, you may need to become inventive in protecting the flame from wind and breezes. If at all possible, bring a spare parts to your stove in case something needs to be replaced. You may go years without needing to replace a part, but if you do and it is not with you - eating cold, uncooked food and not having anything hot to eat or drink can become wearisome quickly.

Permission:

Always make sure you have permission from the owner's of the property before you set up camp. For campgrounds, you simply make a reservation. For open areas, you may need to ask in the closest town. You don't want to trespass on someone's property and break the law.

Arranging the Campsite:

It needs to work. As interior designers say, "It needs to flow". Honestly, you need to be able to cook meals, wash dishes, have a place for people to sit, have a place to store gear and food (coolers), have an area for your tents, a clothesline, etc without tripping all over each other.

First figure out where your tents will go. Put them up and then decide where the cooking and dishwashing will be. Get that set up. Then figure where the folding chairs and other items will go - generally most people like to sit around the campfire ring whether it has fire going or not, so that's an easy one. If you are camping in the boonies and will be digging your own hole for toilet needs - designate an area that has privacy and where the wind will be blowing away from camp and not into it!!!

Expert advice, video and other goodies to click on to learn more:

http://www.rei.com/expertadvice/articles/settingup+camp.html

http://www.ehow.com/videos-on_8458_set-up-tent.html (Excellent on how to pitch a tent!)