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Camping

How to Pack for a Camping Trip That Won’t Leave You Out in the Cold

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information see my disclosure policy.

Guest Post by Jenni Moreau

Much like 37 million other households in America, my family and I have always enjoyed camping and spending time in nature. But one of the things that put me off camping for a while when I was a teenager was the cold. Even with the right clothing to help me stay warm during cold seasons, it just wasn’t enough and I was so envious of people who had RVs. My parents learned some cold, hard truths during that camping trip which resulted in us shivering in our tents. There are loads of valuable camping tips and supplies that keep the cold at bay if you do your research. Knowing about them can make camping in winter an entirely different experience.

You might think camping in the fall and winter just doesn’t sound like fun, but research published in Current Biology has found that it can be really good for you. When five volunteers went camping for a week in winter, they had fewer hours of daylight but were exposed to 13 times more natural light during the day than if they’d been stuck indoors. Their levels of melatonin, known as “the sleep hormone”, made them sleep longer and hit the sack earlier.

Going camping in winter can be fantastic – it’s all about having the right items to keep you warm. Here’s a rundown of some winter camping essentials.

 

Get The Right Sleeping Bag

It’s all about the temperature. Always make sure you choose a sleeping bag that comes with a temperature rating that’s six degrees colder than the temperature of your campsite.

Bring Your Water Bottle

It’s easy to forget to drink water during winter, but make sure you pack a big water bottle and keep it next to you during the night. You need to prevent dehydration so that your body can use the liquids you consume to regulate your body temperature. This is just as important as eating calories throughout the day to boost your body temp.

Don’t Let Your Sleeping Bag Touch Anything Cold

If your sleeping bag is cozy, but it’s touching the cold tent or ground, it’s just going to start cooling down. You should always ensure that your sleeping bag isn’t touching anything cold. A sleeping pad can help to give your tent greater insulation.

Get A Tarp

You should place a tarp underneath your tent so that you prevent moisture from getting into it. This will keep your tent nice and warm during the cold. When setting the tarp underneath the tent, make sure that its edges don’t extend further than the sides of the tent, as this could collect water if it rains. Waking up in the middle of the night because you’re soaked is a nightmare.

Layer Up

Don’t just wear layers of clothing before going to bed in your sleeping bag, but layer your bag too. Drape a spare blanket over your sleeping back so that you’ll trap in the heat and block out any cold that’s seeping into the tent.

Pitch In The Right Place

Camping’s all about location! Don’t just set up camp anywhere on the campsite. Make sure that you’re far away from areas where there’s no water supply, where branches or trees could fall on you in a storm, and where there are valleys that can trap the cold wind. The best place to pitch a tent is where the ground is flat, your tent will receive lots of sun, you’re close to a water supply, and you’re not in a windy spot.

Camping in winter, or even early spring, can be a nightmare if you’re not equipped for the weather, like my family and I weren’t. But by ensuring you pack some winter essentials, you’ll prevent the weather from getting in the way of a fun camping trip.

7 Ways to Make Coffee While Camping

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information see my disclosure policy.

Inside: I am lost without my morning cup of coffee, so I asked my friend Heather to write about different ways to get a good cup while camping, or on the road. Here are 7 ways to make coffee while camping.

 

[Read more…] about 7 Ways to Make Coffee While Camping

10 Tips To Make Your First Family Camping Experience Enjoyable for Everyone

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information see my disclosure policy.

Does your family go camping together? I grew up tent camping with my family and Girl Scout troop, so it was a tradition I wanted to start with my own boys. My husband and I debated about what age to start and took both boys on an overnight trip to Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Camp Resort in Elmer, NJ. They are 3 and 15 months. Since this was our first experience camping with the kids, and it had been a few years since we camped ourselves, we decided to stick close to home and only stay 1 night. [Read more…] about 10 Tips To Make Your First Family Camping Experience Enjoyable for Everyone

Five Tips for Preparing and Cooking With a Campfire

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information see my disclosure policy.

Special thanks to Susan Conley from the blog cookthestone.com for this guest post. 

Worried about your cooking in an upcoming camping trip? Learn five tips that come in handy when cooking over a campfire. Cooking at a camp be a completely different experience for a homemaker. After all, you are away from your kitchen where all your ingredients, cookware and utensils are stored. And adding to the pressure is the fact that you can’t dial a pizza delivery number in case everything goes awry. You will really have to deliver, so to speak, unless you want your family or friends who were so busy putting up the tent to go hungry. [Read more…] about Five Tips for Preparing and Cooking With a Campfire

Gifts for Active Kids Who Love Camping

This post may contain affiliate links. For more information see my disclosure policy.

My kids love camping and monkeying around outside, so this year I thought I’d start my gift guides with a roundup of fun, active gifts to enjoy in your backyard or take along on your adventures.

If your kids are anything like mine, they have an insatiable need for climbing and jumping. Seriously. I find them in precarious situations all. the. time. Instead of constantly yelling at them to get down and be safe, I try to encourage their exploration and testing of their own physical limits. (While hiding my grimacing face and crossing my fingers that they land on their feet.)

[Read more…] about Gifts for Active Kids Who Love Camping

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