Camping Advice
Buy A Tent: It Is A Wise Investment
Posted BY Ian
During these difficult times there is one investment that will provide a return well above all others. This is the ideal time to buy a tent and save money on holidays thereafter. Buy A Tent: The Return On Your Investment So how does spening money save you money? Spending wisely is the key. Buying a tent means that you can then save money on holidays and, let's face it, even when times are hard, few of us are willing to give up holidays completely. A tent is ready made accommodation. It will not take many nights saved from a hotel or guesthouse to recoup your capital. This applies ... Continued
Camp cooking: the choice of fuels
Posted BY Ian
The golden rule with camp cooking is never to cook inside your tent. Under the porch is fine if you are careful but consider your alternate route out should you catch the fabric alight. Also consider the fumes. You need proper ventilation to ensure that you do not succumb to these. When it comes to camp cooking, your choice of fuel will depend very much upon your camping style. The following list of choices looks at the lightweight options before moving on to those who need not worry about that aspect. Unleaded petrol (and similar) Some multi-fuel stoves burn unleaded petrol. This is ... Continued
Top 10 Books for Campers
Posted BY Ian
For something a bit different, I have made a list of some great books for campers to ensure you have a great time camping, whatever your style. Camping should be fun Cool Camping...: Sleeping, Eating, and Enjoying Life Under Canvas Taking camping to another level. Enjoy! The Happy Campers This pair love their camping and know how to get you to love yours. Something for everyone. Hearty eating for campers Cool Camping Cookbook Great outdoor food, good enough to eat in your garden. Don't forget to check out the other Cool Camping guides. These offer a different perspective on ... Continued
Camp Catering: The Bread Allowance
Posted BY Ian
"Outstanding economies in camp can be made in such things as bread." Things have moved on a bit since this was written but the principle of economy is one that is still worth considering. Try to read the following not just as advice on bread but as a generic tip to prevent the wastage of good food. "The rough allowance per day per head is 1 lb of bread, but it will be found in practice that many people do not eat nearly as much as this ... much more bread is eaten when the dinner consists of stew than when it is meat pudding or pie." A balanced meal consists of only so ... Continued
Got a tent: What else is it we need?
Posted BY Ian
In response to the Comment from Alex on May 20 ... A tent provides shelter but even a great one wouldn't be sufficient for a camping trip. You will also need to consider: Sleeping It will rarely be warm enough to sleep without some form of insulation. Sleeping bags are the preferred option. The selection of these is beyond the scope of this site but look for ratings. 4 season is for year round use, anything less is only for the warmer months. Your sleeping body loses much of its head from the head (hence why good sleeping bags have a hood) and to the ground. You can insulate ... Continued
Leave it be: don't destroy your campsite
Posted BY Ian
Leave no trace finds no better meaning than in terms of your campsite. You should leave this as you found it or, where you arrived to find it in a poor state, better than you found it. Three simple concepts apply: Do not change the site for your needs The habit of digging drainage ditches around tents is highly destructive and unnecessary if you choose a good site to pitch your tent in the first place. If you do have concerns about water-logging then better to spend a little more time looking around for somewhere else. If you plan on having a fire (and stoves are a better option ... Continued
Special tricks for camping on sand or snow
Posted BY Ian
This article was prompted by my recent one on Qualities of a Best Family Tent. The principles apply to any form of camping on sand or snow, whether that be on a beach, desert or mountain. Tent design It pays to have a tent that is designed to standalone. That generally means a geodesic or dome design. Although these benefit from being pegged out they are at least functional when erected and held in place by some ballast. Tunnel tents, Traverse-hoop tents and Ridge-pole tents all need to be pegged out properly to achieve their proper shape and hence strength and stability. Special tent ... Continued
Camp cleanliness: the grease pit and rules for an orderly camp
Posted BY Ian
"... greasy water should never be just thrown down on to the ground and allowed to soak in. This is a most unhealthy practice and creates smell and attracts flies." At a campsite one would hope that every camper takes their greasy dishes and does their washing up in the correct area. In the wilderness, proper disposal of greasy food remnants is vital as these are slow to break down. The principle behind a grease pit is to filter off the grease whilst allowing water to soak into the ground. The filter material can then be burnt, creating smoke but destroying the offensive and ... Continued
Which tent should I buy?
Posted BY Ian
This is a simple question at the heart of this website. Estate agents harp on about 'Location, location, location'. If they sold tents it would be (or should be) 'Purpose, purpose, purpose'. There is no one best tent for all uses and your choice should very much depend on the use to which you intend to put it. In fact, what you need to look for are the tent qualities that suit your intended camping style. In extreme cases, one of these may prioritize over all others. For instance, a mountain marathon runner may sacrifice all other qualities in order to get the lightest possible option, ... Continued
Camp cleanliness: washing up (Part 2)
Posted BY Ian
"... a good deal of the unpleasantness of the task can be avoided if it is set about in the right way. The foundation of easy washing-up is plenty of hot water and a sufficiency of cloths for drying ..." Hot water will always be essential to remove grease properly. Cloths are generally only useful for short camping trips; they just get too dirty. Shaking the water off and leaving dishes to dry naturally (or remain a little damp until the next meal) is preferable. The next section contains a string of tips referring to natural products that can be used for cleaning instead of relying on the ... Continued
Dispose of camp waste properly
Posted BY Ian
In my last article, Camp Cleanliness: the crux of the matter, I said that the approved methods for disposing of waste from 75 years ago are no longer acceptable. I also said I would deal with the modern thinking later. Here you are ... Leave no trace The modern principle for all responsible camping stems from the one phrase: Leave no trace The easiest way to achieve this is to take all waste items back out with you, and the latest buzz phrase from across the Atlantic is: Pack it in, pack it out Dealing with human waste In some US campsites that pretty much sums up the rules. Even toilet ... Continued
Camp cleanliness: crux of the matter
Posted BY Ian
In this article we get to the very heart of Camp Cleanliness. "Camp cleanliness - A good test of the cleanliness of a camp kitchen is the complete absence of flies." That can be extended to any kitchen, and to just about an insect life. "In order to ensure this, you must not attract these only too eager visitors by offering them free bed and board in the way of food refuse." In the wild flies feed on other forms of waste, excrement for one, and so it really doesn't pay to have them anywhere need your food, cooked or uncooked. Making sure that you deal with rubbish is critical. "The ... Continued
Emergency Shelters
Posted BY Ian
If you don't plan on camping but can foresee the need for some sort of shelter if things go wrong (weather closes in, you get delayed), you will want to carry an emergency shelter of some sort. There is a school of thought that says that carrying emergency kit along only increases the chance that you will need it. Be wary of this adage until you have the experience to make a full judgment for yourself. Depending upon the likelihood of needing that shelter, and the severity of conditions should one be needed, you can carry, in ascending order of value: a space blanket is more a way of ... Continued
Camp cleanliness: Washing up (Part 1)
Posted BY Ian
"Washing up - After a meal is over, there is often a mad rush for the washing up place and consequent confusion." Not so sure I've ever been on a camp like that. "To avoid this, there ought to be a system from the very first in washing up, just as much as in the actual cooking." Agreed. The system need not be sophisticated but it certainly pays to be prepared: Wash the preparation utensils as you go along. Put water on to heat whilst you are eating such that there is plenty when it comes to the main washing up session. Organize your dishes such that items needing little ... Continued
Camp cleanliness: an introduction
Posted BY Ian
"The Kitchen - The appearance of the food and of those who cook it is the index, as it were, to the whole camp." This may seem a bit regimented for a casual group of friends but you should be thinking of basic hygiene measures if only to avoid curtailing your main activities from upset stomachs. There are a lot more bugs out in the countryside, many of which will be unfamiliar to your body. Don't ruin a holiday or break just for the sake of laziness. The easiest measure to put in place is as follows: "The hands and finger-nails of those employed in preparing and cooking food should be ... Continued
Planning for a Camping Trip
Posted BY Ian
Getting to your camp site It is obviously important that you know where you are going and where you intend to stay. It is not always necessary to book ahead for campsites but if you intend arriving late at night, it may be worth doing so in order not to find yourselves or your vehicles locked out. You can find lists of campsites, often with reviews from previous campers, online. It is worth checking these as there may be pointers to issues which you had not considered. There should also be a map of the local area or at least instructions to help you over those last few kilometres - the ... Continued
Camp cooking: preparing, cooking and serving
Posted BY Ian
This article follows on from Camp cooking: a short introduction . In it, we look at the organization of the food chain. The Store Tent "The first link in the chain is the the store tent, which should be close to the preparing place, but further removed from the kitchen." You are unlikely to take along an Army bell tent as recommended. For a weekend away you may only need 3 or 4 meals at the camp site. This section of the book goes on to detail the best ways of storing different foods. The principles are the same. You need to be organized such that you can find things as you need them, ... Continued
Camp cooking: a short introduction
Posted BY Ian
"The health and consequently the happiness of the whole camp depends on the catering department." Words of wisdom indeed, and very closely allied to that other often heard quote attributed to Napoleon, "An army marches on its stomach". Even if you and your fellow campers don't feel much like an army, the principles laid out are the same: "The ideal camp should be as near to the water supply as possible, with good facilities for drainage. It should be in the shade, since hot sun, as well as fire, is good neither for food nor cooks, and it should not be in the nieghbourhood of the ... Continued
Top Tips to Avoid Tent Repairs
Posted BY Ian
The key to avoiding tent repairs is to look after your tent in the first place. It may seem obvious but if you ask most campers what they do to look after their tent they'll look at you stunned. First of all, avoid fires near to your tent. Modern fabrics are very susceptible to fire and heat damage. It doesn't take much to melt a hole, and holes let water, wind and vermin inside. Not good. Most modern tents have a sewn in groundsheet. This is better for waterproofing and because it avoids a gap with the same problems mentioned above. Unfortunately, the groundsheet is prone to ... Continued