Camping (eBook)

An Experiential Guide

Allan C. Clark (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2019 | 1. Auflage
196 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
978-1-5439-6713-5 (ISBN)

Infos

The author has spent a lifetime of camping in many of its forms. Experiences from tent camping, canoe camping, and camping as a backpacker all come together in this fully-packed guide. Whether you are considering camping for the first time or even if you are a seasoned camper, you'll find hundreds of useful tips in this guide. In order to help the reader to avoid pitfalls and mishaps that could await the inexperienced camper, the author portrays mistakes he has made and situations he has seen or experienced. In fact, the entire guide was created for the sole purpose of helping campers to have the best possible camping experience.

---

The author has spent a lifetime of camping in many of its forms. Experiences from tent camping, canoe camping, and camping as a backpacker all come together in this fully-packed guide. Whether you are considering camping for the first time or even if you are a seasoned camper, you'll find hundreds of useful tips in this guide. The information you will find within the guide includes how to plan your camping adventure, the equipment you might need, what to expect at a campground or remote location, which foods to consider, and the wildlife you might encounter. In order to help the reader to avoid pitfalls and mishaps that could await the inexperienced camper, the author portrays mistakes he has made and situations he has seen or experienced. In fact, the entire guide was created for the sole purpose of helping campers to have the best possible camping experience.

Textauszug

CHOOSING A CAMPGROUND

Much depends upon your expectations. How do you plan to spend your time at that campground? Do you envision simply sitting under a shade tree with a good book or do you plan to do some wildlife photography? If you are bringing family or friends then what are their interests? Are there activities that your kids might enjoy? Is there a pool, beach, or fishing pier? Are there any presenters of wildlife information, nature interpreters and/or guided hikes? Or would the whole family enjoy a hike to a waterfall?

It is best to phone ahead to get a clear understanding of the layout and clientele of a potential candidate for your camping adventure. It would also be a good idea to discover what amenities the campground might have such as hot & cold water showers, a game room, or even a source for ice cream. Knowing whether the campground has firewood available might be important.

Recently I learned of a campground at which the adjacent fishing/swimming/boating lake’s dam sprung a leak. The lower water level affected all of the water-related activities. This is a good example of why it is important to call ahead to your prospective destination to check local conditions that could affect your camping adventure.

Campground Fliers and Maps

When you check out a campground online or when you actually arrive at a campground it is nearly certain that you will encounter a list of rules. Most often online they will be found in a PDF file, or at the campground, on a printed flier or on some other handout. Read them. Those fliers and the rules on them are usually the result of the campground staff’s years of experiences with campers of all sorts in that particular campground. They are designed to inform you of not only the most expedient and safest procedures for that campground, but also to guide you toward behaviors that allow other campers to have an equally pleasant camping experience. Although many rules found at campgrounds are quite similar, there are often major differences. Possibly the most important thing to note is the time of the evening designated as “quiet time.” It may begin at 9 p.m. at one campground and 11 p.m. at another. If you have a dog you should pay particular attention to rules concerning leashes, areas where dogs are or aren’t allowed, and rules about picking up after your dog. If a map of the campground is available you should note whether some roads are designated as one-way and be sure you always move your vehicle in the direction indicated. A map may also indicate which campsites can be reserved and which are readily available, first come, first served.

Some fliers include other useful information about such things as local hiking trails, popular attractions, and even local shopping. Some even offer coupons for local commercial enterprises; but even if no coupons are available, be sure to mention the campground’s advertising when you shop at the places they advertise. Doing so can sometimes result in a discount, but may also indirectly help the campground.

Hang-tags, Dash Cards and Post Markers

When you register or self-register at a campground you will more than likely come away with some sort of card or other item intended to be used to indicate your paid occupancy of a campsite and probably the date of the end of your stay. This is a fairly important item and should be displayed appropriately. Many such markers are imprinted with a very condensed list of important information such as, quiet hours, time in which the running of generators is authorized, dog leash restrictions, and possibly the time the gates of the campground are locked. Often there is just too much to absorb during registration and this important information is overlooked. Try to remember to examine these tags or cards as you place them where they should be displayed. Displaying them, by the way, is very important. If the cards or markers are meant to be placed on a post then that should be done the moment you arrive at your campsite. Hang-tags – those cards designed to hang from your vehicle’s rear-view mirror – should be attached as soon as they are received. (If you have more than one vehicle be sure to get a second tag.) When you park at your campsite you should always park so that your tag is clearly visible from the access road. These markers are used by campground employees for a variety of purposes, the most important of which is for your safety. Hang-tags help to ensure that no unauthorized people are in the campground.

Bathrooms/Showers/Facilities

It is good to know in advance what sort of facilities are available at your chosen destination. Some campgrounds, particularly state and federal campgrounds may furnish little more than a few scattered pit-toilets or port-a-johns.

Most campground bathrooms furnish toilet paper. In some places the paper furnished is the cheapest available and as such will tear off the moment you pull on it regardless of perforations or else it might be the roughest paper you have ever experienced. You might be fortunate enough to be at a more compassionate campground where reasonably soft and strong paper is supplied. Normally this paper is in the form of huge rolls that are locked within a transparent plastic dispenser. But sometimes there are multiple rolls that are designed so that when one roll is used up the next one is automatically made available. Unfortunately, this latter system only works if the paper rolls are properly and carefully installed, which isn’t always the case. There are few things more frustrating than to be in need of toilet paper, to have it right where you can see it and yet you cannot access it. As a general rule it is best to bring your own just in case you need it.

Don’t take it for granted that all campgrounds have shower facilities or even have hot water. Many state and federal campgrounds - especially the more rustic ones – might not have either of these. You may encounter campgrounds that have very few sources for drinking water and can often be at quite some distance from one another. Sometimes if showers are available you must pay for their use in much the same way as at a car wash. A quarter might purchase a certain number of minutes of shower time. It may also be that the shower will not become activated until a minimum number of quarters are deposited.

A useful backup to have on hand if neither water nor showers are likely to be available is a package or two of pre-moistened bath wipes. These are similar to the wipes used for cleaning babies except they are usually somewhat larger. Many are considerably thicker as well. Look for some that don’t use alcohol. Even without alcohol some wipes feel quite cold when first you begin to use them. After a few moments, though, they become quite pleasant. If you are camping in an RV with electrical hookup you can microwave some brands of bath wipes so they won’t feel quite so chilly. Read and follow the instructions on the package carefully.

Choosing A Campsite

An ideal campsite should be big enough. It should be located conveniently close to drinking water and bathrooms (where available) but far enough from potential sources of noise. The campsite should be within easy walking distance of those aspects of the campground that are of interest to the camper, such as a lake, a playground, or a hiking trail.

Most state or federally run campgrounds make use of a large contractor to handle camping reservations. Many such contractors are in charge of reservations for a great number of campgrounds. Because of this, their personnel usually are quite limited as to how much information they have available for a campsite’s particular features. Although it is wonderfully convenient to reserve a campsite online, you may encounter problems because there could be certain important bits of information missing or unavailable.

Often all you are asked is whether you are tent camping or camping in an RV and the dates you have in mind. If you will be using an RV the next question might be its length. Beware that some older campgrounds are simply not set up to accommodate some of the longer RVs. The trees in some campsites can be problematic with regard to there being enough room for slide-outs. If you are tent camping you are rarely asked if your tent is big or small or even if you might be pitching more than one. It could be up to you to initiate that discussion. When viewing online you might get a glimpse of a map of the campground that may or may not be very accurate as to sizes of sites or distances from other features of the campground, such as bathrooms.

Websites do sometimes display photos of the campsites; but it is often difficult to get an idea of the slant or surroundings from a single, two-dimensional photo. For that reason, some campgrounds indicate the approximate slope of the sites and sometimes even the approach. Often the slope is expressed as a percentage. Without going into the mathematics of slope computation, let it be enough to know that the bigger the percentage number, the steeper the slope will be.

All too often I have seen the drama of someone in a two-wheel-drive pickup that has spewed gravel from increasingly deep divots as they attempted to back their 35-foot trailer up the 30% slope of their campsite’s driveway. There have also been instances in which the campsite, itself, was just too slanted for comfortable tent camping or for RV set-up. Speaking with someone who has first-hand knowledge about a campsite is always...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 30.3.2019
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Sport
• ISBN-10: 1-5439-6713-2 / 1543967132
• ISBN-13: 978-1-5439-6713-5 / 9781543967135