Camping For Dummies

Michael Hodgson

• Publisher: For Dummies
• Year: 2011
• Print ISBN: 9780764552212
• eBook ISBN: 9781118069233
• Edition: 1

Your straightforward guide for succesfully enjoying the great outdoors You love the great outdoors, but you're not always sure the great outdoors loves you. You can pitch a tent, start a campfire, build furniture by lashing tree branches together–in theory anyway! But while you may not have gotten your Girl Scout Gold Award, or your Eagle Scout with cluster, you can still enjoy a night out under the stars with those near and dear to you, or even work towards becoming a more serious outdoorsman, right?

Sure as a bear lives in the woods, Camping for Dummies shows you how to get out there and enjoy the best Mother Nature has to offer. With the helpful advice this common sense guide provides, you'll be prepared when it comes to:

• Destination
• Gear
• Shelter
• Clothing
• Food
• Weather
• Safety

Written by journalist Michael Hodgson, veteran of Utah's Eco-Challenge and numerous other outdoor adventures, Camping for Dummies cuts out gear-head jargon and antiquated methods to give you, plain and simple, what you need to know to make the smart choices that lead to great adventures. You'll find out:

• How to tie a bear bag
• The delicious caveman style for cooking fresh fish
• The limitations of GPS
• How to predict the weather by observing birds, frogs, and insects
• Ten survival essentials
• How to go canoe, kayak, or bicycle camping
• What features make a good backpack, boot, and other equipment
• When and how to bring along children

Whether the dictionary definition of "tenderfoot" has your picture next to it or you already consider wilderness your home away from home, you'll appreciate this handy, concise reference. Full of illustrations, diagrams, and directions for finding additional camping resources, Camping for Dummies is your complete ticket to America's great outdoors.

Part I

Planning Your Escape

In this part. . .

**IN a DROPCAP**

Every trip has to start somewhere, and this section is all about beginnings. In Chapter 1, I show you how to obtain maps, make camping reservations, and decide where to go and what to do anywhere in the United States or Canada. For a broad discussion on camping gear, including everything you need for a backpacking outing, peruse Chapter 2. There, I offer buying guides and discuss each item of equipment with an eye to making your camping experience more efficient and enjoyable. Of course, unless you’re thinking of camping naked, you probably want some advice on dressing for outdoor comfort, no matter what the weather, and you find that and more in Chapter 3. Chapter 4 is all about gearing up for specialized trips such as winter camping, bike touring, and paddling. In that chapter, you find tips for choosing gear and clothing and planning your specialized activity.

Chapter 1

What to Do and Where to Go

In This Chapter

Deciding what to do on your camping trip

Figuring out where to go

Camping with your family and Fido

E very camping trip has a beginning and an end. How you remember the end depends a lot on how much planning and preparation go into the beginning.

“How do you know where to . . . ?” and “How do you know how to . . . ?” are questions I get asked all the time. The answers are what this chapter is all about.

First off, let me assure you that camping is a simple pursuit — well, at least it should be. Granted, bureaucracy has added a layer of modern paperwork to the endeavor, but believe me when I tell you that anyone can go camping.

The first thing to pack is common sense. The second is patience. The third is flexibility. And the fourth? Well, the fourth is the wild card — a sense of humor. If you load up on all four, and add a few necessary permits and other trappings of the civilized world, you’ll have a grand old time every time no matter the weather or the surprises Mother Nature may choose to unveil.

As you gain more camping experience, the planning becomes easier and easier, this I promise. In fact, sometimes I don’t plan at all anymore, letting spontaneity rule the day. Granted, some of my “spontaneous” adventures lead me down roads that are best remembered for their trials and tribulations, but that is to be expected when planning entails simply snatching a pack from the garage and heading outdoors.

But I digress. This is a beginning for you and we’d best begin to plan a successful camping trip from start to finish.

Determining Your Interests and Needs

To make the planning process the most productive, ask yourself the following questions:

What activities am I interested in — fishing, hiking, scrambling, climbing, swimming?

Am I seeking solitude, exercise, group interaction, or photographic opportunities?

How important is seeing wildlife — deer, bear, squirrels, skunks, raccoons?

Is studying the stars or viewing vast fields of wildflowers important to me?

What is the maximum hiking, paddling, biking, or skiing distance I and the members of my group can handle?

How near to the parking area or car do I want to be in case of emergencies?

What kind of temperatures and weather can I tolerate — fog, sun, rain, snow?

What kind of terrain am I looking for — rolling, flat, mountainous, swampy?

Is my group interested in historical events or the historical significance of particular areas such as the Yukon Goldrush, the Donner Party, or the Cumberland Gap?

Choosing Your Destination

While flexibility and a positive attitude are important in any adventurous endeavor, choosing an appropriate destination for your trip should reign supreme and can go far in minimizing potential pitfalls.

I love the planning stages of a camping outing — books open, notes scribbled, maps spread from wall to wall, dreams gaining inspiration. Spend as much time as you can poring over everything available about particular areas you would like to visit. Magazines, books, park flyers, travel logs, and state or provincial promotional brochures are all excellent resources for initial exploration. For detailed guidebooks about particular destinations, check your local specialty outdoor outfitter’s book department. And see Chapter 17, “Ten or So Camping Resources.”

In the following sections, I help you figure out what camping destination is right for you.

Timing is everything

Few of us can simply pick up and take off for the wilds at a moment’s notice. Scheduling time to recreate, as distasteful as that sometimes feels, is the norm. That said, it is important to find out when to visit and when not to visit the particular areas you may be considering. If you are seeking solitude, for example, you would be ill advised to plan a camping trip to Yosemite in June or to any park in the Northeast during the peak of fall colors. Likewise, if Death Valley is high on your list, summer is not a time to think about visiting — unless you savor temperatures hot enough to melt shoes to rock.

Want to know when the best time is to visit a particular park, wilderness, or campground? Call the park or managing agency for the areas you are planning to visit and ask them. Rangers are a helpful ...

Table of contents

• Title
• Contents
• Introduction
• Part I : Planning Your Escape
• Chapter 1: What to Do and Where to Go
• Chapter 2: Outdoor Gear and Gadgets
• Chapter 3: Dress for Success
• Chapter 4: Wintering, Paddling, Biking
• Part II : Getting There Is Half the Fun
• Chapter 5: Hitting the Road
• Chapter 6: Setting Up Camp
• Part III : Camping Skills, Food, and Fun
• Chapter 7: Skilling Up at Camp
• Chapter 8: Cooking and Eating in the Wild
• Chapter 9: Taking a Hike
• Chapter 10: Fun, Games, and Photo-Ops
• Part IV : Staying Safe, Staying Found
• Chapter 11: Staying Found Simply
• Chapter 12: Weathering the Outdoors
• Chapter 13: Health and Safety Are No Accident
• Part V : The Part of Tens
• Chapter 14: Ten + One Survival Essentials
• Chapter 15: Ten Low-Impact Camping Tips
• Chapter 16: Ten Camping Recipes
• Chapter 17: Ten or So Camping Resources
• Chapter 18: Ten Best Outdoor Destinations
• Chapter 19: Ten Times Two: Hodgson’s Twenty Laws of Camping
• Part VI : Appendixes
• Appendix A: Understanding the Outdoor Lingo
• Appendix B: Before You Leave Home: Countdown Checklist
• Appendix C: Connections