Common Sense Camping
Thursday February 1, 2007
Try out gear in advance - When you acquire new camping gear, take the time to try it out before you get to the campground. Set the tent up in your back yard so that you can become familiar with how it goes up, and just as import, how it comes down and packs. Use your sleeping bags in the family room for a night to see how comfortable it is and how well you sleep. Cook a meal on your stove to see how well it performs. Try your lanterns outside at night so that you can see just how much light they give off.
Comments
DAVID,
YOU ARE SO RIGHT ABOUT TESTING EQUIPMENT. MANY YEARS AGO AS A YOUNG MAN I SET OUT FOR A WEEK BACKPACKING IN LITTLE RIVER CANYON AL. WHEN I ARRIVE I REALIZED ONE OF MY BUDDIES HAD “BORROWED” MY TENT POLES. IT WAS ALMOST DARK AND I FUMBLED AROUND IN DARK FOR ABOUT AN HOUR HANGING ONE MAN TENT UP WITH ROPE. NEXT DAY I SET CAMP EARLY ENOUGH TO CUT SOME SMALL SAPLINGS AND THEY WORKED GREAT, I THREADED THEM THRU THE LOOPS ON THE TENT AND BENT EXACTLY TO SHAPE I NEEDED. NOT ONLY NEW EQUIP NEEDS TO BE CHECKED BUT IF YOU LEAVE EQUIPMENT PACKED ITS A GOOD IDEA TO DO A BRIEF CHECK B/4 HEADING TO THE WOODS. YOUNG AND FOOLISH…..AHHH THOSE WERE THE DAYS.
BILL
MARIETTA
GA