Transcripts
1. Introduction - Welcome to Camping 101!: Hi, my name's Holly Stacey. I run a YouTube channel called Fern the Camper and it's all about tiny trailers and camping. And today's lesson is all about first-time campers, what to expect, how to prepare, and what you need to enjoy your first time. Count being. I love camping. I grew up with a family that kept all the time who grew up in Southern California where camping season lasted all year long. When I moved to England and met my husband, he was not a camper, but I managed to get him to not only love camping, but also invest in a tiny trailer. So me, him and our daughter could go camping up and down the coast of California and sometimes beyond. So if I can get my husband to Love camping, I think I have a fair chance of getting you to love camping too. This class is for anyone who has wanted to go camping, but didn't think that they could do it or was just a little nervous about getting started. Maybe you've heard some horror stories because camp stories can be scary. That's why we sit by a campfire and tell them. But the wonderful thing about going camping is you develop a new love and appreciation for nature around you. You will learn so much. You learn more about yourself. You learn more about stars, about what's growing, native and wild around you. You can even learn about things like basic fishing and hunting if you want to develop those skills. But also it gives you a chance to disconnect from, from work, from everyday life. Many of the camp sites are out of any Wi-Fi zone. So you genuinely are not tempted to go back to your phone or your computer to just fit in a few more emails. You are just out in the wilderness as it was meant to be. Camping can be a wonderful experience and it can be a dirty experience. You will get That's the issue. You will have to give up some of your luxuries, but ultimately at the end of your trip, you will most likely come out of it feeling so refreshed and happy. For the class project, you will be writing out a prospective destination that you want to travel to, researching the camp sites you think will suit your first adventure, and writing out a packing list. Don't worry. It'll be fun, exciting, and you can always change your mind on your destination. So give camping a try. If you're not sure yet, just watch the lesson and see what you pick up from it. All right, let's get started.
2. Lesson 1 - What is Camping?: Okay, Let's start with talking about what is camping? What do people mean when they talk about camping? It is different for everyone. But basically, the idea of camping is staying, usually overnight, in another place away from home, in some sort of shelter, or tent or recreational vehicle. But really what does camping mean to you? You've come to this lesson, you'll probably have a very preconceived idea of what you feel are important aspects of camping. It could be campfire, it could be fishing, it could be outdoor activities. It could be the action of sleeping overnight in the tent for the first time. Everything that you personally want out of camping, you should be taking an actual awareness and note of, because not all camp sites will have the same activities available. There are so many different types of camping. There is tent camping. Which is... camping in a tent. There is hammock camping. This is when you hike out to the wilderness and string up a hammock and you sleep in the hammock. There is dry camping, where your campsite has no water, you bring all of your water in with you. There is boon docking when you camp for free on something like BLM land, which is public land that was available for the public to use, government owned, but it's for recreation and use of everyone. There are also tents that you can put on top of your car or our SUV, which is a good mix between your tent and car camping. There's Car Camping, when you're actually sleeping in your car at a camp site. Some people will just go down on the beach side and camp out in their car, and that's absolutely fine. There are actually specific mattresses that you can get to turn your back seats of your car into a nice full sized bed living here. There's a lot out there for camping. But in this lesson, we're going to focus primarily on tent camping. And this is traditional camping in most people's viewpoint, it means that you will be looking for attempt to either borrow, rent or purchase, and learning how to set it up comfortably and how to sleep in it well. Because when you sleep a tent, there is more than just setting up the tent itself. You also need mattress pads are something called a therma rest, which will give you a nice barrier between the ground sheet and your back. There is also RV camping. Like right now I'm in my tiny trailer. It's a type of recreational vehicle known as an RV, specifically a tiny trailer. If you want to get really specific, this is a happier camper, HC1 13 foot fiberglass, tiny trailer. But let's focus on tent camping. If you want to upgrade to a trailer, you first need to know you really genuinely loved camping because they're, they're a pretty big investment.
3. Lesson 2 - Locating Your First Campsite: Okay, let's talk about finding your perfect camp site. I'm just going to start off by saying, you're not going to find your perfect camp site just yet. It's very unlikely. It took us years to find our perfect campsite, and it's not the only campsite we stick two, we go to so many different others because we love the variety of each. But think about again, that list we talked about in the first lesson. What you want to get most out of your camping trip, is it a campfire? Make sure has campfire on-site and that there's no fire ban, is it kayaking, canoeing? You want to make sure that there is a lake or a river that actually has access to these. And they have boat rentals. Or if you've got your own, you have access to launch. Everything that you think you need or really, really want from your first camping experience, do your best to make sure that it's going to be there. You're not going to find everything on your list perhaps. But do try to get the top three. The top three are going to be the most important. For your very first camping trip, I am going to highly suggest you just try a local two night stay. And you will learn so much about your preferences and what you want in your longer camping trips. And you're not going to be so extraordinarily stressed out that you've decided to hate camping. It's really important that you ease yourself into it if it's an uncomfortable situation or if it's totally new and then learn as you go. So for your first camping trip, do consider using just that two night's adventure for your first stay. Because this is your first adventure. Consider something local. I know you'll probably think Yosemite, I want two weeks of Caverns, I want to go to the Grand Canyon, I wanted to go camping in New Zealand. Those are wonderful and epic adventures. But really, for your first trip, consider starting local. Maybe something within two to three hour drive or just a short flight, preferably two to three hour drive. You want things to feel not as so distant and scary if things go wrong. So consider how long it's gonna take you to get there. How long it's gonna take you to get back. Because on your first camping adventure, you're going to be really tired and you're not going to want to have an 18 hour drive. You're not going to want Motel 6 on the way home over a three-day journey, you're going to want to just be able to put your gear away, hop in the car and get home and rest. It will be exciting, I promise you, but exhausting as well. So have a look on a map. Open up your map of your local area. If you have one, AAA is a great place to pick up maps, good old-fashioned roadmaps, and just look at your local Camp Sites. Another place is really incredibly good app that I suggest you download on your smart phone called RV Parky. And it will just tell you everywhere that you can either park and RV or has camping. And it will list if it's RV camp site or if it's a tent camp site, if it has both or if it's just a tent camp site. And it will link all of the websites for these camp sites, as well as their national parks or state parks or if they're privately owned. If they're harvest hosts, if they're just random things like WalMart parking lots, which are also hosted on RV parking, which is not technically camping, but it's good to know if there's an emergency where you can just park up and rest before you hit the road again. Okay. Have a look at these websites. I'm going to list a few. I will also put them in the Resources Guide. You have your national parks, you have your state parks, as I mentioned, you have for your harvest hosts. And each of these, they're kind of like an umbrella host. So you want a national park and it will ask you what state you're in, if you're in the US. And then it will go into all the different national parks listed, which is fabulous. And it will tell you right off the bat, if you can light a fire or if it's a dry campsite and you need to have absolutely all of your water with you. And those are really beautiful and handy. Key points to take away are: do your research on where you want to look. A lot of places allow you to book ahead now. And if you can do so, you do not want to leave this to chance and do a first come, first serve basis camp site. Because if you can't get in, you're going to be so tired and grumpy and likely to not want to try again later. Book your spot. Know it's going to be there, ready for you when you arrive. If you want to camp fire, it makes sure they have a camp fire. Check all the website's, warnings. Sometimes if it's very dry, they will say, no fires. If you have your heart set on a fire, consider going further afield to a place that does permit that. If you want stargazing, I can't guarantee your weather. Neither will those camp sites, but there are other places that you can get a better feel for what the weather is going to be. For instance, if you want stargazing, oftentimes, the desert is going to be your best choice if you want to see meteor showers. Desert is awesome. Beach camping for state parks and state beaches is beautiful and you would think you could see stars there. But every beach camp site I have been to has been near a major highway and there has been too much light pollution to see stars very clearly. But the fire pits were amazing.
4. Lesson 3 - Basic Packing List (part 1): So what do you need to bring with you when you are camping? You will need to bring your tent. There are a few different types of tents, and you'll have to decide how many people you want your tent to sleep, And you want to decide how much room you want to have. Just because a tent says it's for three to four people, does not mean that you will fit in it. Yeah. So don't just go on the expected occupancy of the tent. If you see the specifications for it, you need to actually look in more detail and see its length, its width, and its height. And consider, if you want to be able to stand up inside your tent. If you are 6 foot, or taller, you want to make sure you have a nice padding of at least three inches between the top of your head or pillow and the side of the tent. Because regardless of where you are camping, you are likely to wake up with wet walls, that's just natural morning dew. And you do not want to wake up, wet. You do not want to have your sleeping bag soaking wet either. Okay. So when buying a tent, or looking for a tent to borrow or rent, I personally like to make sure there's a space for an extra two people. So if you are couple; two people that are sharing a tent, I will look for a three to four person size tent. So I actually have space for our backpacks and toiletries, things that we will want in the tent with us. There are some really great websites for looking at tents. And I love to go to REI. I'm not affiliated with REI. I'm not sponsored by REI, but I very much love their items. Most of their things have the top ratings and you can look at their reviews on their website. We will talk more about REI and other outdoor places in places where you can purchase. But for now, you can research your tent, your sleeping bags, your therma-rests, and all the basics you will need at REI. You can also look at those reviews on Amazon. So we've talked about the tent. Let's also talk about the ground cover you will need with your tent. Because you do not want to be investing in a tent, even if it's only a cheapo tent for one or two times of use, you want to get some sort of ground cover, a ground sheet to go under that. So you don't end up with any holes or snags in your fabric at night. You do not want to let any bugs in at all. You can get fancy ground sheets that are designed specifically for the tent model you are interested in using. But they are very pricey. And to be honest, I have not found them all that useful. The I think the best ground sheet is just a cheap, waterproof tarp. And it's not going to be the perfect size, it's going to be extra large. But I like having almost like a a porch to step out onto. Especially if it's some place where you've got muddy boots and you want to have a dry spot to take your shoes off. Yeah. Which brings me to another point which we will get to in our safety tips is never leave your boots or hiking boots, your shoes, your sandals. Never leave them out of doors outside your tent night. Because they're like wonderful inviting houses for small creatures. And you don't want to wake up in the morning with a scorpion sting, are just a mouse bite or a spider crawling up over your foot. You don't need that kind of surprise on your first-time camping. Just bring them inside and you will not have to worry about that. Okay, your sleeping bag. Your sleeping bag is going to be your best friend on this camping adventure. Whatever sleeping bag you choose, make sure it's one that is going to suit your comfort needs. For instance, I love a Mummy sack. It's very tight. I can pull it over my head if it's chilly and I can just snuggle in, it keeps me very toasty warm. I use a down fiber mat, or sleeping bag. It just keeps me that much warmer because my body temperature runs colder than average. My husband, however, he does not like the mummy sack, he likes a full traditional rectangle bag that he can twist around in. And he runs a lot warmer than I do. He just has a basic polyester fill for his and that fits him just fine. So if you feel claustrophobic when you zip it up, you do not want a mummy sack. If you want to feel like you're being hugged in absolute comfort, a mummy sack might be your ideal to go. Now, the sleeping bags come in different weights. They come in different temperatures. So something might say this is a winter sleeping bag. It might say this is a summer sleeping bag, but look specifically for their temperature range. And if the sleeping bag says it's good to 20 degrees Fahrenheit. That doesn't mean you're going to be toasty warm when it gets down to 20 degrees Fahrenheit, it means that you will survive, but you will not be comfortable. So if you like to be extra toasty warm, go a few degrees up, but not so high up. That you're just going to be boiling every night. Because if you get a winter sleeping bag that says negative 30 degrees, and you think that's going to be good for you to go camping in all your round. You're going to have a really unpleasant time in the summer when you want to be zipped up, but you just do not want to sweat buckets every night. So it is really important to know what your temperatures are going to be. And you can find that on your campgrounds. If you find your camp site, you can actually look up the area's temperatures whenever time of year you go. You can remove as many surprises as possible. Okay, So sleeping mats which you have under your sleeping bag. There are so many different types of sleeping mats. And their primary function is to give you an extra layer of softness between the ground and your sleeping bag and yourself. When I was young, I could sleep on almost anything. It didn't matter how rocky it was. I could just have the thinnest little cheapo foam mat and I was good to go. And now I can't do that. I need I need the thickest thermarest possible. And On top of that, I need I need a little bit more. But you just should probably be familiar with what you can sleep on. And if you're not sure, I would suggest going erring on the caution side and going for something a little bit more comfortable and cozy, you can get air mattresses that are made for camping, but are not too expensive, that will insulate you from the ground, as well as keep you a little bit more padded, and comfortable. Now let's talk about what else you are going to need. Handy-dandy list. And I suggest you make a list for yourself as you go. And there is a lot to bring. Your tent. You have your sleeping bags, you have extra blankets, and I really suggest you get lightweight extra blankets. Like these ones. They're fleece on one side and they're just fluffy on the other. They're lightweight and I can throw them in the washing machine after camping. They're excellent. Also bring with you a sheet that you don't mind getting dirty because there's going to be nights where it's unexpectedly warm and you can line your sleeping bag with the sheet and keep it unzipped. So you still have something to snuggle up with. And you're not going to boil to bits when you're sleeping. You will need your basic cooking sets. Even though when you're camping, there are places to go around you that will have restaurants and grocery stores for food. Don't just assume that they're going to have of what you need when you get out there, it is easy to get excited about camping. Throw your basic gear in the back and think, you know, it will pick up the food and water when we get there. Don't do this because we have been caught out more than once. With that assumption. There are places that will not have your basics. And there are places that run out of toilet paper because all the campers rushed out on that day and it happened to get them just bring everything you think you're going to need. You will need something to clean your cooking items with. You will need a type of biodegradable soap that is safe for the camp site and won't harm the environment or your hands. I like to use a company called campsuds, and this is found all over REI. You can also purchase it from Amazon and I use it for dish soap. I use it for showers. Yeah. That's pretty much it. Soap and showers. It. It works great. It doesn't dry your skin out. It cleans your dishes really well, and it can break down in the soil and there's no bad effects for the wildlife. So campsuds are a bonus.
5. Lesson 3 - Basic Packing List (part 2): Don't forget to bring something to scrub with, scrub your dishes with, and also something to scrub you with because you will need your towels and you will also need your flannels. Everything that you would need a home for toiletries, including toilet paper, bring with you. Most camp sites will have restrooms, they will have showers. Some of them are quarter showers. You pay via quarters and some of them you pay via credit card. Some of them will give you like the first five minutes free. It might be cold, might be heated. Some of them want to have any showers, but you'll have a running tap for brushing your teeth at and then you'll just fill bit of that and then wash. Call it a scrub down. But bring everything that you need. Places will always have toilet paper in theory, there will be a toilet and most spots with a space where the toilet papers should be. And sometimes it's actually there. Sometimes it's not. Sometimes it's there but wet just because of the morning dew or because someone was showering next door and it flipped up or I don't know, something weird sometimes happens in public toilets. I don't want to think about it, but bring your own toilet paper and you won't have to think about it either. Okay. Make sure you bring what's called a torch or a flashlight. Don't just rely on your cell phone's light. That's good in a backup, but that will go pretty quick. You want a good solid flashlight. A rechargeable one is fantastic. Let me show you some of the lights I love. We have so many solar charged lanterns. You have so many solar charged lanterns at camp, and camp lights. So this one, this is just a super-duper, cheapie, it doesn't even have a brand name on it. There's a point here where it can be recharged. If you have a mobile charger, or a power bank, you can use that to charge this up if the sun isn't bright enough to charge this, which should be. It can be used as a lantern like this. Oh, see? and it's not working right now because it wasn't charged and the sun. I had this all in the dark. And I use this when I'm cooking and I'll have two or three of these around my cooking station if it's dark. And and then when you're ready, you've got your flashlight here and you can just take it to wherever you need to go. I will be talking about camp etiquette a little later in the later chapters. But it is important to keep your light down on the ground in front of you where you're walking. There are few reasons for this. One is so that you can see where you're walking. The ground is uneven and it's easy to slip up if you don't see exactly where your foot's fall is going. It also helps you avoid stepping on things like wildlife because at night, certain camp sites will have a lot of night creatures, not yucky, night creatures, they're all, they're all fun and interesting, but it gives them a chance to get out of your way and not be stepped on. But also a lot of people, when they first start camping, they don't realize how powerful these lights are. There'll be other people sleeping in tents nearby and that light just cuts right through an interrupts sleep. And it's just really bad camp etiquette to aim your flashlight at other people's tents or other people's faces. Aim it down just in front of where you're going so you can see where you're going and be kind be kind to the other campers with you because it means a lot. Okay. So even though you might have a solar charged lamp like this, bring one or two extras and make sure they're charged up before you go. Don't just rely on the sunshine. And there was a time when my husband and I were going on Just a day trip and we were not expecting to go camping. We were in our adventure truck and we saw a tiny sign. And this was a tiny sign. It said caves. My God, we got so excited. Really. Caves. Yes. Detour. So he turned down the road, we're looking for the caves. We found the entrance to the caves and we didn't have a light. We did not have any lights with us and this was before cell phones. I know that makes us sound really old, but to be honest, even a cell phone light would not have been enough. We need something a little more powerful. And those caves look like they went really far back and they look really beautiful. And we didn't get to go in them. However, fast forward another year. Different adventure trip. We randomly parked up for view in Big Bear Mountain. Took a deep breath, enjoy the view up, pulls another truck next to us. Bunch of kids come out and say, Hey, do you wanna go see an abandoned mine with us? We're like, Yeah. Okay. So these these three kids, they're teenagers. It must have been 18-19. They lead us down the small trail, not too too far from the road and in the ground. So you see this opening. It must have been shoot. Just about looked about this big. First guy goes in, feet first, disappears. Second person, one of the girls goes in headfirst, just disappears. Third one goes in. Husband and I, you know, okay. Let's try this. So. I go in headfirst just because that's the only way I could get through those rocks. And he follows. It was the most amazing experience. We had to kind of crawl in this tiny shaft that had collapsed, must have been collapsed at least 20 years ago. The way the moss was growing around this time. And we kinda shimmied in. And here's this long shaft. We look up and all of these bats were just like this high above our heads. They were just sleeping. It was, it was their dormancy time, but it was just the most amazing little discovery. So we had a little, a little Explore and shimmy around as far as we could go. We saw where the original mine shaft had collapsed and where an offshoot had been closed down. And we had a little climb back out. But it was so amazing. We had brought our flashlights with us on that trip that we were not expecting to see anything that interesting. We were not expecting to need them. But moral of the story is always bring a flashlight and always bring a backup flashlight, because you never know when you're going to go on an adventure that needs light, all right, other things that you will leave with you. When you go camping. You will need something to sit on. Bring it, bring some foldable chairs, some camp chairs, even the most basic beach chairs, super lightweight things that you would take two festival or a seaside. Throw him in the back and unfold them and you can line them with soft pillows or your favorite blanket. And they make the most comfortable armchairs in front of the fire. Do not forget these. You do not want to be sitting on the ground at night while you are camping. Depending on where you are in the world, there's always going to be at least one thing you need to be aware of. Even if it's just ants, spiders, scorpions, there are so many little things on the ground. You do not want with you. Uh, same thing. Most campgrounds will have Night Visitors like mice, and you do not want to be sitting where they have been doing their poops. You just want to stay clean, stay above the ground. When you're camping, make sure your, your shoes if you take them off are empty before you put your feet back inside of them. Just small things that we take for granted when we are not camping. You want to just be extra vigilant for when you are camping. Okay, let's talk about the type of clothing you will need when you're camping. When you're camping, always make sure you bring layers. If you're hiking in particular, it might start off really cold in the morning. You want to be able to strip down layers if you need to. Probably going to be really hot by the time you get to wherever destination you're hiking to. And same thing, if there's a sudden chill or the weather changes, you want to be adding layers to warm yourself up. So things that you're comfortable in, but things that can also protect you. I know a lot of people are so comfortable in yoga pants. And if you are desperate to wear yoga pants, hiking. Okay, go for it. However, just be aware that a lot of hiking trails will have branches and things that can catch on your legs. You will probably want something thicker, heftier to protect your legs and ankles while you're hiking. So Canvas, lightweight Canvas trousers are really good. They have enough toughness to them, but they're also very light. And if you're sweating a lot or if it rains, they also dry very, very quickly. Most people will not suggest jeans because being stuck in wet jeans, if you do have a rainfall or if you're sweating can be really uncomfortable. However, I adore wearing jeans camping, that's just my personal preference. Once you know yours and it works for you just to stick with it. Make sure you have some tanktops. Make sure you have long sleeve shirts. Make sure you have a fleece or a jacket or both. And consider having something clean for every day. Because you never know when you're going to slide down a mountainside into some steer poop over or just, you know, you will want to be able to put clean clothes on occasionally, it this is your first time. If you've gone camping a few times, you'll get comfortable with getting a bit gross and grotty. You might not washing clothes for three days. But for your first time, make sure you have something clean and fresh to wear everyday. Double up your underwear, supply. Double up. Your socks supply, especially your sock supply because you put it on fresh socks in the morning, you might go hiking. You've perhaps never gone hiking so much before. And you want to wash your feet when you come back and you want to put a clean pair of socks on. And then by the next morning you might want another clean pair. It sounds sound silly, but make sure you double up on your socks and underwear. Okay. Which brings us to shoes. There are so many great hiking shoes out there, hiking sandals. So these are things that you can wear through rivers and wade through water. And you can wear socks with who you want socks, or you can just have your feet open Now they're not good for every trail, but they're, they're good if you're hanging around camp and you just want to slip on some sandals. If it doing some hiking where you're going to be getting soaking wet, your fording through streams and rivers, then you will find those hiking sandals are really awesome. Hiking boots are costly, but they are amazing and worth every penny. Do not skimp on your hiking boots. If you are going to genuinely be hiking. You want to make sure your feet are happy and treated well. You can order things online and of course, if they don't fit, you can return them. But this is the point where I would highly suggest finding your local REI store. Or if you're in the UK, you could have another outdoor store like Blacks. Find a spot where you can try on the shoes because there are so many different fits and you need to find one that's really comfortable for you. Get ones that are waterproof. Absolutely get some that are waterproof and as beautiful as the ankle shoes are. I always personally get the high top because if I don't my ankles get bashed up to bits when I'm hiking. So just a little tip for you. And yeah, try try them all on and then see which ones work for you. Something you don't want to skimp on. Okay, So you will also want to get some sort of rain cover or poncho. There are a lot of really great rain jackets. You can get ones that have fleece liners that are removable. So on light rainy days, you could just have your outer shell on. You can go hiking and downpours, light sprinkles, you name it and you'll be good to go but not sweat too much. And then when it's really cold or snowy, you can actually put your liner in and that works as a really good snow jacket as well. Another thing you will need is your first aid kit. Do the first aid kit. I will be going over the first aid kit later on in our safety lesson. And for now, have a look at your basic packing list. As you can see, I will be going further into your cooking sets and also your food that you might need to bring. For your clothes I will also leave another list of suggested list, and I will add these again inside the resources section.
6. Lesson 4 - Food: Okay, let's talk about food on your camping trip. So if you're like us and you have any special dietary needs or allergies. This is the most important thing. Get everything that you need from places where you know, you can get it. We do a food run two or three days before for our dry goods, we pack everything we need. And for anything that needs to be cooked, anything that needs to be refrigerated, any fresh veggies or eggs, what not? We will get the morning of at our local market and we fill up our cooler. We fill it up with everything. We need to keep cool. And then that morning before we leave, we just top it with ice and we put that cooler in the back of the car and pack as much of the other stuff around that as we can along with all the water we think we're going to need. If you're in the desert, I would double that up. You will be drinking a lot more liquids when you are in the desert. Even if you're like no, I don't drink that much. Bring it. Bring it and do your best to drink it. Drink your liter of water in the morning, even if it's just with juice or with tea, drink your liter of water in the afternoon. You are not in the city when you're out in the wilderness, you will be preserved for Irene more and you might not even realize it. Your body needs the liquid. Just, just pack your water, bring everything you need to cook as if you were not going to go into restaurants. Because nothing's worse than going to a camp site, getting very excited about having a hot meal and finding out the local stores or on some random vacation or holiday are that the owner has the flu when you're out in the middle of nowhere. And the closest grocery store is a three hour drive away. Wherever you are. Even if for the close-by city, they may not have what you need or you might not be able to get their bring everything you need to cook, bring everything you need to eat. In case you did not hear that correctly. Bring all your food and water. All of it. All of it. Pack a pack, all of it. Get a hard-shelled cooler, something like a yeti or something like a Coleman or a similar brand that is hard shelled. I if you like coffee in the morning, bring your coffee, bring a percolator with you. If you do not have electricity, make sure you are using things that you can work with on an open fire, our eye small stove with a small propane tank. Which brings us to always bring extra propane tank or to it unless you have one of those really large ones. If your RV and you'd had you should sometimes one or two or these large propane tanks, if you're capping of probably have these smaller canisters, They're really easy to pack. You can usually pick them up. But at a lot of stores in the summer for, for barbecue in and for campaign. But again, don't assume that a local store near your campsite. We'll have those available because so many times they just sell out before you get there, make sure you have, if you're doing a lot of cooking on this, make sure you have maybe One a Day, 1 for each canister for each day. So you can get a good breakfast, hot lunch, hot dinner. As much as we love the idea of cooking or meals on the open fire. Every night and every morning. Fires targeting takes up a lot of time. It takes up a lot of energy. And there are going to be mornings which are misty or slightly rainy. Your firewood will be down and you want to start your day, right with it. Good, solid breakfast. You know what you like to eat, bring things that you have for breakfast, your favorite cereals, so that every morning, if you don't have a Hotmail, you can at least have your serial. Same thing goes for lunches. You can pre-prep your sandwiches if you want to, and then just add your lettuces and spreads to them as you go for dinners if you want some of the hot, a lot of people will pray, make something like a cheese lasagna. And then they can just kind of reheat it on the open fire. And they don't have to worry so much about cooking, arm cutting, or getting all the extra prep work done is already parceled out, ready to go. It just needs to be heated on the fire utensils. This is one of the things that people often forget when they go camping. They forget about forks and knives. They forget about spoons, they forget about bowls, they forget about plates. Sometimes they even forget about cups. So something that is invaluable for when you're counting are things up will not break and things that are replaceable should they get lost. Things that are made of tin are particularly useful. For instance, I mean ten camping cup like these, you can even get some really key ones. These are great. You can actually reheat your coffee on the fire. Because these are made to be reheated. They can take, don't ever put them in a microwave. But they can take a little bit of an open flame. And it's the same thing for when you need plates, though. There are templates that you can get into in bowls. They're really easy to wash up. You don't have to worry about them cracking if they drop on the ground and now onto suggestions. People usually love to make smores when they are campaign. By your s'mores forks in advance. I like to get mine off of Amazon. I think REI might have some, sometimes they don't hit miss. If you see them there and loved them, get them. But I find that Amazon is a really good resource for things like your cast iron and your s'mores for arcsine or hotdog for x. And you can cook on the open flame. And it's exciting and it feels like you're really count being when you cook your food on an open fire. Other ideas for your campfire cooking is if you want to get a pi iron, you can get pizzas. You can even bring like a box of frozen pizzas. Mini frozen pizzas are full ones. Defrost them, fold them over, cut them into bits, and then put them in your pie irons. And you're going to have a really delicious hot pizza that you can cook directly on the fire. Hemorrhages, which is a lot of fun. People also love cooking hotdogs. You can cook hamburgers out there. But I have always had problems with the hamburger cookie and all the way through on an open fire because there'll be pockets of cool, pockets of hot. Just not going to get an even cook inside the game it to dry or half ra, are there meets going to crumble on you and end up in the flame. Do yourself a favor. Stick to sausages and hotdogs and bacon on the open fire if you can help it. And things like s'mores and reheating your coffee pot. The rest of the time, just sit back and enjoy your fire and be sure to watch those stars.
7. Lesson 5 - Camping Tips and Safety: Okay. Let's talk about what to expect on your first camping trip. Congratulations, you have a site planned, I'm so excited for you, and you have a list of everything you're going to bring. Now, you need to think about what you're going to be expecting when you go. And I'm going to tell you now, it is not the city, it is not your comfort zone. When they have signs up that say, beware of cougars, they really mean it. If there's a sign up saying rattlesnakes, watch out for rattlesnakes. Everything that you need to know desperately, the ranger station will have on their announcement board. We'll also have it on their website. So make sure you are looking at their website, checking any updates because it's not like you're used to. If you've never been camping before, you have to look out for other creatures, you have to look out for their welfare and also for your welfare. So while you're there, when you pull up to your campsite, if you're going for a park or a state camp site, you will go to your ranger station first and check in. Which is always my favorite part because it means that the road journey is over and the camp site has really... the camping adventure has really begun. The rangers will check you in and they'll often give you a map of the site to help you find your campsite, your exact pitch within the camp site. And that's where they'll say if there's anything else in particular you need to be aware of if it's excessive heat, or if it's bees, or if it's anything else that could happen while you're out and camping, they're going to be the ones to go to. Take note of their number if they have a number and if there is any questions are emergencies you can call them, are even walk up to that ranger station. They're there to help. It's good to make sure that you have a working relationship with the rangers. Okay. Once you're there, park up your car, start looking at your pitch and Find the most level spot you can. Before you put your tent up. You do not want to put your tent up and have a slope where your head is down, you will have a very uncomfortable night and it's meant to be really bad for you. So if you have any kind of slope, you want your feet aiming down, but try to aim for the most level as possible for a good night sleep. Once you get there, it will be really exciting to just drop everything and go hiking or go swimming or go and do whatever activities that camp site has. Don't be tempted. First, set up your campsite, set up your tent, get everything in place, and make yourself some tea or coffee and relax. You've been on a long journey. It's time to just enjoy the atmosphere after setting everything up. You will definitely appreciate it when it is time to go to bed because you would have been too tired at that point to set up your tent. Also, if you're on camp site and you're having some problems with your tent that you hadn't had before in the trial setup. Then you want to just say hide your neighbors and ask for help. Usually campsites are filled with very friendly people. So we like that. That's one of the wonderful things about camping everyone is there because they want to be there for the same reason. You have a lot in common. All right? Camp etiquette. Etiquette is really important. A lot of people. First timing, they forget that they're out in the wilderness, still get really excited. And for instance, one of my camping trips in the desert, it was oh, my, and that was a long, long journey in the car, I was so exhausted and we had another long journey the next morning at two AM, the tent next door, and this is three-foot away. Um, a woman, sticks her head out, looks up at the stars, just never seen stars like that before. At the loudest voice possible, shouts. And she shouted for 30 minutes straight. It was it was awful. The stars were beautiful. Yes. But there are other campers around and she did not she did not pay them any heed, she did not show them many respect, She was just thinking about her own experience. Looking at the stars. Shouting at the top of her lungs. So please don't do this. Please be respectful of the campers next to you. Also, as we talked about before, if you have a flashlight, keep it pointed down. You want to be able to see those critters below your feet. You want to also see where your feet are going so you don't trip up, the ground is uneven. Don't flash your headlines in your car towards other tents. This is another camp etiquette. Sometimes you get into camp late and it's really hard to avoid hitting other tents with your flashlight, or with your with your car's lights, but you are in a position where you need extra light. Consider dimming your car lights while you're setting up. Because again, those campers desperately need their sleep, they're exhausted. And it's a good way to just be polite. Okay, Next on camp etiquette is seriously clean up after yourself. It sounds like a no-brainer, but you would be amazed at how many people leave all sorts of junk and trash on site with the assumption that they're giving someone else a job are that's what camp rangers are for. What you're doing is not nice. It's not cool, really unappreciated by the Rangers. And the more that happens, the more likely those campsites are going to be closed down because they don't have enough people to clean up your trash. And it also affects the wildlife very negatively. So by the time you have left your junk, some things, some animals and creature is going to scrounge through it, especially if it's food-related, you're going to attract bears. You're going to attract stinging insects for the next family that's coming in. So please be again be kind. Make sure you tidy up everything. Don't leave any trace you behind. Even if someone else had left junk when you were there. That does not mean that you can do the same for the next family. All right, So you are probably going to love hiking or whatever outdoor experience are going to have. Do yourself a favor. First-timers. Keep to the trial. Don't try to off road it. There are signposts up on all the hiking trails. These are for you to follow along and loop around. It's really easy to get lost if you just randomly off-road it and it's not safe for you to do so. It's it's accidents happen, especially on your first time. If you were to trip and fall. The rocks and ground can be very uneven. If you're not used to it. You do not want to be off the trail. If this happens, another hiker can find you in an emergency. You want to stick to the trial at all times and look out for those warning signs. Again. Cougars and mountain lions are not a joke. those signs are there for a reason. If you hear rattling, don't go looking for it to stop and just be safe. Next thing on the Be safe is while you're hiking. Make sure you have water with you at all times and a little bit of some sort of snack to nibble on. You will be needing that extra energy while you're out. Same thing if you're on the water, definitely bring enough water with you to drink because it's very dehydrating when you're out all day on a boat. Now there are some other things you probably want to bring with. You do bring a first aid kit and you can have it with you when you hike. If you're hiking for a long way, but definitely have it with you in your tent so that if there's any accidents you can attend to them very, very quickly. Do the first aid kit. While, most camp sites will have park rangers for emergencies to call. You always want to make sure you have a first aid kit with you. And things that have, for instance, like your emergency blankets. Especially if you're hiking, you wanna make sure this is with you. If you're hiking in a mountainous region, the temperature can change so severely if you slip or if you're in an accident, you want to be able to keep warm until your rescue comes. I have this herbal salve, I love to pack. It's actually, you can see that this is good for things like bug bites and for any nicks or scratches. It's kind of an antibacterial salve. Things like bandages, cold compress. Absolutely. Medical scissors. Silly but antacids, if you're stuck out and he had some food that doesn't agree with you. Trust me, those are good. You will need just lots of Band-Aids. Even if you never actually use them, bring them with you. If you're starting a fire or if you're working with something where you get the slightest little cut. When your camping, you just want that covered. You don't want that to dry out. You don't want that to keep reopening. It can be really unpleasant. We also bring with us these Claritin ready tabs because sometimes one of us will have an allergic reaction or they'll just be more pollen in the air. And we need to like bring that reaction down. We find the clarity and tabs work really good for us. Okay, Also, your First Aid guidebook. Now, this is handy. It should come in your First Aid basic kit. You can probably pick one up from REI, if not, definitely Amazon. And this will cover everything you need to do. For instance, if someone's got a fracture, it tells you how to take care of that and make a splint, what to do with heat stroke, how to move someone who's injured, everything that you would need to help you stay safe is here. Also. If you are expecting to eat like local or food that you're not use to bring something like Imodium with you. Also bring something that's going to be a fever reliever. If you're out camping and you can't get to a store or the store hours are not convenient... or your car breaks down... You just wanted to have everything that you would need already with you.
8. Final Project: Okay, Now it's time to put all of your work together to create the class project. If you've been doing your work in the class, then you already have a destination in mind. You've already created your packing list, and you can put all of these things together in your project folder. So I'm looking forward to seeing what you have discovered and what you have planned. And again, if you have any questions, I am always here in the discussions. How you want to upload your project is entirely up to you. You can take snapshots on your phone of destinations you want to go to. Also, if you've found to a tent that you like, you can do the same. If you want to add links to deals that you have found for things, feel free to do that in your discussions area so other students can find them too. And yeah, PDFs are fine. Writing things out in order to as fine, just as long as you have a good, solid idea of where you want to go and what you are going to be packing. And of course, what kind of tent you will be using.
9. Conclusion: Okay, in conclusion, I hope you very much enjoyed this lesson and this class, How to Camp for Total Beginners. I hope this has given you the confidence you need to finally take that first step towards your new adventurous lifestyle. And this is just your very first camping experience. I hope it's going to be really wonderful. Please do share where you go afterwards. I know it's not the class project. I love to see where people are going. Also, you can tag me on Instagram if you are on your adventure and you just want to share your photos I am @FernTheCamper And I would love to see what adventures you have. If there's anything that you have questions on, feel free to reach out in the discussion section. Or you can reach me through Instagram again @FernTheCamper and ask questions. I will try to answer as quickly as I can. Obviously, if I am camping off grid, we don't always have Wi-Fi connections. We can't always connect the computer right away. So please be patient. I'm not ignoring you. I'm just off somewhere where there's no there's no cell line, there's no Wi-Fi. Now, go and have fun. And thank you again.