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| Bonding in the Woods
A good part of the day on these excursions was spent riding in the car. Obviously, we didn’t have DVDs or CD players and we were bored. But out of our boredom we created games like counting the out-of-state license plates, or variations on “eye spy.” We colored and read books as the Great Plains sped by the window. Camping gave my Dad the chance to see America. He could not have afforded anything more elaborate for himself and (depending on the trip) five to seven of his kids. I got to see the Grand Canyon, Old Faithful, and Mount Rushmore; drove through Chicago many times (mostly at night to beat the traffic); swam in the Great Salt Lake; and survived it all still on good terms with all my siblings. (I elaborate on my camping trips in our article on family trips.) —Roxy Boomwinkle The Family Camping Craze Seen as the most affordable way to “see the USA” it especially attracted larger families for whom large hotel room bills would be out of the question. It was also a popular way to “get back to nature,” a place where fathers (and mothers) could show off their wilderness skills and teach the younger generation the joys of fishing, cooking over an open flame, sleeping under the stars. Today, as costs for vacations soar, and as more and more people say they want to spend more time with their families, leisure-time tent camping is again on the upswing. Depending on how you count them, some sources say there are more than 300,000 public and 800,000 private camping facilities across the US and Canada. Chances are there’s several in your state and even near your town. Good camping links: Kampgrounds of America
(KOA) Check out perhaps the only Museum of Family Camping in the country.
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Great family camping tips How to identify poison ivy What to take camping Car Games to do along the way. |
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Did you know… We used to call it trailmix but Gorp is known as the fast food of hikers and campers. Gorp stands for Good Old Raisins and Peanuts or Granola Oats Raisins and Peanuts. While pre-packaged commercial variants of Gorp are readily available, many outdoorsmen prefer to produce a homemade batch to take along. |
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Because
my father had summers off, we had the unfortunate situation of
having two summer vacations per year. One was to the Toronto area
to see relatives and the other was a camping adventure of one
kind or another, always done on the cheap.