Are you considering camp resorts for a future family vacation? Taking a family vacation to the great outdoors allows you and your children to unite with nature, enjoy quality time with each other, and make memories that you all will cherish for all your days. If this is your first time taking a family vacation to one of the local camping sites in your area, you should make sure that you’re prepared, so that it can become a tradition you always enjoy. Here are a few tips for making sure it’s a family vacation that you remember fondly:
- Practice food safety.
No matter what part of the country you’re camping in, your campsite is going to involve animals. We can say that with 100% certainty. The outdoors is their home and looking for food is a natural instinct for animals. You should expect this and be prepared for it.
Do not leave food out when you’re finished eating; that attracts critters and in some cases endangers the campers. The most common culprits you’re going to deal with are the little critters like squirrels and raccoon. If you leave your dinner unattended for a little too long, you can expect to find all of your belongings thrown about. Practice good food safety and keep your food confined at all times.
This point is particularly important if you are camping in bear country. Bears are incredibly intelligent creatures, and know how to get to your food unless it is locked and out of sight. Bears know what coolers look like, to expect to find food inside, and how to open them. In most cases, your family campgrounds will have a secured bin you can keep your ice chest in. If they do not, keep your food in a hidden area in your locked vehicle. If the food is visible through the window, you run the risk of not having a window (or food) in the morning. - Be considerate to other campers.
Many camping etiquette rules are common sense. Make sure that your camping party isn’t so loud that it disturbs other campers in the area. Don’t let your pets or children wander freely, where they could get into other camper’s property. These are just acts of decency.
However, some guidelines for camping etiquette you might unknowingly violate if you aren’t an experienced camper. For example, if your camping area has drinking fountains, you should refrain from washing your dirty dishes in it. The discarded food attracts critters (see previous) and becomes disgusting for other campers who need to use the water fountain as a source of hydration as the food goes bad and becomes foul. You might not realize that you shouldn’t gather fire wood immediately around your campsite; if everyone did that, the camp grounds would be totally bare in a matter of time. Do some research in camp ground etiquette and be respectful to other campers and future campers. - Leave your camp site cleaner than you found it.
Imagine how crest fallen you’d feel if you take the time to research places to camp, plan and gather all your food and supplies, make your way to your exciting camping adventure, only to find it in terrible shape from the previous campers. Maybe they left trash, cigarette butts, and old food scattered about. Maybe they weren’t considerate with where their animals (or… themselves) relieved themselves. Whatever the case, imagine how disappointing it would be to you and your family. Keep that in mind when you are cleaning your camp ground for the next visitor.
When you are camping, there is no maid service to tidy the place up between visitors. Just because you’re in the great outdoors doesn’t mean you can act like an animal; you should always leave your camp site cleaner than you found it. If everyone followed this rule, our beautiful camp grounds will preserved for generations to come.
Camping is a wonderful opportunity to unite with God’s green earth, to bond with your family members, and to make memories that every one of you will always cherish. Just make sure that you follow these simple rules so that you and yours remain safe and the campgrounds can be enjoyed by everyone, now and in the future.
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