Beginner's Guide to Adventure Travel

Starting Children out in the Great Outdoors

2006-10-11T04:29:32Z

Telling your kid to grab his sleeping bag and jump in the mini-van might not be the best way to acquaint your child with their first campout. Because many groups are now taking children into the woods to camp for different events, it may be a good idea to start little "camping" with your kids before heading out on a weeklong trip. The best area to do this is in your own back yard. While there are tons of sitcoms and cartoons that make fun of this activity, this can be a great idea to help your kids get accustomed to being out there. Sent up the tent in a shaded area and play outside all day. Make sure they have their sleeping stuff out there so that when its time to go to bed, that there are no rushing into the house.

Also, even though your nice warm bed is inside, stay outside with your kids and don't cave in to their asking or your own temptation to move the camping trip inside. But you probably don't want to push too hard either. If they are genuinely scared to stay out there then you can go inside. This is just a trial to see how your children do when they go on a camping trip. You can spice this camping test up as much as you want with possibly making a little fire in your backyard or trying out other ideas you may have.

Packing for you Children for the 1st Campout

2006-10-11T04:30:08Z

The first campout with the family is going to be a stressful one for children in most cases, and probably the parents as well if they do not plan ahead. Packing the bag for your child can help out a lot with this. The first thing to do is make the child comfortable when they go to sleep. Think of all the things that help them go to sleep when they have a bad dream or a bad day. If they need that special blanket, those special pajamas, or a certain stuffed animal then bring it along. Those tiny things will make the transition from fun day to restful night much easier for you and your child.

The clothes are another important thing when deciding what to pack. Plan clothes for any number of activities when you are getting ready to go camping. And pack clothes that can get really dirty and possibly muddy. It is a well known fact that when a family goes camping for the first time, that one of the days it will rain. There is something in the weather that makes this true. Instead of making this a boring day by playing cards in the tent all day - maybe you can go down by the creek and splash around a little bit. This will definitely cause your children to squeal with laughter and may cause you to as well. This is just one example of an activity that is unplanned. If you are driving to your camping spot then there is no problem with over packing for your child in case something like that happens.

Activities for Children and Camping

2006-10-11T04:30:32Z

There are certain activities that are just easy for children to have fun with and tire them out at the same time. Those are both amazing goals to have for your children: fun and tiring. The first activity is fishing. While this is not extremely strenuous, this activity allows for you to slow down the pace a little bit and take some time to truly interact with your kids. The fishing will give a great midday rest to your crazy camping time and slow down your heart rate a little bit. Plus, unless you are an excellent fisher, you and your child are pretty much on even footing when it comes to catching a fish. The second activity that you can take advantage of is swimming. This goes the other direction. This will tire you and your children out quite well. It doesn't have to be a pool or a nice beach at a lake. You can find tons of fishing spots in little ponds or a deep spot along the creek. Just check it out before your child goes trouncing in.

A great activity for your children may also be going on a hike. This works well because you can move at a good pace while your child runs ahead and then back - scouting out the trail ahead of you. It also gives your child a chance to look around and see the nature and perhaps some the local wildlife. But it definitely fulfills both requirements: fun and tiring. Check with the shelter at your campsite to see about other activities that the campgrounds may schedule for any given night or day.

Camp Cooking for Children

2006-10-11T04:30:58Z

This may be the best part of your camping experience with your kids. Break out the Dutch ovens and the cooking skewers and I'm sure that your family will have a great time. The fire itself will grab your children's attention, but just be careful with them around the fire. Sometimes children tend to add things to a fire that doesn't need to grow any larger. The first thing is dinner. With a Dutch oven a family can make all sorts of stews and dishes that are exciting to make and eat. But the best things to cook for dinner are things that the kids can take a hand in. Your best dish in the Dutch Oven may not compare to the burnt hotdog that your 9 year old boy cooked with his skewer. He will probably brag all night long about his superb cooking abilities and tell his friends later.

But the real treats are the desserts. The S'more is the ultimate when it comes to cooking around the fire. Take a marshmallow, that is roasted to a black crisp by your child smash it between two graham crackers and add a piece of chocolate - magic. There are also many other dishes that you can make with a hobo pie maker. Just search around online for some ideas. But the key is to be creative and to let your children take part in the cooking.

Tent Camping Overview

2006-10-11T04:31:27Z

The Great Outdoors is a glorious place to be in almost every season of the year. Yet, the outdoors is not the greatest place to be when the sun goes down and you are ready to go to sleep with the bugs, the animals, and in every single one of my camping trips - the rain. So when the time comes to go to sleep while enjoying the wilderness around, you head to the tent. The tent has long been the spot where soldiers, hunters, nomads, and now vacationers go to when its time for a little shuteye. There is no date on when the tent was originated for use because of the simple construction that is needed for a tent. All you need is a piece of canvas draped over sticks or hoisted up by strings. Plus because the time that is needed to set up the tent, avoiding all disasters, is between 5 to 25 minutes makes the tent a likely choice when looking for a quick lodging out in the middle of nowhere.

Tent camping has become one of America's pastimes and the location of a cheap vacation or day trip. But before you head out to take your family or some friends on a camping trip there are some important tips that need to be said. First, there are tons of different kinds of tents out there and you have to choose one of them if you don't have a tent already. Second, you have to find a campsite to stay at. There are some easy ways to do this and certain things to look for whether you are camping veteran, rookie, or somewhere in between. The third introduction is that all tents are not made to be slept in and some them can be extremely useful when going camping. And last is that you will need more than just a tent to go camping, so you may want to pay attention to tips that tell you what else may need to be brought for an excellent camping trip.

What are the current styles of tents?

2006-10-11T04:36:47Z

There are two major kinds of tents that the different styles of tents fall into, ones that are made with rigid poles and the others are made with flexible poles. These two categories are very easy to distinguish because one is made with poles that are rigid and the other the poles are flexible - I know, its so simple. There are two designs of tents made with the rigid poles. The first is the cabin tent. They only have one "skin" (the material that makes the tent), are used mainly in the United States, and may have multiple rooms inside the tent. The second style of tent is the frame tent that may also have two or more rooms. The frame tent will have two skins, one being the outer layer that protects against rain and the inner that is sleeker for comfort inside the tent. These tents may have an awning on either side or possibly windows as well.

There are four basic styles of tents when using flexible poles. The first and most common is the dome tent. The flexible poles are stretch across the top using the tautness of the material to make a circular ceiling on the tent. Dome tents can be extremely small for use for two people or big enough to fit 8 people inside them. The next style of tent is a tunnel tent. The name says it all and is usually made for two people to sleep side by side. There is more space given with a tunnel tent but always require the use of string and pegs which may cause an extra step for those that have difficulty even setting up a dome tent. The two other styles of tents are made for specific purposes. The first is the geodesic tent, which is just like a dome tent, but with a couple extra poles that give more stability - these are made for snow conditions. The last is the single-hoop tents, which are extremely easy to set up, and are made for just a couple people, possibly only one.

How do you find a campsite?

2006-10-11T04:37:14Z

Since you are looking on a website at this article, there is a good chance that you have access to Internet. So, probably the easiest way to find a campsite is to search online. GoCampingAmerica.com and CampingUSA.com are two great websites to find places in almost every area of the United States for your camping trip. There are some important things that you need to know about what you want before heading out to campsite. The first is cost. Some campsites will barely cost over ten dollars while others may be over twenty dollars every night with additional costs for more people and vehicles.

The other thing to look for in a campsite is the amenities. These are the bathrooms, campfires, backwoods camping, and hookups. Some campsites will have bathrooms located all over the campgrounds, while others will just have one major one - some of these may have showers and others don't. Also you need to be aware of your electrical needs. Usually the cheaper the campsite is then the less they will be offering at the campgrounds

What are some of the non-sleeping tents?

2006-10-11T04:37:47Z

These non-sleeping tents are commonly referred to as shelters. While there will be some campsites out there with a wooden shelter that you can move to for games or just hanging out, you may be somewhere that does not have these amenities. The most simple of the shelters is the flysheet. The flysheet is a piece of canvas stretched with poles on either side. The most common flysheet may simply be a tarp stretched across two trees with a rope hanging up to support the weight. While this protects some from the sun and the rain, there is no horizontal protection at all.

The gazebo is an enhanced shelter using poles on at least four corners. Gazebos can be much larger with the use of 10 or more poles on the sides of the tarp. The Gazebo is usually extremely tall in the center with headroom even on the sides of the shelter. These are used for cooking space and to store equipment. The last shelter is an actually just extremely small dome tent. They are sometimes called beach tents, fishermen tents, or supply tents. The thin skin along the outside protect the supplies inside from animals and light showers but really do not protect the equipment from large storms.

What are some the other needs for tent camping?

2006-10-11T04:38:17Z

You cannot just hit the road with your tent and good looks - providing you have good locks - you will need some other equipment. The first is bedding. While most people employ a simple sleeping bag that is made for the appropriate temperature and a pillow, other campers have started to bring air mattresses that make the outdoors feel a little more like home. With some sheets you may feel like you are back at home, though enjoying the nature all day long. The next series of equipment is cooking supplies, including food and supplies. The key in this area is to think about all the different meals for each day - you don't have to stick to a schedule but make sure that all meals are covered unless you want to go hungry while camping. Some of the most important camp cooking supplies is skewers, Dutch ovens, and old pots and pans. By simply using a campfire, you can make all sorts of great snacks and meals.

Another thing that you may want to bring are things to entertain your time. This may consist of any number of things such as soccer balls, volleyballs, board games, cards, fishing poles, trivia games, or a Frisbee. These will help pass the time during the day or night if you want to just take it easy for a while. The final thing that you may need to bring is another source of light. Whether this is a flashlight, headlamp, or a lantern, these will help you see your way to the bathhouse in the middle of the night or find things within your tent once the sun has gone down.

What is Global Warming?

2006-10-11T04:38:57Z

Global warming is a term that almost all of us have become familiar with over the years. It is defined as the increase in the temperature of the earth's atmosphere and oceans over the years. Some scientists have found that most of the earth's warming over the last 50 years can be attributed to human activities. These activities include the burning of fossil fuels, land clearing, and agriculture. Some scientists are predicting that the temperature of the earth's atmosphere could raise another 2.5 to 10.5 degrees Fahrenheit in the next 100 years. The degree of uncertainty has to do with not knowing exactly what the future of carbon emissions is. How to prevent and cope with the increase in the earth's temperature has been a hot topic over the years. Although a very small percentage of scientist disagree that the increase in temperature is a result of human activity, many contest whether anything can actually be done about it.

What Causes Global Warming?

2006-10-11T04:44:07Z

Global warming is a result of an increase in the greenhouse effect, which is what keeps the earth warm enough for life to survive. The earth absorbs 70% of the energy from the heat of the sun's rays, and the remaining 30% is reflected back out. The heat that is absorbed by the earth is eventually transferred into other objects that reflect the energy back out into space. However, not all of the energy reaches outer space. Some of it is blocked by things in the atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide, methane gas, and water vapor. When the energy is blocked, it is reflected back down to earth. Since more heat and energy are coming in than are going out, the earth's atmosphere remains warmer than it is in outer space. The greenhouse effect happens naturally, as a result of the substances that are naturally found in the atmosphere. However, since the Industrial Revolution, we have been putting more and more substances into the atmosphere, which causes more of the earth's radiated energy to be reflected back down to the earth.

Carbon dioxide is one such substance that blocks the radiated energy from outer space. Carbon dioxide is a colorless gas that is a by-product of the combustion of organic matter. The atmosphere naturally contains less than .04 percent of carbon dioxide. Most of this was put there as a result of volcanic activity. Unfortunately, today's human activities are also pumping significant amounts of carbon dioxide in to the atmosphere. So much so that the increase in carbon dioxide is considered one of the primary factors in global warming. Carbon dioxide absorbs infrared radiation, which makes up most of the earth's escaping energy, and more energy consumption by the atmosphere means an increase in the planet's temperature. According to the Worldwide emissions report, the carbon emissions worldwide increased from 1 billion tons in 1900 to about 7 billion tons in 1995.

Another important greenhouse gas is nitrous oxide. Although human activities are not releasing as much nitrous oxide as carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide absorbs about 270 times as much energy than carbon dioxide does. Nitrous oxide is released in part because of the large amounts of nitrogen fertilizer used on crops, and also because it too is a product of combustion. Methane gas is another substance important to the greenhouse effect. It occurs naturally as a result of the decomposition of organic material, but it is also produced by several man-made processes. Methane can be produced by extracting it from coal, from the digestive gases of large herds of livestock, from the bacteria in rice paddies, and from the decomposition of garbage in landfills.

Is Global Warming Really a Problem?

2006-10-11T04:44:50Z

There are some people who do not feel that global warming is actually happening. There are several reasons they feel this way. First, they don't think the data shows a significant upward trend in global temperatures. This is because we don't have long-term data, and the data that we have isn't clear enough. Second, some scientists feel that people are not looking at the evidence objectively. They argue that people who are already concerned about global warming are looking for evidence to support their pre-existing belief, rather than looking at the evidence objectively and trying to figure out what it means. Third, the increase in global temperature could just be a natural shift, rather than the result of increased human activity.

There are other scientists who believe that global warming is happening, but do not feel it is something to be concerned about. They feel that the earth will adapt to the changing temperature. They argue that plants and animals will adapt to subtle shifts in weather patterns, and that slightly longer growing seasons, changes in precipitation levels and stronger weather are not generally going to be catastrophic. These scientists feel that the economic damage of decreasing the emission of greenhouse gases will be more damaging than global warming itself.

What are the Predicted Effects of Global Warming?

2006-10-11T04:45:25Z

Global warming will effect both the environment and human life. These effects will include a rise in sea level, impacts on agriculture, reductions in the ozone layer, an increased intensity and frequency of extreme weather events, and the spread of disease. An increasing global temperature will change the ecosystem, which will have an impact on certain species. They may be forced out of their habitats into extinction. Global warming also causes the glaciers to melt. Melting glaciers are a reliable source of water for China, India, and much of Asia. The total melting of glaciers could cause much of the world to run out of water. Global warming could also affect the thermohaline circulation, triggering a cool down in the North Atlantic region. This cool down would affect areas like Scandinavia and Britain, which are warmed by the North Atlantic drift. A rise in sea level could also create a significant number of refugees, as some of the densely populated coastal plains would be uninhabitable. A significant rise in sea level would affect almost every coastal city in the world. Rising temperature could also bring on an increasing amount of diseases, such as malaria and bluetongue disease, as the vectors for these diseases would be extended. There are also financial effects that will occur as a result of global warming. The worlds two largest insurance companies have predicted that the increased frequency of severe climatic events will cost the almost 150 billion US dollars a year in the next decade.

How Can We Prevent Global Warming?

2006-10-11T04:45:59Z

The most practical way to prevent global warming is to not use as much of the stuff that creates greenhouse gases. On a local level, you can help by using less energy. The electricity that is needed to power our electronics comes from power plants, which burn fossil fuel to produce electricity. Here are a few specific ways that you can help lower emissions:

• Turn off lights when they are not in use. Although the light bulb itself does not emit gases, the power plants that are powering it do.
• Whenever possible, use a fan instead of air conditioning.
• Keep your car tuned up. When it is running properly, it emits fewer harmful gases.
• Walk or ride a bike when you can.
• Recycle. Un-recycled garbage ends up in a landfill, which produces methane. In addition, recycled goods require less energy to produce than products made from scratch.
• Plant trees and other plant life where you can. Plants take carbon dioxide out of the air and release oxygen.
• Don't burn garbage. This releases carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons into the atmosphere.
The most effective way to stem the emission of greenhouses gases is to develop non-fossil fuel energy sources. Hydro-electric power, solar power, hydrogen engines and fuel cells are all ways to cut down emissions.

References
www.wikipedia.org
www.howstuffworks.com

Your Guide

2008-01-24T21:32:17Z

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