The first fix was the tent. The tent we used in Europe was a Sears special….I use the word “special” loosely. We planned for big adventures and also planned on doing some hiking. So we bought (at that time very expensive) light weight 6-man North Face tent. It was a full season geodesic type tent for $500. A lot of money for us at the time…..Just as a note, we still have that tent and it still works awesome….money well spent!
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| The wonderful tent in the background and my wife looking up enjoying the trees |
The second fix was getting proper sleeping bags. Before we had heavy quilt-like bags that wasn’t very warm either. So one by one, bought new bags that were full mummy bags for below 0 degrees temperature. Lesson learned even when they say below 0…..doesn’t necessarily mean you will be that warm…also mummy….really means mummy…..I cannot move at all with my legs lashed together! Still much better than ever before and also very light weight.
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| The view of the trees from our campsite |
The third fix was our cooking gear. We needed durable plates and cups, so we bought stainless steel plates, bowls and cups. We also loved doing the grill thing so I traded in our army issue stove (that could burn any type of fuel) for a whisper-lite. This thing weighed only 2 ½ pounds, not counting the small fuel container and was awesome. We also found that it would be necessary to get a water filter system and collapsible water jugs for all the water we needed.
So with all the "fixes" in mind, we set out to do some camping. We went camping pretty much everywhere we went. Driving home to Oklahoma...if we didn't drive straight through...we stopped some place to camp. We have camped at the christian youth camp, Branson Missouri on Vacation, Applichian Trail several times, Boy scouts etc. Each trip was unique in itself and yet everyone of them typically had the same issues. ISSUES? You might ask. Well.....DAD....me, being overly dictatorlike and wanting absolutely everything to be organized and in it's perfect place. No wonder my kids have perfectionist tendencies.
Okay, ground tarp....did you clear out all the sticks before we laid it down? yes, site was cleared. Then we would unroll the tent carcass and try to untangle the chopstick noodle mess of tent poles that were within the sleeves. It that the right pole? Is that the right sleeve? Does this one go here? Does that one go there? Why in the world are you just standing there? Why aren't you helping? Actually it probably best if the kids just stood there and watch in amazment of their father...a grown man....became a babbling idiot...fight with a tarp, canvas and fiberglass sticks for fear of whatever they do or say would cause the outlash to be directed towards themselves instead of that convulted tent.
The longer the assembly process would take the darker it would get and the more difficult the process would become. It was like a race against time and the sunset.....who was going to win? Obviously not this guy! Along the way there would be a few certain shouts out at whoever would be holding the flashlight, "HOLD THAT THING STILL!". I would be obvilious to my proclamations towards a 3 or 4 year old child. yes, I agree....what a mean dad.
Tents are completed, sleeping bags in place inside, chairs have been set up around the grill/campfire......"Did you guys go get fire wood...kindling why I was doing all of this?" How are we supposed to find wood in the dark? Well the boys did usually.....Out scouting the grounds for fallen trees and limbs and twigs.....as they got older they would be much more wise and bring back giant logs that would allow their father to occupy his time figuring out how to cut, chop, whack, whittle, bust, break or bash it small enough to fit into the fire pit......again, I understand now how wise my children were...dealing with me.
We did have some fun....I think....I hope. You will have to ask the kids that one......looking back at it all I am not sure why I ever stressed over the whole thing......it was just funny. Sometimes I feel like our life could have been an episode or two on the Dick Van Dyke show.....ok....too far back?.....How about Seinfield? Either way, it has taken me many years to understand.....patience. A huge apology to my family for the torture I dished out and they endured.
I am better now....the fits have stopped.....mostly.
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| Hiking up Crabtree Falls |
The fourth fix was my backback. We planned on hiking, not car camping. Since the kids were still very young, the chances of them carrying much more than their clothes and their own sleeping bag was slim and none. My new Kelty backpack had to handle the tent (which was still a bit heavy since it was a 6 man tent), all the cooking gear, stove and plates included, much of the food, my sleeping bag and anything else that we might need for the adventure.
So with all the "fixes" in mind, we set out to do some camping. We went camping pretty much everywhere we went. Driving home to Oklahoma...if we didn't drive straight through...we stopped some place to camp. We have camped at the christian youth camp, Branson Missouri on Vacation, Applichian Trail several times, Boy scouts etc. Each trip was unique in itself and yet everyone of them typically had the same issues. ISSUES? You might ask. Well.....DAD....me, being overly dictatorlike and wanting absolutely everything to be organized and in it's perfect place. No wonder my kids have perfectionist tendencies.
Let me start off by describing the beginning of one of our camping trips. Let's account for all the fours kids and two tents. The great big North Face tent and a smaller one for the two older boys. It would be a car camping trip to a national park campsite. I would get off work on a Friday and even if I tried to get out early it still meant that once I got home I needed to pack the car with all the gear and get it to fit. That feat alone would seem to take a hour or so. After many attempts, we got it all loaded up.....I got better at this with each trip. Then we would head out....usually would get lost on the drive there.....we didnt have GPS back in those days.....I know.....such a barbaric time when we had to actually use a paper map.
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| Our first visit to Crabtree Falls in 2010. We have gotten better at camping! |
Flash forward a few hours and place us at the campsite. Just arriving slightly before dusk. And yes, we have made it to several campgrounds after dark....just add the difficulty factor of setting up a tent and the rest of the gear in the pitch dark by flash light...from the beginning. Usually, the North Face tent would take about 40 minutes to set up....why so long, well because we ...okay I...would forget how we set it up the last time. And having 8 or 9 year old boys assist wasn't exactly expert help. Looking back at it they were actually masters.....masters of dealing with a cannibalistic father who would eat his young if they didn't follow exact directions....even if the directions I was giving were wrong.
Okay, ground tarp....did you clear out all the sticks before we laid it down? yes, site was cleared. Then we would unroll the tent carcass and try to untangle the chopstick noodle mess of tent poles that were within the sleeves. It that the right pole? Is that the right sleeve? Does this one go here? Does that one go there? Why in the world are you just standing there? Why aren't you helping? Actually it probably best if the kids just stood there and watch in amazment of their father...a grown man....became a babbling idiot...fight with a tarp, canvas and fiberglass sticks for fear of whatever they do or say would cause the outlash to be directed towards themselves instead of that convulted tent.
The longer the assembly process would take the darker it would get and the more difficult the process would become. It was like a race against time and the sunset.....who was going to win? Obviously not this guy! Along the way there would be a few certain shouts out at whoever would be holding the flashlight, "HOLD THAT THING STILL!". I would be obvilious to my proclamations towards a 3 or 4 year old child. yes, I agree....what a mean dad.
Tents are completed, sleeping bags in place inside, chairs have been set up around the grill/campfire......"Did you guys go get fire wood...kindling why I was doing all of this?" How are we supposed to find wood in the dark? Well the boys did usually.....Out scouting the grounds for fallen trees and limbs and twigs.....as they got older they would be much more wise and bring back giant logs that would allow their father to occupy his time figuring out how to cut, chop, whack, whittle, bust, break or bash it small enough to fit into the fire pit......again, I understand now how wise my children were...dealing with me.
We did have some fun....I think....I hope. You will have to ask the kids that one......looking back at it all I am not sure why I ever stressed over the whole thing......it was just funny. Sometimes I feel like our life could have been an episode or two on the Dick Van Dyke show.....ok....too far back?.....How about Seinfield? Either way, it has taken me many years to understand.....patience. A huge apology to my family for the torture I dished out and they endured.
I am better now....the fits have stopped.....mostly.
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