Summer Camping Tips & Ideas

As the weather warms up and summer vacation approaches, many of us start to think about getting away to do some camping. Whether your style of camping includes tents and backpacks or RVs and lawn chairs, here’s a collections of camping tips, ideas and recipes for making this summer camping trip the best one yet.

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Camping Tips & Ideas

Planning a Family Camping Vacation—A family camping vacation can be a lot of fun once you finally get set up at the campground.  The hardest parts are figuring out where and when to camp and what you will need to bring with you.

Into the Woods: Camping & Kiddos—Last week I neglected the blog and took off for four days of camping. It was glorious. I love to camp. I love to hike and fish. Yet it’s something I hadn’t done since becoming a mom over five years ago. So I was excited to go, and I knew I would enjoy it but I worried about taking the kids. Taking a two year old camping? What the heck was I thinking?

Camping with Toddlers: A How-to Guide—Camping with toddlers is one of those treasured moments that can last a lifetime. However, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows—it also comes with a lot of stress. While camping is a great time for people to get back to nature, adding toddlers into the mix can make for one really long weekend!

RVing Across Canada—RVing across Canada can be a lot of fun, especially when it comes to choosing a great RV destination. Once you have decided on a destination for your RV vacation, you can then start to plan the rest of your trip.

Camping with Cloth Diapers—My family went tent camping for three days and two nights earlier this week, and we did it with Kay in cloth diapers. This isn’t the first time we’ve gone camping with a little one in diapers, though the last occasion was two years ago and things were easier simply because there was only one kid in the mix. But if you’ve ever wondered whether taking your cloth diapers camping with you is doable, here’s how I did it.

Camping Checklist with Free Printable—I love camping! I am going to give you a downloadable camping checklist. Just remember: these are suggestions. You may not want to bring everything on the list, and you may want to bring things from home that are not on the list.

Easy Backyard Campout—A couple of years ago, we went camping as a family. It was a lot of fun, a lot of work, and we slept terribly. 😉 When I asked the girls at the beginning of the summer what they hoped to do this summer, camping was one of the first things on their list. I knew Ken wasn’t excited about camping again, and I knew that it could be a bit pricey to get a camp site anyway (and we were trying to be as low-budget as possible with our activities this summer). So, we came up with a plan to camp in our parents’ backyard.

Great Canadian Campgrounds for Your Summer Getaway—When I was growing up, we spent every summer camping in the Rocky Mountains. To me, summer holidays still mean some sort of camping trip, whether it’s an overnight weekend at our favourite National Park, a Catholic family camp, or a group camping trip with friends. If summer also makes you think of camping, here are some great Canadian campgrounds to inspire your plans.

Camping Company: Bugs & Bears

Being Aware of Ticks While Hiking and Camping—Hiking and camping can be a lot of fun, but people need to be aware of the possibility of a tick getting on their skin.  These little bugs are more than an annoyance, as they can transmit Lyme disease to a person.

Wild Animal Safety Tips—As summer approaches, many of us flock to campgrounds across the country, looking to experience the great outdoors with our families.  One of the highlights of a camping trip is seeing wild animals, but we may not always consider the safety concerns involved in such sightings.  A little bit of preparation can keep everyone safe on the family camping trip.

Camping Recipes

Campfire Pizzas—Use pie irons to make yummy campfire pizzas!

Fire Roasted Sweet Potatoes—When you think of camping food, there’s the usual hot dogs and s’mores, but there are plenty of other yummy meal ideas. On our second night camping I made fire roasted sweet potatoes for everyone. It’s a well-known fact that everything tastes better when you’re camping, but these tasted even better than that! Plus you don’t need a camp stove to cook them, and they don’t create dirty dishes or pans to wash. Yay!

Campfire Banana Boats—Camping is a time to explore, have fun, be outside and an opportunity to cook food in a different way. You don’t usually have access to a stove unless you have a camper. Banana Boats are fun, easy and always a great treat for the young and old.

Grilled Stuffed Mushrooms—Our camping friends always try to out do each other with newer and tastier foods every time we go. This past trip I decided to get in on the fun and make some kind of appetizer. This recipe got raves!

Wise Company Delivers Delicious Meals—prepackaged food has never tasted this good! No need for pots, pans, or fridges; just boil hot water and eat!

Books about Camping for Kids

S Is for S’mores: A Camping Alphabet—From what to pack, where to go, and what to do when you get there, S is for S’mores: A Camping Alphabet takes readers on an A-Z trail exploring this outdoor pastime. Veteran camper Helen Foster James tackles topics such as unique camping environments, equipment necessities, famous conservationists, and national parks and other attractions.

Interactive Kids Camping Journal—Your kids will have fun recording their camping memories in this journal! With writing prompts to inspire their imaginations and draw out their experiences, this camping journal will become a place for kids to store their special memories.

Exploring Nature Activity Book for Kids: 50 Creative Projects to Spark Curiosity in the Outdoors—Encourage young nature lovers to get outside and track, explore, discover, and create. This book is filled with hands-on, educational outdoor activities that kids will love to learn from, like crafting bird feeders out of fruit, pressing flowers, or creating sundials. They’ll get their hands dirty and their imaginations revving while staying active outside.

Scaredy Squirrel Goes Camping—Reading Melanie Watt’s book Scaredy Squirrel Goes Camping, young readers are taken through the steps as Scaredy gets ready to head to the campsite to plug in his TV. That’s right, he isn’t even going camping, just finding a plug for his electrical cord so he can watch “The Joy Of Camping” on TV.

Llama Llama Loves Camping—Llama Llama goes camping for the very first time and learns a valuable lesson: what seems scary can actually be super-duper FUN! Your little llamas will love relating to their favorite picture book character as he faces new and challenging situations.

Curious George Goes Camping—George tries to be helpful, but he of course just ends up upsetting a nearby camper. As he’s hiding in the woods, he meets a forest creature who catapults the mischievous monkey into a chain of even more outrageous events!

Pete the Cat Goes Camping—Pete can’t wait to go hiking, fishing, and eat s’mores by the campfire. But when he hears about the mysterious creature named Bigfoot, Pete can’t help but wonder: Is Bigfoot real?

Do you plan a summer camping trip with your family? What camping tips would you share?