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Travel Tips and Resources

Camping in Europe – The Ultimate Freedom

The word “camping” derives from the latin “campus” meaning “field”. Today camping is a way of spending your free time, or vacations, rather, in or very close to mother nature, because this is where camping takes place.
Camping in the course of time
At the beginning of the 20th century the first tourists started out with tents. [...]

How to Tell Tomorrows Weather in the Open Range

When you crawl out of your tent early on a early summer morning and find out breakfast will be nice and easy, because there is no dew on the grass, you should think twice about a longer walk out in the open range. If you want to go anyway, you should at least take a [...]

Camping With a Tent – A Quick Getaway

How would you like to really relax and find a way back to your self?
Reward yourself with an outdoor vacation and go camping! You don’t even have to spend a week’s time, a quick weekend trip, maybe with your bike and a tent will do. Spending a weekend with Mother Nature will do wonders for [...]

Shopping For Camping Supplies Online

Vacation time is just around the corner these days and a lot of folks are looking at their camping gear in the back of the garage or on the attic and wonder if its still feasible or if it needs to be replaced. A lot of stuff probably hasn’t gotten any better from the last [...]

Shopping For Tents – Think about Car Tents

Campers have very different preferences. Some folks love to travel “All Inclusive” with departure, destiny and accommodations already booked. Activities and tours are planed and organized in advance and they enjoy their vacations rather passively. Other folks are looking for an adventure and want to explore the unknown. These folks don’t make to many plans [...]

A Hiking Guide to Easter Island

August 11th, 2010

Ask me which Pacific island has the most to offer hikers and I’ll probably answer Easter Island. Here on an island 11 km wide and 23 km long you’ll find nearly a thousand ancient Polynesian statues strewn along a powerfully beautiful coastline or littering the slopes of an extinct volcano.

The legends of Easter Island have been recounted many times. What’s less known is that the island’s assorted wonders are easily accessible on foot from the comfort of the only settlement, Hanga Roa. Before setting out see the sights, however, visit the excellent archaeological museum next to Ahu Tahai on the north side of town (the term “ahu” refers to an ancient stone platform). Aside from the exhibits, the museum has maps which can help you plan your trip.

The first morning after arrival, I suggest you climb Easter Island’s most spectacular volcano, Rano Kau, where Orongo, a major archaeological site, sits on the crater’s rim. But rather than marching straight up the main road to the crater, look for the unmarked shortcut trail off a driveway to the right just past the forestry station south of town. It takes under two hours to cover the six km from Hanga Roa to Orongo, but bring along a picnic lunch and make a day of it. (If climbing a 316-meter hill sounds daunting, you can take a taxi to the summit for around US$6 and easily walk back later in the day.) Once on top, you’ll find hiking down into the colourful crater presents no difficulty. It may also look easy to go right around the crater rim, but only do so if you’re a very experienced hiker and have a companion along as shear 250-meter cliffs drop into the sea from the ridge.

A Guide To Resorts In The Alps

August 10th, 2010

The alps are a popular winter travel destination. Skiing, snowboarding, ice skating and other winter activities abound throughout the mountainous area. The Alps are shared among many countries, including Austria, France, German, Italy and Switzerland. Whether you are looking for a family vacation or are more adventurous and enjoy mountaineering and extreme skiing, you will find something for every one in this area.

Family Resorts in the Alps

Many resorts throughout the area cater to families. In these resorts, families with children make up the bulk of their business. There is plenty for both parents and children to enjoy. Horse drawn sleigh rides, skiing and snowboarding are popular family activities. Just about all family resorts offer ski instruction especially for children as well as adult lessons for mom and dad. Some offer night skiing, either nightly or on certain evenings during the week.

After a day of skiing, parents can enjoy the sauna and Jacuzzi, while children enjoy the variety of play areas and activities geared especially for them. If mom and dad want an evening alone, many resorts offer babysitting services. Many family resorts are low tech and don’t have internet access or video games, but some do have these features available. Many families enjoy the low tech atmosphere, which encourages children to enjoy the outdoors and other activities offered.

Many of these resorts are located in small villages scattered throughout the alps. These offer quaint scenery and older hotels. Restaurants are nearby, if you want to leave the resort, or you can eat right inside the resort. Others are in larger tourist areas and contain luxury hotels and apartments for families to rent.

Singles Resorts in the Alps

Other resorts are geared for the younger crowd. These are more popular with single people in their 20s and couples without children. These resorts offer more expert runs for skiing and snowboarding. Many are near glaciers and have monster pipes built into the glaciers that allow snowboarding even in the summer. More experienced skiers generally choose these resorts.

Many of these resorts are wired with internet access. Rather than family based activities, they contain bars, lounges and a busier nightlife. Most offer night skiing with lighted trails for skiing or snowboarding in the dark.

For the more adventurous, mountaineering is a popular activity in the area. Daily climbing excursions or multi day trips are common here. Hut to Hut tours make it easier to climb more difficult routes. These are great for multi day excursions. You won’t need to carry heavy overnight gear with you, as you would when camping. The huts have what you need for sleeping.

Easier to more difficult routes are available with hut to hut climbing. The easier routes tend to be more crowded and the huts fill up quickly. The more difficult routes are less crowded, but are not meant for beginning mountain climbers. There is generally more room in the huts on these trips.

A Backpack With Wheels?

August 10th, 2010

I wouldn’t have thought a backpack with wheels would actually work for backpacking, but when I saw the web site for the “Wheelpacker”(TM), I was impressed. You wear a frame that attaches you to a wheeled pack. It can even go over logs and rocks. But it comes with a heavy price tag. They are asking almost 800 Dollars, which is quite steep. And I am not an affiliate! But it started me thinking about what other backpacking innovations are just waiting to be marketed. Here are a few of the things I came up with. Steal these ideas, please.

Inflatable Frame Backpack

With frame-less backpacks we often put folded sleeping pads in the pack for cushioning against our backs and some support for the load. Why not just have the part of the pack that rests against the user’s back inflate. With the same technology used for lightweight self-inflating sleeping bag pads, it would only add about six ounces. The backpack could then double as a foot-bag/pad for sleeping.

5 Easy Steps to Giving the Perfect BackCountry Gift

August 9th, 2010

Does the thought of buying a gift for a friend or relative make you smile or does it stress you out? Is there a hiker or camper on your gift giving list? What can you give to the someone who already has everything? The secret of gift giving is not always the “what.” Many times the “why, when and how” make an ordinary gift the Perfect Gift. Continue reading to discover 5 sure-fire steps to giving the perfect gift to the outdoor enthusiasts in your life.

Step 1: Do Your Homework. This is the toughest of the 5 steps. Doing your homework means thinking about your outdoor enthusiast and what he or she likes about being in the backcountry. Are there any current or past outdoor interests? Perhaps he likes to fish or she likes to climb. Maybe you overheard the comment “I remember when I used to go camping every long weekend. I miss those days.” Our personal shopper service receives hints like this all the time. Chances are you already know their interests, so take a few minutes to think prior to shopping. There are loads of great outdoor gifts available.

4 Season Tents For Gentle Summer Camping

August 9th, 2010

There is no need to get 4 season tents for gentle summer camping. Even if there is a heavy downpour, the use of sleeping pads combined with adequate planning should keep everything fairly dry. The important thing is to not camp at the bottom of a hill, to make sure the rain fly is secure, and to take advantage of natural cover.

But, a four season tent can be a nice thing to have for extreme conditions, and if you have the money to spend on one, it is a luxury that can really improve your camping experience.

Basically, the difference between 4 season tents and regular tents is that a 4 season tent is tighter, with heavier outer walls. When it is all zipped up, there is no space anywhere for the elements to get in.

In addition, 4 season tents are often stabler so that they can resist extremely heavy storms if need be. This does not mean, however, that you cannot use 4 season tents in nicer weather. Many styles of 4 season tents come with the ability to unzip the outer fly so that you can keep cool on summer days, while still braving near-arctic temperatures in the winter.

East Cape Wahoo Strike

August 7th, 2010

Setting out for a day on the water we had no idea that the wahoo gods had in store for us. As the boat left the dock before the sun was coming up I had a feeling that this was going to be a great day of fishing. I stayed up pretty late the night before rigging all my wire leaders for the wahoo I was dreaming of catching. So as we headed out the water was calm over the sea of Cortes and the sun just starting to break as we came south our of cabo san lucas. We had a pretty good run in the boat before we could fish, we had heard the day before that the wahoo bite was going crazy on the east cape. So after about three hours of hard running in the boat we decided to get the lines in the water. I set up the out riggers and my buddy steve set up the the cockpit pattern, as captain fernando got us on the fish.

It was about an hour after dropping our lures in the water that we had a huge wahoo strike. All at once four of the rods bent to the extent that they looked like they were going to break. We were fishing with really light tackle and even lighter fishing line. We are only out there for the sport of it, so we take no fish that we catch, only pictures. Anyways as everyone on the boat was going crazy from the four rods screaming like they were about to blow up. You could feel the excitement in the cockpit of the boat, it was so think you could have cut it with a knife.

Camping Makes the Weekend Perfect.

August 7th, 2010

Do you have a weekend without anything to do or a weekend when you don’t want to do anything? I know what I’d do. I would pack up the truck and head for the woods. Sitting by a camp fire with your favorite people solves many problems, so you shouldn’t wait too long between fires. My favorite thing to do on a weekend is to camp. Are you looking for an easy way to camp? How about car camping? I love it!

First of all, let’s define car camping? When you can drive your vehicle right up to the camp site, that’s called car camping. Even if you’re driving a truck it’s still called car camping. The advantage of car camping versus primitive or base camping is that you can take anything you want with you. If you want to take a hammock or huge grill or a stack of magazines, you can. Load your car or truck with food, clothing, shelter, bedding, games and anything else you want to take along and get going. It’s really that simple.

Is it Safe to Take a Dog Camping in the Woods?

August 5th, 2010

By Mary King
First published at: http://hikingbackpacking.suite101.com

Dog owners often insist on taking their pet on vacation. Taking a dog on a camping trip in the woods may not be the best choice for humans or the pet.

A weekend camping trip sounds like the perfect getaway for a pet owner and his canine friend. There are concerns that owners have to consider before taking a dog into a wooded area where there is wildlife and where there may be other campers. Barking and pet droppings are just two problems that pet owners can expect to encounter. As a courtesy to others and for the pet’s well-being, it might be best to consider other options before taking a family dog camping in the woods.

Comfort and Safety Issues When Taking a Dog on a Camping Trip
Some private parks and family campsites won’t allow dogs – even pets on leashes – for the safety of other guests. Those campsites that do allow dogs have strict rules that owners must follow. Service dogs are the exception, but an owner should take every precaution to keep the animal safe. In any case, don’t forget to bring the dog’s basic necessities for the camping trip:

What to Consider When Choosing a Hiking Trail

July 27th, 2010

Are you interested in going on a hiking adventure? Whether that hiking adventure will last for a few hours or a whole weekend, you will need to choose a hiking trail. When it comes to choosing a hiking trail, you need to remember that you have a number of different options. No matter where in the United States you are located, you should have a number of hiking trails located a close distance away from your home.

Since you should have a number of different choices, when looking for a hiking trail to hike, you may be wondering how you can go about finding the “perfect,” hiking trail to hike. To help you choose the best hiking trail, there are a number of important factors that you may want to think about taking into consideration. A few of those factors are briefly outlined below for you.

Whitewater Rafting in Oregon

July 27th, 2010

For whitewater rafting in the Pacific Northwest, Oregon is an enthusiasts dream! The rivers available only short drives from the major cities provide beginners and experts, alike, with an exciting and fun challenge for half, one, and two day trips. For those who want a longer, more impressive experience, Oregon also offers some of the best four and five day river trips anywhere!

The Umpqua River is, simply put, a dream! Flowing North of Crate Lake, the Umpqua River has Class III and IV rapids and flows through some of the most beautiful surroundings in the Pacific Northwest. The Umpqua has exceptional pool-and-drop rapids and has more rapids per mile than any other Oregon river.