Misadventures in Camping

Camping is a great family activity. However it is also an opportunity for things to go wrong in an unfamiliar environment. That is why it is important to have a good attitude and keep a smile even when things get a little rougher than expected. Here are some stories of my family’s adventures in camping:

Moving Logs

When my brother was very young, maybe five or six, my parents decided to take us to a nearby lake to fish and camp. We drove up and put up our tent, wondering at all the RVs and no other tents in the area. However we did not let that deter us as we went on getting everything together. My brother was excited to get down to the water so I went with him as lifeguard. Full of joy, he toddled along with his kid sized fishing pole and net. As we neared the water what I thought was a log moved. It turns out that this fishing hole already had a resident. Alligators roamed the lake and my mother nearly had a fit. Thankfully there was a dock that was well up off the water so my brother could realize his dreams of catching perch after perch and my other could feel like he was safe from hungry jaws. Needless to say the camp site was moved far back from the lake for the duration of the stay.

Burning the Picnic Table

Cooking while camping is not always easy. While bonfires and the like are great, sometimes you just need to eat. On one camping trip my mother bought a tin pan with a grate on top that was filled with charcoal. Billed as a grill in a box, this contraption was meant to let us eat in a hurry. She set it down on top of the wood picnic table and lit it, waiting for the coals to be ready. After a while we begin to smell wood smoke. It finally dawned on me what was happening when the black smoke started to creep from under the grill. We were setting the table on fire! Grabbing some oven mitts we quickly moved the grill to the dirt and threw some water on the table. Crisis averted, though I believe that table still has a rectangular burn on it to this day.

Sleeping in the Clouds

My last story took place when I was very small, around three years old. My mother and grandmother decided to visit Cloudcroft, New Mexico. If you do not know it is one of the highest elevations in the Southern United States. They set up a tent and enjoyed the cool temperatures, used to the blazing heat of summer. However when night fell so did the temperature. As frost began to form on the tent, they bundled me up in a snowsuit and curled up under a pile of blankets. Apparently I was very warm in my suit because I slept in between them and kept kicking the blankets off all night long. We moved on the Carlsbad Caverns where I spent the entire wondrous journey with my head buried in my mother’s neck because I was afraid of the dark.

About the Author: 

Ken Myers is an expert advisor on in-home care & related family safety issues to many websites and groups. He is a regular contributor to www.gonannies.com. You can get in touch with him at kmyers.ceo@gmail.com. 

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