When I was growing up, my parents took us camping a lot. My dad did not care for hotels, so whenever we traveled, we spent the night out under the stars. My dad also did not like campgrounds. It wasn’t real camping if there was a bathroom and people all around. In fact, it seemed the more inaccessible the roads and the more rugged the terrain, the better the camping spot. My dad was not a fan of tents either, and when the weather turned rotten, his solution was to fold a tarp over the top of us to keep us dry. I remember many a night spent shivering under a tarp listening to the rain and thunder pounding all around. To be fair, I think he skipped the tent to save space in the car. With four kids and two adults, there wasn’t much room with extra stuff when we were packing for a trip.

We took Alex on his first camping trip in July when he was ten months old. I had friends invite me to go ride horses with them on the beach just north of South Bend, Oregon at the Wild Mare Campground, and I took them up on the offer.

Alex sleeps with us in the bed, so we purchased a two person sleeping bag from Sportsman’s Guide in preparation for the trip. A friend of mine used a Pack ’n Play as a crib when she took her baby camping. The only concern I would have in doing so is making sure the child stays warm enough since it can get pretty cold at night. Older kids like having their own sleeping bag, but make sure the sleeping bag is warm enough. I have been camping with kids whose sleeping bags are not up to the task. They are thoroughly miserable, and if the weather is cold enough, it can be quite dangerous.

Wild Mare Campground was wonderful (though my dad would have objected at having neighbors and a toilet). The only drawback was the mosquitoes. They were horrible! We covered ourselves, the baby, and the dogs in DEET free bug repellant, but the mosquitoes just laughed at us. We lit a small fire to help keep the bugs away, set up the tent, and climbed inside. The dogs spent the night in the car and were happy to do so because it meant getting away from the bugs. In retrospect, we did not get many bites, so the bug spray must have discouraged the mosquitoes from biting at least.

The sleeping bag was a success, though it was a tight fit. My husband and I sleep on our sides, so we were able to fit in the bag with the baby. Had we slept on our backs, the sleeping bag would not have been big enough. Our two pads however were not sufficient, so poor Alex did not have a pad (though he was tired enough not to care).

Our next camping trip was on the trip to and from Colorado this August. Alex was eleven months old this trip. We learned from our last trip and purchased a full sized inflatable mattress to sleep on. The mattress was the perfect size to fit our sleeping bag and so much more comfortable then the sleeping pads. Aren’t inflatables great!

The first night of camping was less than a success however. We had planned on spending the night at the campground in Pendleton, but we ran into road construction, got tired, and decided to stop in John Day instead. We don’t have an RV, but being tired, we pulled into an RV campground anyway and my husband tried to set up our tent on the grass. I paid the $9 for our camping spot and came back to assist my husband with the tent. When we had just finished, a huge gust of wind came up and blew the tent right up out of the ground. Luckily we were able to chase the tent down before it blew into the river. Unfortunately my $9 was gone as there was no attendant to retrieve it from the lock box. Frustrated, we packed up the tent in the car gave up. We drove to the nearest motel and were informed that rooms were $69 and there was no hot water. Some sales pitch! Well, I was having none of that, so I drove onto Hermiston with my husband and baby asleep in the back seat and paid ten bucks more for a hotel that not only had hot water, but also had a pool and a waffle breakfast.

Important lessons learned: A tent and a kite are pretty similar, so don’t try to set up a tent in the wind unless you want it to fly. I also should have also had better maps. We use to have a great atlas of Oregon, but it got wrecked, and I have not replaced it yet. Next trip I will plan better!

Another tip for those who are camping, especially with kids. Find a camping spot and set up camp while it is still light out! My husband and I often make the mistake of driving as long as we can, and then when we are too tired to go on, looking for a camping spot. This means getting a spot that is often less then ideal and having a screaming, tired baby wailing at us while we try to set up camp in the dark. Not fun.

The second night we were meeting my parents in the National Forest an hour past Salt Lake, UT. It was a long day of driving (especially with a baby), and it was late and dark when we got there. We barely found the dirt road, though it was a pretty good road at least. This camping spot was the best one of the trip, and since it wasn’t in an actual campground, it was free. My dad sure knows how to find a camping spot! The tarp was already spread when we got there and since it was a beautiful night, we skipped the tent and went right to bed.

On the way home from Colorado, we had one night to camp. I was unsure of where we should camp but wanted to make it past Twin Falls. We stopped at several travel centers and a Walmart along the road hoping to get an Idaho atlas, but were unable to find anything better than the map I already had in the car. We saw a sign for Three Island Crossing State Park and pulled off to see if they had camping. The attendant and customer at the grocery store in Glenns Ferry were very helpful and informed us that the park had camping and there were also two other campgrounds in the area as well in case that campground was full. We headed to the park and found there were plenty of camping spots available, so we paid our $23 for a camping spot, set up camp, and went to sleep. We decided to forgo the tent again, but unfortunately also forgot to put on bug spray. Later as my husband and baby laid sleeping, I felt the mosquitoes having their picnic on us. After much hesitation, I woke my husband and asked him to get the bug spray (the baby would have woke up if I got up), and sprayed myself, then wiped the baby as well as I could without waking him. Unfortunately much of the damage was already done, and I was covered in small bug bites. I have not found many bites on Alex yet, but while these bites are really itchy, they are also small and hard to see, so maybe I just have not looked hard enough.

Lesson learned: Don’t forget the bug spray. It may be late and you may be tired, but take the time to put on mosquito repellent before you go to bed, especially if you are sleeping without a tent.

So Alex has gone camping a few times now. Camping can be just about finding a place to sleep, like our trip to Colorado, or it can be a fun activity itself, like our trip to North Bend. Either way, camping is lots of fun with the right supplies, a bit of planning, and a bit of luck (and may not be so much fun without them).

The weather is hot outside and the mosquitoes are horrid this year. If you’d like to spend some fun time out of the elements with your kids, try booking an indoor private play group at Inflatable Kingdom.

If you are interested in camping, but not quite comfortable to go out on your own, Oregon Parks is offering the “Lets Go Camping” program for beginning campers. The family friendly program includes camping instruction, guided hikes, fire safety, Dutch oven cooking, and more. Camping gear is also available to use.

-HL

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