January 31, 2012

Have Fun around the Campfire

A camping trip is not a camping trip without a campfire. There are a number of things families and friends can do in the glow of the flames – roasting marshmallows is just the start. Here are a handful of fun activities to do around a campfire that people of all ages will enjoy.

One thing all campers love doing is eating food cooked on top of the campfire. This is probably why eating roasted marshmallows is such an enjoyable activity. Try roasting hotdogs as well and bring along a few buns if you want. Bring a handful of graham crackers and make smores. You can even bring along a pack of popcorn kernels and make camping popcorn. Roasting bread on a stick is another snack that is delicious and fun to make.

Another fun thing to do around the campfire is singing. Nobody needs to be a great singer to have fun singing silly songs around the campfire. Aside from Kumbaya, why not sing songs like Home on the Range and Down in the Valley? This will intensify the camping feel for everybody.

Telling stories is another fun camping pastime that is best down around the campfire. Ghost stories are always a favorite, but why not throw in a few funny stories as well? You can talk about the funny things you used to do when you were young, or the time you wore your shirt backwards to the office. The more entertaining the story is, the more fun you will all have. Talking around the campfire is a great way of bonding and making even more memories that will last for a long time.

Playing games around the campfire is also fun. A camping favorite is Name that Tune. Here, a person starts out by humming a song he/she, and most of the other campers, knows. The first person that can guess the title of the song the ‘hummer’ was humming to will become the next ‘hummer’. Two Truths and A Lie is another fun camping game to play. Here, a person states three things about himself, only two of which are actually true. It is the others campers’ job to figure out which statement is the lie.

There are countless other fun things to do when around a campfire. Why not play Charades or Truth or Dare? You could look up the different constellations if you want to, or make up shapes all of your own. No matter what you do, the important thing is that you do it together. So have fun around a campfire, and form bonds that will last forever.

Download a Free 28-page Campfire Recipe Book at www.JoyofCamping.com.

Filed under Camping by .

January 30, 2012

A “Quick Start” Guide to Fly Fishing

When you unpack a new electronic device it comes with a “start here” guide because most folks don’t read manuals until they are in trouble. Same goes for fly fishing, except most folks read the books and watch the videos but can’t remember what they read or saw when they get to the river.

I want to present to you a “start here” guide to fly fishing. I trust you can get your waders and boots on by yourself, so I’ll leave that alone. I’ll start at the part where you’re dressed.

Check with your local sources before you go out. Newspapers, radio shows (many have podcasts) and fly shops offer great current advise. You can get most of what you need from them and get the hot flies. But conditions change quickly and you have to be able to evaluate conditions and make decisions on the fly.

I’ll have my bag or vest packed with whatever I may need for dry, wet nymph and streamer fishing. I carry two reels that fit in the same housing. One will have a floating line, the other an intermediate sink line. The only thing that I’ll put together at the car is the pole. That leaves me open to evaluate conditions at the water and setup for optimum success. If I set up the line, leader and fly at the car, I will use them at the stream – regardless of what I see. Call it stubborn or lazy, it’s just human nature.

Part of the allure of fly fishing is getting in touch with nature. The first step is to connect with your surroundings. Our first task is to figure out if the fish are feeding or holding, what they are eating and how they are behaving. Success will come from evaluating these three variables.

Clues to what the fish are feeding on is above, on and below the water. Above the water look for visible hatches or birds eating bugs. Dry flies are called for in these conditions. Examine the surface and see if there are bugs on it either emerging or on the film.

To figure out where the fish are eating we need to watch the water. Look for anything out of the ordinary especially bulges and ripples. If you see a ripple tie on a wet fly – the fish are feeding on the surface. If you see a bulge the fish are feeding under the surface and will more likely take a wet, nymph or streamer. Look under the rocks and see what crawls out to know what is going on under the surface.

Is the water clear or stained? Clear water will need a stealthy approach and long thin leader (6x). Off color water is more forgiving. Choose your leader accordingly.

Now that we know the conditions we can set up out line and leader. Dry flies will fish with a floating line, 9-12′ leader and 6x tippet. Wet flies or nymphs will fish with the same line but a 7.5′ leader and 4x tippet. You are now ready to get the line wet.

I like to fish streamers and will go to them if there are no signs of feeding fish. I use an intermediate sink line with a 7.5′ leader for streamers. If you want to go with nymphs I use a floating line with split shot above the fly and a strike indicator.

Find the seams in the stream. Look for bubbles or a debris path that will indicate the main current flow. Trout will hold right outside of the main current.

Following this procedure will get you better organized and increase your success rate.

Check out The Fishing Geekfor all kinds of fishing info, product reviews and tips.

Filed under Camping by .

January 29, 2012

Why You Need To Purchase Outdoor Tools From Out Door Gear

When you need to buy any type of outdoor clothing, it’d be a great idea to buy them from Outdoor Gear. The reason for this is that Outdoor Gear supplies items in a caliber which is out of the question from the majority of equivalent merchants. When you get anything from Outdoor Gear, you’re generally positive of the very best quality of merchandise, which is something that the majority of people may wish to reap the benefits of. Even so, a thing which could cause you problems when you need to buy something from Outdoor Gear is the matter of expense. In today’s financial state, the majority of people are seeking solutions to minimize the expense of buying anything, however this shouldn’t prevent you from buying anything from Outdoor Gear.

The real reason for this is that in contrast to the majority of stores, Outdoorgear basically sells its gear at reasonable prices. As soon as you visit the Outdoorgear web-site, you will see that the costs of practically all the goods they market for instance clothes and outdoor products are drastically less than what you’d probably pay in many other outlets. It is the key reason why it’s a good idea to obtain the items from Outdoorgear in lieu of from any other retailer: it’s likely you’ll make use of great costs.

In addition to that, buying anything from Outdoorgear is certain to be recommended simply because you are apt to obtain high quality items. Normally, one thing that has an impact on just how much anything can cost you is the period in which it will be of use to you. If you acquire something economical however it doesn’t last you that long, you could feel comfortable knowing that you would ought to obtain it continuously. Over time, this doesn’t turn out to be quite economical. Nonetheless, if you acquire something at an increased value however then it lasts you for a long period, then it could be treated to be less costly ultimately.

To that end, purchasing merchandise from Outdoorgear provides you the top of both worlds. In particular, when you purchase anything off this site, you may be positive that it’ll not cost you greatly, as has been explained above. However, the product will probably in addition last quite long, largely since the majority of Outdoorgear products are created using very high quality under consideration. Eventually, the purchase of anything from Outdoorgear is a good decision.

For all intents and purposed, the Outdoorgear retail outlet offers a lot more than what many stores give. You can acquire essentially anything you wish from the retail store, from camping tools to sports items. Such resourcefulness means that you do not ought to keep hopping from one retail store to another; you can acquire all you need from Outdoorgear. The truth that the merchandise are inexpensive and durable in addition means that you are able to spare a good deal when you purchase from Outdoorgear, both in the long run and in the short term as well.

Learn more about outdoorgear. Stop by Chad Revi’s site where you can find out all about outdoor gear and what it can do for you.

Filed under Camping by .

Register Login