anything you can do ...
monday morning, 8:40 a.m. already went across the street to grab my almond latte (skim, lest i wish to feel the effects of lactose-ravaging on my intolerant body) and swapped weekend stories with my friend melissa. i'm now downloading a new cd to my itunes, sifting through the 50+ emails gathered at my work account over the weekend, and attempting to turn my attention to the week at hand.
i have a hundred things to do today. ok, not quite a hundred, but bear with me for the sake of the drama. it is 155 degrees in my office and my turtleneck sweater & warm beverage have joined to form a cohesive army against me, fueling my body with fire. more or less.
i'm not trying to complain. really. i'm trying to learn to be tough. jon asked me yesterday what i thought of going winter camping. sounds good to me, i thought. cold weather i can do. i did grow up in minnesota for crying out loud. still, i'm not sure if he thinks i'm tough enough to do it. he listed all the freezing cold, wet, bone-chilling conditions that contribute to making winter camping enjoyable for only the die-hardest of campers.
fine. i'll be honest. i'm not a die-hard camper. in fact, when jon's brother joel opened up a birthday present saturday to find a PocketRocket, the first thing that came to mind was that it was a flare you'd send up into the night sky if you were dying in the woods and wanted someone to find you (fyi, it's not).
the truth is, i've only been camping once. and i don't know if it qualifies as camping by anyone's standards. after my freshman year at college, a few of us went to wilmar, minnesota for a three-day music festival. we pitched a tent and i didn't wash my hair for 3 days. we ate hot dogs and s'mores. the next time i went camping, a few friends and i drove up to a site in door county, wisconsin, pitched a tent, spent the night and drove back the next morning.
and that's it. my camping history.
still, i see this as no reasonable excuse why i'm no good at winter camping. i know it's cold. okay, i don't know how cold it really is. but i'm a sink or swim kind of girl. either i can or i can't do it. and yes, yes, i know there are times when preparation is required. but honestly, throwing a backpack on and hiking into the woods is NOT the same as grabbing a scalpel and digging into someone's head. let's just be real here.
so i signed up online at REI so i can get discounts on stuff, ranging from super-heavy wool socks to (who am i kidding? do i really have any idea what else they sell?). but i'm committed to doing it. and i won't complain. besides, if i set winter-camping as a goal, i have a reasonable excuse to put on extra pounds this holiday season as part of my "preparation." winter layers, people. an extra handful of cookies comes much cheaper than some north face thermal tshirt. i'm just saying ...
posted by Mary @ 7:44 AM
7 comments
7 Comments:
ok. i couldn't resist. this is a post on camping. i have to comment. ;-)
so, i wouldn't call myself a die-hard camper either. we only go camping somewhere in the range of 2-5 times max, a year. to be honest, when you said PocketRocket, i had no idea what that was, so i looked it up. ya, now i know what it is...friends that we go camping alot with have one. i just didn't know that's what it was called.
if you want to be a camper - you will. and no biggie if you don't do a bunch of prep. it just means that you'll say to yourself when your out there camping..."why didn't i bring..." this, that, or the other thing....we still do that. over time, you'll figure out the staples of what to bring, etc.
so these are my staples:
1. wool socks and liner socks. always bring extra socks.
2. long sleeve shirts. layering (top and bottom) is always better than one big coat or sweater.
3. long underwear. can't do without it for winter camping.
4. rain gear. you don't want to get wet out in the cold.
5. stay away from cotton as much as you can. it soaks up moisture and makes you cold.
6. rope, tarp.
7. knife and/or axe. (axe to chop wood and knife to cut things like rope, etc. or cheese for your scrambled eggs in the morning.)
8. hand sanitizer. the kind that doesn't require water.
9. head lamp. with extra batteries.
10. gloves, hat, ear warmers.
i think i'm forgetting some other essentials too but, that's a good start. ;-)
one other note - try to keep your feet, hands and ears warm. i don't know about you, but if one or all of those is cold, i'm cold and i usually can't shake the cold unless those are warm.
happy camping! you can do it!
teresa, this is AWESOME. i will definitely print this out before i go camping.
although, to be honest, i chuckled to myself at the idea of ever actually buying a head lamp. it reminds me of ben stiller in zoolander when he went mining with his dad and brothers. hee hee.
First of all Mary you are tough and I am sure that you can go winter camping if you want to. I second teresa’s list, especially the idea of layers. Secondly I want to say that this post read a little like I was making a challenge with winter camping, which was not my goal. I don’t really like winter camping all that much myself. It is fun until you get cold but once you are cold it is hard to ever get warm again and I personally hate being really cold. I am a wuss like that. A warm summer night beats a sub-zero evening anytime. Finally one of the greatest things about camping is the culture of sharing so really you need next to nothing to get started and everything else you can borrow, if you want to. So WIP, lets get started.
Mary,
Alright, now I know that you will say "Of course Rachel can camp, she can do everything," but seriously, I have a TON of experience camping. The main thing to remember is that it is fun!
I will second Teresa's staples and add a few of my own:
1. Toilet paper. It is a luxury unlike any other.
2. A trowel. This one depends on how rustic you are going. If you are backpacking in the wilderness, this is essential. And don't buy one, I think I have an extra at home. Side note: My grandmother used to canoe/camp with my grandfather in the wilds of Canada and would bring along a small port-a-pottie that she would portage. OMG! That is unreal but she is a clean lady...not even the woods were going to get her dirty! :)
3. GORP, which is the acronym for Granola, Oatmeal, Raisins, and Peanuts. But you can use anything.
My recipe? All the flavors of Cheerios, all the flavors of M&Ms, Pretzel and Cheddar Goldfish, nuts (peanuts, cashews, almonds), Craisins or dried Cherries, and sometimes some Chex but usually not as they crumble too easily.
My brother's recipe when he was 8? Trix, M&Ms, Lucky Charms, and Skittles. HA! Please be aware that this is a BAD idea b/c it is fast but unsustaining nutrition.
4. And lastly, if you are hiking, a garbage bag to cover your sleeping bag. The last thing you want when hiking in the rain is a wet bed!
If you need more tips or stories, let me know!
Cheers,
Rachel.
mary! i'm so behind on reading your wonderful posts. i ate this one up, as usual. :)
i'm sure you'll be a GREAT winter-camper, and i can't wait to hear all about it. :)
only one question: what in the WORLD about the scalping thing?...
reb - oops, i read that again and i guess it didn't make sense. i was thinking using a scalpel for brain surgery, although i suppose it does look like i'm referring to scalping someone.
this, however, is not the case. thanks for making a note of it so i don't look like i'm insanely dangerous and evil :)
The part about the extra layers and eating cookies was hysterical. Very good.
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