Camping and DVD players

More and more, campers are packing all the "essentials" with them when they go camping.

Especially if they have kids going along.  Some of these essentials will include a portable DVD player or laptop computer.
  Jerry and I haven't gotten to that point..... yet!! We still enjoy camping without a lot of the electronic gadgets. 

Going for walks, fishing, hunting,riding the quad or reading in the evening, takes up most of our time when camping.

I can actually see where a DVD player could come in handy. There have been camping trips when the weather isn't that great, a rain storm moves in and you and the kids are kinda stuck in the R.V. or tent for the afternoon.

Let's face it.................board games can only be played so many times before they get boring!!!!!!!!!!!

It would have been so handy when our kids where small, if we could have popped in a movie, fixed them a snack, and enjoyed some peace and quiet for a few hours!!!!!

Home Remedies for First Aid

If your like us, at some point or other, you've had to come up with a "Home Remedy" for things like :

• upset tummies
• sunburn
• bug bites
• toothache
• etc.....

Over the years, I've tried different home remedies.

Mostly because we were camping or traveling and I had forgotten to include that one item  in our First Aid Kit, that I now needed.

A few things that I've tried are:

• baking soda for bug bites (mix with a little water and apply as paste too bite)
• wet tea bags for sun burn or brew up some tea, ice down and apply with wash clothes
• an eye wash using salt and bottled water(be sure to boil water if possible with salt,than cool down before using)
• for bruises-grab the tea bags again, soak in water and apply tea bag to bruised area.

These are my stand by's for basic home remedies.

What's your go to home remedy?

Do you do Caves?

Over the years of camping and vacationing, we've had the opportunity to explore a few caves.

I'm not a big fan of enclosed places, especially enclosed dark places.

But........................I will take one for the team, as it were, and follow the gang down into the ground. We went into one underground cavern that was filled with stalagmites and stalactites.

This cavern was located in Montana, called the Lewis and Clark Caverns.

There was lights mounted inside the cavern that made it a lot easier to see where you where walking, and what you were looking at.

The guided tour followed along about 2 miles of twisting trail thru stalagmites, stalactites and helictites.

I was really glad to get back out side where you can see blue skies and sunshine. 

The whole time we were following the guide, going deeper and deeper underground, all I could think of was..........


WHAT HAPPENS IF THE LIGHTS GO OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 It would be really dark down there.


There is a campground located near the caverns. The campground offers the following amenities:

•  40 campsites
• showers
• dump station
• restrooms

 

Sourdough..........To dough or not!!

Sourdough. 


Just the word alone can bring  images to one's mind.

Sourdough bread, San Francisco Sourdough bread, sourdough miners......

But, where did this distinctive tasting and so versatile dough come from?

A long time ago, in a world far, far away................Sourdough likely originated in ancient Egypt times around 1500 BC and was likely the first form of leavening available to bakers.(Wikipedia!!!)

Sourdough was the main bread made in California  during the gold rush and it remains a part of the culture of San Franciso today.

The bread became so common that "sourdough" became a general nickname for the gold prospectors.

A 'Sourdough' is also a nickname used in the North (Yukon/Alaska) for someone who has spent an entire winter north of the Arctic Circle and refers to their tradition of protecting their Sourdough during the coldest months by keeping it close to their body.  (Wikipedia..again!!)                 

There is so much history behind such a simple dough.

I started my sourdough starter last year, and since than have been making sourdough bread on a regular basis. I get bored real quick with the same recipes, so, I'll start changing them up some.

I make a sourdough bread with cranberries, pumpkin seeds and orange zest. Tastes great as toast.

The other day, I got a wild hair and added a few spoonfuls of Basil Pesto Sauce to my dough before rising.  Gonna plan on dipping this in some Olive oil. Yummmm!!!!

This tastes great as a sandwich with chicken, smoked mozzarella, sliced avacodos and just  a smidgen red onion. 

I haven't had the chance to try cooking sourdough bread over a camp fire. That's on my to do list for this year.

I'm looking forward to trying my hand at baking some sourdough bread in a cast iron dutch oven the next time we go camping. 

 Do You Sourdough???

Do you do lists?

I'm a big fan of lists.

Trust me- there is no local 7-11 next door!!

Grocery lists, to-do lists, shopping lists, daily duty lists, etc................

Especially when we are planning a camping or hunting trip.

I don't mind improvising occasionally, but for the most part, I want to have all my ducks in a row.

Better not run out of supplies up here!!

 So, I'll make a camp/hunt list and make sure I include the basic essentials. I"ll put together our meal plan for the week or so we'll be out. And from that, I'll create my grocery list.

I'll also make a list for any food items that I'll be taking from the house. This could also include extra cook gear that I might not have in my camp gear box.

All this, plus a camping checklist for our most essential camp gear.

It's a long ways back to camp!!!

I know it sounds like I'm overdoing all this planning, but...............

for the most part I'm pretty much covered for any problems that might come up while we are out.

Camping and Crocheting............do YOU?

 Do you have a craft you enjoy while camping?

Log Cabin Afghan

 Several years ago, I started taking my latest afghan project, to work on while we where camping or hunting.

I guess you could say my grannie was a big influence on camping and crocheting. Any craft for that matter. Years ago, my grandpa would contract with the Forest Service to "clean up" logging slash in Eastern Oregon.

Another Log Cabin Afghan

So..........Grandpa and grannie would haul their R.V out to wherever the job site was and set up camp for the summer. I spent many summers staying with them while I was growing up.

Granny always had something to work on (this was before we even heard of portable d.v.d. players, play-boys or any of the hand held toys).  We would crochet, make beaded necklace's and other craft projects.

Do you have a craft you like to work on when camping?

Highway sidetrips..................

 Years ago, Jerry and I packed the three kids and two dogs into our Dodge Ram, and headed down the road on a 10 day road trip.

 We left Nevada, headed up into southern Idaho, and worked our way over to Yellowstone. From there, we went North, up into Montana.

  On our way to Missoula, we took off the interstate, and drove up a graveled out of the road, ending up at a  small mining ghost town called Garnet.
Montana’s most intact ghost town was never built to last.

Garnet endures along with the spirits of the rugged gold miners and their families who carved a community in the heart of the Garnet Mountain Range at the end of the nineteenth century.

What a treasure.

We spent an enjoyable afternoon wandering around the old buildings and reliving the memories of a forgotten era.

So, if your on a little road trip, and see some side roads, don't be in too much of a hurry to pass them by.

Down that little dirt road, might be a treasure you could find.
Montana’s most intact ghost town was never built to last.

Garnet endures along with the spirits of the rugged gold miners and their families who carved a community in the heart of the Garnet Mountain Range at the end of the nineteenth century.

What a treasure.

We spent an enjoyable afternoon wandering around the old buildings and reliving the memories of a forgotten era.

So, if your on a little road trip, and see some side roads, don't be in too much of a hurry to pass them by.

Camp Cooking

Have you been looking for some easy camp recipes?

I love to cook, old recipes, new recipes, easy, complicated..........most times it doesn't matter the type of meal I'm fixing. I just have fun with it.

However...................

There are times when a quick one pot meal is all I'm in the mood to deal with.

Usually, this happens when we're out camping or hunting. 

This is a quick, easy one pot meal............

 Camp Chile Ingredients:

1 to 1-1/2 pounds ground beef( you can use ground turkey also, I've used ground antelope or venison)
1 medium onion, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 can Mexican flavored stewed tomatoes
1 can red kidney beans (or black beans)
1 can corn, drained
1-2 cans condensed tomato soup (to taste)
2 teaspoon chili powder

Preparation:
Brown ground meat with onions and garlic. Add all other ingredients. Bring to a boil; then simmer for 10 minutes.

Serve with some sourdough rolls and green salad.
Makes for a quick and easy dinner on a cold day!!!!

WHAT are you cooking on?

  Jerry and I have had a couple sets of camp cookware over the years.

When we first got back into camping, we were given a set of aluminum camp cooking set (since it was free, I really couldn't be too picky).

It was what it was.

I had to be careful when cooking, because it would burn food very quickly. The only good thing about this set was that it was very light weight, and the whole set nested.

As time went buy, we started adding some cast iron pieces to our camping cook set.

Cooking on cast iron is so much better than the aluminum set. And, the cast iron can be very versatile.
 I use mine not only on the stove, but in the oven, and you can also cook right over the campfire with the cast iron.

About the only drawback to cooking with cast iron is the weight.

Those darn skillets and Dutch ovens can get kinda heavy, especially when you have a pot full of stew.