As the warmer weather approaches, we at
target"=http://packncamp.com/">PackNCamp.com
look forward to another season of camping and enjoying
the fun, relaxation, and beauty that the outdoor environment has
to offer. I myself, am anxious to get out on weekends to some of
my favorite campsites around Kentucky and Indiana. Of course
I'll have plenty of fishing and camping gear to bring along in
case some of my family or friends join in on the adventures that
are sure to come with each outing. This is the most enjoyable
thing for me when I see others having a great time hiking,
fishing, throwing Frisbees?, or sitting around the campfire
telling stories or singing campfire songs.
There are several things I try to consider before I begin
packing for a camping trip. First of course, is how long will I
be gone? How much time do I have to get away from the "9 to 5",
unwind and get refreshed by the fresh air, sunshine, and
peaceful scenery that nature provides so abundantly? This
summer, I'm going to try to get out more frequently on the
weekends so I'll talk a little about short outings that are not
too distant from home. This will allow me more time for what I
actually want to do, and that of course, is to camp. I don't
want to spend 5 hours going and 5 hours coming, using basically
a whole day just for traveling. If I pick a place that's within
a 100 mile radius, I should be able to find several dozen places
to visit and spend less than 4 hours of total travel time.
Ok, that sound great, I can think of a dozen places within 100
miles right of the top of my head. Lake Monroe, where my
youngest son and I visited last year, is only 1 hour and 45
minutes from my home. That was a great weekend camping trip and
my daughter and her friends at IU came from Bloomington to join
in the fun. Several of the girls had not fished much at all, and
I had more fun than they did watching them scream and holler as
we caught over 70 bluegill. It was a great thrill for them to
actually catch, clean, and eat fresh fish. Most of the panfish
were a little on the small side, but I had them keep them for
several reasons. One of course, is the fish sometimes swallow
the hook and it's nearly impossible to throw them back when this
happens. Another reason I sometimes keep small bluegill, is that
it helps other aquatic life to have more abundant food sources.
Anyway, after we cleaned them all, they were absolutely
delicious dipped in a bowl of egg and milk, rolled in cracker
crumbs and cornmeal, and fried to a golden brown. And of course
we had several bags to take home, which seemed like it made the
camping trip last longer than just the weekend.
But let's get back to some of the essentials of planning your
weekend camping trip. After you've decided on how much time you
have, you will need to consider how many nature lovers are going
camping. That's usually the easy part. So if you've got 5 people
going, and you're going to be gone for two nights and two days,
you'll want to figure how many meals that will be. I'd say it
will be in the neighborhood of 2 dinners, 2 breakfast, and 2
lunches, not including snack times. So we'll need enough food
for 10 people (5 x 2) for essentially one day. That should
calculate to an average of 8-10 ounces of meat per person, 8-10
ounces of vegetables and fruit per person, and 8-10 servings of
bread or grains per two persons. You can also use the 8-10 rule
for your drinks for a total of 8-10, (8-10 oz. drinks) including
water, per person per day. This may seem like a lot of liquid,
but when you consider 3 meals a day and an additional drink in
between, you are already at 6 drinks a day. Remember,
dehydration is a major cause of heat stroke. If you're going
hiking, swimming, or playing any type of running sport, this
will easily bring the drink count up an additional 3 or more for
a total of 9 drinks a day. Let's make an easy formula to go by.
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FOOD QUANTITY FORMULA
5 people for 2 days = (5 x 2 = 10) 10 x 8-10 ounces = (80-100
ounces meat) or 5-6? lbs. 10 x 8-10 ounces = (80-100 ounces
fruits and veggies) or 5-6? lbs. 8-10 servings bread or grain
per (2) persons 8-10 (8-10 oz. drinks) per person (per day)
NOTE: Hard cheeses such as American and Swiss include in
meat weight.
Soft cheeses such as cultures add to fruits and vegetables
weight. Eggs may be separate.
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So that's a pretty good rule of thumb to go by for your "3
squares." If you like to snack, which goes great with camping,
bring along your chips, marshmallows, or no bake cookies and
you'll never go hungry. Don't forget the milk if your bring
chocolate.
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About the author:
Article written by Keith Kampschaefer. Keith is President of CHK
Marketing, LLC, which owns and operates
target="http://packncamp.com/">PackNCamp Outdoor
Supply. Along with his extensive knowledge and
experience in the outdoors, Keith also has over 30 years
experience in the food industry, specifically, perishable foods
such as meats, seafood, and vegetables.
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