Summer Camping Trips

We wanted to have more free weekends to go camping this summer.  But, life is full.  In addition to our three winter camping trips, we were able to do three summer camping trips, four if you count my husband's salmon fishing expedition, five if you count his moose hunting efforts.  Three family camping trips is better than none though, and I think the impressions the trips left on the kids were profound.  Although camping is an incredible amount of work for the adults, it is nice for us to go away from home for a while, too.  We kicked off the summer by camping one night at the Granite Tors Campground, headed to Denali National Park for three nights after solstice, and finally camped at Nome Creek campground two nights in early August. 

Camping teaches or requires valuable life skills.  It teaches one how to poop in outhouses or in the woods, how to sleep in a new place, how to build a fire, cook without a kitchen, and challenges one to entertain without electronics.  It gives one time to think.  It forces everyone to sit together in harmony for long periods of time.

One of the things I like most about camping now that we have a large family is that the food is almost already prepared, due to extra work the week before, and only requires reheating.  One of the things my husband likes is that he does not have to wake up early and go to work.  We both like to hear the questions that camping causes our children to ask us about the world around us and to see the smiles of excitement on their faces as they discover new things.

Just like travel of any kind, camping inspires change and growth.  For example, camping between 9 and 11 months, our daughter learned to sign "more" for more blueberries without our prompting.  She learned how to kill mosquitos. Our older son learned how to cast a fishing pole and that rocks and trees are made of minerals and cells.  He learned how to become a steward to the environment through the Junior Ranger process.  And our younger son learned how to hike a long distance to keep camp in a way that animals will not be attracted.  It may not seem like much, but it is a lot for them and it's just the beginning.  Here's to many more years of camping, growing, and making fond memories.