Campers Info Source

This is the third in a series of six blog posts describing six camping tent designs that will help you choose the camping tent style best suited to you.  In our first two blog posts we talked about dome tents and modified dome tents.  The third camping tent style is the pyramid, cone, or teepee tents.

Pyramid, Cone or Teepee Tents

A pyramid, cone, or teepee tent has a very basic design.  It is easy to setup as it is made with a single layer of waterproof fabric.  The

Guide Gear® 18x18 Teepee Tent

tent is usually held up with a single pole in the center, with the sides staked out securely.  The teepee tent is liked especially by ultra-light backpackers because of its simplicity.  Small pyramid shaped tents make excellent backpacking tents but large teepee tents like the one pictured make good family camping tents.  For example, the Gear Guide 10′ x 10′ Teepee tent is great for small groups or small families where up to 6 people need to sleep.  But the 18′ x’ 18′ Teepee tent pictured is better suited for large families and can accommodate 10-12 people or fewer people and lots of camping gear. 

Teepee tents don’t have a complicated pole system and the center pole even doubles as a hiking stick in some models.  Although the Guide Gear Teepee tent has a floor,  teepee tents are usually floorless.  In fact, car campers sometimes use it as a potty or shower tent. The teepee tent has a high entrance and sloping sides, which offers good head room in the center and an excellent place to store gear as the headroom disappears with the inclined sides.  This type of tent isn’t very secure against mosquitoes and other insects, though.  It also doesn’t stand up well in anything less than the best of weather conditions.

One of the things you really want to avoid when backpacking is getting things inside your backpack wet or damp.  This can make for a very miserable trip, especially if your clothes or food get wet.  This brings us to Tip #9.  

Tip #9 – Always put at least six trash bags in your backpacking pack

Most everybody has trash bags in their home.  You can save yourself from a wet and dreary night if you simply follow the instructions below and put all of the camping gear you’d normally put into your backpack into a trash bag first.  The trash bag can serve as a lining to prevent your camping gear from getting wet.  You simply pack all of the items you would normally pack in your backpacking pack into the trash bag first.  This will ensure that no matter how wet and water proof… or lack of waterproofing your backpacking pack is on the outside, no amount of rain or snow will be able to penetrate the backpack AND the trash bags to get your food, clothing, cell phone, first aid kit and other camping gear wet.

1. Gather six trash bags.   Make sure your bags are big enough to fill your entire backpack and roll it up at the top.  The preferred color of the bag is orange but white or black trash bags will work as well.  White and orange bags will help you see items in the bottom of the bag a lot easier.  An orange trash bag can also be used to attract attention from searchers if you happen to get lost or injured.   If you do not have white or orange trash bags around the house, black ones will do the job just as well.
2. Once all of your camping gear is stored in the trash bag, cinch your backpack closed to protect all your gear from rain.

Listed below are just a few of the benefits of bringing six trash bags instead of just one.

• One trash bag should be used as your main lining to protect the camping gear stored inside your backpacking pack as described above.  Keeping your sleeping bag dry is one big benefit.
• A second trash bag can serve as a backup to the first one in case it gets torn
• A third bag can be used as an emergency pack rain cover
• A fouth trash bag can be used as an emergency rain suit
• A fifth bag can be used as a regular trash bag to avoid littering the wilderness 
• A sixth bag can be used as a gift to hand to a friend who may have forgotten to bring their bags or never thought about it. 

You have no idea how appreciative a friend can be when you help save them from a dreary trip or sleepless night.  Remember, The Joy is in the Journey.

Backpacking packs are typically used by hikers or those that want to explore the terrain whether it’s mountains, desert, deep woods or prairies.  And some back packs are used by those that go to school or work and need something to carry their books and lunch in.  But I found a totally different kind of back pack.  A picnic backpack.  This backpack fosters romance.  Its the perfect backpack to take on a romantic rendevouz with a loved one and propose marriage i.e. “Tie the Knot”. 

The Picnic Backpack contains a set of plates, wine glasses, napkins and silverware to serve up a gourmet dinner for two.  Find yourself a secluded get away near a lake, pond, river or mountain top and take your loved one to that special place and tie the knot.  Let nature take it’s course with a little help from the picnic backpack.

When I proposed to my wife in 1978, we were both 20 years old and I dropped her engagement ring into her half full wine glass when she wasn’t looking.  I raised my wine glass to eye level for a toast and when she did the same, she saw the ring in the bottom of the glass.  That’s when I popped the question.  We tied the knot a year later and on March 24th of this year, we celebrated our 31st wedding anniversary.  Love is Grand!!!

So in addition to getting a regular backpacking pack for your next camping adventure, consider getting a picnic backpack as well and tie the knot.

There are many different kinds of backpacks but most people are only familiar with the kind of backpack one takes to school to store their books and school supplies or the kind of backpack one takes when hiking the trails, mountains or other terrain.  But there is another kind of backpack called a Hydration backpack.

With school backpacks and hiking backpacks you store your water is a separate container and remove it when you need a drink.  The container might be a thermos or plastic jug and ends up being bulky and taking up most of the room in your backpack.  It slows you down because you have to remove the container in order to drink from it.  A plastic tube runs from the container inside the CamelBak backpack to an area right above your shoulder so you can drink right from the tube like a straw.  The CamelBak hydrationsystem  is a comfortable, streamlined pack that keeps you hydrated no matter what activity you are into.  It’s just like the name suggests.  You carry water on your back just like a camel hump.  Athletes and outdoors enthusiasts from an ever-growing list of sports and activities use CamelBak hydration systems for their hands-free convenience, ease of use, advanced technology, and performance benefits.  CamelBak helps you stay hydrated to keep your body and mind performing at their best.  It has a reservoir pocket which is insulated to keep liquids in the reservoir cool for hours. 

The Coleman RTX 200 Hydration Pack is similar to the CamelBak but it holds 3.4L of liquid and is a little sportier looking; colored grey and orange.  Maybe a hydration backpack is not something you’d ever use because you are not a hard core hiker.  But if you are one that easily and quickly gets thirsty when hiking or walking/running long distances, a hydration backpack might be right up your alley.