Category: Entertaining Kids at Camp
SPOOKY CAMPFIRE STORIES
October 30, 2010 by Professor95 · 4 Comments
The GPS had to be wrong. The rutty little one lane dirt road I was on was not part of the route I selected the night before when planning the next leg of our trip. We were pulling our fifth wheel camper with “The Great White”, a big diesel tractor retired from hauling postal mail north to south. It was now our preferred tow vehicle, but turning it around on this road was out of the question. It was getting dark and I knew we would have to find a place to camp for the night soon. Up ahead I spied a sign, Robinson’s Farm Family Campground WOW! This was almost too much to ask for. We made a right hand turn off the narrow road and pulled up in front of the campground office. Inside the dimly lit area, an ugly old woman greeted me. She had a long pointy nose covered with warts. Her voice crackled as she asked me to fill out the registration card. I figured her nose must be part of a Halloween costume and reached out to touch one of the warts. I was immediately presented... [Read more...]
It’s all about the food…
October 25, 2010 by Dana Ticknor · 2 Comments
OK, not really, but for us, a big part of the ‘camping’ experience is the eating! We tend to take and fix foods different from our everyday home fare. Even though we now fulltime RV, we have found this to still be true. My favorite foods in the RV are the easy ones that are quick and easy to prepare. They don’t require a lot of ingredients, and you don’t have to remember to make them hours ahead of time. I also like recipes that the kids can help with (quick cure for the boredom blues) – and if it is a recipe that they enjoy, it isn’t long before they have completely taken over making it whether in the sticks & bricks or in the RV. The following are 2 of our favorite snacks whether we are parked, camping, or on the road… Kettle Corn: ~I LOVE real kettle corn, what I don’t like is the price tag when buying it at a fair or festival! This recipe is the closest I have found to the real thing… 1/2 c. oil 1... [Read more...]
Ultimate family camping activity…
October 11, 2010 by Dana Ticknor · 3 Comments
What began as what I thought was a crazy ‘whim’ of my husband’s has ended up being one of my very favorite parts of camping! A couple of years ago, during the fall, my husband came home and told me that a local shop had a great deal on kayaks, and that he was going to get a few to float the Yellowstone River with, and for the kids to play in at the lake when we were camping. I thought that he was crazy – that the kayaks would soon be gathering dust and end up an expensive decoration hanging from the garage ceiling. Over that winter, he proceeded to ‘collect’ 5 or so kayaks, and that spring we took them to our favorite local mountain lake. We had such a great time with those kayaks; they have quickly become one of our entire family’s favorite camping activities!!! Despite my reluctance to jump on board (literally), I think that I now enjoy them even more than he does! Kayaks are lightweight and easy to maneuver, are... [Read more...]
“Bob and the Raccoons” – A Camping Humor Story
September 23, 2010 by Professor95 · 8 Comments
Marge and Bob had recently been given an older, but extremely well cared for, pop-up from their neighbor and friend Steve. Steve’s company had closed their Richmond office and he had accepted a relocation offer in Oregon. The distance and cost were just too much to take the pop-up, so he simply gave it to Bob. Marge and Bob had only been camping once before, but that was in a tent beside a mosquito populated lake. Now with two children, Katie – 7, and Andrew – 12, not to mention Skeeter – a 4 year old Jack Russell, camping seemed like a good thing to get into for family type stuff. Bob was really getting into the idea of a relaxing camping trip on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was a few weeks before the kids went back to school and he had a full week of vacation left. The idea was to enter the Parkway at Waynesboro, Virginia, and drive all the way into North Carolina, stopping at various campgrounds along the route. Bob had pretty much cleaned out the gear and accessories... [Read more...]
Woolly Bears, Fall Camping and Luray, VA
September 9, 2010 by Professor95 · 1 Comment
The Woolly Bear Caterpillar found in Virginia is brown on both ends and black in the middle. In other areas, the color of the bands may be reversed. In my neck of the woods, its appearance is one of the signs that fall is near. Oscar is my 4 year old Dachshund. You may have met him a few months back when he wrote a blog for me. There is no doubt in the world that Oscar is an extremely unique, ruined and goofy little canine. In fact, I often call him “Goofy” rather than Oscar. He responds to either name. Oscar and I were outside. He wanted to play ball, I needed to fix a loose exhaust pipe on the pick-up. While I was under the truck trying to tighten some very well rusted bolts on the exhaust pipe, Oscar was barking like he does when an intruder enters our property. When I finally was able to crawl out from under the truck to see what was going on, Oscar had discovered a Woolly Bear Caterpillar crossing the driveway. He was jumping back and forth, pushing it with... [Read more...]
Family Camping: How to Create a Fun Family Camping Vacation
June 1, 2010 by Good Sam Team · 3 Comments
Family camping is a fun, economical way to spend time with your kids and grand children. Whether you’re an RV camper or a tent camper, family camping comes in all shapes and sizes. Camping vacations do require pre-planning, however. Here’s what you need to know. Family Camping Tip 1: Choose a Destination Oriented Camping Spot Just like on any family vacation, kids enjoy doing things that are fun and active. Before you select your family camping vacation spot, decide on the top things that you and your family might want to do. For example, if you have a child who is a train fanatic, then taking the train from Williams, Arizona to the Grand Canyon might be a perfect vacation for you. If you have a budding scientist in your midst then consider visiting an Exploratorium – this is a hands-on, kid friendly museum that will let your kids and grand kids be a scientist for a day. If amusement parks are more your style, there are Disneyland Resorts, Great America Theme Parks, and Busch... [Read more...]
Road Noise…
May 30, 2010 by Dana Ticknor · Leave a Comment
Having logged over 23,000 miles this past winter (I know, I should have alerted you so that you could have invested in Exxon stock!), we spent some serious time behind the wheel! Traveling with 11 children (1m. to 20y.o.), for extended amounts of time, can be downright challenging. I would like to think that I have learned a few tricks along our travels that made the trip go more smoothly the farther down the road we got. I thought I would share one of our favorite things to do while we are making a long haul, or traveling through not-so-scenic areas: Listening to new books on CD! While this may not sound very groundbreaking, we found that it took some major effort to track down kid-friendly CDs while on the road! A book on CD (or MP3), can be either a book being read aloud, or (our preference) an ‘audio drama’. While we always enjoy a good book, we find well done dramas, or ‘theatres’ especially entertaining. These are like the old radio shows... [Read more...]
East Coast HDT Rally in VA Beach
May 12, 2010 by Professor95 · 6 Comments
Unless you have a motor home, some sort of tow vehicle is needed to pull your RV. The size and type of the tow vehicle is dependent upon the weight and, to some extent, the length of your trailer. The maximum safe towing weight for most half ton pick-up trucks ranges from 6,500 to around 10,000 pounds. As trailer weights increase, 3/4 and 1 ton trucks are needed to safely carry the load. There is a growing number of RV’ers that feel even more muscle and mass are needed to safely tow the larger fifth wheel trailers that can tip the scales at 16,000 pounds or more. Rather than move from a big pick-up to a medium duty class 5 or 6 truck, they elect to jump directly into a class 7 or 8 heavy duty truck. Heavy duty trucks, or HDT’s, are the tractors commonly called Semis that carry heavy trailers and freight coast to coast. These trucks are built to run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. They are designed to provide reliable service for a million miles or more – and the majority... [Read more...]
Lakewood C.R. in Myrtle Beach
April 8, 2010 by Dana Ticknor · Leave a Comment
One of the biggest struggles for many families these days can be taking a family vacation without breaking the bank. For a lot of us, the word ‘vacation’ conjures up pleasant thoughts of relaxation for Dad & Mom, and exciting, new activities for the kids. And for our northwestern family, it also meant a day at the beach! Knowing that we were going to be in South Carolina, we searched for a family campground at Woodalls.com, and were given a plethora of options. We decided to give Lakewood Camping Resort (awarded Woodall’s highest 5W/5W rating) in Myrtle Beach a try, and what we found was that a family camping resort absolutely fit the bill for a wonderful family get-away! Lakewood C.R. is an oceanfront campground with so many amenities that I am sure I will miss some! One of the best things that we did was to purchase their optional Family Value Fun Pass Package. At $10/day, it allows all the members of a family to access mini golf, Water... [Read more...]
The “New” 2005 Travel Trailer
February 28, 2010 by Professor95 · 2 Comments
Woodall’s vision for the blog section on their web site is to provide a focus on family camping. Both new and seasoned campers should be able to find information here that can enhance their pleasure when camping – especially family camping. For me to be writing here is somewhat of an anomaly. The vast majority of my writings have been technical – both professionally and pleasurably. I typically write articles about solar power, generators, batteries, satellite TV, and most anything else that uses electricity or some sort of containerized fuel. I build things, lots of things – many specifically related to our camper. In fact, for me much of the pleasure of RV’ing is the opportunity to make or improve something we use when taking our RV out that works a little better or offers a little more than the standard provided by RV manufacturers and accessory vendors. Hold that thought a minute while I completely change topics: Our children are grown and gone. We are now... [Read more...]
