No one plans to get hurt on a camping trip, but it happens.  Knees get scraped, blisters form on feet, and how many of us remember to reapply sunscreen every 80 minutes?  No matter how careful you are, injuries are bound to happen, which is why we have a few recommendations to help you prepare for those accidents and save your camping trip.

Take a First Aid Course

We know it seems like a hassle, especially with our schedules getting busier and busier, but it's always a good idea to have at least one person on the camping trip take a first aid course.  Even better?  Make it a family affair and have everyone sign up.  Hopefully, you will never have to use any of the skills and know-how that you pick up during the course, but if something happens, you'll be glad that someone close knows exactly what to do.

The American Red Cross offers classes all across the nation.  Visit their website to find a class near you.  They also offer online courses on specific injury first aid like severe bleeding, dog and cat first aid, and basic first aid and CPR courses.

American Red Cross - First Aid Training

Buy a First Aid Kit

Did you remember the sleeping bags?  The tent?  The food you prepared ahead of time?  What about the first aid kit?  It's an easy item to forget, especially since it is (hopefully) used so little, but it's not something you want to be without.  There are plenty of good kits available ranging in size and price, so selecting one can be a bit daunting, but even the most basic kit is a good place to start.

We recommend buying a plastic tote with latched handles to use as your first aid container.  Why?  Well, many kits have just enough room for the items they came with and some can be down-right impossible to repack after pulling out some supplies.  The larger, clear tote allows you to add any additional items that you may require including things in larger amounts (like alcohol, iodine, and/or peroxide bottles).

After you go through the kit, consider what you'll be doing, who will be participating, and where you will be going.  What types of injuries are likely to happen?  Will you be around open flames where burns could be possible?  Is poison ivy, oak, or sumac native to the area?  Do you have enough supplies to deal with multiple injuries? 

If you plan to be exploring out away from your campsite via hiking, for example, consider making smaller, more compact, individual kits that each person can carry.  This is especially true when space and weight is an issue during thru-hiking and other weight-sensitive activities.  Make sure that these individual kits also include any of the person's required medicines in multiple day amounts (just in case they get lost or are injured and can't make it back to camp for a refill). 

Remember, in the case of an emergency, call 911!

First Aid Supply List

This is by no means an exhaustive list and every item on here may not be necessary depending on what you plan to do or where you go, but hopefully this list will help give you a better idea of the kinds of items you may need to handle a camping injury.  When in doubt, talk to your first aid trainer or your general practitioner to get a better idea of what should be included in your kit or how to use something properly.

Most of these items can be found at your local pharmacy or supermarket store.

Bandages

• Adhesive Bandages of various sizes
• Non-Stick Sterile Gauze Pads of various sizes
• Wound Closure Strips (Butterfly Bandages)
• Triangular Bandage (for a sling)
• Medical Adhesive Tape
• Moleskin (blisters)
• Rolled Gauze
• Hemostatic Gauze (stop bleeding)
• Liquid Bandage

Creams/Ointments

• Antiseptic Wipes
• Antiseptic Hand Cleaner/Soap
• Antiseptic Solution (like peroxide)
• Calamine Lotion
• Hydrocortisone Cream
• Insect Bite Swaps/Ointment
• Sunscreen
• Sunburn Relief Gel

Tools

• Tweezers (small tipped for slivers)
• Paramedic Sheers (blunt-tipped)
• Thermometer
• 10cc Irrigation Syringe
• Small Flashlight and Batteries
• Splint (finger, SAM)
• Tick Removal Tool
• Safety Pins
• Cotton Tipped Swabs
• Scalpel with #12 or #15 blade

Medications

• Any Personal Medications
• Acetaminophen and/or Ibuprofin
• Lozenges (sore throats)
• Antihistamines
• Diarrhea Medication
• Antacid Tablets
• Aspirin (heart attack related)
• Oral Rehydration Salts
• Glucose (to treat hypoglycemia)
• Epinephrine Autoinjector

Other

• Disposable Ice Packs
• Disposable Non-Latex Gloves (several pairs)
• Medical Information for Individuals (list allergies, etc)
• Medical Waste Bags
• Sharps Box
• Emergency Heat-Reflecting Blanket
• Notepad (waterproof) with Pencil and/or Pen

Everyone has a different idea of what constitutes camping.  Some can head out with little more than a hatchet, flint, and granola bar and last for weeks on end.  Others prefer to roll in to a campsite with full hook-ups and free wi-fi.  However you camp, camping alone, camping with adults, and camping with kids require different levels of preparation and execution. 

Today, we're going to provide some tips and tricks for introducing the little ones in your life to the camping life.

1. Practice

This is a vital step, especially for those with young kids.  There are a lot of unexpected differences when sleeping in a tent outside.  For one thing, the sun sets later than most kids' bedtimes and rises long before they typically wake.  It's also a shock at how quiet it can be when sleeping outside.  The normal drone of furnaces, AC units, and appliances is replaced by silence ... with an occasional hoot or howl to spice things up.

To make it easier, take your kids on a test run in the backyard.  Explain the types of noises they will hear and what they are and what they mean.  Don't be surprised if they wake you up a few times through the night.  Don't dismiss their fears, but do your best to explain exactly what they heard and remind them that you are still safe in your backyard.

And if they can't last, don't be ashamed to retreat back to the house.  With young children, it can take a few tries before they are comfortable with the sounds of the outside world during the night.  Sometimes letting them bring a treasured item to sleep with (like a blanket or a favorite stuffed animal) can ease the transition.

2. Let the Kids Sleep in the Middle

This may or may not be an issue depending on your children's ages, but it is an option to consider.  Sometimes, letting the kids sleep in the middle of the tent provides a sense of comfort.  It can also keep them warmer, prevent them from rolling off their sleeping pads, and ensure that they don't wake up in the middle of the night and, in a sleepy state, slip outside to return to their bedroom (it happens).

3. Keep the Bedtime Routine

Sometimes when everything else has changed, this the only aspect that you can keep the same.  Having a familiar process before bed, even if the bed and bedroom have changed, may help kids adjust to the camping life easier.  So remember to bring some bedtime books, sing those songs, or whatever else you normally do at bedtime to ease kids into the process.

4. Make Meal Time Fun

Camping can sometimes feel like more work than it's worth, especially when you have kids.  Meals still have to be prepared, dishes still have to be washed, and your menu is often limited.  Get the kids involved by planning meals where they can help.  Getting a cast iron pie cooker allows you to make toasted sandwiches over the campfire  Experiment with the fillings and let your kids make their own (help them with the actual cooking).  They also make great dessert sandwiches with things like chocolate hazelnut spread and sliced bananas inside (tastes a bit like chocolate chip banana bread).

And, of course, don't forget the s'mores.

5. Bring the Binoculars, Magnifying Glasses, and Telescopes

One of the great things about camping is the easy access to nature.  Why not let your kids explore it in a new way by bringing along special viewing gear?  Have them try to spot wildlife in the distance or check out the fuzzy underside of a leaf. 

On my last camping trip with the family, my daughter spent nearly 30 minutes sitting on a rock with a pair of binoculars scanning the opposite mountain for dinosaurs.  She was convinced that if dinosaurs still lived, they would live out there in the remote mountains.  Instead, she saw two deer, a flock of turkeys, and another hiker visiting the same valley.

6. Buy Them a Camera

I've mentioned this in another post, but it should be addressed again.  Children are often fascinated by cameras and love taking pictures of things that interest them.  Just as you take photos to remember your favorite times and places, allow them the chance to do the same.  Kid cameras are built to be bumped around and can be found at a reasonable price.  Plus, in this age of digital information, seeing the pictures doesn't have to cost you any more than the price of a reusable SD card.

Then, when you return home, you get to experience their joy again as they show family and friends the pictures they took while out exploring.

7. Let them Choose an Activity

Often it's the parents who set the agenda for any vacation, but why not let your kids make a few choices?  Letting them choose an activity to do will often get them far more excited about the trip itself.  If they aren't sure or if options are limited, pull together a list of activities for them to choose from to help.  Letting them make some of the choices also helps to boost their confidence and comfort with trying new things.

The best part?  This applies to everyone in the family.  Teenagers who seem less then enthused to be dragged along on a family camping trip may perk up a bit if they find that they can choose an activity. 

8. Start Small and Close

Like most new things, kids can take time to adjust and accept, so with that in mind just be sure that your first few trips to the wild are short and close.  Plan a single overnight trip to a familiar place like a family member's yard.  Then try a short weekend trip to a nearby campground.  Work your way up slowly and let your kids get used to the camping lifestyle before you tackle a week-long trip to a primitive spot in the mountains.

9. Surprise Them

It's always fun to surprise your kids, but especially so during a vacation.  When planning, keep a special activity quiet until you arrive and save it for a day when they need a little pick-me-up.  Whether it's a fun-filled activity, a trip for ice cream, or a special project, surprising your kids with the unexpected is sure to keep them talking about this vacation for years to come.

10. Give Them a Day to Recover

This goes for parents as well.  Vacations can be exhausting.  Your sleeping schedule is often tossed out the window, your activities can be physical exhausting, and when you get home, you still have to unpack.  Knowing this, why not plan your vacation to end a full day before you have to return to normal life?  Giving your family and yourself that extra day to recover can make all the difference.

It's widely accepted that as a nation becomes more modernized, it produces more waste.  This is most easily seen when you consider the world's top producers of waste - the United States, China, Germany, and Japan.  On a micro-level, consider your own day-to-day life.  How often do you stop for a coffee?  How many foods do you buy that are wrapped in plastic?  And what about shopping bags?  One trip to the grocery store for a week's worth of groceries could need up to 10 plastic bags to carry it all.

Garbage is everyone's problem.  Why?  Because it doesn't stay where you put it.  If you burn it, dangerous toxins are released into the atmosphere and are carried around the world.  If you bury it, the same thing may happen as the products break down and seep into ground water.  And if you toss it out the window as you drive down the highway?  It will most likely end up in a stream, river, or ocean.

There is nothing more upsetting and frustrating than cruising the lake on your SUP only to find the perfect inlet for lunch ... that's covered in garbage.  That's why we at Stillwater Outdoors want to share a few easy ways that you can help reduce the amount of waste we produce each year to ensure a healthier, cleaner world for all of us to enjoy.

Ten Ways to Help Keep Our World Clean

1.  Recycle

This one seems obvious, but very few of us do it regularly.  Taking the time to separate out recyclables means less waste being dumped in landfills.

2.  Reusable Bottles

Along the same line as recycling, reusing is probably one of the easiest and best ways to reduce the amount of waste we produce.  Instead of buying recyclable water bottles and then recycling them, why not purchase a reusable bottle made of metal or glass that can last for years or even decades?  This small change will reduce the demand for water bottles that could potentially end up where they don't belong.

3.  Say No to Straws

Unless you have a disability that requires it, consider saying no the next time someone asks if you'd like a straw (or tell them not to include one in your next drink).  Americans use 500 million drinking straws a day!  That's enough straws to fill 46,400 school buses with straws every year.  

Check out the Be Straw Free Campaign for more information.

4.  Reusable Shopping Bags

Though they may cost money up front, being able to use the same shopping bags over and over will save money in the end.  Shopping bags are a major polluter of our water bodies and pose serious threats to the wildlife and ecosystems around the world.  Pick up a few reusable bags and leave them in your car to ensure you always have them on hand for even impromptu shopping trips.

5.  Buy Bulk Foods

Many of us would rather spend more on prepackaged sliced mushrooms than to slice them ourselves.  And what about that fruit that neatly sliced and diced and ready to be unwrapped and eaten?  Though it may save us time, it costs far more.  Not only are you paying extra for the convenience of such things, but you're also increasing the amount of waste that leaves your home every day.  Instead, buy unwrapped foods or select items that are packaged in easily recyclable or reusable packaging.

If you want a great resource for more ways you can reduce the waste in your home, check out Small Footprint Family.

6.  Eat Out Less

Not only is this healthier for you, but it's healthier for the environment.  How many fast food containers and soda cups have you seen littering the side of the road?  Too many.  If you don't have the time to cook dinner every night, consider cooking meals on the weekend to freeze or refrigerate for the rest of the night.  Just be sure to store them in reusable glass containers.

7.  Clean Up Our Streets

We often pass litter crews doing their best to collect the garbage on the side of the road, but far more of our infrastructure is left untouched.  Why not make a weekend of it?  Gather a group of friends, fire up the grill, and have a BBQ after taking an hour or so to clean the stretch of road in front of your house.  Many hands make light work, and a little reward never hurt.

8.  Clean Up Our Beaches

Same idea, different locale.  Organize a beach clean-up at the start and end of summer to help keep our beaches clean, safe, and fun.  Talk to local businesses about the event.  You may be surprised by how many want to help or sponsor your group.

9.  Stop Junk Mail

You don't want it.  I don't want it.  The environment certainly doesn't want it.  In fact, we're not entirely sure who wants it.  If you find your mailbox filled with junk mail every day, check out this website to make it stop.

DMA Choice

10.  Be Conscientious 

It's not hard.  Be diligent.  Be thoughtful.  Be aware of what you buy, how you use it, and what ends up tossed aside.  Be resistant to marketing ploys to get you to buy that kitchen gadget you will never use and to upgrade your wardrobe every season even though you only wore that sweater once.  And most importantly, be kind.  To yourself.  To others.  To our world.

We know that change can be difficult, but even the smallest step made in the right direction is progress.

Remember ... We can do this.

Please share this infographic with friends and family to help raise awareness of the plastic problem.

Technology is wonderful, right?  No more paper maps (that never fold back the way they are supposed to), no more clipping coupons, no more waiting for ... well, anything really.  With the internet, the world is literally at our fingertips, just one tap, swipe, or voice activation away.

And yet, technology pulls us away from the world.  We see everything through a screen and are bombarded by information, most of which we never actually wanted.   Rather than watch an event we pay hundreds of dollars to attend (like a concert), we watch it through our phones.  We see birthdays, first steps, and even our food through the lens of a phone.

This new world is our children's world.  And frankly, I think it's a terrifying one.

Not that I'm against technology.  I love streaming movies just as much as the next person, but as we connect with the rest of the world, we disconnect from the world itself.  You know ... trees, grass, dirt, nature?  Sound familiar?  Most of us have memories of playing outside as children, letting our imaginations run wild as we create pirate ships out of fallen logs, slay dragons with our mighty broadsword branches, and do all the things kids are supposed to do.

Now, instead of playing pretend, many children are checking their social media accounts, watching YouTube videos, and are growing up far faster than ever before.

Is that a good thing?  Time will tell, but many are saying no.  No it is not.

So how do we fix it?  How do we disconnect from the world of technology and reconnect with the world around us?  Stillwater Outdoors has a few suggestions to help you and your family get started.

1.  Lead by Example

This one can be hard, but it is by far one of the best ways to get kids excited about the world around them.  Schedule some technology-free time for yourself and do something that interests you - ride your bike, visit a park, read a book, take a walk.  If your kids see you doing it, they'll be more likely to do it as well (or at least may groan a little less when you make them do it since you're following the same rules).

2.  Plan Themed Activities

Pick something that interests your kids and then for that week/month, plan activities around that interest.  If your kids like water plan a visit to the local pool, a trip to the aquarium, a craft activity creating fish out of various materials.  Letting your kids pick the topics or activities gets them involved.  Utilizing the same theme for a longer period of time allows for a more in-depth look at the topic and more time for fun activities.

3.  Community Service - As a Family

This one is perhaps one of the most important ways to reconnect.  It helps to teach kids compassion, empathy, and kindness (and parents as well).  Although there is nothing wrong with donating to a local shelter or food bank, it can be beneficial to go one step further and donate your time.  Having children work to help others, to see how their efforts can change someone's life, is truly an awe-inspiring experience.  It lets kids know that what they choose to do in life does matter, that they can make a difference, and that everyone, regardless of background, deserves respect.

United Way helps communities all around the globe by focusing on education, income, and health.  On their Get Involved tab, you can search for volunteer opportunities right in your community.

4.  Visit Somewhere New

This is a wonderful way to spend a weekend.  Have the family choose a new spot (or take turns picking the next location) and go explore.  It could be a park, a national forest, a beach, a library, anywhere really.  Set boundaries early on (miles from home, cost, and so on) to keep things fair.

This is a particular favorite of mine as I tend to frequent the same places again and again.  It's not that I'm adverse to change, but habit oftentimes gets the best of me.  By choosing new locations to explore, I'm expanding my comfort zone, having new experiences, and am showing my daughter that the unknown doesn't have to be frightening.  Sure, we may have no idea where to park, how to participate, or what to buy, but by figuring it out as we go, we are teaching her how to solve problems, be flexible, and, most importantly, have fun.

5.  Try Something New

This could be a new type of food, a new game, or even participating in a new event.  As I mentioned before, it's easy to slide into the same routine day after day, week after week, so why not schedule one day where the family does something different?  Food is an easy way to start.  Pick out a new recipe, have everyone help make it, and then try it out.  Not every choice will be a winner, but it's a great way to spend time together and make a few memories.  If you don't know which recipe to start with, why not have your kids choose an ingredient to give you a starting point.  It helps make grocery shopping a little more exciting when they get to choose the secret ingredient.  Then have the kids research what it is, how to cook it, and pick a recipe.

6.  Visit Family

I know, I know ... it's not Christmas.  Or Thanksgiving.  But when did it become the rule that visiting family only happens on holidays?  Go visit a family member you haven't seen in a while, but go with a purpose.  Do they have a particular skill that the kids might find interesting?  Do they have family stories (even embarrassing ones about yourself) that the kids might love to hear?  As a child, I used to love sitting around the campfire, listening to the adults in my family tell stories from their youth.  There is something oddly satisfying in learning that your father used to tease his sisters as much as you tease yours.

There are a million other ways to disconnect from the digital world and reconnect with the actual world and what works best for you and your family may not work for others.  Hopefully, this list will give you a few ideas to try the next time you see your kids staring at a screen or hear them complain about being bored. 

We'd love to hear about your tips and tricks for reconnecting.  Contact us today or join our mailing list for more information.