The tools I pack for a camping trip may seem unorthodox or a too extensive, but I believe you need the proper preparation to handle any drastic situation in the wilderness, especially with children.
I was always the younger brother that older siblings took to baseball games, waterparks, and other events. I never got the chance to be the older brother until I started taking my nieces and nephews on camping trips.
Perhaps my survival kit for camping with kids will inspire your preparation. This list doesn’t include the basic items such as first aid kits, utility knives, waterproof matches and lighters since they remain as essentials when packing a camping survival kit.
1. The Tent
The tent establishes the base camp of your trip. Don’t choose any old thing when considering purchasing a tent. You need to conduct the research behind camping tent features. These benefits will either make or break the camping experience.
A lightweight and easily compactable camping tent makes hiking and travel purposes less burdensome. Who wants to lug around a huge heavy tent, especially when carrying other gear and supervising young children?
Also, camping tents that are capable of quick set up and break down create a more efficient camper. You never know what unforeseen weather, accidents, or wildlife will force you to breakdown the camp site quickly and move. It’s a tougher task when managing children who move slowly, get distracted, and don’t understand emergency situations.
2. Baby Wipes
There are no babies on my camping trips or children in need of diaper changes, but baby wipes, small and big, reserve a spot on the survival list for good reasons. You can pack hand sanitation wipes as well, but either product gets the job done.
Whatever mess you encounter, baby wipes clean it up. They maintain a sanitary camping environment. Keeping children clean, especially in the summer season, is very important to prevent diseases and illnesses that plague campers.
Children, as clumsy and careless as they are, tend to make messes that usually end up all over themselves. Every kid loves to play in the mud, but do parents like to clean them afterwards?
You don’t want them tracking dirt and funky smells from whatever they discovered into the tent. Consider a camping tent with breathability features to reduce this issue if it arises.
3. Hand Sanitizer
This survival tool reinforces the concept of cleanliness while camping. You’re constantly touching things outside with germs. Handling food in a sanitary manner maintains healthy bodies.
Hand sanitizer limits the transfer of germs and illness among you and other campers. It’s also convenient to carry and pack.
4. Two Way Radios
Kids love walkie talkies. They prove to be one of the best communication survival tools while camping. In the unfortunate occurrence a child or you gets lost or separated for any reason, the two way radio maintains contact.
This tool lessens the anxiety you might experience if you lose a niece, nephew or your own child. It lets you keep your cool in a scary situation.
Teaching children about constant forms of communications shapes them into excellent survivalists and campers.
5. Bright Reflective Tape
This tool fortifies communication between you and the little campers. Sometimes technology fails. I usually pack extra batteries for the walkie talkies, but they could break or disappear at the worst moments.
For that reason I either supply the kids with a roll of reflective tape or wrap a strip around each of their limbs. It really depends on their age because some older children don’t want to look like a walking bike reflector.
Brightly colored reflective tape allows for a form of visual contact between campers. When people get lost they might pass out or fall asleep. It’s possible to see reflective tape from greater distance, specifically when lights scan areas.
Reflective tape made me choose a camping tent with bright colors as well.
6. Water Purification Bottles
Children need to know the importance of hydration and drinking plenty of fluid. This not only applies to camping survival, but life in general. Hydration keys a healthier, more active, and energized individual. Drinking plenty of water ensures this.
When camping you must pack fresh water in bottles or coolers. Large water containers tend to slow you down often due to their weight and awkward shapes.
Water purification bottles established themselves as my new favorite survival tool. If you get lost or run out of available clean water, these bottles allow you to have access to clean water.
If you don’t stay hydrated when camping, then you’re more susceptible to heat exhaustion, stroke, and other related illnesses. Providing each young camper with a water purification bottle provides a foundation for practicing hydration.
7. Duct Tape
I can’t write a post about survival tools without including duct tape. From an early age my father taught me, “If you can’t duct it…,” well you know the rest.
What if you have a cut and no access to bandages? Clean it out with hand sanitizer, hydrogen peroxide, or vodka. Then wrap it with duct tape. It seals the wound temporarily with its adhesive powers.
Maybe you discover a hole in the camping tent during a rain storm. Apply a little or a lot of duct tape to stop or prevent leakage.
Author Bio
Ted Levin is a natural outdoorsman, camping enthusiast, and proud uncle who enjoys sharing any helpful survival tips. You can connect with him on Twitter and Google+.
Image Source – dparks.com
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CampingSurvival.com is donating an Exotac nanoSTRIKER XL Ferrocerium Fire Starter in Olive Drab.The description says “We created an evolutionary derivative of the original nanoSTRIKER with a larger rod and striker handle. It utilizes the same innovative design as the original, but with just enough extra size and heft to improve its ease of use without making it too big or bulky for key chain carry. The striker handle is 46% bigger, making it easier to grip. The XL version also sports a 33% larger ferrocerium rod, which improves the durability and lifespan of the rod even beyond that of the original nanoSTIKERs. Slowly scrape shavings off the rod into a small pile. Use these shavings on top of your tinder bundle for even better sparks! Use the nanoSTRIKER? to light gas stoves, alcohol stoves, fuel tablets, BBQ grills, etc.” |
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MayflowerTrading.com is donating an The Guardian First Aid Fanny Pack. Contents include: 1 – Fanny Pack, 1 – Eye Wash, 2 – Instant Ice Packs, 1 – 3″ ACE Bandage, 1 – Bandage Scissors, 1 – First Aid Guide, 1 – CPR Mouthpiece, 3 – Iodine Prep Pads, 6 – Pair Nitrile Gloves, 3 – 2 x 2 Gauze Pads, 4 – 4 x 4 Gauze Pads 1 – Tissue Pack, 6 – Alcohol Prep Pads, 2 – Water Gels, 1 – 1 x10 yds Adhesive Tape, 1 – Bio-Hazard Waste Bag, 1 – Box 3/4 x 3 Bandages, 1 – Tweezers1 – 4 ounce Hand Sanitizer, 2 – Eye Pads, 6 – Wet Naps, 1 – Hydrogen Peroxide, 1 – 5 x 9 Combine Dressing Bandages |
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OzarkMountainPreparedness.com is donating $100 Gift Certificate to any of their wonderful survival courses.”Our mission is to provide the highest quality instructional courses to people who desire to pursue a self-reliant lifestyle; whether in the wilds or right at home. By blending both modern and primitive methods into our curriculum, we offer a comprehensive and practical view of survival and preparedness. Our course topics include wilderness and urban survival, fur trapping, bushcraft, primitive skills, long-term wilderness living, land navigation, home disaster preparation, outdoor cooking, food procurement and storage, foraging, wild edibles, and others.” |
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RifleStock.com is donating a set of five Self-Watering Grow Buckets. I recently got a set and will review them soon. What is a grow bucket? “It is a 4, 5 or 6 gallon bucket altered to grow vegetables and flowers using a water reservoir in the base. Growing plants in self-watering buckets has been around for quite a while now, but our design has improved on the old method of using two buckets, one inside of the other, to create the water reservoir.” |
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I figured my sponsors shouldn’t do all the work, so I’m throwing in a McNett Tactical Aquamira Frontier Pro Ultralight Water Filter: •Military edition portable water filter system with straw-style design •Attaches directly to water bottles, cups, or bladders •Removes 99.9 percent of Giardia, Cryptosporidium, and other contaminants •Activated carbon improves taste; universal connectivity adapter system •Filters up to 50 gallons; removable bite valve doubles as hanging drip filter |
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