Report on the “successful” camping trip
I apologize for those of you who are sitting on pins and needles wanting to know how the camping trip turned out… and those of you who are dying to know if I managed to one of those rare, but ferocious, Pennsylvania Hyenas. And I am happy to report that the camping trip was 100% successful; not one hide nor hair of a Hyena, Pennsylvania or otherwise.
Albeit, it wasn’t a particularly rural camping trip since we were staying on the York Expo Fairgrounds in York, PA and there was a Hess gas station within stone-throwing distance from our campsite, but hey…. you gotta start somewhere, right?! For the trip, DH and I raided REI during their Annual Sale and bought some awesome necessities.
- REI Kingdom 6 Tent: while this is certainly a larger tent than two people really need, most of the reviews said it was great for families with big dogs and we figure that we might grow into it eventually or invite friends along.
- REI Camp Folding Cot: DH was fond of this cot. It really looks like one of those army cots. I thought it was a little too wobbly for my tastes. It’s long enough for a fairly tall man to sleep on comfortably and still have room for a dog at the end.
- REI Camp Stowaway Cot XL: This is the cot I chose. It felt more stable to me, and I thought I would really like how it cradled my body when I slept; it was kind of like a camp chair converted to a bed. But I really didn’t take into consideration that I’m a side sleeper, so it was a bit weird as I moved around at night.
- REI Halo +40 Women’s sleeping bag (long): Yes, it was a bit overkill for June, but I get chilled pretty easily and I wanted a bag that would be good for November as well. I thought I would love it. But I actually kind of felt a little claustrophobic at first. The only time I’ve ever really slept in a sleeping bag was when I was a kid and I was sleeping in my parents’ bags… which I literally swam in. I didn’t realize how close they were supposed to fit. I’ll give it another whirl and see how it goes.
- Coleman Retro Rechargeable Full-sized lantern: We only used this piece of equipment briefly. Both DH and I were completely exhausted after flyball that we just used it for a minute to locate the cots and fall down on them. But we bought this one over others for the “green” rechargeable feature. And it just looked cool.
We brought along a Coleman InstaStart Grill stove but ended up not using it at all. It was a gift from my parents for our 5th anniversary and sadly I was so frantic to get on the road at the last minute that I never got around to packing any food.
As for the actual camping experience…. The first night the plan was to have the dogs sleep in their crates in the Navigator. It was cool enough outside that we could open up the hatchback window and roll the other windows down and they’d get a good breeze. I think the theory behind that was that we’d get more sleep if they were comfy in their own beds and not trying to share ours. Too bad that didn’t work out. Every tiny noise, every car door slamming (because there were other flyball-ers who were van-camping near us), every anything that I heard I sat straight up in bed paralyzed that either a serial killer or a Pennsylvania hyena was coming to eat me (and yes, the serial killer was really more like the Silence of the Lambs type who would not only kill me but also eat me). So I begged for DH to bring the dogs into the tent with us. After all, there is no better deterrent for serial killers, Anthony Hopkins, and Pennsylvania Hyenas than a Dalmatian and a Belgian Malinois. Granted, the Dalmatian looks cute but she can pack a punch if you’re trying to hurt her person. The Malinois…. that’s another story…. he not only is badass, he looks it too so he doesn’t even have to do anything to be a good deterrent other than sit there by the door. And sit by the door is exactly what he did! No sooner than both dogs settled down in the tent (because that took a little while), did I fall completely asleep feeling safe and sound. Needless to say, the dogs slept with us Sunday night too and will forever be fixtures in our tent when we camp.
Here are some shots from our first successful camping adventure:
So stoked you had a successful camping trip!
I gotta tell you, I had the same problem with a sleeping bag. And in 10 degree weather, you *need* to have that thing zipped all the way up. But I had the worst claustrophobia when it came to that.
I got around it by getting a bivy sack instead of a tent – so when I feel closed in, I’m just one unzip away from outside. That helps a lot. Also, the guy at REI suggested a “night light” of sorts, so I have a battery powered mini lantern that I hold in the sleeping bag with me. If I wake in the night feeling disoriented I can turn it on and I immediately feel better. He also said you could try it just outside of your tent/bivy in order to keep you feeling grounded.
And I’ve noticed over the past few years of regular camping, I’ve been able to zip more and more until finally, on the last trip, I was able to actually tighten down the neck strap that keeps cold air out.
Ok, feeling claustrophic now even thinking about it …
But know that you’re not alone!
Melissa´s last blog ..That’s what you get for wakin up in Vegas …
Oh my gosh!! I’m so glad I’m not the only one. I was really weirded out when I got in, zipped it halfway up and panicked just a little bit (not a lot, just for a second). In June weather it’s no big deal to keep the whole thing unzipped so it wasn’t really a problem. But I have a feeling that in November I’m going to want to have it zipped. I’ll definitely look into a little mini lamp or something.
Maybe we’ll (translation I) will get brave enough and we can come with you guys on your crazy mid-winter hiking camping trips one day!