Translating termperature from that handy dial with the numbers on it at home to the campsite can get a little on the tricky side. It still is, if you’re using wood coals. But cooking with charcoal gives you a little more structure, at least.
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Thanks to reasonable recent success moving a home oven recipe to the Dutch Oven arena, I am inspired to try another favorite over charcoal. My old cookbook calls it “Chicken Baked in Sour Cream”. My niece thinks they should’ve added “and Mushroom Soup”, but I’ve learned to modify that ingredient to suit her taste sufficiently.
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Nothing says rest like a place to sit after a long hike. Minimalists may prefer a small pad on the ground, but when it’s raining and a little muddy, I like my seat out of the water. As much camping as we do at state parks, there’s usually a concrete picnic table and benches close by, but a folding chair of some sort is still needed for the campfire area. A folding captain’s chair works for us in camp, but the backpacker needs a lightweight, sturdy portable folding chair.
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I have known some pretty good writers, and great songwriters, too. Oh, no one you’ve heard of, but friends who could write songs to make you sob around the campfire, and they were great. Who could stay dry-eyed through Poet’s poem about campers, or Bili’s Dragon Song or For Those Who Lead? Well, here it is, my humble contribution, just be glad you don’t have to hear me sing it.
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It’s fairly agreed upon that almost everything tastes better when it’s cooked outside. A wood-burning fire’s coals are the classic, but eventually campground areas and vegetation are negatively affected, so these days you have to bring your own wood to established campgrounds. A campfire burning directly on the ground can have long-lasting impact to the soil and microorganisms for a good distance around the fire. All the more reason to use only established campfire rings in camp, whether you’re burning wood or using charcoal.
A camp stove or backpacking stove is the best alternative, though, for lighter impact as well as efficiency.
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Here’s a classic moved to the campfire. Our Boy Scout troop usually prepares a cake mix as directed on the box, then pours it over a couple of cans of pie filling, which is pretty impressive. Back in my young camping days, we skipped adding the eggs, oil, water to the mix, just sliced up a stick of butter and topped the dry mix. Here you have it - it’s still delicious (just make sure you’ve included the long hike to work a little of it off!).
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We tried a new dutch oven recipe this weekend, and it met with approval all around. This was prepared for adults - I am not certain how well it would go over with youngsters, as it has green chiles in it.
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You can find quality dehydrated food and meals for backpacking at most sporting goods stores, some grocery stores, and online. This article is a review of specific meals by certain brands, and only an indicator of whether people liked it or not. I will try to give an idea of the age of the reviewer and any comments they may have about the product.
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I just can’t stand it.
I’ve been studying tents to buy to replace the too-small 2-man tent, and I am truly torn between the REI Half-Dome and the REI Taj. Man, this is a tough decision. All things considered, they’re both great tents. Now it’s just a matter of deciding which size will be the most use to us.
Then there’s the backpack issue. I threw away my bright yellow and blue external frame backpack from my youth about 6 years ago. I almost wish I hadn’t. Not that it was in good enough shape to use again, I’m just sentimental (or as my teen says, “semi-mental”) about it now.
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Well, we did it - finally bought a new tent. Of course, it’s replacing the 15-year old one that has a habit of trying to drown my feet. And we tried out the new REI Half Dome tent. I say “we” meaning my son and his camping buddy tried it out. I got his old one, an REI Flyte, complete with footprint and odd tent stakes. It’s a great tent for one person, but I can’t imagine squeezing two adults into it.
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