Camping Journals - Preserve Your Camping Experiences
By Rick Chapo, Fri Dec 9th

Camping is a great way to escape the rat race and be one withnature. Alas, your experiences can fade with time. Thebest way to prevent this is to keep a journal for youradventures.

Camping Journals

Take a minute to give some consideration to your most recentcamping experience. What sticks out in your mind? Now thinkabout the first time you ever went camping. Undoubtedly, youremember few things about the geography, people you went with,particular routes and spectacular views. The experiencesyou’ve forgotten are lost to time. If you keep a campingjournal, this won’t be the case.

There are famous instances of people keeping journals throughouttime. Of course, Anne Frank’s Diary is the best example. In herdiary, Anne kept a running commentary of the two years herfamily spent hiding from the Nazis. While your campingexperiences better be more lighthearted, keeping a journal willlet you remember them as the years pass.

A good journal combines a number of characteristics.First, it should be compact so you don’t have to take upunnecessary space for other things. Second, it should have acase to protect it from rain, spills and so on. Third,

Simms G3 Guide Waders
"Son, never buy a cheap tool," my grandfather said while navigating the labyrinth of a cavernous hardware store one Saturday morning in the fall of 1977. He was looking to replace a broken yard rake with the most expensive one available. Every time I neglect his advice I confirm the underlying wisdom of those words. Cheap tools cost more becaus...
Dakine District Bag
My first thought when asked to test Dakine's District bag? "How many packs does one man really need?" (I have five). After using the District for about six weeks, my answer, is one. At first glance, the District almost comes off as an oversized man purseinstead of being short in height and long, like your typical messenger bag, it...
Bianchi San Jose
Urban cyclists are a stubborn lot. They tend to fall in love with their rig, and then display a suicidal loyalty to the bike, regardless of shifting trends or technologies. That philosophy, and the war-like conditions of Washington DC's asphalt, have kept me on my trusted hardtail mountain bike for over seven years now. I swapped out the knobbie...
Knog Toad, Bullfrog and Tadpole bike accessories
With a gallon of gas approaching four dollars, it's become even easier to justify commuting on my bike more often. But I needed something that announced my presence to those often absent-minded drivers of New Mexico (you know who you are). A quick look around the local shops led me to Knog , an Australia-based company that makes clean, modern...
Teva's Karnali Wraptor sport sandals for women
After hiking a particularly wet, stream-crossed trail in running shoes last weekend, teetering across logs, soaking my socks, and splattering mud up my shins, I was on a mission to find a pair of sport sandals that could not only handle the water flow, but could keep up on the pebbly trail as well. And, as a girl from the big city I was also on...

thejournal should contain blank areas to write your notes. Fourth,the journal should contain cue spaces to remind you to keepnotes on specific things. Cues should include:

1. Who you went with,

2. Where you camped and if you enjoyed it,

3. Who you met and contact information for them,

4. The geographic and weather conditions, and

5. Any unique things that occurred while camping.

At the end of the trip, you should be able to get thefollowing from your journal:

1. Contact information for other campers and people you met,

2. Enough detail to provide you or a friend with a guide if youcamp in the location a second time.

3. Memories to reflect upon years later, and

4. Something to pass on to your friends, children andgrandchildren.

To get the most out of your journal, you should write init during while you’re camping. Every trip is special, even ifyou just go out for a weekend.

Camping is a great way to commune with nature. Make sure topreserve the experience.

About the author:Rick Chapo is with NomadJournals - Preserve the experience with writing journals foryour travels. Read more articles and travelogues on NomadJournalTrips.com.