Travel

Camping With Kids / Camping and Hiking Equipment / Camping and Hiking Tips / Family / Travel — No Comments
30
Aug 10

Our Annual Three Generational Camping Trip, Jesse M. Honeyman State Park

I can’t remember how many times we have camped at our favorite camp, Jesse M. Honeyman State Park in Oregon. Sitting around the campfire this year, we tried to remember our history in the park. I know we stopped by the park in 1958, when Oldest Son was an infant, but we didn’t camp then. We returned with two small children in 1964, and again in the mid-70s with Youngest Son. Our first Three Generational trip to the park was in 1995, we think, when our first granddaughter was thirteen. Those were outstanding visits; we couldn’t remember the others.

This year there were eight of us, Oldest Son and his Grown Daughter and her Boyfriend; Youngest Son and his Wife and Two-year-old; my Husband and Me. (Youngest Son did not want names used to protect their privacy, so I’m doing this Asian style.) We set up four tents in two side-by-side camp sites, and used Oldest’s side as our cooking and socializing area, so Two-year-old could nap quietly. Her schedule determined all of our activities.  We hiked up and ran down the dunes, some of us swam in the lakes, we cooked and ate and enjoyed the company. Oldest Son, Daughter and Boyfriend had an exhilarating ride over the dunes on a dune buggy. One night, when everyone else was asleep, Oldest Son walked out on the dunes to enjoy the full moon. (“Why didn’t you wake me?” I asked him.)

We had wonderful meals, “grillables” on two nights (steak, hot dogs, sausages); Mexican rice with black beans, warm tortillas, and guacamole; pasta with pesto and/or caponata. Lunches were cheeses, bologna, crackers, olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, and fruits. We had oranges, bananas, blueberries, Bing cherries, cantaloupe and watermelon, and two kinds of zucchini breads and two kinds of homemade cookies. Also nuts, chips and the makings of s’mores.

On our last day, we did something foolish, something we should have known better than to do. We packed up our food and left it on the table while we went to the dunes. When we came back, two squirrels were enjoying a bag of tortilla chips. The last six peanut butter cookies and the pistaccio nuts were gone, the open pack of Graham crackers and the marshmallows were ruined. We should have locked the food in a car.

It was a long drive from Seattle to Honeyman. The younger campers suggested that next year we find a camp closer to home, but the two sons didn’t agree. They have their own childhood memories of playing on the dunes, and they’re not about to give that up.

Hiking / Travel — No Comments
21
Aug 10

The Big Blowup, Ed Pulaski, and Wallace, Idaho

In the Seattle Times “Today in History” section on August 20, 2010, I read: “A series of forest fires swept through parts of Idaho, Montana and Washington, killing at least 85 people and burning some 3 million acres in what became known as the ‘Big Blowup.’” There’s more to the story than that brief notice.

In July of 2010, my daughter, my husband and I drove through Wallace, Idaho, and learned about the Big Blowup. The town and the U.S. Forest Service were preparing a memorial to the fire which occurred on August 20, 1910, to be dedicated on the one hundredth anniversary, August 20, 2010. We learned that the 1910 summer had been very dry, and forest fires raged all over the west. On August 20, when it became apparent that the fire moving toward them could not be stopped, a forest ranger, Edward Pulaski, saved the lives of 45 men by racing them down the West Fort of Placer Creek and hustling them into  a tunnel that he knew, the Nicholson mineshaft. In the tunnel he found blankets and water, and used wet blankets over the adit (the opening of the mineshaft, it’s a word you find in crossword puzzles all the time) to keep flames and smoke out. He made the men lie down on the floor of the tunnel  where there might be air. Pulaski’s eyes were so badly damaged that he was unable to work in the field, but he continued a long career in the forest service, among other things inventing a tool that is familiar to anyone who has ever done any trail work.

We hiked the Pulaski Tunnel Trail outside of Wallace on that very hot July day. I recommend this short hike to anyone planning a break on a cross-country drive. It’s only four miles round trip, following that West Fork, with an elevation gain of only 800 feet. Along the way there are interpretive signs  telling the story of Ed Pulaski and the Big Blowup, and at the end there is an overlook that looks down at the entrance to the tunnel, which is now on the National Register of Historic Places. Each signboard is embellished by two of the Pulaski tools, a long handle with two heads, one an ax, the other a hoe. The forest service brochure for the trail says the Pulaski is the basic implement of fire control, but I used one, for a very short time, when I was a volunteer clearing a trail with Washington Trails.

Much of the information in this post has come  from the U.S. Forest Service brochure, Pulaski Tunnel Trail, from the Coeur d’Alene Ranger District.

Backpacking / Camping With Kids / Camping and Hiking Equipment / Camping and Hiking Tips / RV Camping / Travel / Winter Camping and Hiking — No Comments
9
Aug 10

An International Menace, Firewood From Home

I used to tell campers to bring firewood from home, but I don’t do that anymore. I used  to say it would be less expensive to bring firewood than to buy it in or near camp, but that advice is no longer common sensible or responsible. You might save a few pennies, but the cost to the environment could be horrendous. On our cross-country drive this summer, stopping at national, provincial, and state camps along the way, we saw signs all over warning campers DO NOT CARRY FIREWOOD FROM ONE AREA TO ANOTHER. In New York State, the signs said, “Love New York,” and told campers to leave fallen wood at home. In Michigan, a brochure was headlined, “You May Be Carrying Unwelcome Cargo.” At a state park in Minnesota we took a picture of a big red sign that read, BURN IT WHERE YOU BUY IT. In North Dakota, Montana, and up in Ontario, too, there were similar signs, to warn campers to burn wood where it was bought or where it was found if it came from home. Last summer, driving through British Columbia, we saw signs with the same message: don’t transport firewood from one area to another.

What is the international menace that all these states and provinces are worried about? Living in the bark of trees, there are a lot of different insects that are serious threats to the forests of these states and province. In British Columbia, we drove by miles and miles of dead pine trees, killed, we were told, by the population explosion of a pine beetle that lays its eggs in the bark of affected trees. In the eastern quarter of the United States, New York and Pennsylvania to North and South Dakota, Illinois and Indiana, it’s the larvae of a little insect, the Emerald Ash Borer, that lays its eggs under the bark of pine and other trees.  In the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, a special project, Slow the Spread (STS) is intended to slow the advance of the gypsy moth that lays its eggs on trees. Here in Washington State, where I live, the daily paper just this morning, August 7, had an article warning people to look out for the gypsy moth; it said 22,000 green cardboard traps had been set out in the state. According to this article, the gypsy moth is considered the worst forest pest in the United States, but let’s not argue about whether my pest is worse (or not as bad) as your pest. An infestation of any of these insects could be started by a camper unknowingly transporting infected logs from an infested area to an un-infested area.

You can learn more about these pests at these and other websites: www.stopthebeetle.info or www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/plant_pest_info/gypsy_moth/index.shtml

But meanwhile, back to your campfire. What can you use if you can’t bring wood from home? First thing you might consider is not having any campfire at all. We rarely build a fire anymore when we camp; our gas stoves cook very efficiently, and we enjoy the night sky and the stars that you can’t always see when a big fire lights up the night. When we do decide to have a fire, on a night for S’mores, for example, we don’t try to build the biggest fire in camp. A small campfire cooks marshmallows just as easily, maybe with kids along even more safely, than a big fire. Then we bring from home scraps of wood left from old woodworking projects, lumber  from planks that were cut wrong, mock-ups for bigger projects, etc. I’m talking about lumber with  no bark on it, not pieces of trees. Sometimes you can find this kind of discarded lumber at a construction site; ask first before you take anything. I have seen some campers using old shipping pallets, broken up into usable pieces; again, ask before you help yourself from the heap outside the store.  If you need the fire for cooking, buy charcoal instead of wood; it heats hotter and more evenly, and the coals last longer. If your fire is just for sociability, buy pressed wood “logs” designed for outdoor use; these products use materials that used to go to waste, burned at the sawmill because there was no market for it. There are lots of ways you can have a fire without endangering the environment. What else can you do besides carrying logs from home? I’d like to know about it.

Camping With Kids / Camping and Hiking Equipment / Camping and Hiking Tips / Family / RV Camping / Travel / Winter Camping and Hiking — No Comments
26
Jun 10

RV Camping, Without An RV

Tent Campers: Have you ever considered camping in an RV campground, excuse me, RV park?  Many RV parks welcome tent campers. In addition to the sites where you can set up your tent, many RV parks offer weather-proof cabins or yurts where you can lay out your sleeping bags in comfort. Maybe it’s raining and blowing really hard and you’d like to get out of the weather for a while. Or, perhaps you want to stay close to a city, where there are no conventional natural parks nearby and you don’t feel like paying for a motel. Find an RV park! Many of them offer amenities far beyond those of a natural campground, like a swimming pool, laundry, grocery store, and planned activities for the whole family.

When I was writing Camping With Kids (see my page called Goldie’s Camping and Backpacking books), I discovered three great resources for RV camping that are also welcoming to tent campers. One of my favorites is the Jellystone Parks group. They have a Yogi bear theme with friendly bear-characters and great planned activities for kids. A stay at a Jellystone Park is like a stay at a Disney-type resort, but less expensive. For Fourth of July and Labor Day they organize special themed activities, and many of them have additional themed weeks or weekends throughout the summer. There are Jellystone Parks in many states and in Canada, too.

KOA Kampgrounds of America is another association of RV parks. We visited the KOA Kampground outside of Seattle while doing research for Camping With Kids. They had several tent sites in addition to the RV sites, and also a small grocery store, an off-leash area for dogs, a large laundry with washers, driers, and ironing boards, and a spacious womens room with showers and a baby’s bathtub. They also have planned activities for the whole family. No cabins here, but other parks in this group do have small cabins available for rental.

My last resource is  Woodall’s.

Woodalls’ is not a campground itself, but a wonderful source of information about campgrounds all over the country. They publish directories of campgrounds which tell you almost more than you need to know about the campground, anywhere you plan to go. Their web site also has a special listing for tent campers. If you get yourself on their email list, you regularly get lots of good tips for camping. For example, we recently bought a new inflatable mattress for camping, and before we bought it, we found a discussion of various brands of mattresses that was very helpful to us. I’m going to write about an inflatable mattress on my next blog. Wait for it!

Camping With Kids / Camping and Hiking Tips / Family / RV Camping / Seattle / Travel / Urban Hiking / Winter Camping and Hiking — 3 Comments
5
May 10

Urban Camping, in San Francisco, Seattle, and… your town’s name here?

I read recently in the San Francisco Chronicle that a new campground has been opened in San Francisco’s Presidio. Rob Hill Campground, located on 4 acres at the top of the Presidio’s highest hill, is the only campground in the city of San Francisco. Reservations are open to groups and families, and according to the newspaper, the managers hope to create first time experiences in the out-of-doors that will inspire campers to make further exploration beyond the city. Rob Hill has paths that lead to 24 miles of hiking trails, some built to accommodate wheel chairs. Its situation 384 feet above a Pacific beach provides views of ocean and bay, with migrating birds passing overhead. The Presidio of San Francisco has a long history: it was occupied by Ohlone Indians until Spanish explorers in 1776 decided to build their Presidio, their fortified camp, on the site. It was subsequently a military garrison of Mexico and then the United States. Most recently, as the military has turned many of its properties to peaceable uses, the Presidio has been governed by a trust. The newspaper said that reservations for camp sites can be made with the Presidio Trust, 415 561 5444 or at www.presidio.gov.

When I read about this campground in a city, I thought immediately of Seattle’s Camp Long in West Seattle, a 68 acre park that offers visitors an opportunity to enjoy nature, hike in a forest, learn about natural history, and camp overnight in rustic cabins. Camp Long has 10 cabins, each with 6 double bunk beds, to sleep a maximum of 12 persons. Just outside the cabin there is a stone fireplace and a picnic table–what more would you need for a first camping experience? And a bonus for young first-timers: an electric light. Camp Long was a little used corner of the West Seattle Golf Course until 1937 when Seattle Park Board member Archie Phelps, Judge William Long, Ben Evans of the Seattle Park Department, and Clark Schurman, a Scout leader and wilderness camp developer, determined to acquire the land and make it into a place for organized groups to learn camping skills. Dedicated in 1941, Camp Long has continued ever since to bring people close to nature and provide safe and enjoyable outdoor camping and climbing experiences. (The park boasts a man-made climbing opportunity, Schurman Rock, to train climbers, but there are strict rules about its use.) The rental fee for one night in a cabin is $40, and reservations can be made at 206-684-7434 or at camplong@seattle.gov.

Thinking about these urban campgrounds, I began to wonder about other camping opportunities that may be close to home. I went on line to investigate my county. I typed King County, Washington, camping into my browser, and I found the Tolt/MacDonald Park & Campground, just 40 minutes from downtown Seattle. This 574 acre park at the confluence of two rivers, the Tolt and the Snoqualmie, provides tent and RV sites (which the two urban camps do not have), and in addition to the usual forests and hiking trails, there are bicycle paths. There are also six yurts at Tolt, which come furnished with two double futons, a double/single bunk bed, night stand, heat, electricity, deck, picnic table and fire ring. Two yurts have wheelchair accessibility. Each yurt sleeps up to seven people. All the yurts and many of the tent sites are located on the side of the park across the Snoqualmie River, and require walking across the park’s 500-foot suspension bridge. It’s no big deal. I’ve been hiking at this park–crossing the bridge is part of the adventure. Daily fees depend on your campsite, whether you walk in, drive in, hook up or not. The yurts are more expensive. The camp is open all year round, and reservations can be made by calling 206-205-5434. If you want more information, this is where I went: http://www.kingcounty.gov/recreation/parks/rentals/camping.aspx

Now some of you people reading my blog don’t live in San Francisco or Seattle. What about your city? Does it have opportunities for overnight camping? Find out! Google or call your park department and ask! And if your city doesn’t have a campground, what about your county? Do what I did, tell your browser you want county name, state name, camping. You might be surprised at what you find. And let me know. I would love to hear from you that you had found camping opportunities close to home.

Africa / Travel — 1 Comment
8
Mar 10

More About My Favorite Namibian

Goldie modeling Priscilla's sarong

It was the last morning of our stay in Namibia, the second stop in Overseas Adventure Travel‘s fabulous five-week tour, Out of Africa. We gathered in the lodge after breakfast for a lecture on women’s lives. Priscilla talked to us about education, marriage, childbirth, work. She called me forward to demonstrate the woman’s traditional garment, a sarong that she could wrap around her waist like a skirt , or drape around her shoulders as a shawl, or wrap around her body as a baby carrier. Her sarong was black and white, with a print of giraffes. Then it was time to leave. The staff of the Lianshulu Bush Lodge sang a farewell, and we boarded the passenger boat that would take us down the Kwando River to our landing in Botswana. At the same time, the staff loaded our bags on a much faster boat, Priscilla at the helm with the giraffe sarong wrapped around her shoulders. Their boat raced ahead of us to get our bags unloaded before we arrived. When we reached the Botswana checkpoint, Priscilla told me that the wind had blown her shawl away, and it was lost in the river. I asked her how much it had cost, and she said $7. I thought at the time, I wish I could buy her a new length of cotton, but of course there was no place to shop on that isolated river bank.

Botswana’s Okavango Delta was our next stop, and then Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe. No place anywhere to buy a new sarong. Our last stop in this first half of the trip was the city of Victoria Falls. We stayed in a real hotel, not a camp, but around the corner was an enormous crafts market. There is little work in Zimbabwe beyond tourism; very hungry  people begged us to buy their wood carvings, their beadwork, their baskets, but I was already loaded down with crafts of three countries. Finally I saw what I was looking for: on a raised platform I saw heaps and piles of fabric. As I approached the women unfolded their wares and held them up for me, bright prints in every color you can imagine, but I was firm. “I want giraffes,” I kept repeating, “I want giraffes.” I didn’t hope to find black and white giraffes, I thought any giraffe print would do, but then I saw it! The very same black and white print that Priscilla and I had worn in Namibia. The negotiations began. This kind of back-and-forth bargaining is customary in many countries, but I hate it. Still I know it is expected. The seller started with an exorbitant price, $12. (Zimbabwe’s money system is non-existent. All commerce is done in US dollars or South African rand.) I countered with $4. She came down and I went up. We were at $7 and I thought she would come down to $6, but then I remembered what Priscilla had told me and I decided that $7 was the right price to pay.

Goldie modeling new sarong for Priscilla

The new sarong for Priscilla

Back at the hotel, I had Don take a picture of me modeling the new sarong. I asked our guide, Abiot, if he would take a new sarong to Priscilla if I bought one, and he said he would be going back to Lianshulu Bush Lodge on his next trip and would be happy to take it. “I knew you would say that!” I told him. “I already bought it!” That was on October 30. On December 2 I had an email from Nadja, the other manager of the lodge. “Priscilla has asked me to reply on her behalf. She has just received the letter and Sarong you sent for her with Abiot. Thank you so much for your kind thoughts and she cannot begin to express how much she appreciates it!”

Africa / Travel — No Comments
1
Mar 10

My Best Photo from Africa: A Rainbow in Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania

My Best Photo from Africa: Ngorongoro Crater

It was raining when we reached our hotel on the edge of Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania. The crater was full of mist. Everyone in our group went off to their rooms to read, rest, write in their journals or do laundry. Only Don and I remained in the mist on the big deck overlooking the crater. I had never carried a camera on our previous trips, but I was tired of always having to poke Don and say, “Take that one! Take that one!” For this trip I asked for a camera easy to use, and Don chose for me a Nikon coolpix L20. My grandson set it up for easy auto mode, and one of the guides in Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe showed me how to access sixteen other modes, including landscape. That’s how I had it set that afternoon on the edge of the crater, waiting for the mist to clear. Finally we began to see the bottom of the crater, where there was a small pond. The sun came out, and there was this rainbow, cutting through the mist and reflected in the pond. This was my best picture in traveling for five weeks in the fall of 2009 on the Out of Africa trip with Overseas Adventure Travel.

Africa / Travel — No Comments
8
Jan 10

My favorite Namibian

One of my favorite people from my wonderful Out of Africa trip with Overseas Adventure Travel in October and November 2009 was Priscilla. In the Lianshulu Bush Lodge in Namibia, we were given the hut farthest from the main lodge but with the most luxurious bathroom. In addition to the big stall shower, it had a deep soaking tub. I thought it would be great to soak at night with soft music–well, there was no radio, and the generators turned off at 9, so I asked Priscilla, one of the managers of the lodge, for a candle lantern like the ones that appeared on our dinner table. She looked at me suspiciously. “Do you know how to use these?” she asked, showing me a box of matches and the candle. I assured her that I could light matches. “Show me,” she said. So I struck a match and it lit at first try (often at home I have to try several times.) “All right, then,” she said, “I’ll send the lantern to your room tonight.”

“Priscilla,” I said, “do you know that I am Jewish, and that we Jews observe our Sabbath from Friday at sundown to Saturday sundown. It’s our tradition to begin the Sabbath every Friday night by saying a special blessing and lighting candles, so I have been striking matches for many years.”

And Priscilla said, “I always learn so much from our guests.”