group camping trip planned need games.

[Brandi]

On feb 19th we have a big group camping trip planned. I know some of you are thinking "it's Feb what the?". But we plan this one this time of year because no one camps this time of year. And we live so close to Big Sur which has some of the best camping around in california. The ocean is right there, the beaches and forest all in one place. It can be very chilly. But we have enough pyros (my dh being one of them) to keep a steady warm fire going for us. This year though we have a lot of kids under the age of 10 going. I would love to plan some games for them. Anyone have some good camping games? Besides hunting for snipes.

[alpinerabbit]

Have you ever read the book "new games"? it's great. Maybe you can find it at the library. We used it in Girl Scout camps. They have no winners or losers.

[Aquila]

I loved Mad Libs. We also colored a LOT as kids when "camping." Seems silly, but we did. (We "car camped" in campgrounds, rather than packing in gear and all, so coloring books and pens weren't too heavy.)

[channlluv]

Does Big Sur get sea glass? You might have a sea glass hunting expedition and make some kind of art project with them, a mosaic or decorate a stepping stone or something to commemorate the trip.

The gray whales are migrating back north in February. Carry some telescopes and do some whale watching from the shore, and if it's clear at night, that would be some great star watching. Have a satellite hunt - the person who can spot the most satellites circling wins. (My 10-year-old always wins this - she's got the best long-range vision of all of us.)

It sounds like a blast. Have fun!

Roxy

[malkin]

Sometimes this is fun, sometimes not so much.
Maybe more fun if people need to learn each others' names.

Everyone sitting around the campfire, start with one person who says his or her name along with another word of the same number of syllables. The same-number-of syllables-word can go either before or after the name, so that you could have "Kim Ring" or "Happy Leslie." They can aliterate if they want, like "Little Leslie." Any part of speech is fine too. You could also have "Casey Kicking." As you move around the group, the speaker recites the list and adds his or her own name.

Don't stop until everyone has recited all the names in the whole group.

Sometimes people choose something that has to do with their personality--like "Casey Kicking" for a soccer player but sometimes it's just funny and random. If you're just learning people's names then sometimes it gets stuck. I met "Kim Ring" doing this activity and that's what I called her for a long time.
:)

[alpinerabbit]

And then there's the vegetable game.

Everyone sits in a circle and chooses a vegetable. The one who is "it" is in the center with a soft (!!) rod made from newspaper.

Someone starts and you have to shout someone else's vegetable and if they don't react, and shout someone else, and get hit on the head (it does not hurt), they're "it".

sometimes you just can't remember anything under pressure so it goes "onion!" "carrot!" "onion!" "carrot!" etc. for a while, to the amusement of the rest.

Might only work if the age differences aren't too large.

[malkin]

Everyone announces their vegetable first, right?
And then the swatter has to remember and swat the right person/vegetable?

I've run a sort of version of this for kids to help them learn categories. Teachers prepare enough items in a category (vegetables or furniture or containers or musical instruments or whatever) and kids draw from a hat for their assigned item. Typical groups will probably not have difficulty thinking of items in the category, unless there is a very large number of people.

I like that one; the swatting part sounds fun and the vegetables will be silly.

[Tuckervill]

When we camp one of the first things we do is take a walk and pick up stuff to make a centerpiece for the table. (We camp on the Buffalo National River, so we're usually finding interesting rocks and driftwood.) The walk is always such a relaxing way to start the weekend.

You could do a scavenger hunt, too. Sometimes the local park authority (Is Big Sur a national park?) already has a scavenger hunt sheet that you can use.

We sometimes make Ziplock bag ice cream (http://homeparents.about.com/od/recipesandcrafts/r/zip_icecream.htm), too, although that might be a little too chilly for February.

Lastly, here's a website. http://www.ultimatecampresource.com/site/camp-activities/camp-games.html

Sounds like fun...we haven't been camping since 2007, and I'm ready!

Karen

[Irulan]

Carry some telescopes and do some whale watching from the shore, and if it's clear at night, that would be some great star watching. Have a satellite hunt - the person who can spot the most satellites circling wins. (My 10-year-old always wins this - she's got the best long-range vision of all of us.)

It sounds like a blast. Have fun!

Roxy

I'm a big night sky fan, don't do camp fires ever.

You can do a night hike/walk with no lights too - eyes become accustomed to the dark and most of the time there is always residual light from something.

[Miranda]

When the camp ground is desserted is when my DH loves to camp. We'll sometimes stay an extra night past the w/e normal check out just for him for this reason. It's both spooky and cool at the same time lol.

If not that many campers, this won't work so great, but maybe for the future. A scavenger hunt. The kids split up into two teams (safety in numbers as well). They have to find one thing for each letter of the alphabet. Or, a specific list.

The places we stayed were family friendly with a ton of kids. So, no one seemed to mind helping out with giving stuff away:).

[Tuckervill]

I'm a big night sky fan, don't do camp fires ever.

You can do a night hike/walk with no lights too - eyes become accustomed to the dark and most of the time there is always residual light from something.

How do you cook if you don't have a fire? How do you stay warm in February if you don't have a fire?

I realize there are many, many different camping situations. I just don't think I could camp if I didn't have a fire. It just wouldn't be camping!

Karen

[solobiker]

We don't do campfires either. We actually go backpacking vs car camping. If you have the right gear you can stay pretty warm when the temps drop. I know with larger groups it is tough to backpack and not the best for the environment. We just got back from a backcounty skiing trip with a group of friends and there were 2 10 y/o. they pretty much entertained themselves. We had plenty of snow so they built a snow fort and skiing to do. Have fun.

[solobiker]

as for cooking we have a small light weight gas stove that we cook on. We make pretty simple meals. I also find camp fires kind of dirty and everything starts to smell like smoke. That is just my opinion.

[Irulan]

How do you cook if you don't have a fire? How do you stay warm in February if you don't have a fire?

I realize there are many, many different camping situations. I just don't think I could camp if I didn't have a fire. It just wouldn't be camping!

Karen


Camping stove, layers, look at the stars and then go to bed. Cooking on fire is dirty, ineffecient, and wrecks your pots

I detest campfires, and here's why
destructive - once you get out of developed campground, people do incredibly destructive things in the name of having a fire. Multiple fire rings, stripping a forest of down fall, leaving their garbage in it. Few people put fire out correctly.

Who here has ever heard the term "white man fire"? Most people don't know how to build a small utilitarian fire. They think bigger is better. You can cook on a small fire better than a big one.

If you are depending on a fire for warmth, you haven't brought the right kind of clothes and gear. Former snow camper here, I've camped in tents down into the zeros.

[solobiker]

Camping stove, layers, look at the stars and then go to bed. Cooking on fire is dirty, ineffecient, and wrecks your pots

I detest campfires, and here's why
destructive - once you get out of developed campground, people do incredibly destructive things in the name of having a fire. Multiple fire rings, stripping a forest of down fall, leaving their garbage in it. Few people put fire out correctly.

Who here has ever heard the term "white man fire"? Most people don't know how to build a small utilitarian fire. They think bigger is better. You can cook on a small fire better than a big one.

If you are depending on a fire for warmth, you haven't brought the right kind of clothes and gear. Former snow camper here, I've camped in tents down into the zeros.

I agree 100% with you. We have camped/backpacked in all sorts of temps. Once the sun goes down enjoy the sky. It is spectacular. There is no need for a fire. Here in CO durring the summer when camping, especially at elevation the temps can drop to the 20-30s and all we have to do is put an extra layer on and a hat and we are fine.

[derailed]

We like to bring the game "Apples to Apples" when we have more than 4 people coming.

[Tuckervill]

I don't camp in February unless it's warm enough (like today!) to be outside without a coat. I don't camp when it's really cold, because I like to be warm at least PART of every day! :)

But there have been times when a night got cooler than we planned for (like when it drops from 90 to 45 overnight), where a campfire for staying warm is necessary.

I know all about campfire cooking. I do mostly Dutch oven cooking, so coals are what you need and a big fire is just not needed.

I also live in a part of the country where water is abundant, forest fires are a concern but not a constant threat, and I camp on a gravel bank of a river--unless I happen to be in a campground, in which case I have a lot of stuff in my car and no reason to use the fire ring.

I guess there's not a one size fits all with the campfire. When I was a Campfire USA leader, I was often puzzled by some of the advice in the books we were given. They just didn't apply to where we lived. Written by people out west, I guess.

Karen