Good news for those who want to camp but have no idea where to start. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has a new program geared towards parents and kids who have little or no experience camping in the outdoors.

The “I Can Camp!” workshop teaches everything from setting up a tent to using a camp stove so that first time campers have the basic skills to spend the night at camp with some guidance.

The program had some success in 2009 and is offering 38 workshops in 35 locations this summer at a fairly reasonable price.

Learn more about the I Can Camp! program.

1. Start with a good campground that’s close to home with drive-in campsites.

Look for campgrounds you can reach in under an hour from wherever you call home (check your state parks website or visit www.reserveamerica.com for ideas). This makes it easy to start with just an overnight trip, since you can leave Saturday morning after breakfast and still be home Sunday for dinner.

2. When picking your campsite, avoid these locations if you can:

Next to water – The view might be lovely, or the sound of a trickling stream, but with small kids it could be a safety hazard and you may end up constantly chasing your toddler or young kids out of the creek. It may also put you in the thick of mosquitoes come dusk.

Next to the restroom – In the case of pit toilets, the reason may be obvious. But the constant traffic to the john, flushing noises, conversations, and lights can be very disruptive to young sleepers who are already excited about sleeping in the tent.

3. When you’ll be sharing a tent with a baby or small kids, test-drive the sleeping arrangements at home first.

Whether you set up the tent in the backyard, or just roll out the sleeping bags in the living room, it’s helpful to try a practice run of sleeping “in camp” at home. Let your kids practice sleeping in their sleeping bags-toddlers often wiggle their way out in the night, and if yours does, you’ll know you need to dress him in extra warm clothing. Just the prospect of sleeping in a tent can be exciting enough for kids new to camping, and if they don’t normally share a room with Mom and Dad at home, so you might want to work through that initial excitement at home rather than in the campground. Also, campers with babies will especially want to test out the baby’s sleeping arrangements and attire to make sure they are comfortably warm without being overbundled.

4. Keep the food and cooking simple on your first camping trips.

You don’t need to cook up 3-course meals for your family while camping, and you don’t even need a camp stove to get started. For a short camping trip, bring bagels or cereal, sandwich fixings, cold veggies, fruit, and a few of your favorite snacks. And by all means, don’t forget to bring the marshmallows!

If you plan on camping in Michigan, you’re in luck.

The state of Michigan has launched a “first-time camper” program offering a bargain for camping beginners not already in the state park central reservation system. Newbies can book a two-night stay in any of 15 participating state parks or recreational areas including Muskegon State Park and P.J. Hoffmaster State Park for $20.

The 20 bucks covers campsite fees and camping gear on rental. The camping gear includes camping tents, sleeping bags, camp stove, fishing pole, lantern, flashlight, chairs and instructions on how to use them.

Anyone who is interested better hurry because the first 110 campers to sign up get to keep the fishing pole. Who gives away fishing poles these days? The rental gear is provided by Gander Mountain. Participants get a discount if they later want to purchase their own.

You can book by calling one of the participating parks directly. You qualify for this offer if you’re new to camping and not in the park system’s reservation system. The number of takers is limited by the available space.

Once booked, participants will be mailed an introduction packet. Upon arrival, camp rangers or interpreters will help the family set up the tent and teach them how to use the provided equipment, start a campfire, even make a S’more. An orientation packet will include additional information on the area and other free, family-oriented events occurring at the given park during the time of the stay.

Seasoned campers are absolutely forbidden to even try to book and take advantage of the freebie. It’s camping 101 and more experienced campers are better off with the hundreds of low-cost options available in the state. However, anyone with a library card can get a free day pass (normally $6) to a state park where they can grab a hammock and read.

I wonder how the hotel business is doing right now? More people taking up camping instead of staying in luxury hotels due to the economic crisis. I’m guessing they’re not doing very well.

Hotels are being replaced with camping tents and caravans in big numbers. While camping stores are getting richer, hotels are getting poorer. We are indeed in bad situation right now but people still need to take a break and camping is the obvious answer to their holiday needs.

Everywhere from the States to Australia people are in a craze for camping and fishing. According to Ray’s Outdoors media and marketing manager Jacques de la Porte, fishing gear, camping stoves, cookware, tents, sleeping bags and backpacks are hot sellers despite the economic slowdown. Even the wealthy are starting to take up camping.

More people are investing in caravans that would quickly cancel out in accommodation savings. Instead of spending $300 a night people are now paying $60 for a camping site that includes a pool and jumping pillow for the kids.

We see a lot of first time campers mostly made up of families with young children and retirees affected by the stock market crash. People are starting to go back to basics and the new lifestyle a go.

People who aren’t camping are staying in motels to save pennies. Dromana Holiday and Lifestyle Village manager Gloria Paice said bookings had steadily climbed in the past year. “We had a really busy month before Christmas and it really hasn’t let up,” Ms Paice said.

What is Freedom Camping?

It’s camping at places not designated for camping, where there are no camping facilities, no campgrounds, no motor parks, etc.  Camping in this sense includes camping in a tent, sleeping bag, bus, caravan and campervan. Location can either be in remote areas or public places like car parks, beaches, shopping mall precints, road sides, basically anywhere that’s possible to safely pitch a tent or park a vehicle.

In New Zealand, freedom camping is popular with both Domestic and International travellers throughout the year. People do it for different reasons. Some for the freedom of being independent and to ‘get away from it all’, some to save money on accommodation, some for fun and some because there are no camping grounds or holiday parks around.

Why crack down on Freedom Campers?

There are a number of reasons why New Zealand’s, Nelson City Council is considering cracking down on freedom campers at the Lions Playground at Tahunanui Beach and at the Trafalgar Centre.

Many are irresponsible, using bushes as toilets and throwing rubbish everywhere. They are also an eye-sore for local inhabitants.  Most times about a dozen or so campervans are parked at the Tahunanui Beach carpark in the morning.

Locals are certainly not happy and want freedom campers kicked out.

In Tasman district, residents claim that freedom campers are abusing the district’s hospitality. Tasman District Council’s policy is that “overnight camping may only be carried out in mobile vehicles fitted with a minimum three-day capacity toilet and greywater storage facility”. In most cases camping is allowed as long as there are no signs forbidding it and for no more than two nights in a month at any one place.

The problem is that, this policy is often ignored and difficult to enfore. However, according to regulatory manager Jean Hodson, the policy was primarily educational, and in such a big district, with so many places to camp, the problem of freedom camping would exist whether or not the council allowed camping outside camp grounds.