I’m not a fan of coffee percolators but sometimes it’s hard to resist the bubbling sound that comes from the coffee in a percolator. The reason I prefer the french press is because not only does it make a perfect cup of coffee, it’s also much less of a hassle and cheaper too.

In case you didn’t know what a coffee percolator is, it’s a type of pot used to brew coffee as pictured above. The bottom section (A) is where you fill in with hot water. The water level should at least be above the bottom tube but not more than usually indicated on the pot, depending on how many cups of coffee you want to make. The middle section (B) is where all the ground coffee goes. The top section (C) is should be empty initially and that’s where the final product goes.

To use the percolator once you have filled the water up to the required level and put in some quality ground in the middle chamber (2 spoons per cup of coffee or however you like it), first boil the water by heating up the pot on the campfire or camp stove. Once the water has boiled, put the pot on the edge of the fire or turn the camp stove on low. Pressure will build up in the lower chamber (A) until there is enough to push the hot water through the spout and through the coffee grounds.

Allow to percolate slowly for 5 to 10 minutes. The resulting coffee is collected in the upper section (C). You can then remove the middle chamber and discard the grounds.

It’s now time to pour the coffee into your favorite camping mug and enjoy.

Note:

Definition of per·co·late: (of a liquid or gas) Filter gradually through a porous surface or substance

You might also be interested in other camping coffee gear.

A Double Wall Tent

Single-wall tens, as the name suggests, are tents that only have a single wall that acts as a barrier against the weather. Double-wall tents are tents with an inner mesh wall covered by a waterproof rainfly. Both can be used for backpacking. But which one is right for you?

There are 5 reasons why  you’d want to choose Single-Wall Tents:

1. You don’t mind getting wet in the middle of the night when it starts to rain on you from the inside soaking your sleeping bag and pad
2. You’re camping in a dry environment where condensation is not very likely.
3. You love to keep your backpack light so you can hike further, faster and with less effort.
4. They’re cheaper than double-wall tents
5. They’re much easier to set-up than double-wall tents

And there are 5 reasons why you should choose Double-Wall Tents:

1. You’re only happy when you sleep dry
2. The extra weight is worth having a good night’s sleep
3. You’re going to camp in a humid environment
4. There’s no backpacking involved
5. You can afford a double-wall tent that’s lighter than some single-wall tents

For more information, read Single Wall Tents and Double Wall Tents.

You can mimic a double-wall tent with a bivvy and a tarp tent.

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.

Backyard camping is not only good for trying out new equipment before venturing out in the wilderness. It also encourages kids to spend more time outdoors and believe it or not, it helps preserve the outdoors because theoretically as more people go camping, more will value and care enough to protect the backcountry.

Read more of this at Trailspace.

The guys at CampingGearTV did a video entitled “What to Pack in Your Camping Chest”. It’s a bit long at 8 minutes 43 seconds and you might not like going through the video and finding out that there’s a part 2 to it so here’s a list of what’s inside their camping chest:

1. Sunscreen
2. Propane Canister
3. Propane Stove
4. Portable Spotlight
5. Big Plastic Water Jug
6. First Aid Kit
7. Paper Plate Holders
8. Disposable Utensils
9. Spatula
10. Beer Bong
11. Plastic Cups
12. Beer Cozy with Neck Strap

Nicholas Justin Nowers, 20, no address, was arrested on charges of criminal trespass of a non-dwelling and camping in the park.

Brenda Sue Martin, 48, no address, was arrested on charges of criminal trespass of a non-dwelling, camping in the park, failing to stop for an officer, two counts of interfering with an arrest and assaulting a police officer.

Both were booked into Purgatory Correctional Facility. According to Public Information Officer James Schafer their main concern was that these guys are a nuisance for families trying to enjoy the park. But the couple was found sleeping in separate restrooms shortly after midnight. The only family that might enjoy the park is the Adams family.

There must be a better solution than putting them in jail.

Essex – Partners in Adventure is a unique camping experience that includes disabled and nondisabled youths. In this environment, children of different abilities learn to play with one another, accept one another and acquire knowledge that they can use later in life, Executive Director Deborah Lamden said.

More..

President Obama and family will be going to Yellowstone on Friday August, 14 then the Grand Canyon on August 16.  The Obamas will also be rolling through Grand Junction and Phoenix.

Like everyone else, they won’t be charged the admission fee.

Read more about it at Backpacker.

I’m not talking about knights in shining armor. These are the members of the Knightdale High School wrestling team. They spent some quality time together from July 9-14 during their trip to the Appalachian State University wrestling camp.

It was a good team building excercise and the knights were forced to move out of their comfort zone and into a situation where they need to depend on their teammates to be successful.

Several on the team had no camping experience.

The Knights ended up with a dual meet record of 8-3, individually stacking a record of 84-56 on a head-to-head with teams from all over North Carolina and the southeastern United States.

The kids wanted to go camping so they went camping.

Seven members of the Rainbow Family of Living Light, also known as simply the Raninbow Family have been arrested for camping on the roof of a Public Library in Boulder. They were charged with illegal camping and trespassing.

They were identified as Christine Hodge, 22, Joshua Cole, 21, Aaron Waldeck, 19, Kirstin Humason, 21, Eli Dworkin, 19, Thaddeus O’Hail, 18, and Salvatore Gelosos, 22. The two dogs they have with them were sent to the Humane Society of Boulder Valley.

This group is a loose-knit -knit group that promotes love and world peace.

Outdoor Research: How to Setup A Bivy Sack from Outdoor Research on Vimeo.

“Bivy sacks are great solo lightweight shelters which can also be carried as a backup emergency shelter. Today we are going to talk about Outdoor Research’s Advanced bivy, which includes 2 poles. It’s a two pole system designed to keep the bivy material off your face.

As you’re thinking about setting up your bivy, first off, you would want to choose an appropriate site. Make sure the area is clear of sharp rocks or other debris that might puncture the fabric of the bivy sack.

Once you’ve done so, go ahead the pull the sack out of its pack and set up its poles. So you’ve got two different poles, one longer than the other. The longer pole is going to go on the inside of the white sleeve. Connect the end pieces at both ends and connect them to the corresponding snaps.

The shorter pole goes into the grey sleeve on the outside. Connect the end pieces at both ends and snap them into place. The sack is now ready.”

There are two straps inside the sack that you can use to strap in your camping mattress. The one used in the video is probably an Exped DownMat 9 by Outdoor Research.

There a variety of configurations you can choose from. The video shows all the possible combinations.

Kids love camping in the backyard at least as much as parents do. You can camp in your backyard anytime you want to but the official date for the Great American Backyard Campout is June 27, 2009.

Anyone who wants to go camping in their backyard can register at www.nwf.org  (National Wildlife Federation) even though it’s not exactly at that date.

The reason for the existence of the Great American Backyard Campout is to connect with nature in the hopes that as kids and adults spend more time outside, they’ll want to protect nature and wildlife. Now that’s a noble cause.

While I like to go hiking, not having to carry a backpack and just focus on enjoying the night of camping can sometimes feel like a blessing.

There are no restrictions on how you camp, whether you want to sleep unders the stars in your sleeping bag or with a bivvy or dome tent or whatever. It doesn’t really matter. The important thing is for you and your kids to get outside.

How do you find a partner when you don’t have anyone to go hiking with? You can try the cool site I just found. Meetup.com is about finding people on the internet to spend time with offline. You can find a lot of groups with a huge range interests from absailing to camping to soccer.

Go to Meetup.com and click sign up. All they ask for is your first name, an email address, password and location. Birth date, address and last name not required.

When you’re signed up, click on “find a meetup group.”

Under topics of internet, type in hiking (or something else) and your zip code. Now not all of these groups are going to be for you but can at least filter most by selecting the mile radius option.

To join, you click on the name of the group. On the group’s page, look for the button that says “join us.” Once you click it, some groups ask you to introduce yourself. You can, or you can skip it, your call.

Since the recession, a lot of people claim that camping is becoming more popular than ever. It turns out that even CNN is saying the same thing.

One 22-year old Susan Lanier says, “I’m in school and usually I’ll do some sort of trip, but usually I’ll go to a beach or something or I’ll fly to New York, but [finances have] just been tight, and this is a cheap way to get out of the city and do something fun.”

You may need to spend some cash on camping gear but most you would only have to buy once for at least a few years (like a tent, for example.)

I’ve seen reports coming from the United Kingdom saying that they have been seeing a rising trend in camping as well. This trend is true for hiking too. According to reports from the Sporting Goods Manufacturer’s Association, outdoor camping’s popularity rose by 7.4% from 2007 to 2008. Overnight backpacking rose by 18.5%! These are significant stats and it continues to increase in 2009.

It is also reported that sales of tents and sleeping bags are up 14% over 2008 and up 28% for sales in March compared to 2008 respectively.

State parks are also seeing an increase in the number of visitors even when the parks are having a hard time managing their park systems due to the recession.

Classes that teach basic camping skills are also seeing increased interest. Other parts of the industry are seeing increasing numbers as well.

Sleeping outside in a tent is no longer an activity favored by mostly “nerdy families, nature geeks and Boy Scouts.” With the economy now and the need for people to reconnect with nature it’s no wonder camping has become more popular. It’s good to get away from the city sometimes and get back to basics.

This is something I’ve stumbled upon that I think is really cool. It’s both a camping lantern and a flashlight that uses batteries that are charged by solar energy.

It uses LED so it’s energy efficient as well. There are 2 light settings; high and low.

I don’t know how bright these settings are but at a low setting, the batteries last for an hour for an hour of solar charging. I think that’ s pretty good.

For the high setting, the batteries last for half an hour for an hour in the sun. At full charge the batteries can last up to 20 hours.

It only weighs 22 ounces and that’s pretty cool. I’d love to get my hands on one of these.

Here’s where I first found it: