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Have you ever gone camping to find that it rained the entire time you were out? Well, if so you probably thought it was a camping disaster. Even though you may not have enjoyed walking along the creek in the sunshine or lazily watching a beaver build a dam while fishing in a pond, you nonetheless have a disaster camping story to remind you that the greatest camping places have moods too.

There are many things that can go wrong while camping and it all depends on the location you choose. Imagine waking up in the middle of the night to a bear rummaging through your camp looking for food! That could spell disaster for this camping trip, even if the bear finds what it needs and then decides to leave without making a threatening scene.

Camping during a severe thunderstorm can really make you aware of the powers of nature and maybe even keep you up but if you are prepared you can weather the storm on this camping adventure. In the case of a storm you will need to have put an extra tarp under the tent and you will need to dig small trenches all the way around your tent for the downpour of rain to follow. If you do not the rain will puddle up around your tent and seep in from the floor. So make the trenches around the tent and anywhere in your camping site that you need to remain puddle free. It can help to put your camping equipment and tent on a slight grade.

Camping during a severe wind storm is particularly challenging and can be a terrible disaster if you let it. For this reason it can be wise to set up a lean-to or wind break that can alleviate the catastrophic event. A wind break for your camping spot can be designed within minutes between a couple of the sturdiest trees in your camping vicinity.

A forest fire can devastate camping if lightening strikes a nearby tree. Many times lightening can start a forest fire, but most often it is put out by the accompanying rains before it gets out of hand. This camping disaster is not very common but you should always have an escape plan in any camping situation. A forest fire can also be caused by a camping enthusiast being careless with their fire habits. For this reason you must always put out camping fires cold! This means with plenty of water, and until the fire pit is cold. Never allow a member of your camping party to play with fire at any time.

A camping disaster is never planned. So make sure you do your part so you can be ready in the event of a camping disaster and possibly prevent it from ruining your camping pleasures altogether. Most of the time you can avoid camping during a potentially bad situation by consulting the weather service for that area and by taking an emergency shortwave radio for continued updates.

Enjoying the outdoors – with Realtree