I’m Down With Down Campfire Guy here. One of the single most important pieces of camping gear you’ll buy is a sleeping bag. Having spent my share of cold nights in one I’m inclined to agree. We still have a few old reliable synthetic bags for car camping, but lately, I’ve been on a down bag kick. For the weight, warmth, and compactability (pretty sure I just made up a new word), down is hard to beat. The downside is…
Next to Making Dad Jokes, Sleeping Outdoors is My Favorite Campfire Guy here. After a long day on the trail or herding a Pack of Cub Scouts on a campout, one of the things I most look most forward to is when I can finally crawl into my tent and curl up in my sleeping bag. I like this form of curling since it doesn’t require a broom or an ice rink. Hard to Pronounce, Easy to Use My…
Pros CheapDurableEasy to set up Cons The dimples can be hard to cleanThe pad doesn’t come with a strap to keep it closed Ground Control To Mattress Pad Campfire Guy here. If a sleeping bag keeps you warm and a tent keeps you dry, what keeps you comfortable in the outdoors? Unless you are a hammock camper, sleeping outdoors often means sleeping on the ground. No offense to the ground, but it’s generally cold, hard and pokey. Ground speed aside,…
Headlamp Woes Got You Down? Campfire Guy here. Have you ever sung the headlamp blues? Did it squeeze your watermelon sized head and give you a headache? Were replacement batteries too expensive and hard to find? Were you 106 miles to Chicago, with a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, in the dark, wearing sunglass and lacking a good headlamp? Enter The UCO A-120 Comfort Fit. My mission today is to enlighten you on a unique…
It Just Snowed, Who Wants To Sleep Outside? January 7th brought with it some of the coldest weather Dallas had seen in almost 6 years. I had some gear I wanted to try out and what better time than with light snow on the ground and twenty degree weather. The campout also brought with it my first foray into video. Part of this I streamed to Facebook Live, part of it I recorded and tried not to shiver to much….
Campfire Guy here. I’m in my second year as Cub Master of my son’s Cub Scout Pack. We’ve been fortunate enough to add twenty-four families, brand new to Scouting, over the past 18 months. We try to prepare them as best we can for Scouting by having a Q & A session shortly after they join. “How often do you camp, what is a den, what do I bring on a campout and what do you mean being in…
Campfire Guy here. In an earlier post, I talked a little about my journey to find my first backpack. Well technically, I tried six packs, only keeping one, the Gossamer Gear Mariposa. The Mariposa is manufactured by Gossamer Gear, a cottage company, based in Austin, TX. Cottage in the sense their gear can only be ordered online, not in the sense porridge eating bears live in their offices. Ordering outdoor gear online, without having easy access to a return line is always a…
Overview Campfire Guy here. The Mountainsmith Genesee 4 Person 3 Season Tent is one of my favorite tents. As you can see in My Quest for Perfection, I’ve been a bit picky when it comes to buying tents. To the delight of both Amazon and my wife, the Mountainsmith Genesee, was not one of the tents that I returned. This 4 person, 3 season tent has been my go to tent for the past two years. So far I’ve taken eight trips, spanning fifteen nights in…