Evening star., 1961-05-07
CHOOSING TENTS AND SLEEPING BAGS
To Make Success of First Camping Trip,
Be Sure You've Bought Good Equi uipment
By CHARLES COVELL
outdoor Editor

outdoor Editor
There is little argument that
family camping is growing rap
idly. Authorities estimate that
last season IL million persons
trekked to national parks or
State parks, pitched tents on
other public and private sites
or went into the backwoodS.
Figures released this week by
the Army engineers give some
indication. Public recreational
attendance at $500 reservoirs
and other Army Engineer prof.
ectS in 33 States reached a
record l09 million visits in
1860. That was 2 million above
1859.
OF course, these visitors were
not all campers, but coming
largely in family groups they
swarmed over 1850 picnic
grounds and $4,000 campsiteS.
Cements Family Ties
Why2 AS Fred D. Carl, vice
president of the erican
Camping Association, told a
group assembled for the first
Of series of YMCA-sponsored
sessions on family camping at
the Alexandria Y the other
night:
The chief value lies in ce-
menting family relationships.
The back to nature aspects
may appeal to many. but the
fact remains that in few other
pastimeS is there more oppor-
tunity for strengthening fam
lily ties.
Since nothing is more dis
couraging than to spend a first
night in misery, the opening
session was devoted to equip
ment.
Here Carl called in Ed REM
ington of Rockville, Defense
Department consultant on cold +
weather and survival gear and
former chief glaciologist at the
IGY's South Pole station. In
fact. he once slept in a tent
at the pole with the tempera-
ture at los degrees below.
His advice on tents:
Best material is nylon. 1t
neither rots nor is weakened by
mold or mildew. Though it will
admit air, it sheds water and
dries quickly. 1t is light in
weight and folds or rolls easily
yet doesn't get stiff in cold
weather. Nylon also admits
light, making for a pleasant
interior.
Set up a new tent in your |
yard, soak and let dry several |
times. If you detect any leaks, |
use silicon spray. .
Umbrella type tents sus- :
pended from outside aluminium
frames have advantages. There 8
are no inside obstructionS and ,
they are resistant to wind. An )
extra fly spread over the top ]
with an air space underneath :
keeps the tent cool. '
Have Zippered Entrance t
Make sure your tent has
zippered entrance and zippered
ground cloth to keep out pests.
Use an extra ground cloth un-
derneath. Before storing the
tent. be certain it's dry.
On sleeping bags:
First off, Remington advo-
Gates sleeping bags rather than
cumbersome cots. Bags come
In all prices but beware of
cheap ones. Don't buy one that
. is waterproof, only water re-
sistant. A bag must breathe"
but be sure it has a good
outer cover.
Don't look for a flannel lin
ing. He prefers rayon or some ,
other slick material. A person .
turning in a tight bed soon !
punches UP the flannel. Rem
ington opposes air mattress
pockets. The bag should rest
on the mattress. If a blanket
Is used. spread it under the
bag, not over the sleeper. Zip
pers should be stout and the
bag riveted at points of stress.
Dacron Fibers Best
As for filling, he rates da-
cron polyester fibers the best
next to down. Each quarter
inch of dacron filling is equiv
alent to 5 degrees of tempera-
ture and each pound in the
bag equal to about 10 degrees.
On air mattresses:
Again beware of the cheap
varieties. Imported plastic or
rayon mattresses are glued at
the seams and can't be re-
paired. Rubberized canvas is
better and can be vulcanized
but it does mildew and rots.
The best are made of rub
berized nylon.
Mattresses can be inflated
by lung power but pumps are
better, either hand or foot OPP
Grated. Buy a pump that has
high volume but low pressure.
And, if the subject of costs
scares you, the Y can direct
you to rental agencies. There
are q couple in the area.