Elizabeth

We love camping!  We camp in a tent (in Provincial Parks) with our three kids and try to get out at least once every summer.  We have even camped with our eldest at six weeks old, for a whole week!  We just make sure to pack LOTS of clothes and make sure that we have good sleeping gear (still working on that…).  We like to cook in the campsite on our camp stove setup and occasionally over the fire (as long as they aren’t banned).  Once, we even tried making sushi in Tofino!  It was a big hit!  Our staples: rice, grilled chicken, stir fry, steak, shrimp, potatoes, spaghetti, quesadillas, buns, cereal, oatmeal, and soup.

Sarah
We camp a bit but always with someone who has a trailer in case the weather is bad!  We sleep in a tent but if it is bad weather then we head to the trailer!  We eat pretty easy food, cereal for breakfast, grilled cheese for lunch and usually hamburgers or hotdogs for dinner.  It depends on who we camp with because my parents have an awesome trailer so then we can cook a bit better and put things in the oven etc.

Sean
We love camping although we haven’t done a lot the last few years with small kids.  Our youngest is now 3 and we just did a weekend trip which was enjoyed by all even in bad weather so we will be getting out a lot more again. We have always and are tenting for now.  It would be nice to have a trailer though, mostly to make it easier to be ready to go on a regular basis.

Holly
We love to camp and we are tenters , or at least we were before kids.  We have a large family tent but have yet to venture out in it.  This summer is our first chance and everyone is so excited about it. I think we might try a backyard camping experience before we attempt real camping.

As for meals, we have done lots of day trips and we love to cook over the fire, mostly hotdogs. As I said we camped lots before kids and have always enjoyed campfire cooking – doesn’t everything taste better over a fire?

Jennifer H
We used to be “trailer campers” when we had only one child… but when the second came along, we sold the trailer as it was too small for the four of us (plus the 80-pound dog!)  So, we don’t camp right now!  But when we did, we loved to prepare spaghetti sauce and bring it with us.  Also, any meat that can be easily barbecued – smokies (of course), pork chops and chicken.  Also, if you take a can of brown beans and empty it into tinfoil and wrap it up and put it on the BBQ/into the fire, it’s delicious!  And who could forget s’mores… made with real Hershey’s chocolate of course

Lara
Our family loves to camp!  All 4 of us in a tent we enjoy standard camping foods (steak, roasted potatoes, corn, hamburgers, hot dogs etc), s’mores, and jiffy pop popcorn (camping is the ONLY time we eat that). Plain hot chocolate for the kids, Baileys in hot chocolate or coffee for the adults

Alison
Our family loves to camp and we are tenters!! We pack our truck for the weekend and head off – Monck Park is our favourite spot. When we’re camping, we eat a lot like we do at home for dinners, but typically lunches are smokies/hot dogs cooked over the campfire. I love making our meal plans for camping, and dinners usually are steak, kebabs (chicken or beef), baked potatoes, corn, spaghetti, chicken breasts. I will make up what I can ahead of time and freeze it so it’s all set to go, and food doesn’t go bad. Another standby is tinfoil dinner – mix it all up, whatever it is, wrap it in foil, and throw it on the fire/grill.

Amanda H
We don’t camp, I think we may in the future went we could afford a trailer but we both dislike camping in tents.

Tara
We do enjoy camping and like heading out in our camper. I love doing easy meals and meals that everyone is involved in; like tacos, sandwich wraps, barf in a bag(scrambled eggs and the fixings in a baggie that is boiled till cooked),hamburgers, etc.My husband and I have a son(2.5),a dog and a cat. We’ve lives in kamloops for about 10 years now and love this town! I am an RAHT, and chose to go back to work only 3 days a week to allow me lots of time still with my son!

Deborah
We LOVE to camp as a family in our 1973 travel trailer.  We mostly just use the trailer for sleeping, as we like to cook and eat outside even if it’s raining (we put up tarps).  We eat alot of hotdogs/hamburgers, chilli, spaghetti, etc. like everyone else.  Some of our over the fire favorites are:
Corn on the Cob – soak corn in water (husks on) for an hour or two.  Lie them on grate over campfire until outside of husk turns blackish.  Peel, eat with butter & salt/pepper.  The inside will be steamed and moist and juicy!! yum
Potatoes/Veggies in Foil – Slice a potatoe about 1/2″ thick slices, add raw chopped onion, butter, salt & pepper.  cover in foil (use 2 layers and poke holes in it).  Place over the fire on a grate and cook for about 1/2 hr.  til potatoes are soft when poked with a fork.  You can do the same with carrots, zuchinni, etc.

Krystal
You bet we are campers! We do two kinds of camping car camping and backpacking. I rarely bring a cooler because I can’t handle the ice and soggy food. We bring dehydrated foods things like oatmeal, fruits & fruit leather, granola bars, rice, pasta and such. One of my favorite camping foods is the Cashew Curry Dinner Delectable Edibles from www.madewithlove.ca.
The kids and I have hiked 8km out at the farthest, it took us two days to get that far. Backpacking is tons of fun with kids so long as you go slow, take lots of breaks and pack their packs well.

Erin B
We haven’t really camped since having kids.  We are tent campers – usually hike-in campers (which I expect won’t happen until Rya can carry her own pack!)  We tend to eat stir fries, or good ol’ fashion hot dogs!

Kylie
I have not taken my kids camping yet because I`ve been nervous to do it on my own with them.  I plan to go in the future with them though since I always enjoyed camping as a kid.  We are going to be camping this year for a few days, but will be at a friend`s house.  So if it doesn`t go well we can go inside!  lol  I can`t wait, I think the kids will love it!

Tamara V
We love to camp! We tent it and eat lots of pasta and chocolate. I highly recommend the book “Camp for Free in B.C.” for fabulous out-of-the-way spots on old logging roads, quiet lakes and mountain tops.

Jaime
We camp at Adam’s Lake, not far from Agate Bay. We lease a site at a camp ground and park our trailer there year-round. We do have a pretty good set up for cooking there but I try to keep it pretty simple.
Breakfasts: cereal, instant oatmeal, toast, bagels, waffles (premade and frozen), skillet (hash browns, chopped veges, scrambled eggs)
Lunch: frozen homemade soup, sandwiches, cut veges and dip, quesadillas, cheese, crackers, sausage,
Dinner: barbecue meat, roasted veges, spaghetti (frozen homemade sauce), quinoa salad, pulled pork, beer can chicken,
I like to boil ribs at home, freeze and then sauce and barbecue while camping.

Erynn
We used to but haven’t found the time for awhile, hoping to get camping a few times this year! We’ve always been tent campers (I kind of thought trailers were cheating) but now with some chronic pain issues the ground is pretty hard and I’d love to find a way to get a small cozy trailer. In the past we’ve always cooked full meals while camping from fresh ingredients.  But that’s a lot of weight to pack in and it takes a lot of space.  Not to mention a lot of time taken up and I’d rather be doing fun camping stuff with my kid than slaving over a fire or campstove.
This year I’m going to be experimenting with making my own meals from freeze dried ingredients, like those crazy expensive meals you can buy at camping stores but I’ll make them myself.  Here’s hoping it works out like I plan. When I was a kid in girl guides we used to slit open a banana, stuff it with chocolate chips and marshmallows, wrap the whole thing in tinfoil and put it in the fire.

About your Author | Elizabeth

Elizabeth is a Kamloops lifer. Born at RIH, she is happy to be raising her family here. Married with three wonderful children with another due in June 2013, Elizabeth is also teacher and enjoys working with parents as she learns more about this "Mommy gig". Elizabeth is passionate about parenting and enjoys networking with other parents. She has been running KamloopsParents.Com since March 2010.