Posted by: Suzie
Before, camping guides were too technical and written only by people with years of military experience. Today, the writing of camping guides has taken a more user friendly turn, and now provide a wider range of interest for the average camper. There are several genres of camping guides available, covering most of the specialist concerns of today's campers.
One genre is the total guide. These are simplified versions of the older technical guides and are written for the average camper in a friendlier tone. Camping tips and tricks discovered by veteran campers before are mostly found in these genre, a bit technical but informative nonetheless. These also contain fascinating trivias, historical affiliations of the terrain, and old scout lores about camping sites.
Camping guides that focus on the pleasures of camping do just that. These are an excellent resource for getting the most out of your camping experience, as well as suggestions for side trips and activities to make the most fun out of the trip for everyone involved.
One of the most essential camping guides is the line of cooking guides. Most campers do think of enjoying a heart meal under the moonlight. Careful planning and information from cooking guides will open you up to the fact that anything can be cooked while camping. Some foods don't travel well, but these guides can teach you options for preparing some healthy and delicious foods on the go that you otherwise might not have thought of as camping fare.
There is also an excellent line of specialist camping guides. These guides offer a range of topics and further expound it, like camping in particular elements, camping with young children, older generation camping, and pretty much anything for both new and veteran campers.
As with all things, a little knowledge from camping guides can go a long way. The variety of subject matter found in these books should answer any questions you might have about camping. You can also find guides filled with ideas for activities, meal planning, and specific site recommendations in any local bookstore. A good camper is always ready, and with the knowledge that these books provide, a camper is more prepared than ever.
For many people summer means traveling. And many of these weekenders and vacationers will end up in hotels whether they’re hitting the road or flying abroad. Hotels are often needlessly wasteful, and they add significantly to the already hefty toll traveling takes on the environment. But if guests do their research and ask a few questions before deciding where to post up for the night, they’ll find a wide selection of hotels that cater to customers who want environmentally sustainable accommodations. CAP has the story in this cross-post.
Hotels, inns, bed and breakfasts, and motels can adopt a host of practices to green themselves. Washing towels and linens after every single use, for example, wastes water and increases energy costs. But hotels that allow their guests to reuse such items multiple times before washing them are cutting down on water and energy consumption. Hotels can further cut their water usage by installing low-flow showers and toilets, and they can slash energy costs by using compact fluorescent light bulbs in all rooms or timers or sensors for lights.
They can also store soap, shampoo, and other hygienic amenities in bulk dispensers rather than tiny, individualized bottles in order to cut down on the huge amount of packaging waste involved in lodging. And they can adopt recycling or composting programs to reduce waste or serve locally sourced food to cut transportation costs.
There’s no silver bullet for a making a hotel “green,” but many guides exist to help the eco-conscious lodger find what they’re looking for. The Green Hotels Association promotes and facilitates environmentally friendly practices at hotels throughout the United States and beyond. Their website has a handy member hotels section for finding green accommodations wherever you’re traveling.
The Green Hotels Association doesn’t list information about what makes their member hotels green, but environmentallyfriendlyhotels.com has pretty exhaustive information on an impressive number of hotels throughout the world. They feature a checklist of green practices adopted by each hotel and rate the hotels on a scale of one to seven green trees—similar to the restaurant five-star system. The site also contains a search function and reviews from travelers who’ve stayed at the hotels.
Keep an eye out, too, for hotels that publicize their sustainability credentials such as the Orchard Garden Hotel in San Francisco, which is certified by the San Francisco Green Business Program, U.S. Green Business Council, and was the first California hotel to be LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) certified.
Finally, if you’re feeling adventurous you could always ditch the hotel outright. Consider staying at a hostel, where the paired-down accommodations and communal living style cut down on energy consumption and wastefulness. If your destination is sufficiently outdoorsy, camping also makes for a fun alternative to the hotel. And Couchsurfing.org is a nonprofit organization that connects travelers with locals who are willing to let visitors stay in their houses and apartments. Since you’ll be staying in a place in where someone is already living you’ll be creating less demand for new energy and resources.
Searching for lodging in your travels doesn’t have to mean being complicit with wastefulness or environmentally harmful practices. Eco-conscious travelers can find the perfect fit for their green sensibilities with a little bit of education, attention, and research.
This is a CAP cross-post.
While I don’t envy the troop leaders when they’re trying to load a gaggle of hyper ten year-ish old girls onto a bus for a three hour drive to Toronto, I have to admit that staying over night within the zoo grounds would be pretty cool. While the girls apparently had a bit of rain over the dinner hour (at the Simba Safari Lodge which overlooks the Rhino habitat), it sounds as though they had an awesome time. They got to watch play time with the elephants, had an exclusive Zoomobile tour and were allowed into the giraffe pen for a closeup look as a zookeeper fed the giraffes. There was even a campfire in the evening, then into a tent equipped with cots. Tasha’s only complaint was that between the lions roaring all night and the peacocks screeching, it was a little noisy. I don’t see how even a lion roaring could drown out a troop of Girl Guides, but there you have it.
If you’re in the Toronto area, the zoo makes the Serengeti Bush Camp available from May 22 to September 2 for groups and from July 1 to September 1 for families (at a cost of $80 to $100 per person, depending on age and whether they’re a Zoo Member or not). Considering that the price includes zoo admission, buffet dinner and breakfast as well as accommodations, I’d say it’s a bargain.