Looking for a campsite where there is an easy access to a great mountain biking trail (or a great hiking trail). I plan to go next week for 3 days or so. Particularly in the lower peninsula.
Any suggestions or personal favorites?

Outdoor leisure holidays within Britain are becoming increasingly popular with families who want all the fun of a holiday at a fraction of the price. The best types of outdoor leisure holidays are camping and caravanning both are extremely affordable and allow families to spend time together in the great outdoors. There are all manner of activities that you can undertake with your family that will entertain adults and children alike.
Outdoor leisure activities are wide and diverse, many will be beneficial to your health and wellbeing and some may even trigger the mind. In terms of sports, a great way to entertain kids while on an outdoor leisure holiday is to take sports sets such as goal posts and cricket stumps. The initial outlay of the equipment will soon be surpassed by the great enjoyment all players will have. When on your holiday it may even be possible to undertake such exciting pass times as waterskiing and windsurfing, although more expensive, they ultimately rewarding.
Depending on the campsite or caravan park you are staying at, your outdoor leisure activities will vary immensely. Many provide services that will keep children entertained in such pursuits as painting and arts and crafts while the parent can relax. Some may even hire bicycles to visitors allowing them to tour the surrounding countryside at their own pleasure. Ensuring both parents and children enjoy their outdoor leisure holiday is the ultimate goal, whether this means activities apart from each other or together is ultimately irrelevant, as long as everyone has a good time.
The umbrella term of outdoor leisure can even apply to more extreme pursuits, depending on where in the country you are thinking of holidaying there are many things to do. If staying in the mountainous regions of Britain, rock climbing and abseiling should be on the top of your list of things to do. Not only can these activities help build personal traits of confidence and ability, they also make ideal bonding experiences for families. If staying near rivers kayaking and canoeing should not be ignored as outdoor leisure pursuits, both allow for messing about on the river and on a hot day are unrivalled holidaying experiences.
Camping really is a brilliant form of outdoor leisure. You do not even have to stay in campsites. Trekking holidays that involve hiking amongst beautiful scenery and striking views can be considered ultimately worthwhile. Pitching your tent in the wilderness mid-trek is also highly advisable, looking at up at the night away from the light pollution of towns is unique while waking up in the middle of a heath is truly humbling. The simplicity of camping makes it an appealing holiday for many who like the wilderness and getting back to nature.
Naturally there are more sedate forms of outdoor leisure, fishing can be considered a national pass time and is understandably popular. Relaxing on the riverbank watching the nature and water flow by is tranquillity incarnate. Fishing can even be a side element, there have been times when I have been fishing when once I have caught a fish I am actually disappointed that it has ruined the serenity of my afternoon.
Outdoor leisure covers so many aspects of country holidays that it is hard to discuss them all in one article. One thing is certain however; whether travelling alone, as a couple or as a family, the chance to get out into the countryside should not be missed. These pursuits are all on your doorstep and a short journey away. it can be surprising how beautiful your own back yard is, so before you book the flights, consider getting a tent or hiring a caravan and enjoying the simple pleasures of a leisure holiday in the great outdoors of Britain.

Leisure holidays in Britain are increasing moving to the outdoor sphere as people regard the simple pleasures of outdoor life, and more affordable pricing a clear benefit. Outdoor leisure holidays generally fall into two main categories; these are caravanning or motor-homing and camping. Both options can be seen as a cost effective way to take a family holiday, while giving the chance to enjoy leisure activities and do the bonding that psychologists are so fond of. Here are a few outdoor activities and holidays that will be fun for you and your family.
Outdoor leisure activities have a wide variety of benefits; many will be healthy and help you improve fitness while others may give your brain a workout. Sports are a brilliant way to keep kids entertained and the perfect outdoor activity on a sunny day. It is easy when going camping or caravanning to take a sports set such as goalposts, a badminton net or cricket stumps as they are light and will not take a lot of room in your car. While you may think the outlay for the equipment may be expensive, the leisure time you will be able to have using them will surpass this cost. Depending upon the campsite where you are staying you may even be able to undertake waterskiing or kayaking as more active leisure pursuits.
The campsite you are staying at will have different leisure activities to keep the children entertained. Some may even have provisions for entertaining children so the parents can have time to relax and enjoy their holiday also. Many have bicycle hire facilities allowing you to get out into the countryside and enjoy the sublime scenery. Your ultimate goal when going on an outdoor leisure holiday is to have fun and enjoy yourself; whether this means letting the kids be entertained by a camp rep or taking them with you, the choice is yours.
There is so much to do on an outdoor leisure holiday. If you’re staying within the mountainous regions of Britain such as the Lake and Peak districts it will be possible to undertake some more extreme pursuits. Maybe you should consider rock-climbing or abseiling as a pursuit that will entertain all members of your party. These kinds of activities not only help you bond with your family but can help build characteristics such as confidence. Canoeing and kayaking is a brilliant way to perform the same kind of activity if you happen to be a vertigo sufferer. After all, messing around on the river is the most English of outdoor leisure activities.
Camping is one of the best ways to get outdoors. It is not even the case that you must stay in campsites, although it is advisable. If you would like to undertake a trekking holiday, getting a lightweight tent and equipment is essential; hiking through some of the most beautiful scenery in Britain can be tiresome work, so having the right equipment will be a great help.
It is not just extreme activities that can form part of your outdoor leisure holiday. Sitting by the river, with rod in hand hoping to catch a fish is one of the most delightful experiences in life. You do not even have to catch a fish, sometimes the pleasure of fishing is just sitting in amongst beautiful scenery watching life on the river go by.
Outdoor leisure activities are so diverse that discussing them in one article is a Herculean task. You can be sure however that this type of holiday will be brilliant for you and your family. Getting out into the countryside and enjoying the simple pleasures of outdoor life is highly advisable. Just hope the infamous British weather holds out so you can actually head outdoors.

Spring is coming and you have decided that your house needs a good purging. Most likely you have some sports equipment or outdoor gear that you no longer use. You don’t want to just throw it away; you would like to make some cash from it. So what do you do?
Classified ads are the best way to list your items and get your outdoor or sports gear sold quickly. All major newspapers have a classified section, so you could contact them or a local paper that is specific to your neighborhood and list the items there. However, in this digital age, most people don’t even bother with physical paper ads anymore, you want to go online and post your items for the biggest response.
Here are few sites where you can list your items, usually for free and start clearing out the clutter of your home or garage:
OutdoorClassifieds.org – This is a specific site that is dedicated to everything outdoors. You can place a free ad in one of dozens of outdoor categories in one of hundreds of cities. The site is a breeze to navigate and place ads for all your outdoor stuff. They offer everything from camping gear to RV’s.
Craigslist.com – This is perhaps the largest online classified website there is. It is free to post your ad here and you simply just choose the “for sale” category and place your items you want to sell. Perspective buyers will then click on either your email or the Craigslist email in your ad to contact you about the details of payment, shipment and pickup.
Outbackadventures.com – Another specialized outdoor website that has a free classified section to post your outdoor gear. Click on “Gear Trader” in the links section and you will be taken to their classified section. The classified section is broken down into categories so it’s easy to find the section your gear will fit into. You will provide contact details when posting the ad so the buyers can contact you.
724outdoors.com – This is another site that is dedicated to all things outdoors. They do have a classified section that can be reached through their main page however this is a paid classified section. You need to become a member of their site first. Once you become a member, you can post ads. If you pay to be a member of the site you can post unlimited ads. If you sign up to be a free member you will have to pay $15 to post a boat ad, and $5 for all other ads. This site may be well worth the fees because it is strictly for outdoor items. There is no need to sift and search for outdoor items because it is all categorized for you.
Those are just a few of the sites offering an outdoor classified section but there are many sites that are specifically all about outdoor gear and equipment and many of those sites also have a For Sale or classified section. It is best to do a search online for the “classified” and “outdoor gear” to get a more extensive list of sites.

Interested in taking a camping adventure? You can choose to go with a partner, with friends or with family, but whatever the size of camping party, you will need to bring a multitude of items in camping equipment. On top of that you will also need other supplies like food and drink. Unfortunately for some campers, they will arrive at their destination, and realise all too late that they should’ve brought something but had just forgotten. To avoid this happening before you set out on your trip, as a camper it is best to create a checklist of items you will need for camping. There are lots of benefits to be gained from making this list.
By having a checklist the benefits are that you are least likely to forget anything important that you need to bring with you, like all the essential camping equipment and supplies that are necessary. For camping, many people will think of items that they need, but when it comes to remembering before the trip, they can sometimes forget and you don’t always have the time to figure it out later. By creating a camping checklist, you can write down all the things so you don’t forget later and so you know what to bring. Items that you think of later can always be added to the list.
By making a list, it helps you when you go shopping for supplies so you know which stores to go to for all your camping needs. Once you reach a shop, as a camper is all to easy to forget what you need to buy if you haven’t brought a list with you. I think everyone has done that at one time or another. It is important that you have everything you need when it comes to camping equipment and camping supplies, so that you purchase those items that you don’t have.
It is easy to write out a camping checklist, it doesn’t take long – about ten or fifteen minutes of your time, so it is worth it. It is best to plan for your camping adventure so that you are organised. Just sit down, relax and start writing with pen and paper in hand – simple! Look at the daily activities you will be involved in and what items you will use. The most important is a camping tent with sleeping bags for everyone. For food, it is useful to have a cooler to put all your cold meats, bottles of ketchup or mustard, bread rolls and other items that are not too perishable for the beginning of your trip. You can always buy more once you reach your destination, as long as you have the essentials on your checklist.
If you’re not sure how to write out a checklist, you can always check out some websites to give you ideas or to start you off. It is easy enough to print out an example to help you. Standard checklists may be quite detailed once you have done a search on the internet, but you can cross off or add to any of the items that are already listed.
Having a camping checklist is optional but it is something to think about, and is helpful for any camping adventure so that you have everything you need for an enjoyable holiday. The lists are easy to make and will help ensure that you don’t miss anything out. You can also refer back to it for the end of your holiday when you want to make sure that you haven’t left anything behind. A checklist is simple and easy enough to improve how you plan your next camping adventure.

Do you plan to go camping anytime soon? Is a camping adventure in your list of future activities? If it is, chances are you also need a list of reminders to make sure that your next camping trip will be truly exciting and full of fun. The list may include the following:
1. Add a sense of community and family bonding to your camping trip. Invite friends, neighbors and family members to join you in your adventure. Make it clear, however, that not everybody needs to be in one campsite. This will give you and the other members of the group some degree of privacay while the level of fun and excitement remains the same for everybody. Also you need not invite them for the whole duration that you plan to undertake your camping adventure. They may want to stay with your group for a day or two only. The admission fee will have to pay shall be worth it.
2. Adding fun and excitement to your next camping trip will require you to maximize the use of facilities available at the campsite or campground park where you will be at. If your campsite has, for example, boat rentals that you can get at a reasonable rate, go and consider having one. And then campground parks normally offer various facilities, like hiking trails, fishing and swimming facilities. You might as well take advantage of all of them. Keep in mind that paying for admission fee normally entitles you access to those facilities.
3. Orient yourself with more camping activities through internet browsing. Majority of campgrounds in the US offers facilities where you can engage in various enjoyable and exciting activities. As mentioned, you can go hiking, swimming, boating, or engage in sports activities. But you might need more of these especially if you plan to take a long camping adventure or camping trip. You can research useful information from the internet and produce a list of other activities you may want to undertake even outside of your campgrounds.
4. Be sure with your provisions. Be ready to gear yourself up. You will be needing equipment and supplies. Tents, boots, cookware, clothing and food are some of the essential provisions. The amount of food you bring must be sufficient enough for you and your guests to ensure fun and excitement in your next camping trip. The amount of food you need to bring will depend on how many are in your group and for how long you will be out camping. Here is one more tip about guests. There can be campers close to where you will be camping at and you might feel the urge to invite them over for a snack or dinner. It can be a great idea. It may brighten up your day some more and win a few more friends.
5. Recording your camping adventure is one more way of adding fun and excitement to your next camping trip. You can document your adventure by bringing along with you video camera or camera. Taking photos or video is exciting itself, and you can keep lasting memories of your trip. You would surely want these memorabilia especially if you are planning for your first camping adventure, or having it with family members, or with your romantic partner.
6. Finally, making your trip spontaneous and doing it all in the spirit of fun and excitement can be the key. Do not forget that you can turn your camping trip into an adventure and a vaction all at the same time. So make the most of it regardless of whether you are having it for only one day or for several weeks. Because after this you will have to go back to your fast-faced and stressful everyday life.

While looking for the proper equipment for your forthcoming camping expedition, you may come across some very exclusive camping equipment. Depending upon your camping plan whether it will be in the desert, along the coastal line or in the mountains, you will require some special and unique camping equipment.
If you browse through the internet you will come across many sites online specializing in selling exclusive camping equipment. Items like snake bite kit; disguise tent and clothing or night vision goggles. Though these items may seem needless, they are required depending on the kind of camping expedition you are planning. For a camping trip in a desert, you may need a snake bite kit which can be a life saving device. If you are planning a hunting expedition then disguise tent and clothing and night vision goggles may become essential item. A whistle can also be taken as an exclusive item as it may not be something you would pick up for a camping expedition but may come handy in the time of need. Remember when buying exclusive items and selecting what you will require, all depends on the site you plan to camp in and the activities you intend doing while you are camping.
There is a variety of different and innovative tents that are manufactured and are available in the marketplace. One such variety is the glow in the dark tent. This variety of tent may be useful if you go to the bathroom at night and have difficulty in finding your way back to the tent.
The manufacturer of the tent also quotes that the glow of the tent keeps away all bugs and insects. The same manufacturer also makes polka dot tents for those who want to have a fashionable and exclusive tent. Some other manufacturer is starting to make tents for disabled persons. It can become difficult at times for a person on a wheelchair to take pleasure in camping with the rest of the family. There are manufacturers who make exclusive camping equipment with this in mind too.
There is a wide range of exclusive camping equipment available suiting any exclusive camping expedition. These exclusive items are useful to many and at the same time enjoyable as it is new and different. Some may think to carry these items is useless but at times they can prove to be not only useful but life saving device too. Nevertheless, these items can be expensive than the normal camping equipment because of its exclusivity, so keeping this in mind decide on the necessity of the equipment and not because it is unusual and new.

When buying things for a camping trip, camping equipment catalogs are proven useful and efficient especially when you don’t have time to go on a store.. Usually camp equipment catalogs are printed for it for easy viewing purpose. The Camping Equipment Catalogs is certainly aimed at a camping market that is young and just starting. Today these catalog have every item that you can possibly think of that is related to camping. The glossy and bulky catalogs are now passe. The newest trend nowadays are the on line ones. These on line ones are complete and the choices in equipment has a wider range. The Internet has become a popular source for this type of catalog. The number of Camping Equipment Catalogs found on line are slowly increasing.
Camping has become a favorite past time whether one is single, with a partner or even the whole family. It is considered as a number one activity. It is time for bonding and fun in the wild. When camping, the equipments you bring can make or break the whole trip. The on line Camping Equipment Catalogs are of great help especially if one is to busy to buy on a real store. It is also a good help because these Camping Equipment Catalogs have buying guides or articles that sometimes go with every item. There are also testimonial from other campers that might have used the items.
Due to the popularity of these on line stores, it has created niches for a specific type of camping. It could be outdoor, rv and so on. It is now easier to look for equipment because the on line catalog can match specific needs. Different types of hiking boots, tents and sleeping bags are all available in Camping Equipment Catalogs.
These catalogs have become competitive among each other. They have added different leading manufacturers so that you can be guaranteed to have a nice camping trip. Some on line Camping Equipment Catalogs are giving away promos and discounts depending on the holiday it may fall in. You can be amaze at how much one catalog can have a different options for any specific needs. The Camping Equipment Catalogs have forms and all you have to do is to input what you need. These camping equipment catalogs are one thing that you need when get ready for a camping adventure.

Communing with nature has ever since been the primary reason why people take on camping as a hobby. However due to technological advancements in camping gears, this hobby has become rather expensive. Unless you want to dedicate time and money to camping as a hobby, you do not need to spend much for camping gears. You can enjoy camping without spending much if you know where to look for smart buys.
With some research you can find discounted camping gears throughout the year. You can surf the internet and compare prices offered by various sporting goods stores and or directly look for suppliers offering discounted prices. In buying, put optimum consideration on quality. Be sure to inquire first on the brand. The discount may not be the good deal that you expected if the camping gear may turn out to be of poor quality. It is better to pay higher for quality than pay for an unhappy camping experience when your camping gear of poor quality breaks in the middle of the camping journey.
You can find stores that exclusively sell discounted camping supplies. These are used gears but you’ll get the same warranty as the new items albeit at a shorter warranty period. Better still, you can trade in your used sports equipment and save more. Even with camping trailers, there are companies that offer re-built camping vehicles if you cannot afford a brand new camping trailer. nd if a poor quality good caused you to not have what you need in the middle of a camping trip, then you’ll be paying the price of an unhappy camping experience as well.
More discounts can be found at the internet’s ebay or craig’s list, or you can check the message boards of camping clubs. You maybe taking your chance but you are sure to save much this way.

Turning Camping into Cash?Pt. 1 “Camping is nature’s way of promoting the motel business.” – Dave Berry.

Having returned from my first camping trip, while casually thumbing through the Yellow Pages for quick divorce lawyers, I received a call from Top Sleeping Bags, a new camping equipment website, asking “can you write an article on turning camping into cash?” I closed the phone book and here’s the first installment of my series of answers.

The camping world needs a woman’s touch and I don’t mean a female Daniel Boone. I mean a female Dave Berry. It really needs one and there’s gold in them ‘thar hills. There’s no advice for dreamers (who looked at brochure photos of laughing couples, holding hands while hiking along majestic mountain paths) only to return from their first camping trip with blisters the size of baseballs, poison ivy welts and the need for blood tests for Lyme Disease. And that’s where turning camping into cash and you come in. Just think about it, if you like to hike, canoe and camp anyway, it’s all upside. That advice giver could be you.

Camping gear reviews — advice on what camping gear to buy and why — is everywhere, from eBay’s Camping Buying Guide or REI’s Camp/Hike Expert Advice. In bone-numbing detail, we learn we’ll need out sleeping bags rated for -10* Fahrenheit to camp in the snow or that a car rack must clamp to the seam between the door and vehicle frame if a car lacks gutters. And, coincidentally, every tip and every piece of advice relates back to a product for sale on the site.

And the Internet also abounds with campsite reviews where information that should cause civilized people to recoil in horror is considered mighty handy information for the hardy camping crowd. These reviews allow them to discover which campsites have 30 amp electricity, which have sewage disposal for RVs, and those where you best keep an eye out for rattlesnakes and scorpions.

But real-world advice? Forget it. You can search the Internet in vain or Google until the cows come home but you won’t find advice on whether it is better to choke to death on fish bones or simply walk into the wilderness and freeze to death after your newly retired husband – who somehow convinced you to share a winter adventure ice fishing in Canada – hands you his fresh catch to clean and cook for the evening’s meal over a tiny propane flame. Nor can you find advice on the best response when — while pitching a tent in the dark with someone who forgot to pack flashlights — asked what’s taking so long to pound in your half of the tent stakes into the ground with the heel of your shoe because someone also forgot to pack a hammer.

You’ll search forever for camping advice that begins with “Just don’t do it, don’t go. But if you must be certain you know how far the nearest 4-Star restaurant is from your campsite and you’ve MapQuested the directions… “

So where to start, in turning good advice like that into gold? My advice – start a camping blog? Start a camping blog, gain a following with your advice and make money from affiliate marketing or selling advertising space. Starting a blog – personal publishing platforms — can be done without money. See WordPress.Affiliate Marketing. Sign up with an affiliate marketing company like commissionjunction.com or clickbank.com, chose the product you want to sell on your website (divorce lawyer advertising? Family counseling?), the company will provide you with the code to place on your blog and then every time some one clicks on the link or buys the product, (pay per click or pay per commission) you get paid! Sell Advertising Space. For example, you can go to Google’s site, sign up for an Ad Sense account, and follow the instructions they provide to get it on your blog. You know those “ads by Google” sections of web pages these days, that’s what we’re talking about.Sell Banner Ads. Offer spots for companies to place banner ads on your site. To keep it easy, you can place the banner ad code in one of your blog posts. If you want to get more technical, you can attempt to place it on other locations on your blog page.

Or …Squidoo. This is a spot for people to make small personal web pages about things they are interested in. You could, rather easily, make several Squidoo lenses (their dubbed term for webpage) with various articles, photos, video, etc. The beauty of a Squidoo lense, is the money making technology is built in. You can, with a click of a button, add an Adsense campaign to your lenses, Amazon modules, or ebay listings. All of which you split a commission on. HubPages. These are a similar concept to Squidoo. You make your own personal “hubpage” and use the same methods to produce an small income, AdSense, Amazon, etc. If your Hubpage has valuable content, which as we established before shouldn’t be that hard in the field of camping, its very possible to great a small but steady source of income.

This isn’t get-rich-quick advice but it is a way you could gain a national following, your traffic could explode and then the world would be your oyster. Don’t quit your day job. But do take your laptop with you camping. I believe in you. You should believe in you.

You may think the hardest part is coming up with great advice. Think again. Just go camping. Be sure and check back, Top Sleeping Bags has me booked for a whole series.