True Blue Camping and Canvas

1. Tent Fly

Rigging a tarpaulin over your tent has many benefits when camping. Ensure that there is a gap between the fly and the tent, this will insolate the tent, making it cooler in summer. It will also keep bird droppings and sap from trees off your tent, keeping it drier and cleaner.

2. Ground Sheet

Using a ground sheet under your tent will protect the tent's floor from sharp stones and sticks, which may cause damage. The best ground sheet is a piece of shadecloth tarp roughly to the size of your tent floor. Lay this down first and erect the tent on top of it. Shadecloth mesh is better than a tarp because it breathes, lets rain drain through and it is lightweight to pack and carry.

3. Guy Rope Springs

Guy Rope Springs are vital when erecting a tent fly or shade tarpaulin when camping. Even in moderate winds the tarp will catch the breeze like a sail and will want to move. The springs "gives" with each tarp movement and will save the strain being put on pegs and the tarpaulin eyelets. The larger the tarp, the more force will be put on the tarp eyelets ... guy rope springs help this problem.

4. The bigger the fire - the bigger the fool

That's how the saying goes and it's generally true! Don't build a large "bon fire". A smaller fire is easier to light, easier to control when cooking, uses less fire wood and easier to maintain for the "after dinner fire-side chat".

5. Colour is everything

To really enjoy a camping experience, you must be comfortable. The easiest way to control comfort is to control heat. The colour of your shelter (tent and top-tarp) will be a real factor in determining how much heat is transferred through the fabric from top to bottom. When choosing a tent or tarp/fly consider a silver/light grey colour in preference to a darker earthy colour. Silver/green poly tarps are very useful for this purpose, silver side up, green side down. You'll be glad you did.

6. House keeping your camp

Roughing it a bit when camping is one thing, but don't live like a pig. Take the time to sweep out your tent each day (take a small hand brush for this) and always keep a tidy campsite. Food scraps attract unwanted animals into camp and personal hygiene must be paramount.

7. Store gear clean and dry

You can do more damage to your camping gear while it is being stored at home than out in the bush using it. Always completely clean out your tent before you pack it up. A good way to minimise the amount of sand & dirt that will collect inside your tent is to place a mat outside the door. Foam square mats are best because you can use the same mat for your shower, they are light, easy to clean & stow. NEVER store your tent wet, or even remotely damp. Even the dew should be allowed to dry off before breaking camp. If this is not possible ALWAYS re-erect your tent when you return home and dry it thoroughly, even to the point of folding the tent up in the heat of the day to trap some of the warmth inside the rolled tent. Good quality, well-sized storage bags allow for long term protection of your camping gear. Labelling or even colour coding canvas bags can help keep things organised.

8. Aussie swagman had the right idea

Canvas swags are making a great come back in Australia. Based on the traditional Aussie Outback Swagman these canvas wraps can be as simple or as elaborate as you want. Some modern swags are almost a small canvas tent. Good quality, heavy-duty swags will be costly, but simpler designs, medium weight canvas models can be very cost effective. Most swags include a foam mattress, but the thicker the mattress the larger it will roll up in size. Swags are designed to be used as a quick rollout bed, which also carries your clothing, wrapped tightly inside. If you include a small pillow, a few blankets, sleeping bag, mattress, clothing and a warm coat ... expect a large swag.

9. 12 Volt ideas

Many modern campers use gas for cooking but many prefer 12-volt fluro units for lighting their campsites. Fluro lights are silent, cool & draw less than 1 volt from your battery. Good quality units cost over $100 but is very robust. Cable tie them onto a tent pole or hang them from a tree for best results.

10. Extinguish campfires with water . . . not soil

Traditionally dirt has been used to smother campfires. What we now know is that this method retains great amounts of heat amongst the coals, under the dirt, for many many hours. This can be very dangerous if anybody, (usually children), touch the abandoned fire, even many hours later. Sutdies have found that WATER extinguishes the fire and cools the coals very quickly, making the fireplace safer a lot sooner.