The Great Outdoors

Growing up as a kid and teenager, I use to go camping several times a year. In Scouting, we usually camped at a Scout Reservation in a canvas tent (no floor) and on a cot. With my granddad, camping consisted sleeping in the camper shell in the bed of his truck when we would go on fishing trips. After getting my driver’s license, I would tent camp during the summer when I was out of school using tents that I bought from the local chain store down the road. Remember, I was young and broke!

After I went off to college and started my career, camping took a side seat, along with fishing, and everything else, so it seemed! When my wife and I were still dating, we decided we were going to go on a camping trip to Rusk State Park and ride the Texas State Railroad’s steam train.

Using one of my old tents I had packed neatly away about 4 years earlier, I was proud of my thriftiness and was amazed that my tent was still in good shape, or so I thought. After enjoying a restful night at the park, we were awakened by a loud booming sound around 6 am. At first, I thought they were emptying the dumpsters, but it kept continuing at irregular intervals. Then, it dawned on us that they were probably coupling the train together for the mid-morning train ride, but something still did not seem right.

On top of this, I had an uneasy, restless feeling. Anyone who knows me well can tell you that I can feel a storm coming on, and this is exactly how I felt. Continuing to hear these loud booms, I exited my tent, only to look back to the western sky and see a greenish hue and ominous looking clouds. The loud booms we were hearing was thunder. We quickly dressed and made it to the car, where we decided to seek shelter (and breakfast) at the local Sonic Drive-in. After the torrential downpour and hailstorm, we made it back to the park to see if the tent was still standing.

Amazingly, it was right where we left it, still upright! Proud of my thriftiness, we entered the tent to find two inches of water in it, with all my clothes soaked to the bone. Mind you, my better-half put all of her clothes on top of the ice chest, where it was high and dry.

By this time, the sun was shining, and I could clearly see storing a tent outside in a storage room that often sees 100 plus degree temperatures took a toll on the fabrics. The polyester tent and rainfly had lost all of its protective coatings, to the point you could see through the fibers. Weakened by the heat, I could literally poke a hole through the fabric with my finger. How we set it up without it tearing, I have no idea!

This experience opened my eyes to how carefully you must store and care for your tent and other gear. I no longer store my tents in outdoor storage sheds and I buy better quality tents that are much more durable. Proper maintenance and care are essential, as well as waterproofing your tent on a regular basis. Now that we have kids, and my wife and I are active in Scouting with them, meaning we are camping much more regularly than we did when we were their age.

With experience comes wisdom, and I’m hoping to teach my kids the hard lessons I learned, without them having to make them themselves. Traditionally, my blog here on CDI Tactical focused on law enforcement related equipment and issues, I will be adding more information regarding hiking and camping as well, to make this blog a well-rounded site. After all, great tactics and planning is nothing if you do not have the gear to get you through the mission.

The gear I will be focusing the middle-of-the-road gear. Stuff that isn’t on clearance at your local big-box store, yet equipment that won’t break the bank either. Look for upcoming blogs on tents, backpacks, and other outdoor equipment. Don’t worry though, I still have some gun reviews coming up!