Outdoors – Page 3 – Pennysaverblog

Outdoors

A Cheap Way To Go Camping

My husband and I love camping during the summer and we’ve even tried our hand at winter camping. I must admit I enjoy camping in the summer a lot more. It’s a lot more comfortable, except for the insects. Camping is fun, but it can also become expensive if you’re not careful. Some simple things we do to save money when we camp include bringing our own food rather than purchasing our food at overpriced campgrounds or eating at campground restaurants.

We camp in a tent rather than staying in a cabin. Our campsite fees are cheap because we don’t require electricity. Some people prefer to camp out “in the sticks” where they don’t have to even pay any campsite fees. We would probably do that too if we were more familiar with the areas we camped in. The downside is there’s no fire pit and no bathrooms!

We never make reservations as it costs more when you do, and so far we’ve only regretted that decision once. There is almost always a space available so making reservations isn’t really necessary unless you plan to camp on a Stat holiday.

For entertainment, we fish for a while and go on some of the hiking trails. We also spend a lot of time just lounging on chairs and eating Spitz. We fish off the shore and my husband is usually successful at catching at least a few fish for our dinner. I am definitely not a skilled fisher, but my husband seems to always do well. You definitely don’t need to own a boat or have your own private dock to catch fish.

To make it special, we often bring our favorite foods to enjoy in the outdoors and we often eat a lot! Hopefully we burn some of the calories on our fishing and hiking adventures!

It’s just nice to get out of the city for a while and except for the cost of gas to get to our destination, there isn’t a lot of expense involved when it comes to camping in a tent. If you and your family need a getaway, camping might be just the thing for you.

August 5, 2009

Outdoors

Plant A Vegetable Garden

Spring is here and I am getting restless. I can’t wait to get planting my little garden but I know it’s a bit too early for that yet. When my husband and I moved into our home a couple of years ago, we decided to make the flowerbeds along the side of the house into a small vegetable garden. I even dug up some of our grass along part of our fence to create more garden space. We planted tomatoes, peas, carrots, green onions, green beans, spinach, and cilantro. Although we don’t have enough space in our small backyard to make a garden we thought we would see how our makeshift flowerbed garden would turn out. I’m sure our neighbors thought we were a little odd, but we didn’t care. It’s amazing how much can grow in such a small plot of land. We had so many tomatoes that we gave some away and had to freeze some because we couldn’t use them all. Not only were we savoring fresh vegetables, we were saving money as we hardly had to buy any fresh produce all summer. Even if you live in an apartment that has a balcony, it’s definitely worth your while to plant some vegetables. You could use a five-gallon pail and plant a tomato plant! Gardening gives you a sense of satisfaction and it helps you to get exercise! It’s neat watching things grow that you planted and it’s a great excuse to get outside and get some fresh air! If you enjoy using fresh herbs in your cooking, rather than buying them in the store, plant an herb garden. You will save a lot of money and have fun in the process. Another suggestion: Buy your seeds from a dollar store where you can get 3 or 4 packets for a dollar instead of paying $2 to $3 for each one. Last year I bought both and the cheap ones worked just as well. Happy gardening!

April 17, 2009