Ages: 9+

Resources Needed: Tent, Sleeping pad/Thermarest, Sleeping bag, Headlamp/Flashlight

Activity: Are you craving adventure? Practicing camping skills can be done in your own backyard! If you have the equipment, why not make a fun evening of setting up your tent and 'campsite' to enjoy a night in the fresh air? You can get really creative with the campsite, including cooking your dinner and making s'mores outside if you have a fire pit or a camp stove. If you do not have a tent, you can sleep under a tarp. See below for steps on how to set up a tarp.

**Please remember to be aware of the animals, big and small, that live around us - and make sure that you don't bring food into your tent/tarp and keep the "smelly things" inside your house for the night!

Ages: 8+

Resources needed: multiple pieces of rope or guideline, a tarp, an area with trees (backyard or other treed area).

Activity: Before beginning this activity, it would be helpful to learn how to tie a Bowline and a Truckers Hitch knot. You can find the instructions for this in the "OE Skills/Activities to do Indoors" section. There are many different ways to set up a tarp, and this activity will focus on one method known as the “A Frame”. Here are the steps to setting up an A Frame Tarp.

1. To begin, create a “Ridgeline” for the top of the tarp to sit on. Find two trees that are at least the width of your tarp in distance away from each other.

   1. • Tie a Bowline knot on one of the trees, as high as you are able to reach.

      • On the other tree, tie a truckers hitch knot.

      • Be sure the ridgeline is as tight as it can be

2. Take your tarp and drape it over the ridgeline so that you have half of the tarp on each side of the ridgeline.

3. Stack the corners of the tarp down to a tent peg, or another tree. For this task you will need 4 additional pieces of line, one for each corner. Tie the rope to the tarp using a bowline knot, and tie the line to a tree or tent peg using a truckers hitch knot.

Ages: 9+

Resources Needed: egg carton or toilet paper roll, dryer lint, wax (from old candles, paraffin wax, or beeswax)

Activity: Take your egg carton and cut it in half. Each egg carton half will make 6 fire starters. Stuff Dryer lint in each of the egg carton hole where the eggs were [or into the toilet paper roll if using that option]. Be sure to not stuff it too tight. The next step is to melt the wax. There are a couple of ways you can do this depending on the type of wax you have at home. You can break old candles or wax into a pot and melt the wax over the stove in a double boiler. Another way to melt wax is to light a candle and let me wax melt slowly as the candle burns. Whatever way you choose to melt the wax, you will then pour the melted wax onto the dyer lint in the egg carton. You will not need that much wax-be sure it doesn't melt through the egg carton. Now, let the wax dry for at least 15 minutes. Next, cut them apart and you have yourself 6 fire starters. When you are ready to use them, light them with a match or lighter. Watch this video for a video instruction on how to make a fire starter.

Ages: 9+

Resources Needed: ziplock bag, items to help start and build a fire

Activity: We are a big fan of 'kits' in OE - having these packed and ready saves us a lot of time when we are prepping to go out on trips. This activity will allow you to have a camp fire ready to build at any time! In your kit you can put anything you'd like that will help you start and build a fire. You can make your own fire starters (above) and include them in your kit. Other helpful fire starters include tree sap, twine, toilet paper rolls, wood chips, cotton balls, small pieces of kindling. Tin foil may be in your kit and can be used to start the fire on. You will want to put a flint, matches or a lighter in your kit to the be able to start the start.

Ages: 12+ (or parental involvement if younger)

Resources Needed: clay flower pot, skewers, charcoal, tin foil, large marsh mellows, barbecue lighters, graham crackers, chocolate

Activity: Use the tin foil to line the flower pot in place charcoal in the flower pot. Light the charcoal and let the flame settle for a couple minutes. Place the marsh mellow on the skewers and roast your marsh mellow over the fire. Put chocolate on the graham cracker and place your cooked marsh mellow on top of the chocolate. Enjoy your s'more!

Ages: 12+

Activity: When you first think about planning a camping trip, it is helpful to think of the goals of yourself and other people you will be going camping with. An expedition is “a journey with a purpose.” Arguably any voyage that has a specific goal; be it to circumnavigate a land mass, car camp near a beautiful trail or traverse a section of coastline, it could be classed as an expedition, especially if there is something about the journey that makes it unique or extraordinary and more than just a vacation. When choosing a goal, or a set of goals, for your trip you must take into consideration each group member and what each person wants to get out of the experience. Discuss as a group and decide: What is the goal of your trip?

Ages: 6+

Activity: There are many things to keep in mind when choosing your trip. What skills to do you have or want to develop? What is feasible for you at this time? Types of trips include: car camping, backpacking, rock climbing, canoeing, snowshoeing, winter camping, bike touring and sailing. As you increase the number of nights of your trip, you can move further away from your home but the cost of the trip will likely increase as well.

Ages: 12+

Resources needed: guidebooks, maps, websites such as bcparks.ca and trailsbc.ca are useful.

Activity: Once you have worked out the type of activity and the number of nights, you can work out the location that will fit these parameters. We are so fortunate to be able to have access to many amazing locations that are accessible from the Vancouver area.

You will want to brainstorm locations that you may already know. Then move to google searches, online forums, and local clubs. You will find the outdoor community extremely generous and willing to share knowledge and expertise.

Here is a list of some locations by activity. You will have to research these to see if they fit your parameters:

• Canoeing: Alouette Lake, Pitt Lake, Powell River Canoe Circuit, Boworn Lakes

• Kayaking: Indian Arm, Sunshine Coast, Gulf Islands, Desolation Sound, Johnstone Strait, Vargas Island, Broken Group

• Bike Touring: Kettle Valley Railway, Gulf Islands

• Backpacking: Cheakemus Lake, Elfin Lakes, Garibaldi Lake, Marriot Basin, Juan de Fuca, West Coast Trail, North Coast Trail

• Snowshoeing: Seymour Mountain, Elfin Lakes, Callaghan Park, Manning Park

• Rock Climbing: Skaha, Squamish

Ages: 12+

Activity: An important aspect of the trip is to create a rough timeline for planning purposes. Move through this step by step to create a timeline specific to your group. Make note of anything related to travel that may require an additional booking (e.g. buses, ferries, etc.)

Points to Consider:

• Are there ferries involved?

• What time does the ferry leave (both on the way to your trip and on the way back)?

• Are there any other things that would impact the travel time (e.g. need to stop for gas or snacks/washrooms)

From the start location how long will it take to get to your first campsite? From first campsite to second campsite? Etc...

Points to Consider

• Mode of transportation

• Average travel time for a group of your age/size

• Distance between locations

• Is there time at the beginning of the trip for additional packing and moving of equipment

• Where will you be stopping for breaks/lunches and how long will those breaks be

Ages: 12+

Activity: It is a good idea to plan or book transportation, guides, ferries, campsites, etc. prior to your trip.

Transportation

• You will need to consider how many people you are and the space that your gear will take up to determine what type of transport might be needed.

• Will you require a driver/drivers

• Do you need to book ferries?

• Do you need to book any shuttle buses to get to your location?

Activity Specifics

• Do you have the expertise needed to conduct this trip? If not, do you need to hire guides?

• What is the ratio of guide to client for your chosen activity?

• Do you need specialized equipment to complete your trip (bikes, canoes, kayaks, etc.)?

Campsites

• Are they provincial sites or private?

• Are they group sites or individual tent pads?

• Is there a permit required to camp in the location chosen?

Ages: 10+

Activity: What do you need for your trip? You need to make a lists that details everything that you will need to bring from home and from the school to be warm, comfortable and safe while camping. You will need to keep in mind the type of trip you have chosen, the number of days and nights you will be out for as well as the time of year that your trip is taking place.

Personal Gear:

• Consider the previous Mulgrave trips that you have been on as a guide for this section

Group

• Think about things related to tent groups but also to the group as a whole

• What kind of safety equipment is needed for your trip? Do you know how to use this safety equipment or what is inside the equipment if it is a kit?

Ages: 12+

Activity: To create a Risk Assessment, consider the risks of your chosen trip: make a list of these. What is the likelihood of a risk occurring? (e.g. it is more likely that you might get a sunburn than get hyperthermia). What is the level of severity if the risk occurred? (e.g. you may be uncomfortable with a minor sunburn but can continue the trip, if you get hyperthermia you would need to be evacuated). What are you going to do to alleviate or control the risk? What are you going to do if the risk occurs (incident action plan)?

An example of a hazard is a car accident - to minimize the impact of that you would have drivers that have a license to drive the vehicle and know the roads, you would be wearing seatbelts at all times, you will not get up out of your seat while the vehicle is in motion - if you were in an accident, 911 will be called and EMS would come to the location.

Ages: 12+

Resources needed: Mulgrave OE Food, Nutrition & Meal Planning Website

Activity: You will need to decide if you will you be cooking together as a group or cooking in smaller groups. For planning meals, use the Mulgrave OE Food, Nutrition & Meal Planning website, specifically starting with the Menu & Meal Planning section. Follow along with the step by steps found on the website to create your Meal Plan for you trip.