People love camping, and with good reason. There’s something appealing and primal about getting back to nature, taking the family fishing and hiking before bedding down in your sleeping bags and scaring each other with old campfire legends. But some things can happen in the woods that are genuinely frightening as well. These are some of the common accidents that can befall family members on a camping trip and for which you should be prepared.
Dehydration
One of the more common potentially harmful things that can happen to a family while camping is one of the more easily prevented: dehydration. If the whole group is hiking around in the height of summer, for instance, then it might not occur to you that you ought to be rehydrating if you’re in the shade. However, if you’re exercising, then you should still be replenishing your lost fluids and electrolytes with lots of water and sports drinks. Ypu might want to bring a cooler with wheels to make all your drinks easier to carry.
Extreme Weather Events
It’s also possible to get blindsided by an extreme weather event while camping. The most common ones are severe thunderstorms with lightning, but tornados, flash floods, and blizzards are all possible depending on the part of the country in which you decided to camp. The best way to avoid these is to check the weather forecast carefully before you select the days and nights for your adventure. You’ll also want to have rain gear and warm clothing with you just in case.
Getting Lost
Getting lost can be potentially life-threatening if you’re in a remote location where help is not easily found or contacted. You should bring a map with you and know how to use it. It is also advisable to have a compass in your pocket or knapsack. It’s also helpful to camp close to a trail or other landmark unless you are intimately familiar with the area in which you are hiking and camping.
Car Accidents
You wouldn’t normally associate car accidents with camping, but they can happen more regularly than you might think. As you are getting to or from the camping site, you can easily get sideswiped by another car, or sometimes there are obstructions in the road. There are sites like https://www.daveabels.com/sideswipe-accidents.html of which you should be aware, and you should always exercise extreme care as you are going over narrow forest roads on your way to or from a camping area.
Animal Attacks
Animal attacks don’t happen very often, but they are not unheard of, again depending on what part of the country you are doing your camping. Bear or puma attacks have the most potential for a fatality, but there are also raccoons, foxes, skunks, badgers, and all manner of other animals in the woods, some of which can be ill-tempered in certain circumstances. Proceed cautiously, and keep a safe distance from any of these.
Injuries
Injuries while camping happen frequently. Scrapes and cuts from branches, twisted ankles, bruises, even broken bones from slips and falls are all possible. Watch your step, and be careful around any overlooks or wherever else there are steep drops.
Camping can be a fantastic experience for the whole family to enjoy, but take all the necessary precautions that you can. You want happy memories of your time together, and preparation and forethought are the keys to allowing that to happen.
