June is National Camping Month, so there’s no better time than
right now to fine tune your routines to get ready for a summer filled with
great camping adventures. Here are a few helpful tips and tricks to make your
life at the campground even easier:

Make Cooking a Breeze:  Use
the empty rectangular plastic boxes from mints as a space-saving way to
transport your favorite spices. Also, before you leave home, crack your eggs
into plastic water bottles for a compact way to store them in your cooler.
Does your family love those canned cinnamon rolls? They’ll taste even better
when you place each one in half of a hollowed-out orange and roast them over
a campfire.

Clever Clips: To get ready for all of
those wet towels and swimsuits, start saving up the little plastic tags from
bread bags so you can use them as clothespins.

Convenient Caffeine: Instead of
taking a whole can of coffee, measure scoops of coffee into disposable coffee
filters, tie them up with dental floss and use them just like tea
bags.

Get a Roaring Campfire
Going:  Here are three easy ways to create a
campfire: 

1. Take a cardboard egg carton and fill each compartment with a charcoal
   briquette that has already been infused with lighter fluid. The cardboard
   will act like kindling
2. Dip round cotton makeup pads in wax and let them dry to create
   easy-to-pack fire starters.
3. While you may hate to give up some of your favorite treats, you can
   actually use corn chips to start a fire in a pinch. The oil and other
   ingredients in the chips make them easy to ignite.

Bite Back Against
Mosquitoes:  Here are three ways to relieve itchy
bites with common household items: 

1. Take along a few travel-sized containers of stick deodorant. The aluminum
   oxide will help soothe the bites.  
2. Apply a dab of non-gel formula peppermint toothpaste as an
   anti-inflammatory. Toothpaste that contains baking soda can also help
   alleviate itching.
3. Place a wet tea bag on the bite. Whether you use black or green tea, the
   tannins will provide a soothing effect.

Put an End to Slimy Soap: 
To avoid dealing with messy wet bars of soap, take a vegetable peeler and
make soap shavings. Store them in a zippered plastic bag so they can easily
be portioned out when it’s time to shower or wash up.

Shine a Light: To create an easy and
effective lantern, take an empty plastic gallon jug, fill it with water and
strap on a headlamp facing in.

Pop Up a Fun Snack. Here’s one the
kids will love. Take an 18” square of heavy aluminum foil and add two
tablespoons of popcorn kernels and two tablespoons of vegetable oil. Close up
the foil, leaving room for the kernels to pop. Tie the foil pouch onto a
stick with a string, hang it over the campfire and wait for the popping to
start!

Now, all you need to do is decide where you’re going to try out
these clever camping hacks. That’s easy – just go to our Find a
Park feature. You can search by location, amenities and other
features, and in no time at all, you’ll find your next favorite camping
destination.