Camping is a great outdoor adventure and a special way to reconnect with nature. A lot of people choose to spend their free time in the wild interacting with nature. Camping gives you a unique and wonderful way to experience wildlife that populates out mountains, deserts and forests.
Even though camping is fantastic, no one would gladly welcome the idea of sharing their tents with wild animals. In fact, the mere idea of being woken up by the sound of the bear rummaging through your stuff can scare some to death. The reality is that when you go camping in the wild, you’ll come across some wild animals at some point. Therefore, knowing how to protect yourself and how to deal with animals is super important. Camping is only fun if you aren’t going to have dangerous encounters with the wildlife.
Fortunately, if you are well-prepared, you can have an incredible wildlife experience when camping no matter the campsite you choose to camp at. So, if you want to go camping, here are useful tips that can help you avoid any unwanted wildlife encounters during your adventure.
Choose your campsite wisely
The location of your campsite is very crucial when camping. A bad location can quickly ruin your camping experience. If you want to be extra cautious particularly if you are going to camp with kids, choose an area with short grasses away from the bushes. A few tall trees are fine because they will provide shade and you can also use them to hang the trash if there are no monkeys around. Beyond that, stay away from water sources. The animals need to quench their thirst often. And, as they do, they might disturb your peace. To safeguard the animals, never clean your stuff directly at the water source least you contaminate the water. Instead, dump the dirty water at least 200 feet away from the water source and use all-natural biodegradable toiletries.
For the best experience when choosing a campsite, ensure you consider the kind of wildlife you would want to encounter. For instance, if you want to see the bears and raccoons, then go ahead and choose that beautiful alluring spot near the river. But also note that such areas are infested with mosquitoes. If snakes don’t scare you, then choose a spot with tall grass. You will definitely come across different species of snakes depending on the geographical location.
Learn what attracts wildlife
The animals don’t have a grudge with you. So, not unless something is attracting them to your direction, they are unlikely to bother you at any given time. Of course, seeing the animals in their natural habitat is incredible but it can get scary if they get closer than you would want them to be. Hence, get to learn what can attract them to you.
Trash, food and cooking items easily attract animals. These are not things they get to see or smell every day and so it’s just natural for them to get curious. Hence, if you don’t want a bear, a deer or even a raccoon coming too near to your tent, avoid leaving out items such as trash, dirty dishes, coolers, rags, buckets, cooking items, fuel, etc. Clean up the dirty dishes and store them where the animals can’t access them.
On the same note, even if you are comfortable with the wild animals coming closer to your tent, these encounters are not good for the animals either. The animals getting too used to humans and human food can put them at risk. The encounters can also be very stressful to the wild animals and cause them to use the energy they are supposed to save to flee from the prey. Be a responsible tourist and do the needful.
Have natural animal repellents
When going camping, ensure you bring along some natural animal repellents. Using natural repellents can keep your campsite safe from the animals and prevent animals from invading your campground. Although there are various natural animal repellents, here are a few examples:
- A few cloves of garlic to repel raccoons, rodents and mosquitoes
- Coffee grounds to repel mosquitoes
- Cinnamon and cloves to repel the snakes
- Flashing lights to scare mountain lions, bears and nocturnal animals
These scents may be barely unnoticeable to humans but they can repel wild animals.
Pack the right stuff
You have to pack the right stuff if you are to successfully keep the animals away from your campsite. For your foodstuff, invest in sealable airtight containers to prevent the animals from smelling your delicacies. Also, have another airtight plastic bag for the clothes you are wearing when cooking. Animals can easily detect the smell of food from your clothes. Put them in an airtight bag until wash day. A resealable plastic bag for your garbage is also very important. Managing your garbage while out in the wild will not only keep the animals away but also a good camping etiquette. Lastly, make sure you pack all the basic camping gear such as a tent, flashlight, first aid kit, rain gear, lighter, water purifier and any other item you find useful when camping.
Avoid artificial scents
While it’s difficult to completely avoid using your body lotions, perfumes, soaps etc, their use in the wilderness might be bad news for you. Animals are not used to such scents. To them, they are strange smells and they would want to know what those things are. In the process, they might end up disturbing your peace at the campsite. If you are unable to avoid using such products while at the campsite, then minimize their usage or consider using those which are scent-free.
Make some noise
If you notice some wild animals approaching your tent and don’t know what to do, make some noise. Seriously, animals get deterred from getting closer to a noisy place. Just do anything that can result in some noise whether it’s banging or clapping. The noise will scare them away. However, if other people are camping at your campsite, this may not be a good idea. You don’t want to ruin their quiet moment. But the good thing is that animals are not usually a threat if you are camping on a dedicated camping site with other people. Wild animals are a problem if you are camping alone out in the wild.
Camp safely and enjoy the wilderness
With these handy tips, you are guaranteed to have an amazing experience in the wild without worrying about you or your stuff being unsafe. Besides, the tips will also help you to ensure you don’t do anything that can compromise the safety of the wildlife or that serene environment. It is a collective responsibility to take care of our wildlife. As you take measures to protect yourself and your loved ones, don’t forget the wildlife. They are the reason you chose to go camping. Thus, ensure the ecosystem also stays safe.
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