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Topic: Camping with little ones Sept/Oct?

jandj05

08/9/2009 at 10:42am
Location: Telford Shropshire
Outfit: Sterling Eccles Sport 586

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I'm new to this site (and new to camping!) so hope I am posting this right!

Can anybody advise me on camping with little ones. I have a 2 year old and 9 month old. We have just come back from our first camping trip and had to put 6 layers on the baby at night!

We are considering camping at the end on September. Do you think it will be too cold? Should we give camping a miss now until next year? Is there any useful kit I should consider to help with the kids at night?

mia220781

08/9/2009 at 11:00am
Location: Oxford
Outfit: Outwell Monty 6

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Helllo there
I am also new to camping and have posted a similar post on the equipment forum!

We went camping for the first time last weekend and my 3 month old and 3 year old were freezing at night even with all the layers etc.

Following advice on here (we are camping for the next 3 weekends!) we are now going to do this:

Put the PJ's on early so they are nice and warm
Have tights/socks on
Have Vests
Warm PJ's
Over fleece all in one ( Primark, Mothercare and Next all do them)
Hats
Harry (3 year old) has now got a Vango Nitestar Midi, instead of just his ready bed and
Archie (Baby) has got the Vango Baby Sleeping bag (Hopefully they will arrive by friday as ordered off internet!)
Puting camping mats under both Harry's airbed and Archie's pop up cot

We are also taking plenty of blankets!

Layering seems the key, as does making sure the beds are not directly on the ground.

Hope this helps!
Mia

sunvalleysue

08/9/2009 at 11:13am
Location: The Love Shack
Outfit: BearLake 6 and a hot water bottle.

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Hi,
if you have ehu,then consider getting a liitle low wattage fan heater.It will take the chill out of the air at night time.
We leave ours running all night if its cool/cold.

-------------
Sue & Phil
--------------------- I Love My AeroBed

Sara_H

08/9/2009 at 11:20am
Location: South Yorkshire
Outfit: Hypercamp Rosas Vango Peace 500 & 300

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I've just returned from a very wet and windy weekend in Derbyshire.

We went with two other families, who all complained of being cold at night except for me and my son, who if anything were a bit too warm! Here's what we did differently.

Before it goes cold/dark go and put pyjamas on then put clotes back on over PJ's.

Wear a hat!

In the bedroom, I put two sleeping bags under our inflatable matresses, I had a self inflating mat on top of my matress, them we both had a fitted fleece blanket on top of our matresses.
We both had a fleece blanket under and above us inside our 3 season sleeping bags, kept our fleece jumpers and socks on in bed (plus PJ's of course!).
We had a fleece blanket on top of sleeping bag, but these were thrown off during the night!

I was worried about the fact that we both had air matresses, but the system above was great, we're going to Lakes in a couple of weeks, and planning something in October (tough that might be pushing it a bit!).

I'm off to Primark before te October trip as my friend has just informed me that tey've started stocking thermal underwear!

Good luck with the next trip!

suns

08/9/2009 at 2:07pm
Location: None Entered
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Have a search through as well.Lots of newbies asking same questions.The more you read the better.

Cobe27

08/9/2009 at 2:23pm
Location: N Ireland
Outfit: Vango icarus 500 & sprite muskateer

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We're heading off with our two year old again tomorrow for two nights. last time we went was in July so we are expecting it to be much cooler at night this time. In addition to the suggestions above, we're bringing hot water bottles!

74giggles

08/9/2009 at 4:44pm
Location: Suffolk
Outfit: Eriba Famila 320

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I'm glad I'm not the only one that puts their PJ's on under their normal clothes in the evening. My friend took the mickey out of my a few months back when he heard what I do.

See, I am normal.

My son's school has organised a family camp for next weekend with lots of first time campers, I shall do the same then.

steveandkirsty

08/9/2009 at 4:57pm
Location: South Birmingham
Outfit: Quechua 6.2 Xl Air & Apapaho 9 DLX

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Hi,
we camp Easter through to the end of September (we only haven't gone in October yet because we are put off by the dark evenings, but probably will one day!).

This year we have all changed to the self inflating insulated mats and they are the best things we have bought for keeping warm at night! We have 5cm thick ones and the children have 2.5cm thick. When you lie on them they reflect the heat back at you and you stay much warmer than on an airbed. It also means we don't have to take any layers of insulated sheets or whatever else we would put under the airbeds to try to keep them warmer.

The children are 5 and 7 and we have bought them three season sleeping bags, they are warm to -2 and safe to -7degrees. Even at Easter the children were going to bed and saying they were too hot some nights! They are called snugpak and are square at the bottom but have a nice big hood that keeps their heads cosy and means they can't fall off the pillow and wake up with their heads on the cold floor!

We put a fleece blanket over the mats and sleep under our duvet. At Easter we have fleece sleepingbag liners that we can get into as well if it is really cold.

The other thing we like about our new system is that there are no airbeds to blow up on arrival or to go down in the night!

It's really made camping more pleasant and a lot quicker on the set-up and set-down.

-------------

-----------
2008 trips...
Green Cliff Farm, Westward Ho!
Middle Wood Batch Farm, Shropshire
Cae Du Campsite, Aberdovey
Golden Bay, Westward Ho!
Middle Woodbatch Farm
York - Where?
New Wine A, Shepton Mallet
Nant Bychan Farm, Anglesey
Middle Woodbatch Farm

nicolaburns

08/9/2009 at 7:10pm
Location: Wirral
Outfit: Silverline Silvercrest and Pino Pi

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I am cold at night no matter what the time of year or weather! The two best things I did were 1) Get a fan heater
2)Use duvets instead of (or as well as!) sleeping bags. I find them much warmer. We camped at the end of last September and I was ok at night. I am camping this weekend but again taking the duvet.

FionaW1971

08/9/2009 at 8:05pm
Location: Cheshire
Outfit: Elddis Avante 636

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As others have said layers & insulate the underneath & top of your airbed so that the air inside doesn't get too cold. Good sleeping bags & blankets to throw over or kick off as the fancy takes. We camped at Easter when it was 2degs & the only tent in the field & we were fine, in the evening we had the halogen on full, thermals, our pjs & then our jogging bottoms & sweatshirts, jackets over the top - it was all worth it because the daytimes were glorious. They key is to put all the clothes on & then take off as necessary - its far easier to cool down than it is to warm up. We also put a faux sheepskin rug on the floor which kept our feet toastie too, plus the kids loved to sit on it & play with their toys - stops the cold air coming up through the groundsheet.

linny2008

08/9/2009 at 8:15pm
Location: Warrington
Outfit: Vango Inspire 600 Outwell Iowa L

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Just to reiterate and advocate the insulating under and over the sleeping bags - we have a roll mat then a kampa junior bed then a fleece then a sleeping bag. "Boy" was dressed in pairs of socks (at easter) fleecy pj bottoms t shirt fleecy pj top and a big fleecy hoody AND gloves then the top of the sleeping bag then his duvet then a fleecy blanket. The only bit we had trouble keeping warm was his hands hence the gloves! It was bloomin freezing though even with a fan heater. If you have a smaller tent with a SIG this will help also insulate the floor with carpets. Take plenty more layers than you think you will need. We ended up wearing all our layers at once at easter and just rotating which one was closer to the skin and which one was getting tomato sauce daubed down it!

Wouldn't put me off though. Next time we go (out of season) we are taking hot water bottles and hot chocolate for before bed.
Linny

jandj05

08/9/2009 at 10:27pm
Location: Telford Shropshire
Outfit: Sterling Eccles Sport 586

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Thanks to you all for your replies so far, some very interesting things to consider. If nothing else, at least I'm not the only one mad enough to camp in Autumn!

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