Camp Layout and Setup

The primary objectives of laying out camp are to find a safe, secure, sleeping area and to leave as little trace of your presence in nature as possible.  To achieve this noble objective we employ use of the Bearmuda Triangle (a take-off on the Bermuda Triangle where bad things happen).  The three points of the triangle are formed by the following:

• The fire ring and cooking (dining) area,
• The bear bag, and
• The sump (cooking waste water) area

The objective is to keep your tent well outside the triangle as this is the area animals are likely to travel between, attracted by food odors—its no fun being a Bear lollipop.  Actually, in these parts, bears are not the "critters" to guard against.  You'll more likely encounter raccoons, porcupines, and skunks.  All are attracted to smells or salt and can "maul" a pack to pieces in search of food.  Simply, Scouts don't want to sleep anywhere inside the Bearmuda Triangle.

If you feel I'm a bit paranoid, here are a few stories that might make you think a bit.  A Wood Badge friend of mine who was camping at the Philmont Scout Ranch (Miners Park) in New Mexico had a bear rip into his unattended pack right in the campground—in broad daylight!  He had a candy bar buried deep inside his pack.  In July 2000 two Scouts were scratched by a black bear in the Mt.  Phillips area of Philmont Scout Ranch.  They had chocolate chip cookies in there tent.  Sloppy campers have conditioned bears in some areas so well that many now link food to campfires and shortly after starting a fire it is not unusual to observe bears mulling around near the horizon.  The moral is not that you should fear bears, but you must respect them.  Want to read more?  Check out the National Park Services (NPS) "Bears and Outdoor Fire Safety" web page, the USDA Forest Service (USFS) "Safe Campfires Guide," and look up the article "Yosemite Bears Prefer Toyotas and Hondas For Late-Night Snacks," Wall Street Journal, January 13, 1999, pages A1, A8, by John Fialka.  All are chalk full of horror stories about camper encounters with "nature."  Keep in mind that while we generally do not camp in areas inhabited by bears, this will not always be your experience.  Don't be lulled into a false sense of security.  Here are a few reasonable guidelines designed to reduce the likelihood of animals entering your sleeping area and keep your personal story off these web pages.

In Your Sleeping Area

• Food should NEVER be in the tent.
• Packs—stored with cover on—should be securely hung outside your tent.
• A sleeping bag stuff sack or tent bag should NEVER be used as a bear bag.
• Shoes should not be left on the ground.  Deer and other critters are attracted to salt—found in your sweaty shoes.  They will chew holes in clothes, boots, and camping gear.

Sanitation

• Do not bathe, do laundry, or dishes in or near a stream.
• Dig "cat holes" 6 to 8 inches deep and at least 200 feet from water, trails, or campsite.  Choose soil that is neither sandy or rocky for your hole.  Stir waste up with a stick to break it apart and aid decomposition.  Toilet can be placed in a zip-lock bag and packed out or it can be burned right there in the hole.  After use, replace the soil
• Woman's sanitary items should not be buried or burned; they should be sealed in an zip-lock bag and packed out.
• When you have urinate on the trail, select a place well away from camp and water sources.  Deer and other critters are attracted to your urine because of the high salt content.

Cooking and Fires

It is the cooking / dining / fire corner of the Bearmuda Triangle that often ends up closest to the tenting area.  Food spills will occur here and they must be cleaned up by treating the spill like any other food scrape; place it in the "yummy" bag and pack it out.

• Always read and follow instructions provided by the stove manufacturer.
• Cool stoves before refueling
• Refuel them and store fuel away from where the stove will be lighted or used
• Let any spillage dry before lighting.
• Never use stoves inside a tent.
• Open fires are discouraged, and sometimes prohibited.  However, when a fire is built, always check for and follow local regulations.
• Build your fire in an established fire ring or a place where a fire has obviously been before.  Otherwise, dig a fire pit about 6 inches deep, keeping the sod intact for replacement.  Scrape away all burnable material within 10 feet of the fire.  Avoid areas near overhanging branches, slopes, stumps, logs, dry grass, leaves, or firewood.
• Have plenty of water handy and a shovel for throwing dirt on the fire.
• Keep the fire small to reduce impact and the danger of a wildfire.  Burn dead and down wood only, and only that which is necessary.
• Be sure your starter match is out, holding it until it is cold, then break it so that you feel the charred portion (or you could dispose of in the fire I suppose).
• Never leave a fire unattended.
• Allow the fire to burn down to white ash; do not try to put a fire out by scattering it.  Rather, drown the coals thoroughly with water, stir the remains, drown it again, and stir again (where water is scarce, damp dirt and sand may also be used).
• Make sure it is "dead out" before leaving it.  A good technique is to plant a dry stick in the ground in the middle of the fire pit to ensure the fire is "dead out."  Make certain no roots are burning.  Never bury coals.
• If you ring your fire with rocks, return the rocks to their original location and spread the ashes about out to remove as much evidence of fire as possible and cover with the sod you cut away earlier.

Cooking Cleanup

Seal, ALL food scraps in a zip-lock bag ("yummy bag"), store it with other food, and pack it out.  The sump strainer is used to separate food scraps from "gray/waste water."  Wash dishes and dispose of "gray" water at least 200 feet from water sources and your camp.  Gray/waste water can be dumped in "vault" toilets (one with concrete septic tanks) or that it be "broadcast" by throwing it over a wide area (otherwise designated the "sump" area) to diffuse the odors.  The idea is that only the smallest amount of food (that which passes through the strainer) gets disposed and that it is deposited well away from the camping/tenting area.  Never throw food, scraps or garbage/trash into "pit" toilets, bury it, or burn it; pack it out.  A bear drawn to a camp by the smell of buried food scraps or garbage in the fire pit may begin to associate food with people, a lesson it will remember all its life which may ultimately cost it it's life.  "Feed a bear - kill a bear."

• Always use biodegradable soap.  Use a scrub pad to remove tough "cooked-on" parts.  Once all visible food is removed, rinse dishes, pots and utensils in boiling water.  Everything should be left to air-dry (even if "towel-dried" first) in the sump or dining area.  These procedures guard against inadvertently transferring food odors to your pack or its contents.  Before each meal, sterilize dishes, pots, and utensils by boiling them in water for at least 30 seconds.  Together, proper washing, rinsing, and sterilizing will prevent diarrhea, dysentery and other ailments.

Bear Bags

Hang ALL food and scented items at least 300 feet from your tent (downwind if possible), 10 feet or more above the ground and 4 feet from the tree trunk or any substantial limb.  To hang your bear bag, place sand or soil in a bandanna, sock, or small stuff sack (the size of a tent stake bag) tie to the end of your rope and sling over the selected limb.  Don't use a rock as a weight for slinging over a limb as it could be dangerous if the rock comes loose or swings back.  A Bears' natural curiosity may attract it to any odor, even if it isn't food-related, so all "smellables" go in the bear bag.

• NEVER use sleeping bag stuff sacks, tent bags, or clothing bags for food / smellables storage.  Don't contaminate sleeping gear with food odors.
• NEVER eat or keep any food, or anything that held food, in your tent because the odor will linger (that means your backpack too!).
• NEVER sleep in clothes with food odors; they should be hung like food along with your hiking shoes.  Kept separate clothes inside your sleeping bag just for that purpose and only those clothes and camp shoes remain in the tent.

Besides making the "smellables" unattainable, hanging the bear bag diffuses the smell, making it somewhat harder for animals to pinpoint its source.

Water

Purify all water by using a portable water filter, then bringing it to a full boil for one minute, or using water purification tablets.  This step is unnecessary if you choose to use a water purifier.

Tenting

Pitch your tent on high ground but avoid the tops of bald hills when there is the possibility of lightening strikes.  Don't trench around your tent (sorry, B.P., but Scouts don't do that any longer).  Water is life.  Aim to pitch your tent at a comfortable distance from a drinking-water source but be careful not to pitch your tent too near streams that could rapidly rise in heavy rains or where the valley is narrow but drains a large area.  Most tents have good ventilation when the rain fly is left off.  Resist the urge to sleep outdoors.  On warm dry nights, remove the fly and sleep inside.  A closed tent will put a barrier between you and rodents, animals, and insects.  Insect repellent should not be used be used in the evening.  Many manufacturers add fragrances to their repellents which can stimulate an animals natural curiosity.  Observe these other tips for finding a campsite:

• Time spent ensures safety.  Start searching for your campsite at least two hours before dark.
• Choose a site that is solitary and not so easily accessible to others (e.g., away from the trail).
• Comfortable body temperature equals sound mind.  In summer, choose a camp spot that catches breezes; in winter, look for shelter from the prevailing wind.  If you have a choice in summer, go for an open knoll, low ridge, or a rocky point jutting out into a river or lake.  If there are trees, pitch your tent to catch the morning and evening sun, and shade during the afternoon.
• Avoid annoying insects.  Bottom lands and deep woods are often breeding grounds for mosquitoes.  Watch out for swarms of midges on sandy beaches and low, gravelly points.
• Get guilt-free firewood.  Of course, you should never tear limbs from a live tree.  Use only dry wood littering the forest floor.  And don't cut down dead trees.  Foresters refer to them as "snags," and they are the most important trees for wildlife.  Many birds and mammals rely on dead trees for food and shelter.

Every Scout is responsible for knowing the "Wilderness use Policy of the Boy Scouts of America."  This policy charges us to "conduct pre-trip training that stresses proper wilderness behavior, rules, and skills for all the potential conditions that may be encountered," to "treat wildlife with respect and take precautions to avoid dangerous encounters with wildlife," and to "emphasize the need for minimizing impact on the land through proper camping practices."  If you observe these practices, you will have many years of safe, fun backpacking and you will help preserve the outdoors for the enjoyment of backpackers for years to come.