I have enjoyed camping my entire life. But, as I got older, the way I camped and the things I enjoyed about it changed.
When I was a little boy, my father took my brother and me on a twice-yearly fishing trip to Northern Minnesota. We’d pack all of our gear into a boat, drive to an island campsite and pitch a tent for the week. There was no running water, no toilets that you didn’t dig for yourself, and best of all no one else around. My dad and the other adults would be out fishing no matter what. Rain or shine. Once the rest of us stayed in the tent for the week due to heavy downpours. Another time there was a tornado that went over the island. But no matter what, we always had fun. For a kid like me, it was complete freedom. I’d swim in the lake, gather the wood and tend the fire all day, I’d read ten books while I was there and listen to the music that I wanted to listen to. Those trips are some of my best memories as a kid.
As I got older, I took trips with the Boy Scouts. Once we went on a canoe trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, also in Northern Minnesota. I had fun on this one, but the Boy Scouts didn’t allow nearly the freedom that I enjoyed on my other trips to the area. The hiking and canoeing and hanging out with friends was fun, but I bristled under the structure that they put in place.
After I got married, my wife and I started tent camping again with our daughter. I mostly went with other family members, so I still bristled a bit at the forced structure that the family’s planners saddled us with. But that was made up for by the family gathering around the bonfire at night. My family likes their drinks and we can get a bit rowdy. We were asked not to come back to campgrounds on more than one occasion.
After a while, I realized that waking up sore because of the cold damp ground and sticks that somehow appeared under the tent (even though you were positive that you cleaned the area) was no longer for me. I’ve had a couple of different camping trailers. Sold one, should probably sell the other. But these days, when I camp, I’m almost always in a cabin. I love campgrounds, I love the campfire and the camp drinks. But I don’t love dragging a trailer across the country when I can get just as good of an experience in a cabin that is already at my destination. And if I decide to splurge on a hotel for one night of my trip, I don’t need to find a place to park the trailer overnight.
Luckily for me, a recent book I bought can help no matter what type of camping I am doing. If I have access to ice, there are recipes for that. If I have a cabin with all the amenities, there are recipes for that. And if for some reason I were to try camping as I did as a kid (not likely) then there are recipes for that as well. The book is called Camp Cocktails and it is by Emily Vikre. Ms. Vikre is the owner of Vikre Distillery in Duluth, Minnesota. I’ve reviewed one of their gins in my gin line-up a while back. I didn’t make the connection when I ordered the book, I just thought it sounded interesting.
And it was!. The writing is fun. The foraging tips are super cool. And best of all, the cocktails are great. At least those that I’ve tried. The next time I go camping, even if I’m just pretending on the deck for the evening, I’m going to make sure I plan ahead and get the ingredients for some of these cocktails.
I really liked this book. It is available on Amazon for about $20 and I highly recommend it.
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