Shivering shinbones it's cold out there!

I probably don't need to remind folks it's still February, and it's just downright cold in most of the continental United States. But with winter comes winter sports, and unsurpassed beauty through much of the continent. But how do you keep warm, especially when trying to sleep in the cold?

The process isn't as complex as it might seem, but it also isn't without effort, or expense... They are...

1. You, and your equipment should be dry. Water is an excellent conductor, and conversely a lousy insulator. You do NOT want to be wet unless you want to be cold!
2. Be properly dressed. Light shorts, no socks and a shirt or not might work in the summer, but could be a recipe for hypothermia in the winter... I like to wear sweats to bed when camping in the winter...
3. Keep your tent size small in the winter! The smaller your tent, the more heat will be retained inside the tent. Don't go so small that you can't sit up and get dressed, but don't go any bigger than you have to. The small tent size in winter also relates to...
4. Keep your tent ventilation to the minimum possible. You want to be able to draw your rain fly and vestibule is close to reduce drafts, while still allowing for moisture given off from respiration to escape effectively. While camping as a couple, Outdoor Dave, and Deb like to use a 3 person backpacking tent, specifically a Sierra Designs Sirius 3. This model has been superceded but remains a primary tent for our usage.
5. If possible, leave the air mattress at home. Air mattresses are large chambers that effectively move heat away from the body. They are nice in the summer for comfort, and thermal help, but in the winter they are not worth the risks. We use self inflating sleeping mats, and for extra cushion and insulation, we tend to try to use a nice fluffy pile of leaves or pine needles under the tent floor to keep us comfy.
6. Sleeping bag choice is critical. The closer to the body the bag stays, the warmer the sleeper stays. Likewise the less air movement the insulation allows, the better off you are for warmth. Now Outdoor Dave is a big man, and he tends to toss and turn in his sleep. With movement you need space, so you'd think that a suitable mummy type sleeping bag would be impossible to find. Sadly sleeping bag manufacturers change up their models from year to year, so keeping up with current models is next to impossible, but fear not, chances are there will be an effective bag for you on the market! The sales people at the sporting goods stores may look at you funny, but TRY OUT the bags. Slide into them, and see if you are comfortable with the amount of room. I found Slumberjack, and Coleman sleeping bags to be best suited to me. However there are many excellent options out there! Pick a bag rated to the coldest you will be exposed to, and even if you pick a rectangular bag, pick one with a pull tight hood to keep your head warmth inside the bag...

After you have all of this squared away, you might find yourself still cold in your sleep, you could try the following to stay warm as well..

1. If you are camping with a partner, seriously consider a sleeping bag for two. The shared body heat will keep both of you warmer longer...
2. Bring a shaggy dog with you, they put off lots of heat...
3. More seriously, try heating up water and filling a hot water bottle to toss into your sleeping bag. I have done this in below freezing weather with a 40 degree rated bag and been comfortable while I sleep..
4. Chemical heat pads. We have specifically used the Hot Hands brand hand / body warmers when the weather turned foul on us unexpectedly and were extremely grateful for the warmth. They kept us comfy when an unexpected storm got us wet and our bags weren't as sealed as we thought they were...
5. This next item should NOT be taken frequently, but eat a rich, fat heavy meal for dinner. The fats generate heat during digestion, and can help keep you warm at night... This however is a VERY poor idea for cardiac reasons. Check with your doctor!
6. When all else fails, there are portable tent safe heaters. None of the MFGs I am aware of recommend their use for when sleeping, there is a serious risk of Carbon Monoxide poisoning. I have used mine to warm the tent prior to going to sleep, turn it off. If woken up by the cold, it will usually be at 5 or 6 in the morning. Fire the heater up for a few minutes to bring the warmth back up, then shut it off and finish your nights sleep, or if you are hunting that day, use the cold as an alarm clock, turn the heat on to make sure you don't freeze when you change to get out to the blind!

Now that you know how to keep from freezing in the wild, the only thing left to do is to go, get out there, and find your own road less travelled.

Mobile phones in the back country. Starting to look into the issues, and solutions...

While available time has me unable to dig into the chuck box project with all the gusto I would like to, I am giving some thought to cell phone use in the back country.

Our mobile devices, particularly smart phones, have available an array of valuable tools, not the least of which is the ability to make calls, and provide GPS locations in case of emergency. But due to the lack of cellular repeaters in many areas, relying on smart phone voice or data connections could be a lethal mistake.

While things are coming along admirably with cellular technology, the fact remains that many parts of the planet, in particular many of the parts of this planet that my intended audience likes to spend time, are simply not covered by cell signals due to physical obstruction (mountains, trees, whatever...) or just plain old distance to the tower.

I can't offer any good solutions for insuring your phone works everywhere you want to go, but I can offer some ideas to make the best of the situation, so your trail GPS app, or phone call for help has a better chance of actually working...

1. First and foremost, keep your phone charged up. A dead battery means even if you have full signal, it won't matter. There are many different cell phone chargers that do not require 110V AC power to do the trick. If you are travelling by vehicle, perhaps tying into the 12V power port will give your phone the boost it needs. There are also hand crank generators, and of course solar chargers. Wildersport's own Outdoor Dave was given a Micro USB solar charger by a family member that, well bought an Iphone, so we will in the near future be testing that charger against my Samsung Galaxy S4.
2. Get your phone up in the air as much as possible. The idea here is, even if you can't see the tower, you want an unobstructed view to wherever it may be. Try to get a line of sight between your phone, and, well whatever ridges, tall buildings, and yes, radio / cellular towers might be off in the distance. 
3. Avoid containment. It might be warmer to carry on that conversation with your wife at home from inside the truck at deer camp, but chances are you'll pull a stronger signal sitting, or better yet, standing in the bed of that same truck. Unless you have gobs of signal, the deer blind or bunk house pretty much are a bad idea too!
4. If you have signal issues at a permanent location that you frequent, such as deer camp, ranch, or cabin, seriously consider getting and installing a signal booster from your carrier. Many carriers are more than happy to extend their networks onto your roof for little to no additional cost to you. So what if the guys at the next deer lease over get a free boost too? You can make your calls, and get that all important hourly weather forecast to better plan your day!
5. Consider switching carriers to one that has better coverage where you want to be. Your friends, relatives, and fellow sportsmen / women you go out in the wild with will be able to tell you if their phone network is up to par where you are going!

I know not perfect solutions, and we will be out there looking for more, and better ideas for you. Of course feel free to chime in and let us know what you think!

Armed with that little bit more information, you can now just a bit more comfortably...

get out there, and find your own, road less travelled.

Design and build of a chuck / patrol box. Part #1.

As I have gotten older, and more accustomed to enjoying a good meal instead of just gagging something down,
I have realized there is a huge difference in how I pack for caomp cooking now a days versus when I first started out camping on my own.

Flash back a good number of years, not going to admit how many, but I had a then old, Volkswagen bus at the time, you can guess...
I pull into a camp site, Thankfully I had the bus with the box over the engine compartment built out to make a whole bed,
so no need to set up a tent, but how to cook?

Oh yeah, one pot, one skillet, a grate to go over a camp fire, and if I was lucky,
I remembered to bring a fork to stir stuff at eat with.... I always had a pocket knife, and I was prone to whittling sticks down to a nice sharp point to skewer hot dogs and what not with...
And of course I had to have a separate cooler for the food because I wasn't going to give up an inch of space from the beer!

Yes, I spent a LOT of evenings roasting hot dogs / bratwurst over a camp fire for dinner. Come to think of it that sounds like a good idea right about now.
But I digress...

There are only so many instant oatmeal breakfasts, and skewered hot dog dinners that can be sustained, for health, and taste reasons. As time and wisdom marched on, it became obvious I had to elaborate the art somewhat.

As my camp kitchen grew, shrank, and finally got whittled down to a defined list of must haves outside of the food itself, I determined that I needed a way to organize it, and keep it handy to just toss in the back of the truck and go!

I needed to design a chuck box. Or at least build one. The first step to building one is to design it, and to design it, I need to know, what did I need to hold?

After years of camping, and whittling down the camping cooking supplies and accessories, I have it honed such that I have everything I need, and nothing more.

The Wildersport camp kitchen consists of the following items, most of which are well used, and either bought new on deep sale, or used cheap / hand me downs.

#1. The heart of the camp kitchen is the stove. I started with a propane stove, but that got expensive to operate. We use a Coleman dual fuel 2 burner liquid fuel stove. It is kind of old school, but it works so well I have no reason to go back to expensive propnae!
#2. I must admit, I would be lost without my cofffee, and while I can tolerate percolated coffee, drip brewed is so much better. My Coleman Camping Coffee Maker does the trick very nicely. I have it stowed in a protective stuff sack, and the carafe is wrapped in a towel when not in use. I keep a ziplock back of unbleached coffee filters in the container, although I am considering changing out to one of those permanent filters to reduce waste.
#3. While I have very little nice to say about anything TexSport makes as I have had VERY poor experiences with their Tents that leak badly fall apart and flap like a hurricane in a slight breeze, I have to give kudos where they belong. I have an Ozark Trail (Walmart house brand) Stainless Steel Family Cook Set, which I discovered later on was made by / a relabelled TexSport. It is pretty simple, 3 descending size stainles steel pots, and one skillet that doubles as a lid for the biggest pot. They are all copper clad bottoms, and while the metal gauge is thin for weight reduction, they do work well. Yes you need to stir a LOT more than you would with cast iron cookware, or even heavy gauge stainless you would use at home, but for at camp this has been great! It also included but I don't think the new ones do, one of those little plastic drinking cups that doubles as a measuring cup. That piece works poorly as either and should not be bothered with...
#4. Coleman folding camp oven. Just like the coffee maker, this takes up a burner on the stove, but it is MUCH easier to pack than a dutch oven, and makes it super easy to make baked goods at camp. This is a great setup for those mornings you have to have those roll biscuits and gravy for breakfast!
#5. Nylon ladle, slotted spoon, spatula, pasta ladle fork thingy, wire whisk, and tongs. The pieces I have are odd, they are Pampered Chef hand me downs after we upgraded to their deluxe models for the kitchen.
#6. Large mixing bowl, medium mixing bowl. and collendar Plastic. These can be had cheap at the grocery store or even cheaper if you shop around at the resale shops and garage sales. Good for making pancake batter, scrambing eggs, mixing whatnot...
#7. This should probably be #1, but never, ever, ever, ever forget your CAN OPENER!
#8. Small acrylic cutting board. No brand name known. About 8.5x11 x .5: thick.
#9. Plastic plates, bowls, and drinking cups. 6 each. I use some cheap reusable plates, and bowls. The cups are 32oz insulated mugs with a sealable lid. Keeps bugs away a bit better.
#10. Silverware service for 6. I have some cheap Stansport I think nesting fork, spoon, knife sets that I have been gathering over the years. They are cheap and effective. They also take up little space.
#11. Garage sale kitchen knife set in home made canvas knife roll.
#12. Collapsible camp bucket for use as a wash sink.
#13. Double ziplock bag of scrubby sponge, and biodegradable dish soap. (Campsuds).
#14. Swiss Army knife to whittle those sticks!
#15. Lantern. I prefer the Coleman Liquid Dual Fuel model. And I use the soft side case.
#16. Extra lantern mantles, fuel funnel, and windproof / waterproof matches.
#17. Picnic table cloth because without exception, every single park picnic table I have seen is at best disgustingly unsanitary, and of course the stainless steel table cloth clips to keep the table cloth from becoming airborne.
#18. Small loaf pan, cookie sheet, and muffin pan to fit inside the camp oven.
#19. Pot holder, wash cloth, and dish towel.
#20. Coleman Pack Away folding camp kitchen stand. Does not need to go IN chuck box, but should be used with. Provides good amounts of prep space.

Now that we have identified what needs to go into the chuck box, the next step is to figure out how big everything is, and start sketching it up. For that we need to lay it all out, and get busy with measuring tape, pen and paper. But that is all the subject of another entry....

 Until then get out there, and find your own, road less travelled.

The Wildersport Wagon is sick and needs attention STAT!

Okay so the truck we use to get out there for our own adventures has taken ill. After rebuilding the front end last year, upgrading to Moog Problem Solver lubeable ball joints, Rancho Suspension, PowerStop slotted / drilled rotors and heavy duty brake pads, installing new tires adding a winch and winch mount to get us out of trouble, keeping up with regular maintenance, and even adding a cold air intake to improve engine efficiency (hopefully translating to better MPG) and keeping the tune through the SCT Xcal tuner up to date, we are back into shop mode. It appears the transmission has caught a case of a fairly major leak. Thank God it happened after we came back from our vacation to the mountains around Hot Springs Arkansas (The subject of another blog entry by the way!).

The Rancho Quicklift Loaded lift strut assembly

I also replaced the ball joints with Moog Problem solvers.

Breathing better than stock! There is a K&N Filter

and SCT Tuner helping out here too!

Fresh tires, Pro Comp lights, winch mount,

and winch. Ready to go, I think...

Upon our return to Texas, the truck appeared to be running fine, although shifting was a bit, well... Odd?

For our wedding anniversary, we took the truck to Galveston Island to stroll the beach at Galveston Island State Park, and grab some Greek Food at Olympia Grill in Galveston on the Seawall. Upon our arrival to Galveston the truck was acting like the transmission was slipping. I managed to get into the Seawall Walmart parking lot and check it out. I was low on tranny fluid... So we bought as much compatible ATF as we could at Walmart, filled it back up and went on our merry way... By the time we got back home to League City though, the tranny was slipping again... And again, low on ATF. Filled it back up, drove home, and checked it out...

Bottom of the truck is covered in ATF. UGH... After pulling the inspection plate, it is without a doubt coming from within the bell housing. That can only mean either the main input oil seal and bushing, or the pump seals. Possibly the pump but not likely..

Not what I wanted to see!

I need to stop the bleeding!

So holidays happened, and we had to wait until after the new year to be able to come up with the funds. Mid January and the funds are there, we took a trip to Transtar Industries for transmission parts where I sourced up a transmission filter kit, pan gasket, pump seal, pump o ring, main oil seal and bushing, and just to be safe in case it is a slightly out of balance torque converter causing the problem, a new stock replacement (2850 stall) torque converter. I also decided this was a good time to add a drain plug to the transmission pan as like most modern automatics, this truck is not so equipped. I ordered the B&M plug kit from Amazon.

With those parts in hand, not to mention a stack of other service parts and fluids I have everything I need to fix the trnasmission, change the engine oil and filter, change the fuel filter, and change the fluids in the transfer case and both differentials...

Now the biggest problem. The facility to do it in... For that, I have family members with an auto repair shop that have volunteered the use of their lift, and some help with the process, once they get their truck off the lift... That has been a big hangup. If this remains unavailable, I will need to purchase a 3 ton service jack from Harbor Freight, and then source up a transmission cradle so that I can get this done. I also need 3+ ton jack stands. This truck is HEAVY... I am actually looking at the Harbor Freight 6 ton stands as they are substatinally larger / taller than the 3 ton models, meaning I can get the truck further up off the ground with these, giving me more room to work.

Once all of this work is done, I am sadly close enough to the 100K mark that I am going to do the 100K service on it to beat the rush. That means some ugly things.

#1. Spark Plug change on a 2004 Ford 5.4L 3V engine. The plugs on these engines are known to break off during removal. I have the procedure memorized, and don't expect a problem, but you never know...
#2. Change serpentine belt, idler and tensioner pulleys.
#3. Change hoses, flush out cooling system, refill with quality anti freeze.
#4. Change out brake fluid. Good thing this truck uses DOT3 fluid!
#5. Change out power steering fluid.
#6. Service my K&N drop in filter.

Once all of this is done, and I am hurrying to get this done before spring gets here, we will be able to get out and cover more of Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Arkansas outdoors for you! Who knows? Maybe this year we can venture out further to the great American west and give you a report from Oregon or Washington!

But for now I have to work on the truck and get it ready so we too can do what we encourage you to do, which is...

Get out there, and find your own, road less traveled.

Enjoying a wildlife experience on Galveston Island.

Summer time along the Texas Gulf Coast is hot, humid, and sweaty. Getting outdoors takes a bit of planning to keep from frying like a crispy piece of bacon out in the Texas heat.... What better place to escape from that heat than a dip in the Gulf of Mexico, and maybe even a tour of the sights to see on Galveston Island?

First off, anyone not from the Texas coast region may not know about what there is to do and see in Galveston. For this Blog post we are covering Moody Gardens. Sort of a zoo, interactive exhibit, and wildlife park all wrapped up in giant glass pyramids surrounded by Galveston Bay. 

It's not every day that you can see river otters, seals, or sharks, at least without getting terribly wet, cold, or putting yourself in harms way. But Moody Gardens Aquarium Pyramid is a sight to not be missed on the Texas Gulf coast. Featuring aquatic wildlife from all over the world, including squid, penguins, seals, various shellfish, just to start naming a few. You can lose yourself for hours taking in the sights to be seen. And to top if off there is even a see through tunnel that goes under the big tank with the sharks. You can watch the divers feed the sharks, or even see the sharks swim right up to the tank sides like they are coming right at you! This is a must see!

 In the big tank, with the sharks, and rays if you are lucky, and look carefully, you can see an albino Sea Turtle lurking around... I have been to Moody Gardens countless times, the day I took this photo was the first time I was fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of this guy under the rocks by the window actually pretty close to a nurse shark...

The variety of fishes here is amazing. You can see species of fish that would take literally decades of scuba diving to see this close... The flashes of color is mesmerizing!

Whether or not  you are a diver, the experience is absolutely worthwhile. If you enjoy wildlife, and can't take the time needed to take the training, get certified, get on a boat, and dive down to see all of these fascinating creatures, yet you want to see more than yhou could possibly see on TV, the Moody Gardens Acquarium is unbeatable!

So why don't you today, get out there, and go find your own road less travelled...

-- Outdoor Dave.

A taste of wilderness in the middle of the city, and a step into the wayback machine... Mission San Jose, San Antonio Texas.

One of my passions has been for many years now, North American history, not just the history of the United States, but the history of the United States, Mexico, and Canada, and the civilizations that preceeded our modern nations.

Being a Texan, that is prone to heat related injury such as heat exhaustion, and heat stroke, and in order to get outdoors during the months of May through October, I either have to plan activities where I can stay in an air conditioned space, or I have to travel a very, very long distance to get to where I won't need a hospital visit. Now I am NOT going to let our high temps keep me locked to a desk, so what to do?

Well the choices are so far...

#1. Camp with an Air Conditioner in a tent (that will be covered later, but not what we did, this time, this is FAR less than ideal!).

#2. Camp in an RV with a generator, or power. Less ideal than the AC in a tent in some ways, certainly far less fuel efficient!

#3. Take trips where I can flop in an air conditioned hotel room...

Now the advantage of being a Texan is I have all of Texas to explore, and there is plenty of natural, and even man modified beauty to explore and enjoy...

With a long weekend, and tickets to see our favorite country act on Saturday night at the Alamodome, we decided to take the time to go to do some touring of the old Spanish Missions in the city of San Antonio Texas.

The drive off of the freeway to the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park is a bit odd. To get there the driver exits the freeway and enters a very colorful urban neighborhood, filled with businesses and homes painted in bright colors and some of them themselves overflowing with an abundant crop of gorgeous flowers, and other flora, passing the homes, tire shops, tacqurias, and corners stores, the view changes dramatically as you come across the biggest of the missions, Mission San Jose. The giant outer wall made of stone looks much older than its actual years, and the church structure itself could pass for a thousand year old European cathedral. 

As you enter the park you are greeted with a rustic stone visitors center outfitted with a completely modern theater that shows a film on the history of the Mission itself, and the people the mission was here to serve, and of course convert to good subjects to the Spanish crown, and good Catholics. And yes the interpretation of the purpose of these missions can be debated, the film, and the guided tour both do an excellent job of even handedly presenting the pros, and the cons for the native people for the missions themselves. 

The grounds are covered with native plants such as Prickly Pear Cactus, as well as an abundance of Native Pecan and Mesquite trees.  The Prickly Pear can be seen growing in all sorts of peculiar locations, including on roofs! It was somewhat charming to see the look of surprise on the faces of folks that are not from the desert southwest hear that people use cacti as food! For what it's worth, I love Nopales in my Tortas!

Prickly Pear Cactus growing wild on the roof of a

utility overhang on the outer wall.

Mesquite tree in the middle of the inner court.

Beautiful 100+ year old mesquite tree sprawls in

graceful arcs as it spreads out. 

On the grounds there are the remnants of the stone buildings that were at one time the workshops, and as you gaze through the Mesquite to the old foundation outlines, your imagination can rebuild the view to a time when the outer walls contained the workshops, the carpentry shop, the blacksmith shop, the weavers shop, you can picture the priests and clergy strolling the grounds explaining points of doctrine with the natives. The time machine of the mind certainly does get heavily used in this place!

While the church is still the original building, the outer wall / living quarters, and utility buildings are all depression era reconstruction projects that fairly accurately reproduce the original structures that were at one time on the grounds. Wind, rain, heat, and sun are all huge parts of what structures and fixtures in these old buildings have to deal with, and sometimes it is obvious when things like doors have been replaced as they haven't weathered quite thoroughly yet, which creates some beautiful changes in patina for the doors. It really is striking to view!

A particularly beautifully aged modern

replacement door. I simply love the 

changes from fresh wood to weather grayed!

The wood fired stone ovens in front of every few living quarters are not only intriguing to look at, they also conjure up mental images groups of families baking needed staples for the next few days, bread loaves and whatnot. It certainly had to be much more difficult to operate than say a modern gas oven!

The depression era reconstructions of the wood

fired ovens in front of the living quarters ponder

how people baked with these things...

For Catholics, Protestants, persons of other faiths, including Atheists, the church building itself is a thing of beauty filled with world class artwork and iconography. The artwork is simply world class! The architecture, while sharing many common features with Catholic churches and cathedrals worldwide, is full of architecture and features that are unique to the Spanish Missions, and are things of pure beauty, worth every second to gander at. Even if the symbolism is meaningless to you, the enjoyjment of the artwork itself should be universal!

 View approaching the beautiful facade of the 

church.

 Beautiful artwork on the doors, and

the gorgeous doors themselves!

Beautiful iconography abounds!

The beautiful line of arches next to the serene gardens.

This is a simply stunning place to be!

Once your day is done, and the sun has gone down, maybe if you are staying in one of the fine hotels downtown, you can venture down to one of the dining or drinking establishments that have Bistro seating right on San Antonio's famouns Riverwalk, and you can enjoy a fish bowl sized margarita while watching the river boats slowly amble on by...

So even though this is an urban adventure, it is still a chance to...

Get out there, and find your own, road less traveled.

-- Outdoor Dave.

Preparing for upcoming trips. Tents, beaches and sand...

The heat of Texas summer is almost upon us, and that means no overnight camping anywhere near the coast. It's just too humid. However with the impending fall, will come great camping weather along the coast, and in particular, a 4x4 trip along Padre Island National Seashore along the southern Texas coast just a teensy weensy bit north of Mexico... To prepare for this trip, all of the typical preparations need to be made, and considering it is a beach trip, some special preparations should be made.

Tents. Some of the worst camping disasters I have experienced, came in the form of thinking any tent will work for a beach trip. WRONG! Beaches, well actually ANY environment with wind, and that much sand provide special challenges for campers, at least those that do not enjoy having sand blown in their ears and up their nose all night long... Also there are really no solid surfaces to stake a tent out to, so a fully self supporting tent is a MUST.

I have found through trial and error, a small, but not too small two pole dome tent, such as the Coleman Sundome 4. The floor space is somewhat limited with just 9x7 and those sloped walls, but with the lowish overall profile, this tent serves well for this purpose as the constant breeze blows right over, HOWEVER some, accessorizing is in order...

Double wall tents by their nature are designed to allow air to flow under the rain fly, and in through the mesh walls to allow breathing, however in sandy / windy environments, that constant breeze blowing through is carrying LOTS of sand, and once it slows down inside your tent, it unloads the sand, all over you! You need to rig up a "filter" of sorts. I have seen campers use everything from, well cut up and duct taped panty hose to cover the screens, to the more elegant method I prefer. Old flannel sheets and clothes pins. If you will be camping a lot in sandy / windy environments, you will need to make some semi permanent changes to the tent to make this work, but it is well worth it!

Start off with a roll of hook and loop tape (the most common brand is Velcro), 1/2" wide is fine, and a sizeable tube of tent adhesive. I have had good luck with McNett Seam Grip. Cut to size stips to fit the tent fabric right under the mesh, and around the pole loops, so that you have hook and loop tape, preferrably the soft part, making a big triangle around the mesh. Measure, and cut out the old flannel bed sheet to cover the triangle, and the hook and loop tape on the tent body. Stitch up the material and sew the other side of the hook and loop tape on so that you have a filter of sorts to cover up your mesh in the tent body.

Plastic grocery sacks can be filled with sand, tied off to your stake out points, and buried in the sand, allowing for a nice secure purchase and a stable tent...

Lastly, depending on how you got to your camping spot, but if there is a way that you can rig up a wind break such that your tent is pitched leeward, you may have sand raining on your tent all night, but it sure beats having it blown through your tent!

Now you have no excuse not to get out to the great beaches, and deserts that are out there, so get out there, and find your own road less traveled.

-- Outdoor Dave