
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, April 11, 1994                   TAG: 9404110139
SECTION: NEWSFUN                    PAGE: NF-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

HERE'S WHAT TO BRING CAMPING, HIKING

So, the Nintendo stays at home, but exactly what do you bring on a camping or hiking trip?

Tom Clarke of the Roanoke Department of Parks and Recreation gave us some tips.

For camping: Bring comfortable, sturdy, closed-toe shoes; enough water for drinking and cooking; easy-to-cook, non-perishable and high-energy meals and snacks; warm clothes; first aid kit; a grown-up; camping stove and fuel; matches in a waterproof container; small pocket knife such as a Swiss army knife; tent and ground cover; cooking equipment; trash bag; trowel for digging a latrine.

And for hiking: Comfortable, sturdy shoes with wool or synthetic socks; sunblock, regardless of weather; water bottle filled with drinking water; high-energy snacks or meals; first aid kit; several light layers of clothing to stay comfortable as you warm up and cool down; day pack, such as a bookbag to carry all this in; a grown-up.

Clarke also offered safety tips to follow:

Check the weather forecast and prepare for a wide range of conditions - weather can change rapidly in mountainous regions

Pack extra food, just in case.

Take a whistle - three short blasts is the international signal for help.

Never leave a campfire unattended.

Take a map.

Don't trespass on private land.

Tell someone where you are going and when you expect to return.

Drink plenty of water.

Take a ``space blanket'' - a lightweight blanket sold in sporting goods stores.

And, always stay on the trail.

by CNB