It is my hope that Roughing It Easy will help you and your family enjoy the companionship an outdoor camping experience can provide. This book will ease you into camping if you've never done it before, and will give helpful tips to the experienced camper to make your outings go more smoothly. I've included tested recipes and methods of cooking, along with clear instructions and illustrations that will help make your camping fun. And, after you master these skills, you can use the principles outlined to help you create ideas of your own.

Hints that help make camping easier appear in every section of Roughing It Easy. For example, soaping pans on the outside before putting them on the heat will keep them from blackening. Baking an individual cake inside an orange peel wrapped in foil not only saves dishes but adds a delicate orange flavor to the cake.

In Roughing it Easy, you'll learn all you need to know to enjoy the outdoors:

• Planning: A rundown of all you need to consider before heading out
  
• Equipment: A look at gear (Ever make a pillow from a plastic bag?)
• Campsites: Setting up (Got a creek nearby? Turn it into a refrigerator.)
• Fire Building: Rules and techniques (Learn how to Start a Fire with Steel Wool and Batteries.)
• Cooking: From meal planning to recipes (You can Cook Breakfast in a Paper Bag and make your own solar oven.)
• Backpacking: Traveling light, but ready (Alter jeans to have removable legs.)
• Winter Camping: Preparing for the cold (Learn how to winterize clothing and Boil Water in a Paper Cup.)