Everywhere has its moments of bad weather. Short trips can practically be destroyed by
it and even on long ones nothing can demoralize you faster or make you more
miserable than bad weather. Bad weather,
for outdoor adventures, usually means rain.
Except in tropical showers where rain is actually a welcome respite,
rain that lasts for more than an hour is no fun when you are outdoors,
especially when camping. The first thing
to realize is that rain rarely lasts more than a day. So instead of worrying about how you will
survive the trip if it rains the whole time, think about just getting through
the day.
Find alternative lodgings-if you're camping, find an
alternative if possible. Camping in the
rain is never a pleasant experience. As
bad weather doesn't last forever, it's well worth the money to find a place to
stay that's warm and dry. Just about
anything is going to look good if the alternative is a tent or small camper, so
don't feel compelled to find luxury accommodations. A simple motel room with access to an indoor
pool can seem like you just booked into Club Med. Another option is to find a place to camp
with access to indoor facilities. We've
done this a few times, once in the backyard of a bed and breakfast place,
another time beside a hunting lodge. In
both cases we were offered use of the indoor facilities to get out of the rain.
When camping is the only option-try to find a site near a
shelter. This at least gives you
somewhere to go other than your tent. If
the rain is really torrential and the children are desperate for exercise, send
them to the rest rooms to play. The
chances are no other campers will be venturing out in this weather so the
children will have the whole place to themselves. Just being able to move around makes a big
difference to a child and gives parents and children the break they need from
each other in weather conditions like these.
Tristan and Colin once spent half a day playing in the
ladies' room of a campground in Nova Scotia while it poured rain outside. When I checked up on them they were mopping
the floor (with a mop they had found), racing matchbox cars, floating stick
"boats" in the sink and having the usual nine-year-old giggle fits. What they weren't doing was getting
bored. Don't be embarrassed to make use
of the bathroom this way, provided your children are well behaved and not the
kind to spread water or toilet paper all over the place. We've seen adults resort to the bathrooms on
rainy days as well. In Spain during one
major stretch of bad weather, I entered the ladies' room to find a fellow
camper doing her aerobics routine to music.
Children like playing in the rain. Forget trying to sail or bicycle or hike,
activities they won't enjoy in the rain any more than you will. Instead, stay in one place and let them
outside to play as much as possible. Try
to avoid too many wet clothes, especially if you're camping. Have them wear sandals instead of shoes to
keep the shoes from getting soaked.
One outdoor activity that can still be enjoyed in the rain
and help relieve the tedium of bad weather is walking. Pick somewhere to go that's
interesting-through a village, down a country road, along the seashore, in a
park. Try walking where you can look at
houses, a fun activity for children who like to compare houses and yards and
speculate which one they would live in.
See if there's a coffee shop or cafe or interesting shop you can head
for as a destination along the route.
Before you know it you will have whiled away the rainy hours and enjoyed
yourselves as well.
It's nice to have a special cache of goodies, games and
projects for bad weather. If you're
stuck in a tent, get out some drawing paper, scissors, colored pencils and
scotch tape. Children can spend a long
time being creative with simple materials.
A pack of cards, miniature backgammon or checkers, or a surprise
paperback will keep older ones occupied as well.
Always check with https://weather.com/
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