What the Eclipse tomorrow will look like for many people

I can’t believe it’s been almost 18 years since the last solar eclipse was visible in the U.S. but as I think about it, I was in school playing with index cards with pinholes in them – and sneaking a peak at the sun because I didn’t really believe it would cause blindness. (I turned out OK, but I should also not recommend trusting your eyes to the judgement of a then young kid.)

The National Parks Service has a number of programs running for those lucky enough or forward thinking enough to be there tomorrow. For those who won’t be in the western two-thirds of the US (or China or parts of Mexico or Canada), the NPS will be web casting the eclipse on this site from 9:00 to 10:00 PM Eastern Time.

Adding to the interesting views that will be available is that the sun is approaching solar maximum, where the number of sunspots peaks. This is part of the 11-13 year solar cycle, and while no particularly huge sunspots are present, as shown by the Space Weather site, those with appropriate viewing equipment and angles may get some very cool pictures, with a sun-spotted disk partially covered by the moon.

The National Parks have dozens of solar eclipse events going on, and I’m sure many state and local parks will have events as well. If you get a chance, try to check this out since there won’t be another chance to see an eclipse til 2017 in the US. If you try to view it directly, welder’s masks do a good job of blocking excessive light (and think about that before staring at the sun with no protection – that is some intense light) and you can use projection methods shown here to check out the eclipse.

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Frequent readers may have noticed fewer postings on CampingBlogger recently (which will change in the coming weeks, so don’t worry about rare posting in the future). CampingBlogger has a new editor, Eric Ridenour. After running this site for several years, Roy has decided to pass the site on. I hope to continue this site in his spirit, offering camping news, tips, reviews, and plenty of guest posts. I look forward to sharing my travels, tips and experiences with you.

I’m excited to take over this blog as I love the outdoors and camping. I’ve been all over the country and have enjoyed camping in the heat of the summer to the dead of winter, and have camped on beaches and in the mountains. Most of my travels have been tent camping, but I have a few outings in cabins and trailers.

During the transition, some emails may have been lostfrom people wanting to guest post or otherwise reach out to me. If you sent an email through our site in the past month or so, sorry but your email may have been among these. Also, the welcome mat is always out for guest bloggers. Either way, please check out our contact page to get in touch.

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This is a guest post by Thomas Neton. If you would like to guest post on CampingBlogger, please see the guest posting page for more information.

My son and I camp regularly. He’s a Boy Scout, so he’s a big help setting up our site and camping equipment . One of our favorite spots is El Capitan state beach, just north of Santa Barbara on the California coast.

If you’re coming from LA or farther south, try to leave during the middle of the day or on the weekend. Downtown LA’s famous rush hour traffic is pretty brutal and can add an hour to your trip. It take us about two hours to get up there from Long Beach with no traffic.

El Capitan State Beach (photo by Robert Garcia on Flickr)

The campground is up on a bluff with a fantastic beach below. At the far north end of the beach is a freshwater creek that runs into tidepools at the ocean’s edge. We’ve camped there in spring and summer, but in spring there are tadpoles in the creek – hours of kid fun! There are many forms of marine life for kids to see and experience. Bring your bikes because there are miles of roads and bike paths on the beach and in the campground that kids can enjoy.

The campground is very clean and well kept. The camp hosts are a married couple who keep a sharp eye on the campground while maintaining a friendly atmosphere. The majority of campers are families, and everybody has been very friendly every time we go.

One thing to watch for on the beach is naturally occurring tar that sometimes washes up on the shore. The occasional tarball can be cleaned up by the small wipes sold at the campground’s store. The store itself is very sparse, so make sure you bring all your supplies. The closest town is about 10 miles south of El Capitan, so a supply run can take over an hour roundtrip. They do have a small coffee shop in town, though.

Sunset at El Capitan State Beach (photo by frankenschulz on Flickr)

The sunsets are absolutely beautiful here. And here’s the insider tip: some sites offer nice views, but sites 82-84 offer ocean front views. Reservations are made through Reserve America 7 months in advance. If you time it right, you can get a prime site. Also, you can check back periodically during the current month- sometimes there are cancellations.

Thomas Neton is an avid camper and former Scout leader who runs Camptentonline.com, a retailer of tents, sleeping bags and camping gear.

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I remember when Brunton introduced the BrewFire back in 2008 and thought it was a great concept, at the time. No fire to start, no jockeying for room on the camp stove – just light the internal burner and let it do it’s thing. Now Coleman has launched their own self-contained coffee maker and it is a lot cheaper than Brunton’s (now Primus).

Coleman propane coffee maker with stainless steel carafe

As much as I am attracted to this self-contained concept, I am not sure I am willing to part with $80 or $90 just for that convenience. I have gotten a lot of use out of my $40 Coleman (I see they are now $50) and other than the glass carafe, there is really nothing on it that can wear-out or break.

It would be nice to free-up some space on the stove, but I am getting by with getting up a little earlier than everyone else (easy to do with my family ), brewing my coffee and pouring a few extra cups into a Thermos to keep it hot.

What are you currently using for brewing coffee at the campsite? Does a self-contained unit interest you?

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The ginormous bubba 52-ounce insulated mug was a Father’s Day gag-gift from the family, but with our Independence Day weekend temperatures well into the triple-digits, I decided to breakout the “bubba” and see what this thing could do. Surprisingly, pretty darn good!

That's right, 107 degrees on July 2nd!

I wasn’t kidding about the temps, here, in south San Jose. Our sensor is on the south side of the house but, still, 107-degrees is hot! Normally, we would be up in the mountains on this holiday weekend. This year, however, Mrs. CampingBlogger’s work schedule is keeping us close to home – making this a great opportunity to put the “bubba” to the test.

That's not a mini-keg, it's the 52oz. bubba

The bubba is a hefty line of insulated beverage containers that come in various sizes. My 52oz. model sits squarely in the middle of a line that ranges from 18oz. travel mugs to 5-gallon beverage coolers.

The bubba works with hot or cold beverages, although I am not sure what I would do with 52oz. of coffee. There is a bottle opener integrated into the bottom of the handle, which is pretty slick. Unfortunately, the bubba is not dishwasher safe – but I guess that’s not a big deal for camping.

Getting a temp reading on the contents

I filled the bubba with 48oz. of my least-favorite beer (I wouldn’t want to waste good beer, if this thing doesn’t work!) and took a temperature reading, before letting it soak in the 107-degree sun for one hour.

An hour in the sun and the beer is still cold

Does the bubba have any real camping utility? Probably not for me. I prefer my beer one bottle-at-a-time, not in 52oz. mini-kegs. The bubba worked so well, though, that I am now intrigued by there larger 3 and 5 gallon beverage coolers. Those could prove to be great solutions for cold water and juice, at the campsite.

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