And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Thursday, October 16, 2025
At night, the creepy crawlies come out, and they're looking for prey.
I guess people with knowlege similar to the native tribes would know to find the areas where one could try to sleep on the ground in the desert without facing snakes, spiders and skorpions. But I am not one of them. I would need a tent or something of the sort.
Well, I’ve slept on the ground in the deserts of Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and California. Mostly using a tarp for a ground cover, sometimes a tarp and an air mattress. I’ve never had a problem with snakes, scorpions, or spiders. There’s an old cowboy story that snakes won’t cross over a horse hair rope, but I’ve never used or even had such a rope, so I can’t say yes or no on that one. I prefer a nice tent, especially at higher elevations when you can get a sudden rain overnight. That can save you a getting soaked, and hypothermia is a more predictable risk than creeping creatures.
An enclosed tent or suspended hammock sounds like a recipe for more sound sleep. I've slept out in the California desert, but in the bed of a Datsun pickup, not on the ground. Amazing starlit sky.
I've done that kind of camping a fair amount. Never had much trouble with larger creatures. Ants and earwigs seem to be the most frequent offenders. I rarely get bitten, but am definitely creeped out when I feel one of them inside my bag and roaming around. I've been lucky though, I think I got bit by a cone-nosed kissing bug once. Never saw the creature that did it, but once was enough. Maybe I'm getting soft in my latter years, a lightweight 2-lb cozy backpacking tent seems to give me night-time peace of mind. Once a person starts doing that, it's hard to go back to camping cowboy style.
If I was getting ready to make camp, I would probably go over to those sandy hills and find some soft sand to put my sleeping bad on.
ReplyDeleteDone that up in NH many times, mostly its skeeters bothering you.
ReplyDeleteOr other flying insects attracted by your body heat. Netting over you when hammock camping has much less slapping yourself.
DeleteI guess people with knowlege similar to the native tribes would know to find the areas where one could try to sleep on the ground in the desert without facing snakes, spiders and skorpions. But I am not one of them. I would need a tent or something of the sort.
ReplyDeleteI would need a little RV with a fridge and a toilet.
DeleteNOW we're talkin.
DeleteWell, I’ve slept on the ground in the deserts of Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and California. Mostly using a tarp for a ground cover, sometimes a tarp and an air mattress. I’ve never had a problem with snakes, scorpions, or spiders. There’s an old cowboy story that snakes won’t cross over a horse hair rope, but I’ve never used or even had such a rope, so I can’t say yes or no on that one. I prefer a nice tent, especially at higher elevations when you can get a sudden rain overnight. That can save you a getting soaked, and hypothermia is a more predictable risk than creeping creatures.
ReplyDeleteAn enclosed tent or suspended hammock sounds like a recipe for more sound sleep. I've slept out in the California desert, but in the bed of a Datsun pickup, not on the ground. Amazing starlit sky.
ReplyDeleteI've done that kind of camping a fair amount. Never had much trouble with larger creatures. Ants and earwigs seem to be the most frequent offenders. I rarely get bitten, but am definitely creeped out when I feel one of them inside my bag and roaming around. I've been lucky though, I think I got bit by a cone-nosed kissing bug once. Never saw the creature that did it, but once was enough. Maybe I'm getting soft in my latter years, a lightweight 2-lb cozy backpacking tent seems to give me night-time peace of mind. Once a person starts doing that, it's hard to go back to camping cowboy style.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a nice mock up but doesn't look like anyone is really home.
ReplyDeleteThe internet is full of photo ops
DeleteThat ground cloth could be a tube tent.
ReplyDelete