Nighttime Camping Activites
Camping offers many opportunities for outdoor fun. But just because the sun goes down doesn’t mean your camping group has to huddle around a campfire and bore each other to death. Arm yourself with plenty of powerful LED headlamps or LED lanterns, grab your friends and have some fun! Not sure how? Here are a few favorite nighttime camping games:
1. Hide and Seek
This is a nighttime take on a classic. Nominate two or three “tappers” to venture out beyond the firelight and hide somewhere in the woods. The tappers then tap two hard objects together – sticks, pots, pans, etc. The louder the tapping, the easier the game, so keep that in mind when choosing objects. The rest of the group grabs a durable LED flashlight and goes out to find the tappers. The first person to find a tapper and bring him or her back to the camp is the winner.
2. Night Hike
This is a potentially dangerous activity, so make sure you scope out a trail in the daytime before trying it at night. Find a flat, clear trail that doesn’t venture too far away from your camp. You can either light the way with a powerful LED flashlight or place a number of area lights along the trail to illuminate your way. This is a nice, romantic way to experience the outdoors at night, especially if the trail has a clear view of overhead stars.
3. Bug Watch
This creepy, crawly game is great for kids or anyone interested in insects. Tie a large, white sheet between two trees, away from any camp or firelight. Shine a very powerful LED flashlight towards the sheet and inspect the different bugs that the light attracts. Try drawing or taking pictures of the bugs and then identifying them the next day. You’d be surprised at the variety you will find!
