CAMPING AT KAITI.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 2709, 13 January 1910, Page 6

CAMPING AT KAITI.

HOW, TO PREPARE. Although most people who intend camping out this season have already selected a site, ,<rot their material together, and pitched their tent, there is still ample time for campers to make a start, as the weather is suitable for camping till well into March. As many persons are deterred fro'm the pleasure through lack of information as to the correct way to go about it, a word regarding. the cost of material may be helpful. First, a tent is required. Camping tents may bo procured of all sizes, to suit the sizo of the party, and 1 those best suited for the purpose are bush tents of heavy calico, guaranteed to last for two seasons. A 6ft. by Bft. tent, to provide sleeping accommodation for two, costs 235, an Bft- by 10ft suitable for 4 persons, 355; a 10ft by 12ft, for 6 people, 495; while a 12ft by 14ft runs to £3 10s. As plenty of room makes for greater enjoyment an Bft- by 10ft for three persons is about the best size for a small party. Having procured the tent the next thing required is the timber whereon to erect it. Two uprights, about 10ft long, and two ridge poles about a foot longer than the length of the tent, aro necessary, and these can be procured for a cost of 3s or 4s. To erect the tent the uprights are planted the necessary distance apart, being sunk two feet into holes, in which rock and sand are afterwards firmly packed to ensure a good foundation. The ridge pole is then placed through the tent and nailed to the uprights. There are then several methods of securing the tent, the best perhaps being to secure four small uprights, sink these about four feet from the corners of the tent, about three feet being the height required, then get two boards, about 4 inches wide bv lm. thick and the necessary length and nail these firmly to the small uprights. The tent ropes can then ho tied to the boards, tlius doing away with the worry of having pegs coming out and being broken every time a wind rises. After the tent has been erected a water channel should be dug round iti thus ensuring dry ground, in wet weather. The making of a fire place is the) next consideration, and as most of the camps on Kaiti beacli lire built close to the hill, this is a simple matter. All that is necessary being to make a hole in the side of the hill and, with the aid of two iron bars, you have all that is required. To keep the sun off the cook and to provide a place for taking meals outside so' as to keep the tent clean, it is a good idea to have a galley fly extended, this making a sheltered nook. The furnishing of the tent should next receive attention, and the articles required are a stretcher (camp stretchers can be purchased for 255), two or three blankets Tor each person, a large case, fitted with shelves and a good lock, in which the stores aro kept, pots, pans and crockery and other requisites that the judgment of the camper thinks necessary. The tent being practically fitted up, there remains nothing but to take possession and begin life in camp under ideal conditions. As most of the male campers come into town for business, they only have- two meals, breakfast and tea, on the beach, and the cost is trifling for these, 4s or 5s per week being ample for each person. The ncce.ssarv wood and water are- close handy on the beach, two springs running down from .the hill providing the. latter, while the former can bo gathered on the beach when a lucky chance brings RRy, otherwise a long walk round Pali Hill is necessary, and then the or sledgimr of the required supplied. The question of the wood supply is yearly troubling the ICaiti beacli campers, as the walk round Pah Hill is long and tedious, while the carting in is slow, though a good method adopted is of making a sledge of a bag stretched on two poles, and dragged along. Sometimes luck favors the camp, as on Boxing Dav. when a fine supply was washed up and eagerly gathered in. The lighting miestion does not cause much trouble, a kerosene Avail lamp or candles- being mostly used, although one tout had a small-acetylene generator, Av'hich. Avas used to good effect. The camper should by noAv have settled comfortably in his new home, and the enjoyment of a day in camp will be dealt Avitli in a subsequent article.