Preparedness Campout 2016 at the Tifie Ranch, Morgan Utah

That's Perry and I by our  small Davis Wall Tent with good friend, Julie Ann,  in the back ground and our red trailer.  Perry got this small red trailer years ago from his father.  It was used to haul a snowmobile but Perry insulated it, added another axle and wheels so it could hold the weight of our camping equipment.  But the shelves he built inside to store stuff, he made 30" wide so they could be slept on.   That's where we slept for the 7 nights we were there.  He also added 3 screened windows and roof vent so we had nice cool air in the evening.  We needed that because it was hot!  very hot during the day the last week of July.  The Davis tent is 10'x15' and it served as our kitchen tent this trip.  

Robert Workman who owns the Tifie Ranch offered our Prep Group his hay fields to hold our annual campout.  We are very grateful for his support.  He owns the Barebones Tent Company so there was a natural connection.  There was shade around the edges of the hay fields and a stream on the north side which the children and teens loved.  The middle, open spaces is where the pota-potties and vehicles ended up with most of the tents and camps around the shaded spots.  It's a beautiful place but we had to bring our own shade for the classes and group dinners that were out in the open.  

 I took charge of 2 of the children's classes and here is a picture of my friend, Natalie, pushing our very big wagon up a small incline with 3 of the camp children.  The class had 9 children and was called, "What can you do with a very Big Wagon?"  Well, the children found out that you can haul a lot of stuff in it and a lot of kids.  They had a great time with it. 

 In the evenings after the sun was down and after the group pot-luck dinners, we all gathered (approx. 250 people this camp) in the big field east of camp for entertainment.  We had talks by Robert Workman about his mission in life; to help the poor of the world be more self-sufficient with cheap energy(Goal Zero products), shelters and food. 
The next evening we heard from David Warwick who is a visionary man tell of his experiences with dreams and visions of the future. Very interesting.
Another night we had an impromptu talent show that was really entertaining.
The last night we had a panel discussion about all things having to do with preparedness.  Again very interesting.

 Another children's group I took on, made art out of the natural elements they found at camp and along the river.  The inspiration was Andy Goldworthy; an environmental artist.  The children did a wonderful job organizing some raw materials into works of art.   Such fun! 
I also taught 2 adult classes, one on fermenting...just a general one, and the other on Pulses and why they would be useful to do now for camp later.  And of course the health benefits.  

 There were tents of all kinds and sizes in camp and few motorhomes.  The tent in this picture is a Barebones tent...not the orange one.  There were some geodesic dome type tents too and one family brought a really big Teepee with an American flag waving at the top.  Several campers had their solar equipment out and working so they could have a fan running and lights at night and powerpoint presentations for some of the adult classes.  We had our solar units up and batteries charging and fan running and lights at night.   Love that solar ability.  

I wish I could brag about my wonderful camp cooking....can't.  I planned it simple this year...just freeze dried pouches (Eden Valley) and hot water.  I wanted to see what  my favorite meals were so I could come back and buy more of those.  But everybody around us can brag about what they fixed for meals and the group pot-luck dinners.  We were really spoiled with all the good food around us.  Especially fun was the Richards camp next to us with their little girls.  We ended up eating breakfasts and lunches with them  in the shade of our tent fly porch.  Sylvia shared a lot of her food with us and it was delightful. She brought fresh foods.  The picture at one of the group dinners, Perry and I eating with another good friend, Lynn Engberson next to me.  He and his wife camped in our group and brought a son and a daughter both just returned from their missions.  They were a wonderful addition. 

This is our 5th campout and one would think we would have it "all together" but we made so many mistakes and forgot some important things even with all my lists.  The big lesson this trip was WATER.    We ran out of the good water we brought from home because of the hot weather.  We were drinking more than we usually do and then cleaning ourselves at night (yes, we have a nice camp showering set up).  So we got out our gravity-feed water purifier buckets and went and filled our empty containers with river water.  He said it was good water and with filtration it would be all right.  Several other campers did the same thing.   The first 4-6 gallons were wonderful and coming fast but then the system slowed and by 8 gallons, there was barely a drip every minute.  We discovered that, that the clean and pure river water still had particulates in it that clogged up our filtration unit.  Learned that you must pre-filter river water before pouring into filtration unit to get the bigger stuff out.   Good lesson. Never did that before.  Lots of other things learned too and by the end of the week we were all settled in and didn't want to go home.  Good spirit there with good people.  Good lessons learned. 

Pumpkin Puree and Oats Breakfast Bake

     I love this recipe!  When I make it I save out 4 servings and freeze them for mornings I have to leave early and fast.  I take one container out of freezer at night and just warm it up and add some cream or eat it thawed and room temperature.  This is good for any of the 4 blood types.  The oats are neutral for Os but beneficial for As, Bs, and ABs. 

3 eggs
2 cups pumpkin puree or butternut squash
1 cut raw, whole milk (or your best substitute)
1/3 to 1/2 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup oil
1/2 tsp. real salt
1 cup  quick or rolled oats
1/3 cup flaxseeds or flax meal
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup dried cranberries or raisins
1/3 cup pecans or walnuts 

Mix everything together and cover and let sit overnight and bake in the morning or mix in the morning and bake in evening.  Soaking is needed to neutralize the phytic acid on the oats and nuts and seeds.  

Butter a 9x9" baking dish.   Bake at 350 for 45 - 60 minutes.   Insert a toothpick in center to check for doness.    Good cold or warm.   We like it with cream and if for dessert add more maple syrup.