Sometimes the best adventures start with a simple question. When my two boys (9 and 13) asked if we could spend a night in the forest together, there was only one answer. A few hours later we marched into the woods with packed bags, ready for an evening of campfire cooking, good talks and falling asleep under the open sky.
Setting Up Camp Under the Tarp#
We kept the shelter simple: a DD Tarp 3x3 m in camo stretched between the trees. Three by three meters is plenty for a father and two kids, everyone had room to spread out a sleeping bag without elbowing a neighbor. The boys helped with the guy lines while I set up the ridgeline. Getting kids into the build is half the fun: they learn knots, understand tension and feel like part of the camp.
For sleeping we used our Carinthia TSS sleeping bags. The modular system fits trips like this well: you can adjust the layers to the temperature, handy when kids sleep warm one night and cold the next.
With the tarp up and the sleeping spots ready, the main act began: fire and food.
Campfire Cooking: Dinner, Dessert and Breakfast#
The X-Fire 19 served as our fire pit all night. A solid, portable fire bowl that keeps the flames contained and gives you a stable platform for cooking. The fire was going within minutes, and the boys took turns feeding in small sticks, a task they took very seriously.
Dinner was simple and filling: thick steaks with beans, seared in the Stabilotherm hunter’s pan XL. The 28 cm pan shrugs off campfire heat and offers enough surface to cook for three hungry people without stacking the meat. The sizzle of steak over an open fire is one of those sounds that makes any outdoor trip special. The boys cleared their portions and asked for seconds, always a good sign.
After dinner we let the fire collapse into a bed of glowing coals. Then came the moment my youngest had looked forward to all day: marshmallows. We skewered them together with butter cookies, a combination that sounds odd but works surprisingly well. The cookie turns warm and slightly soft while the marshmallow caramelizes on the outside. Both boys agreed it was the highlight of the evening, and I was not going to argue.
Breakfast the next morning was just as hearty. I fired up the X-Fire again and made scrambled eggs with bacon and beans in the hunter’s pan. Hot coffee came from the SilverAnt titanium kettle, which heats water fast and weighs next to nothing in the pack. While the eggs sizzled, the boys were already off exploring: collecting sticks, inspecting beetles.
For processing wood and clearing a few branches around camp, the Terävä Skrama 240 did its usual reliable job. Heavy enough for bigger wood, but not so heavy it slows you down on the way in.
Waking Up in the Forest#
The best part of a trip like this is waking up in the middle of the forest with your kids. That moment when you open your eyes, see the trees through the open side of the tarp and hear nothing but birdsong and the breathing of the kids next to you. No screens, no schedule, no noise. Just the forest.
My boys talked about that morning for days. The older one said it felt like being in a movie. The younger one just said he wanted to go again next weekend. A dad cannot get better feedback than that.
You do not need remote wilderness or expensive gear to give your kids an outdoor experience they remember. A patch of forest, a tarp overhead, a fire and good food. The rest happens on its own.
If you want to watch the full tour, you can find the video here: https://youtu.be/XJ5f_kBlHMU.