jazzmatazz 1 Posted January 2, 2016 Report Share Posted January 2, 2016 Hello! I'm new here. I'm staying at the campgrounds Jan 31st-Feb 6th for my 27th birthday trip to Disney. I've never stayed in a Disney resort before. Nor have I been camping since 2007 and let me say that was the worst camping experience of my life in Boundary Waters. Error on the people I was with didn't want to listen to the student saying we were pitching our tents in a flood zone. Needless to say it really turned me off camping after sleeping in a puddle for an entire week. So I'm certainly a bit nervous to go camping again and I know it's not going to be that bad in any way. What are some things I should prepare for camping in January February? I read on one blog it was rather hurricane/tornado season for Florida. I'm from Wi so it's certainly cold up here right now. I'm kind of new to having electricity camping, do most tent campers just run a cable to their tents to charge their phones? Am I going to need different tent stakes for the sand? I think I'm mostly prepared to go otherwise. Just need to buy a new pair of tennis shoes and track down a second bike for my boyfriend since he doesn't have a bike. Even with the cost of those two bigger priced items it's still so much cheaper to go camping than a different resort hotel. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BradyBzLyn...Mo 2,023 Posted January 2, 2016 Report Share Posted January 2, 2016 Welcome! We've got some tent camping pros here that I'm sure will weigh in with some specific advice. I can say that you don't have to worry about hurricanes in FL that time of year, and tornadoes in FL are pretty rare in general. The one thing I can recommend is being prepared for the cold. It can be quite mild in Jan/Feb but can also be very chilly. I'm from NH and used to cold weather also, but when it's cold FL in Jan/Feb always feels very damp to me - that kind of cold that gets down to your bones. Best advice as far as weather is to bring layers to be prepared for anything from 20 to 70. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted January 2, 2016 Report Share Posted January 2, 2016 It is not usually hurricane season until August. Some recommendations. Get some painters plastic and put under your tent, then ditch it when you break camp. The sand pad that you will set your tent up on will get really nasty and its hard to get that stuff off the bottom of your tent. I also get a roll of 6mil plastic and cut it to fit the inside floor of the tent to help with water coming from underneath. Yes, get one or two 30-50' outdoor extension cords and a power strip, run it into the tent, and charge away. Being Jan/Feb, you can have temps in the 30s to 80s. I would recommend an air mattress, pump, and a heated mattress pad to help keep you warm at night. One of the new space heaters without coils and anti-tip protection will take the chill off the air just before bed and early morning. Keep a window screen cracked while sleeping to keep condensation down in the tent overnight evening when cold. Open the tent up as much as possible during the day and run a fan to dry things out and combat humidity. Avatab.... Steve and BradyBzLyn...Mo 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
keith_h 420 Posted January 2, 2016 Report Share Posted January 2, 2016 Hello! I'm new here. I'm staying at the campgrounds Jan 31st-Feb 6th for my 27th birthday trip to Disney. I've never stayed in a Disney resort before. Nor have I been camping since 2007 and let me say that was the worst camping experience of my life in Boundary Waters. Error on the people I was with didn't want to listen to the student saying we were pitching our tents in a flood zone. Needless to say it really turned me off camping after sleeping in a puddle for an entire week. So I'm certainly a bit nervous to go camping again and I know it's not going to be that bad in any way. What are some things I should prepare for camping in January February? I read on one blog it was rather hurricane/tornado season for Florida. I'm from Wi so it's certainly cold up here right now. I'm kind of new to having electricity camping, do most tent campers just run a cable to their tents to charge their phones? Am I going to need different tent stakes for the sand? I think I'm mostly prepared to go otherwise. Just need to buy a new pair of tennis shoes and track down a second bike for my boyfriend since he doesn't have a bike. Even with the cost of those two bigger priced items it's still so much cheaper to go camping than a different resort hotel. Hurricanes are not an issue that time of year. Hurricane season runs from June through November with the highest probability of having them being August through October. While you can get tornadoes anytime of year they are less likely in the winter as the big thunder storms that generate them usually don't occur. You can get rain anytime but most of the tent sites I've seen look like they drain well so you aren't stuck in puddles. As Mo mentioned I would just realize that it might not be as warm as you think it will be and plan accordingly. I have been there when a deep cold front came through and had nighttime temps in the low 30's. Of course to some northerners that is shorts and sandal weather. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jazzmatazz 1 Posted January 2, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2016 Thanks so much for the tips so far! My guy has an air mattress he's set on bringing. I'm quite used to sleeping cold as much as I don't like it. Bf's bed is in a basement in a house only set to 60 degrees when it's 20 out right now. That bed is also a water bed with a broken heater! So I usually have to sleep in two layers of pjs and a heavy sweatshirt so if it dips down at night time I'm not going to die! I'm sadly quite used to it at this point. I'll have to see what kind of space heater my dad has, he recently bought himself two for around the farm here since at 93 he's a stubborn man who wants to keep working but can't handle the cold. I'm sure he'd lend me one of them. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CJHokie 43 Posted January 3, 2016 Report Share Posted January 3, 2016 One thing we found out the hard way in Cub Scouts was any tarp or plastic you put under the tent should not be bigger than the tent floor. That will just funnel the water in. So, same size or slightly smaller. As far as the bike thing goes, they do rent them at FW. Not sure if you tracking one down means borrowing one or buying one, so that may be cheaper. Have fun and have a great birthday trip! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted January 3, 2016 Report Share Posted January 3, 2016 One thing we found out the hard way in Cub Scouts was any tarp or plastic you put under the tent should not be bigger than the tent floor. That will just funnel the water in. So, same size or slightly smaller. As far as the bike thing goes, they do rent them at FW. Not sure if you tracking one down means borrowing one or buying one, so that may be cheaper. Have fun and have a great birthday trip!I actually have cut to fit groundcloths of 6mil plastic underneath the tent that is about 1" smaller than the tent floor. The cheap painters plastic is sometimes bigger, but that goes under everything to keep the tent bottom and my groundcloth clean. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jazzmatazz 1 Posted January 3, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 3, 2016 One thing we found out the hard way in Cub Scouts was any tarp or plastic you put under the tent should not be bigger than the tent floor. That will just funnel the water in. So, same size or slightly smaller. As far as the bike thing goes, they do rent them at FW. Not sure if you tracking one down means borrowing one or buying one, so that may be cheaper. Have fun and have a great birthday trip!I'm unsure of the size of tent I'm bringing yet. All I know is my boyfriend owns the bigger tent out of the two of us. As for tarps we have plenty of them around the farm to the point dad wants some of them gone so I can easily take a bigger one and then cut it to size as needed. I know a guy locally who fixes up and resells bikes rather cheaply so I was thinking about just buying my guy a bike since he's been procrastinating on getting himself one. He's so tall that he can't use my second bike because they were made for shorter people. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sherryberry 35 Posted January 3, 2016 Report Share Posted January 3, 2016 We'll be camping in a tent the same week as y'all! I agree about the plastic underneath the tent. And also about the electric mattress pad. We also use an electric blanket - we stay warm and cozy in the tent! We run an extension cord into the tent for charging phones, to run the heater, and I keep the mattress pad and blanket on all night. When we were there last year in January, it did get pretty chilly at night. I was actually amazed at how much the space heater heated up the tent. We usually run it on high when we first get back to the tent and then turn it down after the tent warms up. I hope you have a great birthday and have fun camping! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beckers 1,136 Posted January 4, 2016 Report Share Posted January 4, 2016 Electric blankets are awesome for cold weather camping. We had that and a little space heater and were fine even with it dipping down to 28. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted January 4, 2016 Report Share Posted January 4, 2016 I thought I posted this, but I guess it disappeared. Another thing to stay warm when winter camping is take a shower before bedtime. When it's cold and you are wearing multiple layers, you are sweaty under those layers. If you get yourself clean, then put on clean dry pajamas, you will be warmer. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jazzmatazz 1 Posted January 4, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2016 We'll be camping in a tent the same week as y'all! I agree about the plastic underneath the tent. And also about the electric mattress pad. We also use an electric blanket - we stay warm and cozy in the tent! We run an extension cord into the tent for charging phones, to run the heater, and I keep the mattress pad and blanket on all night. When we were there last year in January, it did get pretty chilly at night. I was actually amazed at how much the space heater heated up the tent. We usually run it on high when we first get back to the tent and then turn it down after the tent warms up. I hope you have a great birthday and have fun camping!I'll be sure to update about which loop we end up in. I know we aren't a preferred tent site, everything was rather booked by the time I made reservations. I know my plan for Sunday was to stay mostly at camp, maybe Disney Springs in the AM if we get there way early before check in. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sherryberry 35 Posted January 4, 2016 Report Share Posted January 4, 2016 We're hoping for 1700. I think we'll probably just be around camp for the weekend also. My sisters and a couple of friends are coming down late Sunday, so I think we'll do parks during the week. Kenneth and I will probably be riding our bikes all weekend! Lol Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tri-Circle-D 2,059 Posted January 5, 2016 Report Share Posted January 5, 2016 As far as the bike thing goes, they do rent them at FW. Not sure if you tracking one down means borrowing one or buying one, so that may be cheaper. Just a note on renting bikes at the Fort. It's not a cheap option if you want the bike for the length of your stay. Here's a photo of the prices from the Bike Barn (this is from 2014, and prices may have gone up) : So, if you want to use the bike for more than one hour, it will cost you $18. But, that daily rate ends when the Bike Barn closes for the day, and the bike must be returned each day- there are no overnight rentals. Not cheap or practical. I'm sure you can find a cheap used bike for less than $50. That's the way to go. TCD Quote Link to post Share on other sites
CJHokie 43 Posted January 5, 2016 Report Share Posted January 5, 2016 Just a note on renting bikes at the Fort. It's not a cheap option if you want the bike for the length of your stay. Here's a photo of the prices from the Bike Barn (this is from 2014, and prices may have gone up) : So, if you want to use the bike for more than one hour, it will cost you $18. But, that daily rate ends when the Bike Barn closes for the day, and the bike must be returned each day- there are no overnight rentals. Not cheap or practical. I'm sure you can find a cheap used bike for less than $50. That's the way to go. TCDYes, that is ridiculous, esp. the no overnights. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jazzmatazz 1 Posted January 5, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2016 Yeah I figured I can get a decent bike especially since I've been wanting to sell my secondary bike it's an older bike with the big baskets on the back. It's lovely, when I lived in town but now that I'm back at the farm it's quite useless to me. So that will help with some trade in value with my friend since it's one he'd probably keep for his wife. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Avatab.... Steve 124 Posted January 6, 2016 Report Share Posted January 6, 2016 You could also pick one up at Walmart once you get to Disney. They have Mtn Bikes for 79 dollars on the website and I believe they put them together for you if you order ahead of time. Someone else on another thread suggested that you could have Walmart deliver a bike to the Fort for you but pretty sure it would need some assembly. http://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Roadmaster-Granite-Peak-Men-s-Bike-Black-Green/45089317?action=product_interest&action_type=title&item_id=45089317&placement_id=irs-106-t1&strategy=PWVUB&visitor_id&category=&client_guid=abc56931-b168-45c9-8db5-54eca6e81ed7&customer_id_enc&config_id=106&parent_item_id=45089314&parent_anchor_item_id=45089314&guid=9454c07f-9f46-4e91-8380-473b42f46d5c&bucket_id=irsbucketdefault&beacon_version=1.0.1&findingMethod=p13n Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jazzmatazz 1 Posted January 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2016 You could also pick one up at Walmart once you get to Disney. They have Mtn Bikes for 79 dollars on the website and I believe they put them together for you if you order ahead of time. Someone else on another thread suggested that you could have Walmart deliver a bike to the Fort for you but pretty sure it would need some assembly. http://www.walmart.com/ip/26-Roadmaster-Granite-Peak-Men-s-Bike-Black-Green/45089317?action=product_interest&action_type=title&item_id=45089317&placement_id=irs-106-t1&strategy=PWVUB&visitor_id&category=&client_guid=abc56931-b168-45c9-8db5-54eca6e81ed7&customer_id_enc&config_id=106&parent_item_id=45089314&parent_anchor_item_id=45089314&guid=9454c07f-9f46-4e91-8380-473b42f46d5c&bucket_id=irsbucketdefault&beacon_version=1.0.1&findingMethod=p13nWas looking at walmart bikes online. I wouldn't pay for assembly though. My time in retail I was trained for bike assembly at a different store. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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