April 5, 2004 - If you have any hopes of locking in a summertime reservation for a campground, dude ranch or other outdoorsy spot, the time is now upon us. Such a trip makes the ideal family vacation: It can be planned usually for next to nothing, it provides a perfect setting for everyone to participate, and it's a great creator of cherished childhood memories and stronger familial bonds.
If you're all about planning the getaway yourself and striking out on your own, consider one of these websites, chockablock with helpful hints for the DIYer: www.familycampinggear.com, https://camping.about.com and www.koa.com, which is offering a free night of camping on May 14 this year at participating campgrounds in the US, Canada and Mexico.
Should you want someone else to do all the planning, we've got plenty to recommend. One good outfit is Bicycle Adventures, which has two family tours on the Oregon Coast this August 2 and August 23, costing $992 for five days (four nights; children 18 and under discounted 10% to 30%, depending on age). They meet you in Portland on a Monday morning and take you on a journey that includes Fort Stevens near Astoria and the mouth of the Columbia River; Fort Clatsop (where Lewis and Clark spent the winter of 1805-06); horseback riding on the beach and visits to Tillamook for its famous cheese and ice cream factory; ending up in Cape Lookout State Park, on the Pacific. They provide all the camping equipment, including tents, towels, etc. All the campgrounds have hot showers and flush toilets, and sleeping bags are available for rent. Other bicycling trips, though not specifically family-oriented, are also available throughout the summer. Contact them at www.bicycleadventures.com or by phoning 800/443-6060.
Considerably cheaper per diem are some of the ten packages listed by the Paddling Ontario tour operators, who are independent, but who share a helpful website, www.paddlingontario.com. Go there and you'll see at least ten packages, ranging from a "Five-Day Algonquin Canoe Trip" costing just $575 CDN (about US $439) to a two-day "Experience the Grand" outing at just CDN $139 (about US $106). Some trips offer over 20 wilderness canoe routes to explore, and some have opportunities for fishing, swimming, and learning.
If it's cowboy activities you're after, head immediately to www.duderanch.org, the online presence of the 78-year-old association of dude ranches across the country. The site is well organized, allowing you to pick and choose activities, locations and - most importantly - price ranges to help narrow the search. The Laughing Water Ranch (www.lwranch.com) in Kalispell, Montana, for example, is currently offering a discounted seven-night special starting from $990 per adult and $940 per child aged 4-14 when four or more persons are in a party. Pricing includes lodgings, meals and activities like fishing, hiking and horseback riding.
Back in the USA, consider the Backroads outfit, where a seven-day/six-night camping trip to Bryce Canyon, the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park costs $1,298, all meals included. You spend two days in each of the canyon parks, then three days in Zion, camping out all the time. When you're not hiking, you're biking, and all the equipment you'll need is included in the price. Departure and return point is St. George, Utah. Contact Backroads at www.backroads.com or by phoning 800/GO ACTIVE (same as 800/462-2848) or 510/527-1555.
Some tour operators list family camping opportunities that spend most, if not all, their nights in hotels or inns. One, which combines the two types of sleeping arrangements on at least one trip (in the footsteps of Lewis & Clark), is The World Outdoors, which charges $1,995 for five nights, a hefty amount. Another five-nighter in Maine goes for $2,095, staying in hotels every night, though carrying on outdoor activities by day. See www.theworldoutdoors.com for details.
Where's your favorite active family vacation spot? Tell us about it on our Family Travel Message Boards.