Backyard camp

Activity: Pitch the tent

What you need: Pop-up tent, sheets and blankets, sleeping bags or bed rolls, flashlights, bug spray

The thrill of outdoor camping in your own backyard, and on a budget? Believe it. A simple pop-up tent or even a blanket fort will do for that home not-sofar away from home.

“You can buy a good quality tent for $20 to $40,” said Linda Dieguez, director of outdoor adventures for the Boy Scouts of America, Alamo Area Council. “Throw a couple of blankets on the ground, throw your pillow out there, and have a really good time. Honestly, you could sleep (with) your backyard chairs and have your blanket over the top of (them).”

Wherever you set up camp, make sure you scan the site for any stones, ants or other unwanted guests. Also avoid overhead tree limbs. And if you have pets, add a poop sweep to your site prep.

Activity: Create a safe campfire

What you need: Twigs and dry leaves, grass or needles for tinder (the base of the fire); sticks for kindling (sticks stacked over or around the tinder); larger pieces of wood to fuel the fire; access to water from a hose; shovel; matches or lighter

It wouldn’t be a summer campout without an honest-tonature campfire. Follow these guidelines from smokeybear. com, the website for the Smokey Bear wildfire prevention campaign:

First, create a fire pit. Clear at least a 10-foot diameter area around the campfire site, removing anything that could catch fire. Dig a pit in the dirt about a foot deep and circle the pit with rocks. Your fire should be no larger than 2 feet in diameter.

To build your campfire, use dead wood found on the ground. Loosely pile a few handfuls of tinder in the center of the pit. For a long-lasting campfire, arrange the kindling in either a crisscross pattern over the tinder or as a four-sided frame around the tinder.

Light the tinder with a match or lighter and add more tinder as the fire grows. Blow lightly at the base of the fire, adding kindling and any larger firewood for fuel to keep the fire lit. Just keep the fire small and always supervised.

When it’s time to put out the fire, dump plenty of water on it and stir it with a shovel. Then dump more water. The site should be cold. If it’s hot to the touch, it’s not out.

Activity: Make s’mores with a twist

What you need: Marshmallows, chocolate bars, graham crackers or cookies, strawberries, Peeps

S’mores and summer camp go together like, well, chocolate, marshmallows and graham crackers. To doll up that campfire treat, Dieguez recommended adding a strawberry or roasting some sugary marshmallow Peeps.