Backpacking!
Have you ever been backpacking? If you haven’t you ought to try it. One of the great things about backpacking is that you can get into some areas that are so beautiful and there are not a lot of people. I can’t say I am really experienced because I have only done it twice. I am really grateful to a friend who got my boys interested. They love it and are now sharing that love with the rest of the family. Now I have to say that it is tough on me. But what I can say is no matter how old you are you can learn something new.
Rain
One thing that I have never liked about tent camping is having the rain. And when you go backpacking into the wilderness, tent camping is the only option. When we headed to our spot it was beautiful but it was not long when things started looking suspicious. We got to our camping spot, hurriedly set up our tents and barely made it inside before it started to thunder, lightning, and have pouring rain.
We went backpacking with friends and now we were all lined up in two-man tents. And one of my son’s had a tarp tent, what good is that in the rain. We ended up spending the evening and night huddled in our tents.
The next day did not look much better. When we got up it was not raining. So after having breakfast, we started thinking about how we could make this day fun despite the rain. It is amazing what you can do with what you have if you put your mind to it. We took the three two-man tents and put them together and cover the center part with my son’s tarp tent. Then we were able to open the doors to our tents and sit around visiting and playing games. It did let up a little so we could take a little hike. It was such a beautiful place with lots of little lakes, flowers, and streams.
The big hike
The next day was still looking cloudy but there was some sun. So we decided to take the risk of heading out hoping it would not pour rain. Because at that point how would you get warm. It turned out to be a beautiful day. Yes, we had a sprinkle here and there but nothing drastic. We were actually thankful for the clouds. The sun came out a few times, which made it really hot but for the most part, there was a cloud cover. It was a long a grueling hike but the view was spectacular.
Sunscreen
It seems when there are clouds no one worries about protecting your skin from the scorching sun but WARNING. When there are clouds it is a time when you can really get burned. You think you don’t have a need to protect your skin but you do. A lot of us got burned because we did not wear protection.
I really have not liked sunscreen over the years because they are so toxic but as of late I have been making my own with some more natural ingredients. Here is a general recipe that a person can try.
Natural Sunscreen
3/4 cup Coconut oil (antibacterial and antifungal, coconut oil for
skin is an excellent moisturizer)
1 T. Bees Wax (helps soften and soothe skin.)
2 T. Zinc Oxide (zinc oxide protects against UVA and UVB light
rays and is often used as a natural, non-toxic
sunscreen to prevent burns)
2 T Shea Butter (soothing to the skin)
12 drops of doTERRA Helichrysum essential oil (Helichrysum
keeps the skin looking young and healthy.)
You want a double boiler or I take a metal bowl put in my Bees Wax in and then put it in a pan so it is above a couple of inches of water. As the water gets hot it melts the wax. Then add the coconut oil and Shea butter. (It is harder to melt the wax.) Make sure it is mixed well. Take from the heat and add your Zinc Oxide. If you want higher protection you can add more zinc oxide.
“Safest Baby Sunscreens For Your Baby” is a great article on some healthier options. With all the toxic things out there we need healthier options. To me, if it isn’t good for my baby it is not good for me.
Remember, no matter what sunscreen you use, you need to put it on several times a day as you are enjoying your day in the sun.
Nature
The most incredible thing about backpacking is the nature. It is worth all the sore muscles and sleepless nights. I have never been to a more incredible, beautiful place. Pictures can’t even do it justice.
Imagine in your mind a meadow that is green with wildflowers everywhere of all different kinds. And through the meadow, a stream is running. Then you look up and there are incredible mountains of beauty that is not explainable.
And then there are the lakes. The colors are 
unimaginable. They are not full of pollution. They are crisp and clean. We filtered water out of the lake and it was so incredibly good. There are little islands and greenery all around. It is so beautiful it is hard to explain.
Where there are water and mountains there are also 
waterfalls. Everywhere you looked you could see a falls coming down from somewhere. Some were so far away that you could not see them well but you could hear them as they crashed over the rocks falling hundreds of feet down the mountain.
It was the home to all kinds of creatures, large and small. It is an incredible place for the creatures to live in. Way out away from city life. It is serene and peaceful. To me, that is where they belong, instead of back at my house destroying my yard and coming into my house. The mice were everywhere but it did not bother me because that is where they belong. I am not sure the name of all the creatures but it was wonderful to watch them, chipmunks, ground squirrels, frogs, etc. We did not see any really big animals like deer or bear, which is fine, especially the bear.
Thinking
This trip in nature started me thinking what an incredible God we serve. I also started thinking about what spiritual lessons I could find from our adventure.
There were the rolling hills filled with beautiful greenery along with a multitude of different flowers scattered throughout. You could have picked them and had a variety that would have made a beautiful bouquet. This reminded me of how beautiful heaven will be but also the results of sin. We could have picked those flowers and made a beautiful bouquet but the beauty would have lasted a short time because as soon as we picked them they would start to die. It is the same with us as soon as we come into this world we start to slowly die because of sin. But even though we may die physically if we have surrendered our lives to Jesus when He comes in the clouds, He will raise us up and take us home with Him and we will live eternally. And then there will be no more death! Praise the Lord!
Sunscreen
Whenever you are out in the sun it is always good to protect yourself with sunscreen, even when it is cloudy. When the clouds are out you think your safe but really you are not. A lot of the sunscreens are so toxic with chemicals that you wonder if they are safe to even use.
What sunscreen made me think of is how we need to protect ourselves from sin. Sin can “burn” us and when we least expect it like we get sunburned when it is cloudy. What is the best protection? Can there be things out there that are “toxic”? There are things out there that are toxic. We can think that it will protect us spiritually but can it really. Does it have some real truth mix with a little error? It is like the sunscreen, it can have a lot of good stuff to protect us from sin but then there are a few chemicals that can be toxic to us that really defeats the purpose of protection. So what is the best spiritual protection? Can we rely on men/women? God uses men/women to share the protection of truth with us but how do we know it is not “toxic”?
The only safeguard is the Word of God. We need to put on the whole armor of God as it says in Ephesians 6:11-17. We also need to be as the Bereans and “search the scriptures daily,” to see if what we are being told or taught lines up with scripture. See Acts 17:10-11. And then “if they speak not according to this Word” we can know there is no light in them. See Isaiah 8:20. We need to be sure we are using the nontoxic spiritual “sunscreen” to protect ourselves, God’s Word.
Rocks
We went for a climb up the mountain. We climbed up the mountain an elevation of 2,000 feet. Most of the way up it was big boulders and areas of smaller rocks. We had to be careful when there were the smaller rocks because they could loosen and start to roll down the hill. There were two things that could happen, if someone was below us those rocks could hit them and cause some real damage or we could slip and start sliding down the mountain. There were a couple of things that we tried to do. We wanted to stay on the big boulders as much as possible and if we did have to go through an area where there was no choice but the smaller rocks we did not want someone following us. The best place for them to be was walking beside you.
This made me realize how important it is to stay on the Big Rock, Jesus Christ. As we “hike” along in this life, there are so many loose “rocks”. If we choose to get off the Solid Rock there are two things that can happen. First, we can fall into sin and secondly if someone is following us we can lead them off the Sold Rock. And they can get damaged by sin or even lose their eternal life. We need to stay on the Solid Rock.
Rain
The rain reminds me of the trials we go through as Christians. Just like we brought our tents together and covered the cap with a tarp tent, we as Christians need to draw together under the “Tarp Tent” Jesus and help each other through the difficult times. It is so much better than trying to travel alone. Travel together, pray together and study God’s Word together.
Dear Father,
Thank You for nature and what we can learn through it. I thank You for being the Solid Rock that we can rely on. Thank You also that when we do get off on the loose rocks You are there to pull us back onto the Solid Rock, all we have to do is reach out our hand. I also thank You for Your patience and love.
In Jesus Name,
Amen
Put the spiritual “sunscreen” on today, stay on the Solid Rock, Jesus, and stay in fellowship with fellow believers.
Love you all!
Have you ever been camping, backpacking or just hiking? What adventure do you have to share? I would love to hear it. Please share below.