outdoor camping, camping stoveToday is cold, wet, and windy and we're seriously glad we're not outdoor camping today. Camping is our favorite activity, however, so once the roads dry off and the sun comes out, we'll be headed toward our favorite remote camping spot deep in the Sonoran desert just 20 miles from our home. Today, though, we're happy to be inside where the house is warm and dry. I spent a little time cruising around the web today using time I'd normally be gardening outside, but the ground is way too wet and soft to pull weeds or tend the flowers. I was looking for a new camping stove, and found this cool weatherproof lighter that we could actually put to good use today. The winds are supposed to blow up to 65 miles today, and if we were outdoor camping, this lighter would be perfect. It will light in winds up to 80 miles an hour, so if we were to have to light a fire outside today, this would be the perfect lighter.

It's called the Helios Nickel/Black Stormproof Lighter and it's made by Brunton. It's a great value and nothing is worse than needing a lighter that doesn't work,especially when we're outdoor camping. We also have a fireplace in the back yard that we love to use when we can't go camping, and after a rain like we're having today, this lighter would probably cut the mustard when trying to start the damp kindling so we can coax our thoroughly soaked wood to start burning. Our backyard fires at night are totally discretionary so if we can't get the fire to burn because it's too damp, we can go back inside and enjoy a toasty warm evening.

When we are outdoor camping, however, not being able to start a fire is a little more serious. We do have a propane tent heater just in case, but we love sitting around the campfire listening to the coyotes and the owls. Sometimes we remember to put a pile of wood under the truck so it won't get too wet to burn, but sometimes it slips our minds. With this lighter, though, we could probably get the paper started, even when it's windy to start drying out the kindling.

I found this perfect storm proof lighter at Bridges Outdoor World at http://bridgesoutdoorworld.com, a site I really enjoy accessing because of all the things they have that make outdoor camping even more fun. I've found that having good camping gear is the first step toward making sure we all have a great time when we're outdoor camping. When we're outdoor camping, we're dependent on our supplies, so when I see something like this lighter that works in near hurricane force winds, I snatch it up.