Here are some mandatory safety regulations you must abide by for a fun camping experience.

Since 2015, camping site related safety accidents received by the Korea Consumer Agency Consumer Injury Surveillance System (CISS) for the past 5 years amounts to 195 cases in total. In 2019, there were 51 cases received, which was an 1.5 time increase compared to 34 cases in 2018. As more people enjoy camping, more safety accidents are expected to take place. Plus, this year’s very long rainy season, localized heavy rain, and typhoon caused a lot more safety accidents than usual. Then what kind of regulations should we abide by to avoid accidents that threaten our safety which could take place anytime, anywhere?

Choosing a Site with Good Drainage

Camping sites are mostly made with crushed stones, which assures good drainage.

Usually you’re supposed to put up your tents on small stones on camping sites. Gravel made by crushing big rocks is called crushed stones. They are usually used to filter out impurities in lauter tubs. The reason why crushed stones are laid out on camping sites is because your temperature is preserved better with it when dirt freezes during winter season. It also causes drainage by creating a middle ground between the gravel and the dirt when early morning dew and rainwater accumulates.

But putting up tent on crushed gravel may damage your tent as sharp stones scratches it and may cause you to sleep bad due to the uneven ground. You can use camp beds or place ground sheets to make the floor even. If you want more comfort, lay an air mat or automatic air charging mat on your inner tent. There’s one thing you have to be aware of; crushed stones are usually made from granite and gravel, but with more camping sites being created, there are quite a few places that make use of illegal crushed stones made with building waste. Such illegal crushed stones may contain a lot of asbestos and harmful material, so be aware.

Choosing a Tent Resistant to Rain and Wind

The first step to enjoying safe camping is choosing a good tent.

Purchasing camping products will get people worried about one thing. It’s water column, which is one of the functions always displayed on tents or outdoor clothing specifications. Simply put it regards waterproofing function; to be more exact, it’s the water pressure limitation of a product. Water column is generally displayed in specification regarding how a material can withstand 500mm drizzle, 1,000mm regular rain, and 1,500mm heavy rain. Under the domestic weather standards, appropriate water column would be 1,500mm, which can go against pretty much all sorts of rain.

But many factors affect waterproofing. Flysheet material especially needs to be strong and flexible as it directly faces rain and wind. It’s just like flexible trees withstanding typhoon better than hard wood. The same goes for fabric; higher specifications just get you thick and hard materials which won’t last long. Finishing on the joint between fabrics is also important. Tents or tarps with good sealing that coats the seam for perfect waterproofing work better than equipment with just greater water column.

Be Careful When Using Heating Appliances!

You need to be very careful when using electronic products on a camping site.

These days many people go on unplugged camping which does not make use of electronics, but for convenient camping, electricity is a must. These days almost all camping sites have equipment for the use electricity. But each private camping site has different electricity use limit, so make sure to contact a camping site before and find out its electricity capacity. Also, you have to let the whole electricity reel line out to use. If not, the coiled electricity line may heat up and cause fire.

Avoid Camping Sites Created by Cutting Down the Mountain.

You have to be careful about camping site landslides when there is heavy rain.

Landslide refers to the destruction of mountain land at once due to heavy rain, typhoon, or earthquake. With more frequent heavy rain caused by climate change, we are experiencing more and more landslide damages. As 70% of our land is mountainous, there is always a risk of landslide. It’s best not to camp on sites which were made by cutting down trees when there is heavy rain. Generally, landslides are prone to take place when there is more than 200mm of precipitation per day or 30mm per hour. Check the forecast and avoid going camping when heavy rain is expected.

If you come across unexpected heavy rain, you must be alert about your surroundings more than ever. Suspect landslide if rocks fall from hilly land and trees shake more than usual. Hillside cracks and collapse are also signs of landslide; trees shaking when there is no wind and hearing howls from the mountain or from the ground are signs of landslide that’s already taking place. If you see any signs of landslide, quickly evacuate and make use of the landslide information system (http://sansatai.forest.go.kr) to be aware of real time landslide notifications and alarms.

What to Watch Out for When Enjoying Car Camping

Convenient car camping also comes with rules.

You can enjoy car camping wherever if you have a car. But just because you have somewhere to park your car, it doesn’t mean you can enjoy car camping there. You can’t camp out in national, state, city parks, national forest trail, private properties, and seaside breakwater. Make sure you don’t park your car where car camping is prohibited according to each local government ordinance. It’s also illegal to cook in river area, areas around forest, parks, and service area parking lots.

You have to avoid parking on a slope to enjoy safe car camping. If you don’t have a choice, check your side break and place a base block to prevent the car from moving. Also watch out for any water around where you’re parked like rivers or lakes. Sudden summertime rain may flood the car. Lastly, it’s not so good to close all the windows when you are sleeping at night. Open just a finger width of your window for ventilation to avoid any headache caused by a lack of oxygen.

‘Safe Camping Culture’ Campaign Provided by Hyundai Motors and Korea Tourism Organization

Hyundai Motors leads dispersion of safe camping culture.

As more people are enjoying camping, Hyundai Motors is thinking about what corporate can do to settle safe camping culture. In August, Hyundai Motors began the safe camping culture campaign with Korea Tourism Organization. Korea Tourism Organization is to support providing information on around 2,400 camping sites registered on the certified camping site website ‘Go Camping (www.gocamping.or.kr)’ and safe camping contents to Hyundai Motors. Hyundai Motors will link this certified camping site information to its automobile navigation system and plan and disperse various automobile life contents to spread safe camping culture. Also, with the sudden increase in people enjoying camping these days, the environmental damage that will entail such popularity is a big concern. Hyundai Motors and Korea Tourism Organization will continue to cooperate to spread ‘eco friendly camping (eco camping) culture.’

Here’s hoping that the cooperation between Hyundai Motors and Korea Tourism Organization will bear fruit in settling fun and safe ‘new camping culture.’ Let’s not forget that when we all take part in being alert and taking steps, we will be able to enjoy safe, fun camping.