Cooking is always a big hit with the spectators. If you have some paper plates, and plastic spoons, you can give them a taste of whatever you have, and make a friend. People like to get the recipies, so make a printed form listing all the recipes you will be using during a camp-out, so you can pass them out to people. If you ask for donations to defray copying expenses, you can raise quite a bit of money for the club. People are very generous.
We have people casting round balls over a fire, sewing, weaving, doing bead work, whittling, doing leather projects, making jewelry, just manning " trade blankets ", giving tours of lodges and explaining all the gear and how its used. We once drew a huge crowd that sat around in a large ring watching us put up a Cheyenne style Tipi. Later, they gathered around again, to what us take it down. All the things you take for granted are fascinating to the uninformed. The people ask great questions, and if you need an extra hand, they are always willing to lend a hand to you.
One time, I took the makings for some Japanese style stir-fry, cutting up vegetables and meat at home, so that they were already bite size, and only had to be heated over the fire. I boiled some water and cooked up a pot of rice. I put some apples and pineapple in my meat and vegetable mix that I fried in my frying pan, and the smell brought not only members of the club running to see what was cooking, but plenty of the spectators. I did have extra paper bowls and spoons, and had made enough food to feed a dozen people, so I had plenty to dish out in samples to everyone. The club members thought we had the best meal of anyone, and were kicking themselve for not thinging about doing something simple like stir fry themselves. They also liked our deserts. Camping out does not have to be a trial of eating bland or boring food.
One of our club members cooked the meat from a Beaver in a pressure cooker at home, then threw in his favorite barbeque sauce, and brought it out to a raw winter camp in early March. He brought enough sandwich buns to serve BBQ Beaver the whole weekend to anyone who wanted to try it. It was delicious.
