Camping Ramble

Hello all. I have spent plenty of time in the outdoors, from motorbike travel and camping in the bush to trekking to climbing mountains overseas, slept in all types of conditions in alot of places. On the other hand, I havent done alot of camping, as in camping grounds, slightly more comfortable camping. Ok, I have done some, but have always tried to keep the theory of keep it simple. That theory may work in some situations, but here in WA, in summer, it can make things slightly uncomfortable and lessen the experience I think. Also I have a 4yr old daughter who I am trying to get out camping and experiencing things more, and I cant expect her to camp the way I normally would.

So, alot of stuff was brought to my attention when I went away camping last week for a few days. I went with my daughter to Sandy Cape, a few kms north of Jurien Bay In WA. Im not sure what sort of camping you would call it, it was just behind some dunes, by the beach, lots of little secluded camping spots, only facilities were toilets. Beautiful spot. My little patch of paradise was nice, it was a big patch of sand, surrounded by bushes, private, and really close to the beach, great spot. It was really hot though, which caused a few problems, more so for my daughter.

I have a couple of questions, and general things I noticed about camping, if anyone has any input that would be appreciated.

In regards to the sun and heat, how do people cope with this in an open area?. I had my 4 man tent, which in itself was fine, although in the mornings the sun hit it straight away and made it unbareable very quickly. Anything I can do to deal with this?. Also found it quite hard to get the breeze to blow through, even with windows and door open.

Trying to create shade during the day was also a bit hard. I have a 10 by 8 tarp, a few poles, ropes and pegs. No problem setting it up, but from first thing in the morning till late in the evening I found that I had to constantly move it to keep the sun out of our table/living area. I noticed people just down the road had a smallish gazebo with shade/fly screen zip up sides, would that be a better option?, looked quite handy to me. If I could get the shade/heat issue sorted out Im sure it would make a hell of a difference.

I have a 97 hilux twin cab, its my baby, I love it. I dont have anything organised in it for storage, and the rear tray doesnt really hold much as I have a tool box bolted in up the front. I have made a "T" rack for the towbar son I can throw my 2 man kayak on, wouldnt go anywhere near water without it, daughter absolulely loves it too. I was thinking about making a basket/cage, which attached on the window guard and onto the towbar rack, maybe only 500 to 600 mm wide, 150 mm deep, sitting halfway between tonneau cover and kayak, would give me alot more storage. I have a trailer but dont want to take that as the hilux is gutless. Good or bad?.

Good idea to have camping stuff specifically for camping?, certain stuff stored in plastic boxes so I can just grab the box knowing everything is in there?. I packed all I thought I needed for cooking, cutlery, plates, etc from kitchen and elsewhere only to find when I got there I didnt have some stuff i needed.

What about flooring for living area?. Not saying I need it, sand is ok to be walking around on, but do some people feel the need to have something on the ground in front of their tent/living area?.

Im not expecting all these to be answered. As I said, they are just a few observations I made. If i could improve on some things without the need for taking everything including the kitchen sink then I will do it. Tnanks for reading. Grant