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        Daily Chat >> General Posts >> So, who here goes camping?
        
(Message started by: Melissa on Apr 30^th, 2008, 5:12pm)

Title: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Melissa on Apr 30^th, 2008, 5:12pm

I'm getting the fever!!! The first time we'll make it out this year is when we go to Spooner (far northwest WI). I'm nervous about camping with Ava, but we're gonna wing it and see how it goes!

:)

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Brew on Apr 30^th, 2008, 5:27pm

Camping? I think I did that once. You're talking about a Hilton without a pool, right?

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by jimmers on Apr 30^th, 2008, 5:46pm

Yeah,

To me the "Great Outdoors" is where the car is parked! :D

Have fun!

Jimmers

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Linda_Howell on Apr 30^th, 2008, 5:52pm

LOL....I'm with Brew and Jimmers.

"Roughing it" does NOT appeal to me in the slightest.

dirt, mosquitoes, outhouses, flies, ants, burnt food, loud neighbors all around...yeah, sounds lovely. ;;D

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Jackie on Apr 30^th, 2008, 5:55pm

Did that when the kids were little....it was fun then.
Now my camping consists of a nice hotel with a lounge..... :)

It's great fun for the kids....as long as they're having fun you will too.....enjoy!!!

Much love,
Jackie

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Melissa on Apr 30^th, 2008, 5:58pm

Ahhhhhhhhhh, Spooner is an experience where you go once, and you want to return year after year. Driveway to the shack is a 1/2 mile back in the woods to a clearing that is right on the water of Rice Lake. Bonfires, howling, drinking while lounging on floaties and panfish bigger than your hand are what awaits! There is a portapottie (used to be an outhouse), but I prefer my luggable loo. :) Inside the shack you pump the water from a well and gas powers the fridge, lights and stove. We have our pop-up camper due to Jesse's asthma problems, so we're spoiled in that aspect, but we did many years in a tent too.

The place is an eden and in the mornings, when there is a haze on the lake that looks like glass, you can see and hear the Loons calling. It's exciting too when you hear a big bass jump. :D

Oh, and it's hiliarious watching your extended family try and filet fish under the influence and your husbands Aunt down a bottle of Tequila Rose in one afternoon. :o Did I mention my First Aid kit never gets a rest? ;;D

I wish I could bring you all there with me...

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Linda_Howell on Apr 30^th, 2008, 6:08pm

Post pics of the loons.

All of them.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Melissa on Apr 30^th, 2008, 6:11pm

on 04/30/08 at 18:08:26, Linda_Howell wrote:

All of them.

[smiley=grin2.gif]

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by barry_sword on Apr 30^th, 2008, 6:15pm

Sounds like a great time Mel. We used to camp all the time but as time went on we did it less and less.

Our campsite now has a deck, full size BBQ, great tunes, beer frig with food, hot shower with a real toilet, comfy bed, no bugs, and a HD system for the Sunday races. Now that is roughing it! [smiley=laugh.gif]

I really do miss it now that spring is here. :)

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by cynjeep89 on Apr 30^th, 2008, 6:36pm

I love camping!

26 days till we get outta Dodge for a while.

Love camping right outside of Woodstock, NY.

The one campsite we had was about 20 feet from a beautiful mountain stream. Woke up each morning, grabbed a hot cup of java, plopped my butt in a chair and watched the people fishing and floating by in their canoes.

Gotta get back up to NY State soon....sigh.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Linda_Howell on Apr 30^th, 2008, 7:32pm

Uh-huh....but Cyn, camping in an RV is a tad different then sleeping on the ground. In a damp soggy tent. in the cold. with the bears and the loons and the wolves around ya. ;)

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by cynjeep89 on Apr 30^th, 2008, 8:27pm

I like tent camping, too and remember the bugs, snakes and a visit from a skunk. It goes with the territory :)

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by AussieBrian on Apr 30^th, 2008, 8:50pm

A bit of pre-planning goes a long way, too, as a lot of meals can be par-cooked in advance which makes it so much easier in camp (corned beef, roasts, some veges and the like). Always taking care of hygiene, of course.

Using lots of onion and/or garlic keeps bacteria to a minimum as does the use of paper plates and disposable cutlery. How we ever cooked in the bush before the advent of aluminium foil I don't know, but remember to take extra.

Most important of all, after the beer, is popcorn to cook in the evening.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Tara Ann on Apr 30^th, 2008, 9:00pm

Camping?! [smiley=gocrazy.gif] If I ever go again it will be way too soon!

Used to love it though.

But I went with the kids as babies, toddlers, and on up and it went pretty well for the most part. I'm sure it will be a good thing with little Ava. All that fresh air, she should sleep well.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Argonaut on Apr 30^th, 2008, 9:16pm

I love camping but don't do enough! Don't mind roughing it, to be honest. When I'm out in nature, it makes me feel more centred and - this will be my inner hippy speaking - more at one with the world. It's easy to forget the finer things in life due to all the distractions of the modern world.

Most of my camping experiences have been at various music festivals. There's always a great atmosphere, lots of relaxed people, and lots of stories. There was one memorable experience where I joined an impromptu campfire party where there was about 5 guitars [I was one], a ukelele, a saxophone, a blues harp and 20+ people singing. That lasted well over six hours and I got very drunk ;;D

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Mosaicwench on Apr 30^th, 2008, 9:34pm

on 04/30/08 at 17:27:50, Brew wrote:

Camping? I think I did that once. You're talking about a Hilton without a pool, right?

God, but I love that man!!!

The closest I get to camping is pitching our tent for micro-brew and his friends in the back yard. We can roast marshmallows in the fire-pit and then come inside the house to air-conditioning, indoor plumbing, a comfortable mattress and no neighbors.

Mama don't camp - ever.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by HappyElaine on Apr 30^th, 2008, 9:44pm

Go for it Mel and have a good time !

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by George_J on Apr 30^th, 2008, 10:45pm

Camping? Yeah, I do that.

Tent camping mostly, in connection with my fly-fishing jaunts. Sometimes the others come along, sometimes not.

Last summer I camped up along the Secesh River by myself for a couple days. Ended up being kept awake all night by a porcupine who kept coming back to chew on the tent ropes. Couple hours sleep, then--"twang"...."twang"...all over again. It's very difficult to discourage a porcupine, and it's not as though you can swat it, or anything.

Here's something I wrote a few years ago about my most memorable camping trip--ever--when I taught a fly-fishing class to a group of kids in conjunction with my daughter's summer-school program:

http://www.virtualflybox.com/articles/article.php?id=25

Can't do it anymore, though...the insurance company didn't like it. :'(

Ah well--there's still kids to teach, and kids friends, and grandchildren one day, perhaps....

Have a great time, Mel. Sounds like a wonderful place, and your description of the place makes me want to go.

Best wishes,

George

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by kayarr on May 1^st, 2008, 1:24am

Neat article George. I am going to have my Dad teach me to fly fish. He is in the hospital recovering from a partial knee replacement but will be back at the river as soon as possible I am sure.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by George_J on May 1^st, 2008, 1:33am

on 05/01/08 at 01:24:17, kayarr wrote:

Neat article George. I am going to have my Dad teach me to fly fish. He is in the hospital recovering from a partial knee replacement but will be back at the river as soon as possible I am sure.

Well--you know there's an open invitation to anyone here who happens to find themselves in Idaho to go on a fishing trip, eh? I can show you some country.

Just putting that out there. ;)

All the best,

George

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by AussieBrian on May 1^st, 2008, 2:18am

While camping should be fun, there's no reason that it can't also be a great adventure and a learning experience. One of the jobs most people hate is commonly the catering but this can actually be made the highlight of the whole trip.

I cook extensively in the bush, over an open fire and often for quite large groups, and what you can't do with a camp oven probably isn't worth doing anyway.

I believe the same thing in America is called a Dutch oven, that is, a heavy cast-iron cook pot with a lid, but here in Oz we've taken things a bit further and my particular favourite is the Bedouri which is made from spun steel instead so it's less fragile and far more versatile.

They need only a tiny fire to turn out the bestest ever roast beef and three veg, use them as saucepan for soups and stews or as a steamer, flip over the lid and there's your frying pan and so the list goes on.

Aussie damper is pretty much a poor man's bread, compulsory with every meal, and can easily be practised beforehand in your camp oven at home. In camp, it's a great way to get the youngsters involved.

PM me anytime for recipes or specific details of meals but in the meantime I've found this site http://www.aussiecampovencook.com/index.htm which I'm going to spend a bit of time going through myself.

After the meal, of course, there's the beer. And while that's happening a camp oven over an open fire in the bush makes the best popcorn that ever walked.

Add a starry night, good company and a song and you'll see why I have trouble with cities.

Cheers and beers,

Brian out back.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by ClusterChuck on May 1^st, 2008, 2:41am

Ah, CAMPING! I used to do a lot of it, in my day, so to speak ...

With the wife and brats ... ummm ... I mean kids, we started tent camping, then went to a tent trailer, then a full size 17 1/2 foot trailer, then a 24 footer, then a 35 footer, then down to a 25 footer, and then the wife decided it was time to down size, so we did .. we bought a 28 footer with two slide outs!

We had some GREAT times camping!

I was also the scout master in town, and used to take the boys on a LOT of camping trips, all in tents.

I had a rule with the boy scouts, though, they were only allowed to cook beans and hot dogs or hamburgers on one meal. The rest had to be bigger and better.

We cooked full turkeys, chickens, cakes, bread, pies, hams, roasts, poor man's stew and lots of other neat things! GREAT learning experience for the guys, (and ME too!)

One of the greatest things we cooked was meat loaf. Bring cantelope along, then cut it in half, eat the meat out of it, and then fill the shell with your meat loaf, wrap in foil, and then place onto hot coals. YUMMY! And NO pans to clean up!

We even went out camping one weekend, in the winter, where it got down to 14 degrees F, BELOW zero! No one got a cold, or had any trouble keeping warm, even at night, on the ground, in a tent. It is called proper planning and execution!

Ah, the good old days!!!

But now I am with Brew and Mosaicwench ... A Hilton with hot tub and warm (or cool) room with a soft, comfy bed!

Chuck

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by jimmers on May 1^st, 2008, 8:00am

Actually Mel we do go camping. Our tent is 16"X80', three bedrooms,, two full baths, air conditioning and satellite TV with the Milwaukee local stations and a deck to sit on and drink lemonade ;)

I just love to stroll through the woods on the 4-wheeler, gets a guy pretty tired ya know, whew! :D

Jimmers who hopes the raspberries and apples grow bigger this year.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by BarbaraD on May 1^st, 2008, 8:28am

Since it's no one but US here -- I'll tell my "camping" story.

Back when I was "young" (and yes I can remember back that far), Bill and I had been living in Europe for a couple of years. When we got back to the states all our friends were talking about the vacations they'd taken. NOT to be outdone, I shot my mouth off - "Oh Bill and I spent two weeks on the Riveria and had a great time." NEVER did I mention to anyone that we spent it in a TENT with blow up air-matteresses that deflated each night. :D

Hey, we were RIGHT on the beach and it WAS beautiful and we didn't know no different - there were beautiful hotels all around... I NEVER lied about anything ..

Spent a LOT of time camping when we were YOUNG --(and not so young). Remember when we graduated from that old tent to a pop-up camper -- Happy Dayz!!! (no more creepy crawlies visiting during the night) And then to the self contained camper - wow!! The motor home was heaven (just sold it a couple of months ago).

Have fun Mel...

Hugs BD

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Grandma_Sweet_Boy on May 1^st, 2008, 8:32am

on 04/30/08 at 21:34:34, Mosaicwench wrote:

Mama don't camp - ever.

Pat said it for me too! ;) Creature comforts - my version of camping!

Carol

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by john_d on May 1^st, 2008, 8:43am

I love camping if it's a nice area with good campers. If the other campers at the park are rude or someone in my party is a whiner, it sux.

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by George_J on May 1^st, 2008, 10:10am

on 05/01/08 at 08:43:18, john_d wrote:

I love camping if it's a nice area with good campers. If the other campers at the park are rude or someone in my party is a whiner, it sux.

Boy howdy, I hear you. Nothing worse than a whiner in the rain.

On the other hand, someone like Brian who not only likes to camp-cook, but probably brings beer is the gold standard.

Best,

George

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Rosybabe on May 1^st, 2008, 12:51pm

I only camp once at the beach....never, never again!!! mosquitoes and crabs popping out of the sand all night long!! :o...talk about being awake for hours..I only slept when the sun was out :(

I have to have a clean bed and a clean bathroom, don't care about air conditionig and cold water is fine too, but not creepy crawlers for me...I absolutely hate roaches!!! :(

but have fun Mel!! :)

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Bob P on May 1^st, 2008, 1:58pm

This is where I'm camping for the rest of my life:
http://www.pahlow.net/temp/panorama1.jpg

Bought these 3 acres last year in the Northern California Sierra mountains. Have the middle fork of the Feather River out my back door. Working on the house drawings now.

Just too old to sleep on the ground any more!

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by cynjeep89 on May 1^st, 2008, 7:19pm

Wow, Bob. Looks like a beautiful place. Congrats!

Title: Re: So, who here goes camping?
Post by Mosaicwench on May 1^st, 2008, 10:46pm

on 05/01/08 at 08:32:17, Grandma_Sweet_Boy wrote:

Pat said it for me too! ;) Creature comforts - my version of camping!

I knew there was a reason I love you so much!!!

Kindred souls!