Camp Fiasco

Ahhh... camping. The great outdoors. Getting away from it all.  Enjoying natural surroundings. Peace and quiet. Experiencing life as it was in simpler times.  Star-gazing. Toasting marshmallows over an open fire.  Enjoying conversation with loved ones.

Or not.

Granted, some would not call us "campers," as we don't wear our gear on our backs and hike into the woods where we set up camp and dig holes in the ground in lieu of the loo. But if I've learned anything this weekend, it's that nowadays "camping" means something different to everyone.

Take, for instance, the cabin dwellers.  You back up your vehicle to a cute mini house and bring your own bedding for the cabin beds. With a rustic roof over your head and no running water in-house, you're camping, right? And who needs to cook when there's pizza delivery. That's right. They'll deliver right to your cabin. No fuss, no muss. Just bring your own cooler of beer.

And then there are the RVers. Electric and water hookups ensure the comforts of home. Oh, wait --  scratch that. You need cable tv, too. Yes. And automatic jacks so that you don't have to get your hands dirty while you're setting up "camp."

We went to a small family-owned campground for our first camping expedition as a family of three.  We found the place by Googling around -- Sometimes you luck out when you choose your vacation spot by spinning the Internet wheel of fortune; sometimes not.

We were surprised when we pulled in to the campground and could see the campsites from the road. That's generally not a good sign. And to call the "sites" postage-stamp-sized would be generous. It was obvious that we'd barely have elbow room at this place. We swallowed hard as we set on our way to find our reserved site. #35. Right between #34 and #36. Wait a second -- I blinked --  that can't be all there is to it. Why, if anyone moves in behind us or next to us, we won't be able to breathe.

But that was it. We laughed. Well, at least we were right across from the playground. An instant hit with the little guy.

I kept busy chasing the tot around while hubby began digging out our gear. What? No ground cover for the tent? Oh well. Our tent goes up easily enough,  and it's a 9x9 beauty -- a regular palace to backpack campers, I'm sure. So we'd have to clean the bottom of the tent later. No biggie.

We're car-campers. We pile as much stuff into the crevices of our station wagon as we can. All but the ground cover and the hatchet -- which is used to pound the stakes into the ground. Though this isn't a problem when you haven't brought any stakes either. You know, those little things you attach to the corners of the tent & the ground to prevent your aerodynamically designed portable  home from flying away in a little puff of breeze?

So we anchored the tent with our gear -- a cooler, bags, etc. Not a long-term solution, but it would be good enough til we figured out a plan.

We noticed other things while setting up camp. Not only were the minuscule camp sites packed tightly together, but there were clearly a good number of seasonal campers on the grounds. Their permanent astro-turfed porches gave them away. As did their decorating efforts - tiny white fences and plastic flowers hiding the otherwise unsightly cable boxes. It seemed an odd place to go for a regular get-away, unless your regular home is a sardine can, but hey, it's a free country.

Something else that struck us: The Noise. The campground was rather close to a major highway. We didn't realize just how close it was to the interstate before we booked our site. Oh well, we figured it'd quiet down at night.

My husband anchored our tent with some straps and bungees found in the car, securing them with the picnic table and various other heavy objects, including our spare tire. Thank goodness I married a resourceful man.

With the tent stabilized, we changed into our swimsuits and headed off for a dip in the pool. The trip to the pool ended up being the highlight of our camping trip. The water in the "heated" pool was invigorating, and felt just right on this hot, humid summer day. It wasn't crowded, and the other campers were very friendly, as campers tend to be. Our little guy had a blast floating and kicking with his life vest. Eventually we had to drag him to land, blue lips and all. Meanies that we are. As we dried off, we noticed that the elderly woman who was doing water exercises with a pool noodle had brought along her own entertainment: some sort of book-on-tape, which she listened to on her boom-box. Apparently the woman was oblivious to the fact (or just didn't care) that there were others (including a toddler) using the pool, because anyone in the vicinity of the pool could hear the discussion of all things sexually explicit coming from her boom-box.

It was time to explore the rest of the campground anyway...

And I'll be writing more about it this week. Check back later for the dramatic conclusion -- where you'll hear about our peaceful campfire (not!), the "sleeping" arrangements -- I use the term loosely since it implies actual shut-eye; a photo shoot (??) ; a change in the weather; and finally, getting the flock out of Dodge.

*** More importantly, on Tuesday we'll welcome my friend Kristi's readers here from Interrupted Wanderlust,  for the announcement of the arrival of "Beastie!"  Kristi's baby will be born tomorrow morning, August 22nd. Will it be a boy named Rocco, Noah, or Brady? A girl named Ella or Isabella? Will he or she have lots of hair? We'll find out Tuesday morning! STAY TUNED! ***

 

Comments

[Sarcasmom]

We did a family camping weeknd------once!

[InterstellarLass]

I've never taken my kids camping. But it's on the list of things to do. They're a little older, so hopefully it'll be a little easier!

[Melody]

Sometimes the idea of camping sounds good. Then the practicality of it all sets in... (We're not great fans of camping around here!)

[Holly]

Bug keeps bugging me to go camping, and I nod and say "sure, someday SOON honey". But the truth is I DETEST camping! My Dad ruined me with the whole camping experience as a child... frigid cold winter camping, you name it. He took me. Yuck.

So, I admire your adventure, no matter what kind of camping you're doing!

[sher]

My husband and I used to camp, but we came to a parting of the ways over the idea of comfort. He only wanted to backpack, which was fine except for my inability to sleep when we did. So, we car camped, which I enjoyed very much because I was able to bring a better sleeping pad. Alas, he couldn't cope with the "wimpiness" of car camping. Now he climbs mountains, and I stay home and sleep!

[Katie]

You'll get the hang of it. :)

Don't worry, you probably can't screw up more than I did on our last trip when I forgot to pack a lighter. My husband wasn't amused when I suggested he start the fire "Survivor Style."

[Barbara]

Can't wait for the next installment!