Tent Camping! Where we’ve been.
Where do I begin? Might as well start out in the sticks shivering in a tent with a few inches of snow on the ground. We’ve been in some crazy situations. Rain, snow, sweltering heat and freezing cold. We are veteran tent campers. Two person tents, four person tents, 6-8 person tents… Each tent an upgrade in the moment that made us feel a bit more comfortable in the situations that nature threw at us. We slept on the ground, upgraded to air mattresses, kept warm with our blankets, felt at home with our pillows, and always had coolers full of food… We had everything we needed to last a few days or a full weekend out in the wild.. We purchased propane heaters for those cold winter trips and hung battery operated fans to keep us cool on those hot summer nights.
We were always the ones pulling into the campground around dusk, setting up camp after dark, and getting dinner made close to midnight. We wouldn’t have it any other way.
We were a young family. My girls were young. We all learned the value of team work. We had our moments.. Camping happy or camping grumpy… Its good to have a balance. Sometimes! Each of us had tasks to complete. Setting up tents, blowing up air mattresses, prepping the food, getting the beds made, making dinner, hearing the last zip of the tent flap… We all played our part.
There’s something about the sound of tent zippers in the night. You know you’re out in nature with the sounds of frogs, crickets and the occasional raccoon. We all grew up planning for the next weekend camping trip. Making lists, shopping for food, loading up the truck and trekking out to a campground nearby. Why we always chose to head out after work on a Friday night… tempers were hot like the heat of the sun but there we were all piled in our little pickup making the best of our family time together.
As I am writing this my wife Natalie is asking if we were on the same camping trips. The temper part is right… Natalie prepared and cooked the meals and we all enjoyed eating it. From start to finish we were glad to get back in our beds and get back to our daily lives. As much fun as tent camping was it felt taxing and exhausting rather than relaxing. But that didn’t stop us from going out again and again.
Every summer, millions of people and families go out in the wilderness seeking something beyond the daily grind of everyday life. They go camping. The idea of voluntarily leaving a comfortable home to sleep on hard ground under the stars and cook food over a fire has such a pull on our hearts we spend millions of dollars on gear, food, campers and rv’s that will take us away from the normal comforts of home.
Go Travel Trailer is about exploring the world of “Camping”. Where we’ve been, where we are and where we are going. We hope you will join us on our journey of reflection and adventure.
Please comment below – What is your first memory of camping in the great outdoors? Did you camp in a tent or did you start out in a camper? How many nights did you spend under the stars? We look forward to hearing your stories.
