Any recreational tent campers here?

I imagine there are tent campers here, but I figured I'd ask.

The wife and I enjoy tent camping. We try to go at least once every year. Unfortunately because of my wife's medical condition, we haven't gone in a couple years.

Anyways, my friend and I have a plan to take his 9 y.o. camping in the next month or so to desensitize him from electronics. He is addicted to video games and has no interest being outside with nature. It's partially due to my buddies ex-wife using video games as a babysitter. I'm hoping to do some hiking and canoeing just to get his kid to see there is more to life than sitting inside all day. This is the same kid I tried to get to pet a toad two years ago and he ran away screaming like a little girl.

This is my setup. I have a Cabela's 10x14 two room tent, but I have a king size air mattress, so it all works out. I have a 12x9 screen tent that I keep my camp kitchen in. Its amazing that all this stuff including duffel bags, coolers, food, totes, bedding, fishing gear, etc. all fits in the back of my Durango.

What do my fellow GRM campers take with them?

good luck

Money.

We have been tent camping ever since my wife refused to set foot in our mouldy travel trailer ever again. I crunched it up with my excavator and threw it in the dump truck, and we went out and bought a massive 12 man tent. With three kids, its just about perfect. We take it camping two or three times every summer, including week long road trips where I get to set the bitch up every berkeleying night. Other than that daily knashing of teeth, its great. Its warm and dry, roomier than a lot of tent trailers and campers and it goes in the garden shed for the winter. Thats the best part right there.

Dont forget s'mores. Kids love those. You could always use the trip as an opportunity to teach teh kids about how to build and start a fire, fire safety, maybe knife safety? dunno, up to you

I grew up camping and backpacking and for the longest time was of the "pack light" mentality.

Then when I had my van I spent a few years going to vanning events, so having a van, I was able to take a lot of E36 M3 with me. I typically have a power strip, extension cord, some rope lights to throw around the site so you can see without a flashlight, a camp grill. Nice to bring a small radio too if you have access to power. I keep everything stored in tupperware containers for easy packing and unpacking, 1 box for all the electronic stuff, 1 for the cooking/other stuff (like rope, etc..), and 1 small one for "food" stuff, like utensils, paper plates, paper towels, beer coozys, a few knives, etc..

So here's all that stuffed into my Accent And set up This trip we took a tiny 2 man tent I borrowed from my dad, that you cant see, its set up behind our friends tent there...

We used to haul a huge 3 room tent, just because it had a ton of space, but we recently got a new 2 man tent that was easy to set up and was lightweight. And now that I am really getting my wife into hiking and camping, I hope that we can get into backpacking again in a few years.

Yes, we just got a used pop up trailer , I'll post more from my computer, on my iPad right now.

IIRC, when I was a kid, the best camping was when we were very near a beach.

I don't recall liking hiking much, though. Water. even at 50F.

We camp every once in a while, and I still love it. The food seems to taste better. A hot dog cooked on the end of a stick over a fire... wow.

(last time we went, I did a paella over the fire pit. good lord, that was great)

Whats with the pics of dry camp sites? Thats not camping. You have to be saturated like the Calvin comic. Up here in the rainforest, thats not humor, thats reality.

Bring his bike.

The thing my kids like most about camping is getting up and going off on their own without the laundry list of rules they get at home about where/what not to do.

It s basically "Put on some sunblock, don't go swimming alone and be back for lunch".

I wasnt aware there was any other sort of camping. Bringing your big old RV with running water and beds is not camping. The people at my work actually thought I was the weird one for using a tent. Last time I went camping though we basically just brought a grill, charcoal, hotdogs, tent, sleeping bag, flashlight. But it was for a SAE Baja endurance race so we also had two of the cars and tools.

Depends on the time of year and situation. If I am soloing it I use a smaller tent that can strat to my pack and is big enough for me the dog and my gear, that setup is good for everything but hard winters. If it is me and SWMBO we have a couple options for 3 season one is a large dome that can easily be packed by the two of us, one carrying the main dome, the other packing poles and fly. For winter and hunting season I have a large heavy canvas cabin tent that cannot really be packed in but it keeps you really dry and warm and fits a king size air matress just fine.

Other things that always go with me when camping include:

• multiple ways to start a fire
• knives fixed and folders
• entrenching tool
• FAK
• fishing gear
• rifle and handgun, if Tiff is with me she has her gun as well.
• maps of the area
• food of course
• water and normally extra containers and a way to purify water
• cord, rope, duct tape
• hatchet
• small hand crank radio
• small set of binoculars
• extra set of clothes

There are a few other odds and ends but that is the basic setup that is in my main pack. Depending on conditions. I will change things up a bit. I basically camp in the mountains, desert, high plains, rain forest and on the coast. All in the same state.

My idea of camping is "should I take the stairs or the elevator to the all-you-can-eat-buffet?" The BEST camping includes endless hot Air conditioning, water, cable, and free wireless.

It's been a while since we have gone camping, but it was fun. As far as camp vehicles, our best one was a Camaro SS. Hey, you need all that torque when up in the Colorado mountains.

fritzsch wrote: I wasnt aware there was any other sort of camping. Bringing your big old RV with running water and beds is not camping.

That's exactly what I was thinking. I generally just bring a tent, sleeping bag, pocket knife, a cooler with food/water/beer, and a skillet. Anything else is excessive.

That should be a good trip. I do not have anything to add, but Red Green has some good tips.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0rOIZlmvJE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqktgQJFoc4

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Bring his bike. The thing my kids like most about camping is getting up and going off on their own without the laundry list of rules they get at home about where/what not to do. It s basically "Put on some sunblock, don't go swimming alone and be back for lunch".

That was part of the story I left out.

His son is 9 and is "scared" to learn to ride a bike. This past weekend my buddy tried again to get him out on it and instead his son went screaming into the house. When he went inside to get him, the kid had a temper tantrum and ran back out of the house screaming running around in the street screaming. Luckily the whole neighborhood came outside to see what was going on. He told me, he's waiting until his kid decides he wants to get on the bike.

So it's safe to say, that the bike will be staying behind.

bring the bike. he's gonna get bored real quick after the instant gratification he's used to and the likelihood of him giving the bike a try at that point is high.

Sounds like the guy's kid really needs to toughen up. I mean it sounds like he is in no way shape or form ready for reality.

Okay, so I read the topic:

Any recreational tent campers here?

And I thought, what other type of tent camper might there be?

The bike isn't going to go with, we are going for two nights and we're going to be hiking, fishing, canoeing, etc. We probably won't have the room anyways, we're trying to take one vehicle.

The kid does need to toughen up.

we've done a fair bit of what many call "glamping" or glamor camping. usually in conjunction with an offroad driving trip. we did big bend a couple years ago, and i camped my way up to colorado instead of flying for work, and then spent a week in and around Silverton with my grandfather, but that part was in an RV. most recently i've done a couple weekend 1 or 2 night trips to parks on lake travis near austin. i've been to padre island a few times beach camping and its always a fun time. i usually bring a propane tank with a tree that the lantern screws onto for lighting up the camp, and a propane stove mostly for cooking breakfast, then a grill grate that sits over the fire to cook on. we have all of our camping supplies in two rubbermaid bins in the garage so all we have to do is load up the cooler, the bins with the cooking and camping stuff, toss a couple chairs and the roll-up table in, bags with clothes and hit the road. we'll usually stop on the way out of town for whatever we're cooking.

here is some of the fun from the last trip to lake travis. guy backed in to unload his skis, trying to find the best spot, still got his 2wd stuck. turns out one ski wouldn't start and the other had some other issue. he originally asked if i could hook up to his trailer and pull the skis out after i pulled him out, but instead i just had him load up the skis and i'd pull it all out at once.
http://s271.photobucket.com/albums/jj151/bryanjstrong/97%20Sea%20Doo%20XP/?action=view&current=IMG_0125.mp4

bludroptop wrote: And I thought, what other type of tent camper might there be?

There are some homeless dudes living in one under the onramp bridge a few miles from here.

SyntheticBlinkerFluid wrote: The bike isn't going to go with, we are going for two nights and we're going to be hiking, fishing, canoeing, etc. We probably won't have the room anyways, we're trying to take one vehicle. The kid does need to toughen up.

i suppose telling the kid not to be a Bob Costas is out of the question, too?

It's probably been said at some point to be honest.

In reply to Strizzo:

I like the term Glamping. I suppose that is what I do when I go to the track. I camp in my 22' race trailer with a nice army cot, microwave, beer cooler, fans and so on. Got a generator for running the lights, radio... welder if necessary :)