How did you get into Rving or camping?

The reason I RV is a love story. I RV to be close to my wife. I me her 41 years ago and her family was very big into camping. They went camping every weekend that the weather allowed. I just wanted to be close to her, in her presence, so the only way I could accomplish that goal was to wrangle an invite to go camping with them.

Married that great gal one year later. The very last of the cash given as wedding gifts was spent on camping gear. Tent, stove, and all of the things that go with it were purchased. Never mind that I didn’t even have a job at that point! Camping was number one in my wife’s life.

We spent our lives weekend and vacation camping. Every time we went, at the end of the trip, my wife would say: I don’t want to go home. I could stay here forever.” In June of 2006, she got her chance. We sold everything, bought a camper and a truck and set off on the full time lifestyle.

We have no regrets. After 41 years, I still want to be with her. Now, she is virtually with arms reach 24/7. For a man in love with his wife, it doesn’t get any better. Oh, by the way, the camping is not bad either!

My grandparents hooked me with the lavish reality of a 1970's era Executive in all it's avocado green glory ;)

We don't camp to be in the woods. We like being with friends away from home / bills / laundry. :)

I also love the play house quality of living in our 21' FW. It's fun to tidy up the tiny space. Somehow that thrill doesn't translate to a full size house - much as I love it.

As a kid, we went all over the USA camping in a huge canvas tent that didn't even fit in the car trunk, we had to tie it to the roof racks. We loved it! There is so much to see in the good old USA. Later, we got a Class C motor home, and now have a smaller TT. The best thing about camping is the other campers. Every place we go, we strike up conversations with our temporary neighbors. Imagine that in a hotel?

I think it’s largely in the blood though environment is certainly a factor. Both sides of my family emigrated from northern England, the ultimate adventure in “exploring”. Then my grandfather moved to a ranch in Alberta and an uncle opened a hunting and fishing lodge in eastern Canada. Not “camping”, but an affinity for “unspoiled” country.

My parents didn’t camp, but we once visited my uncle in Canada when I was nine and the endless woods and primitive country made a huge impression on me. When we were teenagers I and a couple of friends would drive far into the mountains in W VA and KY and roam around the country. Other than some food and our firearms we had no gear, so I don’t know if I’d call that camping. More like amateur survivalists.:D

When I came to AZ I took up big game hunting, which involved tenting in the backcountry. And my RVing evolved from that through a PU to a TT. But the driving force is “primitive” country and camping is a way of accomplishing that. So my interest wasn’t in upbringing, I think I got my grandfather’s genes even though I never knew him. And your other comments are pretty much on the mark.

I never went camping growing up, but DH was in the Boy Scouts with his brothers and Dad, a leader, so he had some knowledge. When we got married in 1970 my Aunt & Uncle owned a lot at a big lake about an hour away from the hometown, they had their small TT set up permanently there and so they offered us newly weds the place seeing we couldn't afford a long honeymoon somewhere. We enjoyed the peace & quiet also the beauty of the lake.
Fast forward about 7 years later we were stationed in California and some of my hubby's AF buddies wanted us to go for a weekend in the Sierra Mountains for the weekend to 4 wheel. We rented a huge Army tent from MWR and some gear and next thing I know we are buying our own tent and supplies.....eldest daughter and family have those things now seeing we don't sleep on the ground anymore;)

We were a large family of 8. Thus the motel route was out of our price range. We purchased a new/used pop up trailer and over the years have moved up to a fiver. That was in 1966 when we caught the camping bug.
Camping is really different today than some 40 years ago.

When I was a kid, we tent camped every summer. I also passed this tradition along to my wife and kids. But one August, we were tenting in the mountains of California at 9000 feet and it started to rain, then changed over to snow. There was mud and misery everywhere. My wife told me that from then on, if you ever want me to go camping again, it will be in an RV. So, we bought our first TT.

I'm starting to think it was in my blood but I didn't realize it. camped once as a baby, my parents spent a week at the jersey shore in my grandparents trailer. mom hated it, every vacation from then on was a hotel. did the brownie/girl scout thing with weekend camping trips. stayed in the backyard of my grandmother's place a couple times in my uncle's trailer. then met hubby, after a year of dating we planned our first vacation, 2 weeks in a pop-up (no bathroom in it) to Maine and Vermont. I servived. Then at some point we spent a weekend in a hotel, he was miserable. I realized the only way he would be happy traveling, we would get to see everything I wanted to, was camping. 17 years, two upgrades, and 2 kids later. we are now camping in a fifth wheel with a 6 year old and a 2 year old. Our kids have never slept in a hotel, or flew in an airplane. Oh, and we also don't travel with a DVD player in the truck for the kids, when we are on the road they have crayons and paper, the older one has a leapad, they younger one has a learning computer sometimes, otherwise they watch the country passing or catch up on their sleep. If we are home for more then 3 weeks the kids start asking when the next camping trip is, winters are looong when we aren't camping for about three months straight. Hubby and I plan to camp "forever" time will tell what the kids decide to do, once they are old enough to decide.

My family has been camping/rving for many years. We're on the third generation of campers. You can read our story on our blog. Our Story

both of us were raised in the country or spending a lot of time in the country.
picnics, camp outs, state parks.
then we grew up got married and put all that aside for a long time and finally came back to it about 15 years ago, but this time, we went to motorhome traveling so we could stay in state parks and forest campgrounds but not sleep on the ground or cook with a fire or put up with flies and mosquitoes, etc.