My family of four (two boys 7 and 9) were camping over father's day weekend at Brown County in Indiana. Brown County is probably the best known state park after the Dunes in IN, so there's always a crowd. We were up in the front area that's more like a KOA than the wooded roads in the back.We noticed some odd camping people around us. Namely, 2 couples by themselves. One was empty nesters in a trailer and the other my age. They were surrounded by screaming kids on almost every side. Often my were screaming too! One didn't even light a fire the whole weekend. Just sat in chairs on and off at night. Both had clean, tidy sites with no signs of mess like mine.This just took me back. I mean I like camping, but it's mainly because my kids can run around without bothering the neighbors or me having to deal with the neighbors! :) I can't fathom what these people were up to. No bikes, no nothing. Maybe they're just passing through, but both stayed 2 nights.It seems like the other constant in a state park is a HUGE group that's all together. They seem to always bring in about 20 more people each night to visit! It's not bad, just you don't get many invites to join up with this type. They brought their company, they don't need to make new friends.Luckily, this year my boys are catching on that they can befriend any other kid in the park! Now, that did lead to them in trouble for a little pants pulling down incident. My boys were the lemmings and not the wolves here. It was a good lesson to them that the rest of the world are raising bad kids! :)

We noticed some odd camping people around us. Namely, 2 couples by themselves. One was empty nesters in a trailer and the other my age. They were surrounded by screaming kids on almost every side. Often my were screaming too! One didn't even light a fire the whole weekend. Just sat in chairs on and off at night. Both had clean, tidy sites with no signs of mess like mine.This just took me back. I mean I like camping, but it's mainly because my kids can run around without bothering the neighbors or me having to deal with the neighbors!I can't fathom what these people were up to. No bikes, no nothing. Maybe they're just passing through, but both stayed 2 nights. seems you were kind of rude IMO... People dont fit into your mold and they were odd? Maybe you were odd to them and your kids need to behave... No offense and just my opinion but I would of told you a thing or too if you were my neighbor.. Do you feel good about this?

Why do the two couples have to be "up to" anything? They likely were just enjoying the campground in their own way, just as you were. We'll be spending two nights at a NY state park on our way to our upstate NY cottage following a visit with friends in Maryland next week. I don't expect we'll light any fires either, and may not even spend any time sitting outside. What we will be "up to" part of the time, is visiting our granddaughter that lives a few miles away. Other times, we've stopped at state and national parks for two or three days when traveling just to take a break from the road for awhile. We prefer the usually more spacious sites at state and national parks over the private parks when the locations and availability fit our travel plans.

Now, you are really kidding.... or are you. I mean some times people go camping, and they are just placed in camp sites in order that they arrive. Maybe camp sites should offer: kid zone... adult zone... no pet zone... But we go camping to camp, and sometimes we enjoy the screaming kids and the barking dogs too, just because it brings us back to reality. We love watching the young ones play, and hope to share the same with our grandchildren soon, and they all go to sleep early and it's a lot better than having a bunch of party young ones next to you.

I would imagine that it being Father's Day Weekend those 'odd' campers were aware of what they would be in for.....crowds, kids etc. and didn't care. They were out camping and enjoying themselves in their own fashion.One of the best memories I have is the enjoyment I got watching a very young toddler that was spinning around and around waving her arms when it donned on me....she had discovered her shadow.Guess I was one of them 'odd' campers just sitting out enjoying the sights/sounds/experiences while camping without a campfire

Some nights I won't light a fire (rare but it happens). I don't have any children either. Just me, my wife, and my dog sitting in my zero gravity chairs with a case of Yuengling black and tan. Nothing odd about that.

Strange pairings at the camp ground on father's day weekend.

LLeopold
Explorer
Jun 30, 2014
OK. Time to close. 'Nuff said.
MitchF150
Explorer III
Jun 30, 2014
We also camped on that weekend at a state park in WA and there are just 2 of us, no kids, no dog. We put the awning out and sit under it and read, veg out, whatever..

Kids were around and playing as they should be, but since I have no kids, it's easy to tune them out.

My funny story is the couple that camped next to us. They had a E350 Class B and were trying to level it. They were new to camping and were using those lego blocks on the front wheels and I kept hearing this "crunch". After the third one, I walked over with some of my 12 year old pieces of wood I use for leveling that I wasn't using and offered them to them. He was very apprecieative and was finally able to get his legos to work..

Well, they bring out their 2 dogs. Setup these cool little pens. Then out comes a cat and just sits in his lap. They also had a little bird in a cage and a Guinea pig!

We talked about their pets and such and then went back to each of our camping styles and enjoyed the rest of the stay. We went hiking and site seeing and the other stuff we like to do as well as do nothing in the camp site. :)

Anyway, I enjoy people watching too and wonder what's up with some of their habits or the way they do something, but I figure it's working for them, so what the heck! :)

Happy camping!

MItch
toedtoes
Explorer III
Jun 30, 2014
leojr wrote:
Interesting how we have all responded to the observations about the two seemingly solitary couples and not the huge group of 20 that don't need to make new friends.

I believe this is because the OP stated "I can't fathom what these two couples were up to". There was a definite vibe in the OP that these couples were somehow questionable because of their failure to be social with other campers. Other posters have just pointed out that keeping to yourselves, not having a campfire, and/or sitting around your campsite relaxing are not signs of abnormal behavior.

The comment about the group was there, but it seemed to be more understanding - more like "they didn't want to socialize with us, but since they had their own large group, we didn't blame them".

I think everyone can stand to do a 360 on their lives (not even just camping habits), but I think the main issue people are responding to here is the idea that if others aren't camping like the OP does, then they are "up to something" or "strange", etc.
leojr
Explorer
Jun 30, 2014
Interesting how we have all responded to the observations about the two seemingly solitary couples and not the huge group of 20 that don't need to make new friends.

The original poster made an observation from his/her perspective. Some have interjected that this was a "her" but I missed that delineation. And it is not important to me. The 'OP' also seems literate and uses punctuation, which to me translates as being reasonably educated or mature, Either, when done right, yield good results.

Might the OP (now I'm using the lingo y'all use) be well advised to do a situational "360"? Sure. But I suggest that those that have posted in this thread might want to do the same.

Me? I'm a frustrated backpacker that grew up camping without a tent amongst the bugs and the stars. And am now with 3 girls (1 is my wife) that are oh so slowly warming up to my weekend-at-a-lake-in-travel-trailer suggestions.

So, now that I have posted to this thread, I will be taking my own personal "360" and plan a course that satisfies my camping itches in a way that allows my 3 girls to join as they choose to, or not.
rolling_rhoda
Explorer
Jun 29, 2014
Well, I guess I was someone's strange neighbor last Father's Day weekend.

Why? I was traveling alone, and had driven the MH 350 miles that day, sometimes in the wind, then stopped for groceries before setting up camp. I took a long walk, watched a good movie with supper and went to bed. I broke camp at 6:30 the next morning as I had 200 miles to go and be set up by lunchtime where the rest of my party were meeting me.
Chock_Full_o__N
Explorer
Jun 29, 2014
No judgment from this corner. Live and let live. We camped with our kids when they were young. They were taught to have good camp manners. We didn't let them run around screaming but they did what kids do--squealing in the creek, laughing out loud at silly jokes, riding their bikes fast down a hill. I'd hate to think that other people were offended by that.

Now we're on the other end of the scale. It's just the two of us. DH is disabled, so we don't bike, hike, or swim anymore. We do take walks, slowly. We sit around outside quietly reading or I work on a quilt or something. We may sit inside our cozy little trailer and put a puzzle together, do a word search, take a nap, or watch a movie. Sometimes we have a fire and sometimes we don't. DH uses oxygen so I don't like for him to get close to a fire.

I'm sure there are people who would look down their noses at our camping style,but I don't much care. We enjoy the sights & sounds of kids and dogs at play. We don't mind other people's fires. 99+% of the time we have a great time. I can think of exactly 3 occurrences in the past 30 years where someone else made our camping trip unhappy.
NYCgrrl
Explorer
Jun 28, 2014
Some of the responses here make me shudder as they appear to be another form of judgemental behavior which of course is the same thing they are bashing the OP about.

Strange and mean spirited.
dewey02
Explorer II
Jun 28, 2014
Perhaps even the moderators feel that any bashing he gets is rightly deserved?
et2
Explorer
Jun 28, 2014
I read the first page some time ago. Just now clicked on the last two pages for the heck of it. It doesn't sound like this post went to well. Too bad for the OP - usually a mod would have stepped in by now if comparing to other closed threads.

It's about time the mods need to have some mercy on this person. What else is to be gained here? I think the point has been made.
whiteeye42
Explorer
Jun 28, 2014
Maybe you should have gone over and invited them over to your camp for a drink or a cup of coffee instead you just condem them for sitting around and enjoying themselves it could be they enjoy the noise of the kids or it could be they were hard of hearing and it did not bother them so next time invite your neighbors over for a visit you just might be surprised to find out they are the nicest people in the world