What's changed about camping?

[adamis]

The family and I just completed our three week road trip and I've been reflecting about the past and future of our adventures. I know as adults we always idealize our past but it seems to me that the camping experiences I had as a kid are almost impossible to replicate as an adult. Let me opine a moment...

As a kid, our family mostly boondocked in Northern California. We would load up for a week of camping and head up from Chico on highway 32 and drive into some forest service roads to spots my parents had known for years. Those places were remote mountain meadows with flowing streams and beaver ponds for fishing and exploring. Nothing but good memories and the truck camper my parents had fit in their short bed half ton 4x4.

As I try to replicate this experience for my kids, I am finding it difficult to do. Granted part of my problem is location. I'm currently living in the SF Bay Area (not by choice) and good National Forest is a minimum of 2 to 3 hours any direction to get to. Even with that challenge overcome, I'm observing some of the following:

1a. Forest Roads once accessible are now closed off (due to fire concerns) forcing the use of public campgrounds over the hidden gems our parents knew of.

1b. Marijuna "industry" making taking over the remote areas in National Forest and making it unsafe to go to.

2. Public Campgrounds are overcrowded (population has doubled but when is the last time you saw a new campground being built?).

3. Campgrounds today are akin to "combat camping" where fire rings are right on top of each other to cram as many campsites into as small of an area as possible.

4. People are less respectful of others. Someone in the campground thinks that everyone else nearby wants to their music all day long or the people that get hammered around the campfire partying or, the worse, people that leave trash all over the place after their "party".

5. Sight seeing the local sights means fighting for a parking space which is undersized for your vehicle.

6. Electronic devices taking kids attention away from the wonderment of being in the forest and now having to fight their attitude if they don't get their daily dose of tik tok / youtube.

7. RV parks that are profit driven and have turned into nothing but parking lots.

8. Homeless / long term campers taking over campgrounds and living there (aka, junk all over the place).

9. Reservation systems that require months in advance of planning now versus the "pack and go" that we grew up with.

I'm sure you all can add to my list of gripes and feel free to do so. Yes, I realize boondocking is still a thing and in certain parts of the country solves nearly all of these gripes. Perhaps my issues are mostly related to Northern CA and it's population boom since I was a kid.

That being said, my concern is that these problems are not going to get fixed on their own. They are a product of a growing population and a society that no longer respects others. My only counter to this is the need for a growing number of private campgrounds run by people like us that remember the good old days and seek to replicate that to the extent possible. I've looked at buying mountain property for years to do just this but haven't pulled the trigger yet but someday hope I will.

How many of you have considered the same thing?

[ferndaleflyer]

I’ll be 80 pretty soon and we roll out in our DP pretty often and stay mostly in private camp grounds. Just came back from 2 weeks in Western NC and Knoxville, Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, part of TN. Lots of parks, trails, waterfalls, lakes, mountains, streams, national Parks, and historical areas. Been all over the world and every trip find something new. I like loud rock and country music and most young people treat us very well. We all deserve to enjoy each other.

[ppine]

One of the issues, is that some people are highly organized and detail oriented. and want to plan everything out ahead of time. They want to stay in RV parks, KOAs, and big campground with hosts and computerized registration and wonder why it is not like when they were young.

If you boondock camp, go in the off-season, stay in small out of the way USFS campgrounds, etc. nothing has changed. I meet great people all the time.

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

kingkarmann wrote:

We would like to hear from the veteran RVers of travel and camping strategies you employ to help stack the odds in your favor.
Sorry this intro is long winded. Any and all feedback is appreciated. Just don’t dump on my beautiful portrait 🙂

My sis-in-law has a phrase "Semper Gumby" - "always be flexible". Some of our worst moments, became our fondest (or funniest) memories: sharing a skeevy shower stall with the biggest spider I've ever seen; or showering in an old shipping container. Watching a distant storm, parked high on a mesa. The skunk who placed his paws on my knees at a campsite. Having our night interrupted by an all-night USAF aerial assault practice. Finding out too late that the train tracks are 100' behind your campsite....

But there have been many, MANY wonderful/beautiful experiences and delightful people, too! I guess my words of wisdom are "savor the good; and just roll with the bad" since most of it is out of our control anyway 🙂

[HappyKamper2020]

I was just looking at the pitfalls for RV park ownership on another site. I'm a work camper in a new park in Utah and glad to be in a safe park with things to do and none of the issues you listed and equally happy to not be the owner of a new park. This owner is looking for a partner to buy in because he didn't realize what's all involved in running a park after building one.

[kingkarmann]

As this is my first thread and response I certainly find this topic interesting and enlightening
Growing up camping with Mom, Dad, Brother and sisters in the 60's and 70's, camping was the main family vacation. Disney was too expensive but still many great memories!
Fast forward, the spouse and I have decided several years ago that when we were ready we would purchase an RV and travel. We are the caregivers for a mother with Alzheimer’s and this prevents us from travel at the moment. We have travelled and tent camped many times, so the experiences related in previous posts are not unfamiliar to us. Since I am quoting the OP I wanted to say I’m sorry that the family experience & bonding did not go as planned. I feel your frustration. We have a tendency to paint a beautiful picture in our mind but the reality doesn’t match the painting. I do the same thing and have set myself up for disappointment too many times.
I have a couple of grandkids that are “addicted” to social media. It’s fully ingrained into our human experience. This is the new “play”. I have found that instead of fighting it I need to find a way to use it to the fullest potential.
Back in the day we would go to a zoo or a museum (dad loves museums’). Some of the displays and attractions had a device with a button you pushed and a recorded message would describe what you were seeing. I thought, Why not use that same sort of interaction and adapt it to the internet browsing habits of the grandkids. Perhaps let them explore and research the Forest Service or other place you staying at. Ask them to find out what the area is all about currently and what led to the creation. Are there any bizarre/weird facts? Fight fire with fire. Let them have their devices but with more structure. Reward them for the effort and let them have some free time. It’s a process but hopefully worth it. It helped my relationship with my grandkids who are 10 and 14.
Now back to my reasons for landing here.
By all accounts RVing over the last few years has really gained in popularity. My concerns of late have been centering on what we may find on the road. Remember, I said I have a habit of painting a beautiful portrait in my head only to have S*#t dumped on it. Advertising is such a wonderful thing. All those happy families sitting at the perfect spot on earth in front of the MOST BEAUTIFUL RV EVER!! So… instead of setting myself up for eternal heartache I decided to see if I could gauge the true world experiences as of 2020.
We live in the Midwest. We will travel as a couple. We are explicitly buying an RV that cannot sleep more than TWO! Ok, maybe three in a pinch. We are hoping to find solitude and seclusion in our travels. Conversely, the prospect of meeting new and interesting people is always exciting.
We have done extensive research on RV’s and have joined a couple of on-line forums. What we haven’t spent much time research is simply “what’s it like out there today”?
We’ve bookmarked things that seem interesting and fit what we think is our RV lifestyle but we have to be realists and know that when we actually do this there are going to be some unpleasant experiences.
We would like to hear from the veteran RVers of travel and camping strategies you employ to help stack the odds in your favor.
Sorry this intro is long winded. Any and all feedback is appreciated. Just don’t dump on my beautiful portrait 🙂

[ppine]

There is some truth to everything you have mentioned.
Taking the little devices from kids is a major issue.

At the moment, a lot of facilities of all kinds are closed which concentrates the use. We have more campgrounds, RV parks, and places to go than ever before. But the use and number of people has also increased.

Some National Forests are ramping up logging which is opening up the old road networks and adding a few new ones. Boondocking in a NF is the easiest way to replicate your childhood experiences for your kids. It is totally possible to do that in N California. I do it all the time. You must be more selective about where you go. July and August are the two busiest months by far. I now avoid most National Parks and CA State Parks because they are loved to death.

We have more acres of wilderness areas in the US that any time in history. Consider taking your kids on a short easy backpacking trip in good weather. That is the way to guarantee remoteness and lack of people.

Take them on some day hikes from your camping destinations.
Show them some western history. Take them out after dinner to look for wildlife at twilight. See if you can develop some interests in things like geology, wildflowers, fishing or whatever they like. Show them the night sky.

This no time to moan about missing the past. Go find what you are looking for.

[kingkarmann]

adamis wrote:
If I'm being honest, the electronic devices our teenagers were on was a significant detractor from the overall experience of the trip in my opinion. I had multiple conversations with the wife about it (born in the city) where I was ready to throw the things away. I seemed to lose the arguments even though I pointed out that there was nothing but garbage on those screens compared to the beauty of God's creation.

It isn't that I don't get the boredom of driving on a 23 day road trip and certainly there are areas (eastern Washington for example) where there just isn't much to see. Those times I'm okay with them having a device. The problem though is that when you do take the devices away, it's like taking crack from an addict. I do literally believe they are addicted to the things in the same brain chemical way as drugs. We end up with moody teenagers that just complain there is nothing to do and then sit inside the camper with us being surely.

For our newborn twin daughters, I have put my foot down and said no electronic devices for them. Not going through this experience again. What could and shuold have been an epic bonding experience for our blended family on this road trip turned into everyone in their walled garden as they stared at their screens while I drove 3400 miles. Not doing it again!

[adamis]

If I'm being honest, the electronic devices our teenagers were on was a significant detractor from the overall experience of the trip in my opinion. I had multiple conversations with the wife about it (born in the city) where I was ready to throw the things away. I seemed to lose the arguments even though I pointed out that there was nothing but garbage on those screens compared to the beauty of God's creation.

It isn't that I don't get the boredom of driving on a 23 day road trip and certainly there are areas (eastern Washington for example) where there just isn't much to see. Those times I'm okay with them having a device. The problem though is that when you do take the devices away, it's like taking crack from an addict. I do literally believe they are addicted to the things in the same brain chemical way as drugs. We end up with moody teenagers that just complain there is nothing to do and then sit inside the camper with us being surely.

For our newborn twin daughters, I have put my foot down and said no electronic devices for them. Not going through this experience again. What could and shuold have been an epic bonding experience for our blended family on this road trip turned into everyone in their walled garden as they stared at their screens while I drove 3400 miles. Not doing it again!

[ppine]

Most of what you are complaining about only happens in July and August. It is the height of fire season, campgrounds are full of families and working people. Every thing is crowded.

I like boat trips during those two months and boondocking, or remote camp sites. I am finding a lot of 1970s vibes out there. Very positive outlook by most people I meet. Your attitude has a lot to do with how others react.

The only places I feel a lot of rules are National Parks and State Parks like California. I rarely go to either of them except once in awhile during the off off season. I do not feel encumbered by a lot of rules.

[Cloud_Dancer]

In the 50's I joined the Boy Scouts and became a camper. I evolved into being a RVer. It's a long story.

[Lantley]

FULLTIMEWANABE wrote:
The differences are about how we are all over governed now in every parts of our lives. The rules for CG's now are absolutely ridiculous.

Back in the good "ole days', there were never strangers as we warn our kids of now in the parks, or so it felt, and a neighbouring RVer if saw your child was in danger or being bad, could gently grab him, or reason with him and explain something. Nowadays, you are afraid to say or do anything with others kids.

As for being really out in the boonies today with a child over the age of 5 it seems, you better have good internet connection or else your vacation could be murder. LOL That in and of itself has changed everything we knew as good and wholesome years ago growing up. We'd call back home to let them know we'd arrived OK from a pay phone nearby, and maybe once more during our whole vacation max = that was about as connected we ever were, and wasn't it fabulous?

The variable now is that we talk about those bad behaviors more but bad behavior is not new. There were abductions back then,serial killers are not a new phenomenon. They was littering and abuse except it made have been easier to sweep things under the rug back when but it was not utopia. There were still victims to all kinds of bad behavior.
Do we think race relations and equal opportunity was better back then?
Lots of atrocities associated with race back then.
Basic Human behavior has not changed all that much, we still bully each other, we still help each other, we still abuse each other.
It's nice to reflect and pretend things were so wonderful once upon a time, however we did not just transport ourselves to the modern society we now live in , we evolved. Our current behavior is based and built on our past behavior. All the ills of our current society was learned and taught to us by our predecessors.

[FULLTIMEWANABE]

The differences are about how we are all over governed now in every parts of our lives. The rules for CG's now are absolutely ridiculous.

Back in the good "ole days', there were never strangers as we warn our kids of now in the parks, or so it felt, and a neighbouring RVer if saw your child was in danger or being bad, could gently grab him, or reason with him and explain something. Nowadays, you are afraid to say or do anything with others kids.

As for being really out in the boonies today with a child over the age of 5 it seems, you better have good internet connection or else your vacation could be murder. LOL That in and of itself has changed everything we knew as good and wholesome years ago growing up. We'd call back home to let them know we'd arrived OK from a pay phone nearby, and maybe once more during our whole vacation max = that was about as connected we ever were, and wasn't it fabulous?

[down_home]

Saw some Folks from Maryland in Flagstaff today. They moved there to escape.
Everybody is on the move RVers or just anybody, it seems. Lots of Rvers here n Az despite the triple digit heat....and they stay inside except to go to the stores and to eat out!

[Photomike]

I live in southern Alberta and experience the same thing. Not only for RV'ing but for everything outside.

There is a community west of me that is an old mining area. In the 80's the houses were going for $5000 - $10,000 now people from bigger cities have bought them and they are trying to flip for $500,000 with almost no repairs done to the places driving out most of the young families that don't have that money. Reason for the flipping other then money is that they are in nature and only a couple coffee shops / diners to go to when they are there and they are bored!!!!!!!! When they do go out they take all their toys and destroy the back country for others.

Campgrounds are the same around here. Lets put our 40' RV in a site that will barely fit a small trailer. Then power up the generator before you even unhook as you need power for the big screen and microwave. That is if you can get a camping spot. Add to that the prices for camping is going NUTS. A guy was telling me last year he went for a trip and found a number of campsites at $60 a night and they were not willing to rent to anyone that was only using a tent.

I miss the old road trips where you could pull over and pay $5 for a spot and you never needed a reservation.