RV park "camping"

[jimlj]

Is there anyone who actually camps any more?
As a youth camping meant loading up the '55 Ford pickup with tents and sleeping bags, the old Coleman ice box and stove and heading for the forest. When dad bought the first camper it was a single axle '66 Shasta with modern things like a refrigerator that needed no ice and a water heater. Since then I have owned several TT's. Until March of this year I had never stayed anywhere with full hookups.


As an electrician, last week I located and repaired a broken underground wire at a RV Park and it got me thinking about "camping". Talking to a few of the customers at this park made me realize this was not a stop along the route to empty the holding tanks and fill with fresh water, but the destination. I do enjoy having the fridge and a hot shower, and the last few campers I've owned even have a bed that is not part of the dinette or couch. but staying in a RV park is not "camping" as far as I'm concerned. Anyone else camp where there is no wireless internet and the closest electricity involves putting gasoline in a generator and pulling the rope?

[maddog348]

D.E.Bishop ~~ BRAVO for your grandson ~~ wish more of our youth had the same vision. JM2¢ ~~ YMMV

[OleManOleCan]

jfkmk wrote:
I've done all kinds of camping, from backpack camping to staying in a full hook up campground. I love it all. I guess the big difference for me is, we don't go to a campground and just stay in the campground. It is a place for us to see the sights.

I agree. I look at it like having a motel room where no one steals from you.
We sleep in ours, but the rest of the time we are outside, unless it's storming.

Nothing wrong with Full Hookups, Nothing wrong with going to the Boonies.
I do both.
Hunting club I was in for 10 years had no water, no electricity, No TV, No Cell Signal.
I had to drive 2-3 miles to a Mt. top to have cell service.
6-8 of us kept trailers there. I loved it...

Not quite the same as staying at the River Plantation in Sevierville, Tn.
That campground has it all. It's about 2-3 miles to Walmart and shopping for wives.
Restaurants are plentiful too.

[RamRider]

Like a lot of RV owners, we do not "camp" we travel. Specifically we travel to see the what we have missed while we worked and did not have the time for far ranging vacations. Now, with our tt we can do exactly that at our leisure, staying at RV parks, national campgrounds and even "dry camping". The option is ours as we travel the country to see and enjoy the sights. This year, we have been to the Texas Coast, Texas Davis Mountains, Big Bend National Park, Ozarks, Iowa, Mount Rushmore, Colorado and New Mexico. This fall we will be traveling west to New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Arizona. Its hard to do all of that and sleep on the rocks at age 73. Our tt gives us lots of great options while keeping us dry, warm/cool, and prepared for the road ahead.

[Kavoom]

"I would still "camp" if the situation was worth the reward."

"Worth the reward." http://jeffhead.com/magruder/index.htm

[toedtoes]

mountainkowboy wrote:

toedtoes wrote:
If you look at their sig, the S&S is a trailer.

Actually it's a Cabover Camper.

Oops. Should have just said it was your rig... 🙂

[mountainkowboy]

toedtoes wrote:
If you look at their sig, the S&S is a trailer.

Actually it's a Cabover Camper.

[toedtoes]

If you look at their sig, the S&S is a trailer.

[DallasSteve]

mountainkowboy wrote:
We still tent camp...or...glamp. We have a SUV tent and sleep in the back of the Ranger on an air mattress that was designed to do so, so the whole bed is the bed. As long as the weather isn't to hot, but for anything over 2 or 3 days we take the C/O. It's more comfy than a tent and we can go for weeks in it. We can boondock for about 6 days till we run out of water and that's one of the "upgrades" in the plans for the S&S rebuild thread II.

S&S rebuild? At first I thought of Sticks and Bricks, but that would be S&B. Maybe Sticks and Stones? Some of the acronyms that people throw around are obvious and others leave even well-educated, informed people STH. It DRMTM if you want to use a lot of obscure acronyms, but it does TTFOORSR if you do so. SWIM?

[mountainkowboy]

We still tent camp...or...glamp. We have a SUV tent and sleep in the back of the Ranger on an air mattress that was designed to do so, so the whole bed is the bed. As long as the weather isn't to hot, but for anything over 2 or 3 days we take the C/O. It's more comfy than a tent and we can go for weeks in it. We can boondock for about 6 days till we run out of water and that's one of the "upgrades" in the plans for the S&S rebuild thread II.

[toedtoes]

Even the wikipedia definition is lacking with generalities. As a kid, I went to 4-H camp. We slept on wooden platforms in tents, the "dining hall" was a cement slab with a roof, we did standard camping fair: hiking, campfires, nature walks, etc. We did have a swimming pool (after they had to drain the swimming hole in the creek when a camper went missing, they built it). We did have electricity in select spots (dining hall, girls and boys camps, restrooms, and campfire round). So some "kids summer camps" do fit the idea of camping.

[BarryG20]

After reading through this thread I looked up the definition of camping and what I found was at least to me a bit funny- the various dictionaries cant agree on what constitutes camping

Oxford Dictionary
the activity of spending a holiday living in a tent.

Cambridge dictionary
the act of staying and sleeping in an outside area for one or more days and nights, usually in a tent:

Wikipedia
Camping describes a range of activities and approaches to outdoor accommodation. Survivalist campers set off with as little as possible to get by, whereas recreational vehicle travelers arrive equipped with their own electricity, heat, and patio furniture. Camping may be combined with hiking, as in backpacking, and is often enjoyed in conjunction with other outdoor activities such as canoeing, climbing, fishing, and hunting.

There is no universally held definition of what is and what is not camping. Fundamentally, it reflects a combination of intent and the nature of activities involved. A children's summer camp with dining hall meals and bunkhouse accommodations may have "camp" in its name but fails to reflect the spirit and form of "camping" as it is broadly understood. Similarly, a homeless person's lifestyle may involve many common camping activities, such as sleeping out and preparing meals over a fire, but fails to reflect the elective nature and pursuit of spirit rejuvenation that are integral aspect of camping. Likewise, cultures with itinerant lifestyles or lack of permanent dwellings cannot be said to be "camping", it is just their way of life.

the list could go on and some in fact do mention trailers or motorhomes so it seems the scholarly type cant even define it much less us "campers". As much as I dislike Wikipedia in general in this case it seems to be the most comprehensive and inclusive definition I especially like the part about intent

Though the term Rv'ing seems to have a more or less single definition
- to live in or drive an RV

[Arcamper]

Here is one definition I found that makes sense.


Camping describes a range of activities and approaches to outdoor accommodation. Survivalist campers set off with as little as possible to get by, whereas recreational vehicle travelers arrive equipped with their own electricity, heat, and patio furniture. Camping may be combined with hiking, as in backpacking, and is often enjoyed in conjunction with other outdoor activities such as canoeing, climbing, fishing, and hunting.

There is no universally held definition of what is and what is not camping. Fundamentally, it reflects a combination of intent and the nature of activities involved. A children's summer camp with dining hall meals and bunkhouse accommodations may have "camp" in its name but fails to reflect the spirit and form of "camping" as it is broadly understood. Similarly, a homeless person's lifestyle may involve many common camping activities, such as sleeping out and preparing meals over a fire, but fails to reflect the elective nature and pursuit of spirit rejuvenation that are integral aspect of camping. Likewise, cultures with itinerant lifestyles or lack of permanent dwellings cannot be said to be "camping", it is just their way of life.

[Samsonsworld]

jimlj wrote:
NOT EVERYONE LIVES 30 MILES FROM NATIONAL FOREST

Got that right. If I want a decent place to camp in a national forest, I have to drive a 250 miles. If I can't stay 5+ nights, it generally isn't worth the time and gas to get there imo. And I think that can change your attitude about hookups. Dry camping for a weekend is one thing. Dry camping for a week is another story, especially with 4-5 people.

[Sillybugs2]

We camp mostly state of federal parks. Yes I like electric and water but go days with out at out fav place. We use our trailer as a bed and potty. Cook outside with our camping grill and stove from tent days or over fire. Use camp showers like tenters. Only use rv parks for a night to get somewhere.