whats your camping life style?

[nrody]

As a child we would go for two weeks at at time traveling west of the Mississippi. Before I was 13 I saw everything from the Canadian border to the Mexican and places in between that are not on any map. Collected fossils of prehistoric fish in the shale near Casper before they stopped the public from collecting. Had a KFC boxed lunch at the bottom of Carlsbad Caverns. Collected arrowheads in the middle of Nevada. Out fished at the age of 7 an old man in Idaho. Progressing from a modified vw bug to a vw van then a overhead camper on Chevy trucks.
After I "grew up" we would tent camp out of the car. I now have a Toyota Tacoma Duel cab and am raising my 6 year old grand son and breaking him into camping (tent) in the eastern sierra. Someone needs to teach the boy to fish! Usually a road trip about a week or so long.
So much of this country to see and not enough gas money!!!
NOW, With good luck and hard work after 10 long years of owning a inoperable teardrop, The Bean (my tear) is getting closer to being road worthy. In three weeks is the Wrightwood gathering and I hope to be there so I better get off the computer and go work on "The Bean"

[caseydog]

I primarily use my TD to go to gatherings. The social aspect is a high priority for me, since I am self-employed and have my office at home. While some people go camping to get away from people, I go to be around a bunch of people.

I go minimal, pretty much. I am only inside the TD to sleep, so I don't need much. No TV, no stereo. I do bring a laptop, in case I get stuck inside due to bad weather. I can watch a movie on that.

I'd love to do a long road trip, and attend some gatherings out West or up North -- and meet new people. But, being self-employed, I can't take that much time off at once. My vacations are generally long weekends.

CD

[madjack]

I would say, all of the above BUT the reality has been weekend sneak-aways...Marlene(aka the poor girl) has to give at least a month notice(or more) to get any time off from the hospital and that as well as financial considerations have kept us close to the house...we do sponsor the LCG every year and would like to make another gathering or two(most near cried over missing the Beach Bash) but haven't been able too the last couple of years...Marlene likes to go hang out where we are all alone...I like both the gatherings and boony camping...in fact, we are taking off in the morning for 4 days on a river bank...all alone(unless Jim and Gary showup)...................
madjack

[robertaw]

As a kid we tent camped weekends, or entire weeks mostly on the eastern shore of Maryland - close to home. Once my parents bought a pick-up camper we took several cross country camping trips at national parks in addition to our local trips.

When our kids were young, we did pretty much the same thing - tent camped on Maryland's eastern shore or western Maryland mountains. Mostly weekends and mostly close to home.

Now that our kids are grown and I work from home, we mostly camp during the week when things are less crowded. We tend to stick to state parks close to home that have beaches. We are going to try some boondocking in the fall at a national forest about ten miles from us.

One day, if we can ever afford it, we would love to do a cross country camping trip.

Edit to add:

I've never been to a gathering. Once, many years ago, we camped with friends and some friends of friends. They drove me nuts. They drove their cars on the grass when signs were posted not to, played their music too loud, littered, kept a messy campsite, and their kids were obnoxious and misbehaved the entire time. I used rain the second day as an excuse to pack up my kids and leave.

That experience has left me leery of camping in groups.

[kirkman]

Three day weekend trips with the wife and kid or 3 to 4 day kayaking trips.

[TheBizMan]

Any chance I get. We did an 11,000 mile trip last summer and are planning a 3000 this year. I've even slept in the TD in the garage at home.

[atahoekid]

For me, a TD is a way for me to go camping and still stay married to my ever patient wife, When we go "tent" camping, setting up and breaking down camp is a real chore and I make good use of my best "sailor" vocabulary. Unfortunately, that language and anger are normally directed at the person closest to me at the moment. We (I) set up the tent, the dining fly, blow up the air mattresses, roll out the sleeping bags and zip them together, find a cool spot for the coolers (Yup that's plural) set up the stove and the camp kitchen, fill the water jugs, haul them back to camp, set out the camp chairs and finally have a beer! Packing up is the same in reverse...

I think a TD allows me to skip most of these steps and just enjoy the great outdoors

[tearhead]

I think we're kind of all of the above. We've only had the teardrop for a couple of years, but we enjoy just going somewhere for the weekend (lots of spots are within a 2-hour radius of our home). We also took a bigger trip last year (Wisconsin to the Smokies in N. Carolina) but were not gone for 2 weeks, which was mentioned in the original post. And (much to my surprise) we have found out that we really enjoy the gatherings.

Robertaw, I think you'd find people at a teardrop gathering to be very thoughtful, kind, friendly,and respectful. I have heard no loud music (or any music at all). You can be as social as you want to be, or as quiet. It seems very permissive--you can go off by yourself and just come to a meal, or just camp and come to no meals, or you can come to everything. You can drive off to town--whatever you want to do--no one will comment. Try it once!

[Py0tr]

I am a teacher at a medium sized country school in Rural New Zeakland. We live in the original school house (1882) on the school grounds and so sometimes it gets to feel like I'm at work 24/7. Our teardrop allows us to get away from school with about 30 minutes notice. We have a favourite camp site about 2 hours drive away and pretty much always go there and even have our "regular" spot. I suppose our trailer is a lot like the priviledged classes' vacation homes. It allows us to go to our favourite get away venue quickly easily and cheaply.

[hugh]

I use mine to get away from the city and mostly for cold weather camping when its either late fall or late winter, snow is OK as long as it,s not deeper than 2 feet or so which is the limit my Jeep can handle and I don,t go if the night time temp drops below between 15 or 20 below Celcius. Then again in summer a few times, maybe 3 or 4 times to some remote lakes I, like to visit. In our area there are many campgrounds but years of wilderness camping have spoiled me, they all seem crowded now, the last time I stopped at one it just felt weird, all these big 5th wheel units, many with portable satellites set up etc, they watched me drive in and I felt I was in the wrong place with my lifted Jeep and trailer which had tires bigger than all of the cars and some of the trucks.

[Ratkity]

I am a teacher at a medium sized country school in Rural New Zeakland. We live in the original school house (1882) on the school grounds and so sometimes it gets to feel like I'm at work 24/7. Our teardrop allows us to get away from school with about 30 minutes notice. We have a favourite camp site about 2 hours drive away and pretty much always go there and even have our "regular" spot. I suppose our trailer is a lot like the priviledged classes' vacation homes. It allows us to go to our favourite get away venue quickly easily and cheaply.

My little sis just got back from a grand vacation in New Zealand and she was thrilled to see so many tiny campers and tears!!!! She loved every bit of the country and how wonderfully nice everyone was. You folks made her stay fabulous and she couldn't stop talking about all the campers.

Hugs,
Ratkity

[pete42]

When I use to work we would camp on vacations and holidays.

after 20 years I was getting 5 weeks of vacation a year I worked there for 41 years.

Now I try to go to Florida for a month or more each winter.

missed last two winters due to health and no trailer, sold it.

I stop on the way in Georgia to visit relatives

cousins and 89 year old aunt who I visit that is if she is in the country most active 89 year old I know travels the world.

[Mukilteo]

I go camping to get away from the rat race, so I look for unpopulated places to camp.
I guess you can say I'm antisocial.
Also they only let us take one week at a time off at work so all my camping is one days drive away.

[caseydog]

I don't know but casey dog I am staring at your baraque grill on your table in the photo with your teardop and I amit its about supper time but. I am not huge into grilling yet. but its giveing me ideas.

I have tried my hand at it. and is that thing very big. where did you get it how big is it and what do you grill on it.

just courus and amit I am ready for supper.

slowcowboy.

That is a Weber Smokey Joe Gold. The "Gold" model is made for travel. The lid clamps down tight, and the vents are high and close up. It can go in the TD or TV without making a mess. The cooking grate is 14 inches -- perfect for a couple steaks and some grilled veggies.

The sell for about $35.

http://www.amazon.com/Weber-40020-Smoke ... B00004RALP

CD

[Nosty]

Those of you who are "all of the above" are living the true spirit of camping.

I started with a tent in Boy Scouts and carried that on until I couldn't stand sleeping on the hard ground any more, moved to a pop-up when the kids were very young, then went the travel trailer route when the kids were pre-teen. We were up and down the east coast and back again numerous times and, I believe, we probably hit every state park and campground in Florida. We were on the road almost every weekend. Heck, I even wrote a book about it.

I do have to say, though, now that the kids are grown and gone, that my TTT is the most practical and easy camping I've ever done. No load balancing hitch, no big truck to pull it, no leaky tent or two-hour campsite set up. I pull mine with a 4 cyl, 5 speed Toyota Tacoma. If I were still pulling with my 15 passenger Dodge Ram Van, I wouldn't be able to afford the gas to go out very often. With the TTT, it's just park, unhook and pop a beer. Even my girlfriend loves it which makes getting out whenever the opportunity presents itself an easy and enjoyable endeavor; exactly what camping was meant to be. One weekend we may be at a secluded site in the woods, the next, parked beside a mountain lake surrounded by potential new friends. Life is wonderful in a TTT.

Brian