When does it stop being “camping” ?

[GPW]

Having done much backpack camping in my youth, camping was a very simple thing (minimum necessary gear) ... and done intentionally that way to keep it simple , better to enjoy Nature. Sleeping under the stars ... (Gosh ! If I’d have known/thought about all those Bears arounds )
Now the trend in “camping “ is to have a self-contained mini mobile home ... with all the conveniences... Where do we draw the line ??? Is it “camping” or more a summer house ... ?

[swampjeep]

depends who you ask, but I have noticed recently some people referring to it as "RV'ing" not camping.
Also I've seen several camp grounds that have cement slabs to pull the RV on so it's nice and level, hardly any trees, paved roads, built in, heated swimming pools, some even indoor pools, hot tubs, wireless internet over the whole park, cable tv at each site... I call then the "city" camping places, for city folks. LOL

like you said, they more of a tow-able second home.

also I've been in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (The U.P.) and people there talk about their "camp", and although they are rustic, many of them are cabins. Think home built log cabin with hand pump water wells and hand dug out houses, yeah, I'll let that go as just a camp LOL

[Shadow Catcher]

A very good question and I think this come under the heading of 'truth beauty and contact lenses are in the eye of the beholder' . Our realities vary. I tent camped for over 50 years including a number of wilderness trips. As we get older we are less comfortable sleeping on the ground and "making do", and we have very good camping gear.
One of the problems Nancy had however is that she spent a significant amount of time in meal prep and cleanup.
The teardrop with a well designed galley and water heater means meal prep and clean up are no more difficult than at home so Nancy's camping experience is that she/we have more time to experience our surroundings.
We both love to read at night and having the LED reading lights is a great deal more comfortable than book lights. We also missed music and north of Lake Superior radio reception was not good and who wants to hear some one else's the XM receiver means we can feed that need and with the speakers inside we are not sharing. One of the problems I have is Asthma which can be triggered by smoldering camp fires and an air purifier helps a lot.
We spend most of our time outdoors and yes we have been to campgrounds where you never see folks out of their MH or trailer.

[Zipline65]

A very good question and I think this come under the heading of 'truth beauty and contact lenses are in the eye of the beholder' . Our realities vary. I tent camped for over 50 years including a number of wilderness trips. As we get older we are less comfortable sleeping on the ground and "making do", and we have very good camping gear.
One of the problems Nancy had however is that she spent a significant amount of time in meal prep and cleanup.
The teardrop with a well designed galley and water heater means meal prep and clean up are no more difficult than at home so Nancy's camping experience is that she/we have more time to experience our surroundings.
We both love to read at night and having the LED reading lights is a great deal more comfortable than book lights. We also missed music and north of Lake Superior radio reception was not good and who wants to hear some one else's the XM receiver means we can feed that need and with the speakers inside we are not sharing. One of the problems I have is Asthma which can be triggered by smoldering camp fires and an air purifier helps a lot.
We spend most of our time outdoors and yes we have been to campgrounds where you never see folks out of their MH or trailer.

I agree with you, Shadow Catcher. We all have our own reality. I know people who "RV" and they like those cement pads. It's not what I would call camping but it gives them family time away from the distractions of home and work.
When my kids were young we tent camped. It got to the point that I spent more time cooking, cleaning and packing than enjoying. That's when we switched to motels. We still saw a lot of the country with the kids but some of the joy of nature was lost. Several years ago my husband and I bought a new tent and tried tent camping again. It was fun, less work than with the kids along but something had happened to us. We couldn't sleep on the ground anymore.
I saw a teardrop on the road one day and started information gathering. It took a few years but my husband is now on board and we are spending our time looking for an affordable pre-built or making plans on building our own. The goal is to be ready when he retires next year.
Zipline (Liz)

[GPW]

Guess it all revolves around Sleeping comfort and Camp food ... Yes, sleeping on the ground with a rock for a pillow doesn’t excite me at my age (65) , but camp food has always been very simple , fresh or dried fruits , nuts ,sandwiches , or the fish we caught ... nothing that had to be “prepared"... a boy scout cook pan setup did it all , no fancy meals till we got out the woods ...

[Mary C]

It ceases to be camping when you have no incentive to have fun outside in the great outdoors and think fun is in the RV. It is camping when there is the noise from a coleman lantern HHHssssssssssss and the soft glow after you turn it off. The smell of the woods and the taste of a cool glass of wine around a fire. It is camping when you have the visiting friends and fresh brewed coffee , bacon and eggs in the morning when the sun dances off the the wetness of the dew and the spider webs. Sitting in an RV watching the today show while eating breakfast is not camping!

Having a sound system that is louder than the sound of a stream is not camping. If you want music stay at home. if you want to party rent a barn!!!

I love to backpack and camp I don't need electricity to camp, I don't need a hair drier or blender, microwave or Toaster.

I have grown old and painful, I do have a cot and tent but because I want to travel and don't want to put the tent up in the dark. I am building a TD.

and thats the truth!!!!

Mary C.

[Larry C]

It ceases to be camping when you have no incentive to have fun outside in the great outdoors and think fun is in the RV. It is camping when there is the noise from a coleman lantern HHHssssssssssss and the soft glow after you turn it off. The smell of the woods and the taste of a cool glass of wine around a fire. It is camping when you have the visiting friends and fresh brewed coffee , bacon and eggs in the morning when the sun dances off the the wetness of the dew and the spider webs. Sitting in an RV watching the today show while eating breakfast is not camping!

Having a sound system that is louder than the sound of a stream is not camping. If you want music stay at home. if you want to party rent a barn!!!

I love to backpack and camp I don't need electricity to camp, I don't need a hair drier or blender, microwave or Toaster.

I have grown old and painful, I do have a cot and tent but because I want to travel and don't want to put the tent up in the dark. I am building a TD.

and thats the truth!!!!

Mary C.

[kudzu]

I have grown old and painful, I do have a cot and tent but because I want to travel and don't want to put the tent up in the dark. I am building a TD.

For me just substitute tiny toy hauler for TD & you've got the reason for my build. I don't necessarily want to sleep in a tent & rough it. So if I'm not really camping? S'okay with me. But I do want to travel & I want to be able to get up in the morning & just go... go biking, go kayaking, go hiking with the pups, go swimming, go outside & hang out with friends. I WILL have my blow dryer. And we'll probably have smaller versions of the major appliances like frig, microwave, convection oven, coffee maker. But to be honest those will be going along because we already own them so it's cheaper to start with those & then add less electric utility heavy items later. We won't have our own bathroom. So we will rely on campgrounds at least initially for bathroom facilities & electricity. Does that mean I've stopped camping? Maybe. Do I care? Naw. I'll be going beautiful places, getting outside for most of the day & having fun. That's all I care about.

[bdosborn]

Now this is camping to die for. I don't know why some people think camping means doing without, I think it means they just haven't figured out how to do it well.



Bruce

[Shadow Catcher]

The sound system has a valid use, the camp ground with screaming kids and barking dogs, and just because its nice. Usual channel XM Symphony Hall, classical.
I'm with Bruce!

[kudzu]

I thought about this a little more.

When does it stop being “camping” ?

When the camp can't be packed up & moved in less than an hour & when you are spending more time indoors than you are out. That's my definition & I'm sticking with it.

[atahoekid]

I thought about this a little more.

When does it stop being “camping” ?

when you are spending more time indoors than you are out. That's my definition & I'm sticking with it.

+1. It's all about being outdoors. If you spend more time in your RV than you do enjoying being outdoors then I think it's no longer camping but it's RVing. I've seen too many people come back to their RV during the early evening, walk into their RV and never come out until the morning. I'll give you a pass if you have a medical condition but otherwise just stay in a hotel. I admit, the wife and I spend a lot of time messing with meals, but I'm a firm believer that camp meals need not be minimalist. I really want something more than burgers or hot dogs for dinner. I'm not much for canned food either. I cook from scratch at home and with fresh foods in the cooler, a 2 burner propane stove and a dutch oven, I can enjoy many of the same foods at camp. I also set up a dining fly if we'll be there for a few days and a "shower" tent for the porta-potti, but that's the only way I could convince the wife that not every campground has to have a flushing toilet but at least there's no tent to set up... Enjoying the sites and features of the area during the day, a great dinner and a cold beer with the wife and friends around the campfire makes for a great day of camping. IMO

[PKCSPT]

For me it ceases to be camping when I have satellite t.v. air conditioning and microwave ovens. A lot of tears have all that so each his own I guess. However when your RV comes with 2 bedrooms that is a portable cabin in my book.

[grantstew8]

Well said

[ElectronGuru]

For me it ceases to be camping when I have... air conditioning...

I've been giving this one some thought. In my neck of the woods, a big reason for travel is to escape the heat of summer. In some places, 20 degrees cooler can be had in as little as 25 miles.

But after seeing thread after thread with folks going to quite a bit of trouble to put them in, I started checking locations. There are places where 100 miles won't get you 10 degrees difference and not having AC means hot sweaty nights, with little sleep.

Time was, we avoided living anywhere near such places, or got out as quickly as possible. With the advent of AC, populations have boomed and options are not as easy. I wouldn't think of putting AC on a TD, but can see why others do.