Camping is kind of a skill. Throwing together the equipment and going to a park is technically camping. But unless you’re very lucky, it’s probably gonna suck.
Let me preface by saying that my friends and I all have experience camping and know relatively well what we are doing. So we all went to the same college after highschool though we all met outside of school and were from all over our state which was pretty cool. Anyway 3 of us decide to go camping on some local land to look at stars and smoke a little weed, good times yk. Only we all come to realize we have very little camping supplies without driving the hours it will take to get it from any of our parents and we have very little money. So we decided to just tough it out, fuck it we ball. I cannot stress enough how bad of any idea this is, don't do this. We essentially brought a large tent, some snacks, some weed, and one of us was smart enough to bring a pillow (me). The night itself was wonderful, the weather was great and the skies were clear so we talked and stargazed for hours until they started getting tired.
So we file into the tent and it takes a moment before one of us says "yo did we bring anything to sleep on?". No. No we did not. Cold hard ground it is. This sucked but I could live with it, I've done it before. Except, having never slept in the same room as them I was unaware that the both snore, one of them especially so when he is high. I could live with physical discomfort but the mental effort it took to not strangle them made sleep impossible for me. So around 4 am I gave up, grabbed some more weed, stepped outside, and smoked as much as I could while laying in some surprisingly comfortable tall grass looking at stars.
I do not know how they both managed to pass out that night but I'm jealous of their ability. I should have known considering I am an insomniac (not hyperbole) that I would struggle to sleep in this situation but sometimes I am not very bright. All in all not the worst experience, I'd rate it like a 6/10 because the conversation and the stars were really nice. It would have been much better if we took even the smallest amount of time to plan any of it.
So plan your camping, it can still be a blast on a whim but it will be so much better when properly plotted
+1. The joy of camping (for me) is that your experience is directly related to your preparation. You plan your location, activities, meals, sleeping arrangements, and companions, doing all of the research and investment up front to make each of those work well, taking into account weather and conditions, and then you get to enjoy a trip where everything goes well with people you care about, with the satisfaction that the experience that you are having is the direct result of your actions.
Of course, the pain of camping is that any and all of the above can go wrong, and then, indeed, it’s probably gonna suck.
I've gone camping a lot and the worst part of camping in any season but winter are the bugs. I absolutely hate bugs. I'd gladly take being nearly frozen in the mornings over the bugs, and I absolutely hate the cold.
The secret is buying a good tent. And getting pisshead drunk, so that nothing in the world can wake You up. Trust me, I've been to tens of music festivals and twice as much camping.
It's known as "The First Rule of Camping: First put up the tent, then open the beer." I've seen what happens when people ignore this rule. I've seen 6 guys trying to put up a tent for 3 and a half hours. I've seen a guy sleeping wrapped up in an unraised tent. I've seen a guy throw a tent on a bush, then sleep under that bush.
•
Camping has the potential to be any type of fun. From 1 to 3. It depends a lot.
I love type 2 fun so I'm equipped for multi day bike touring and camping trips but it's a bit like anything: if you don't practice it's difficult to get better at it.
However mosquitoes are indeed the worst. I avoid certain areas at some periods of the year because of that. Again, depends where you go and how prepared you are.
Better tent(or just setting it up correctly), bug spray, cheap cot from Amazon. Fixed all your problems
You clearly don't know how to go camping. For instance, why were there mice in your bag? Did you by chance put smellables in there?
As for the bugs I can't really say as I don't live in an area with that problem.
Nature sucks. We should be aware how vulnerable we are and how happy we can be about all the luxury we have. Like fresh water that doesnt taste like anything, a roof, no insects in our beds...
And then we should appreciate how important this still is for our life and that we still need to protect this strange world, as it is our Ecosystem.
I gave it some thought and decided that yes, while it's nice to get out in nature, an afternoon in the park does just as well, walking around, no need to sleep there, so the reason people are camping is that we are practicing homelessness, just in case.
Unrelated, but I'd definitely subscribe to any account or community that posts pictures of cats looking like Limmy
•
if camping's so great, why did man invent House? 😏
(I've never actually been camping. I think I would like to one day though, both for the general experience and the ability to actually see stars, which I think would be neat.)
It can be great if you bring the right people and camp smart (bringing a cot, bug spray, TP, changes of clothes etc.) Playing D&D with the boys around a fire just hits different.
Camping is less comfort and you really need to step out of those comfort zones to appreciate the little things.
Like, nobody needs to drive a car in a city. We should appreciate that we have pathed ways for cycling, instead of mud.
The little things. People stopped getting them and their comfort need is always increasing, I mean its never perfect.
Life is about contrasts
This must be what it’s like if you just lay down in the wilderness at night and call it camping. A decent tent and sleeping roll will prevent bites, mice, water pooling, and back pain.
I feel like slapping a random cat picture underneath some funny take isn't the most effort to put into what hardly qualifies as a meme.
You should do [complex and dangerous activity].
I should do [complex and dangerous activity] without researching or preparing, then complain to strangers.
That's my only experience with camping a decade ago, the tent is leaky and packed, overall only sleep around 3 hours. 0/10
•
you had a shitty tent and technique...
comfort can be had with a little craftiness and effort... which is part of what camping is all about
like, all tents suck. you need a "footprint" tarp, folded slightly smaller than the bottom of your tent, underneath to prevent water from sleeping up, and another tarp above the tent to minimize water on the top... as well as a tiny trench uphill to direct any running water around your camp...
that, or buy the $300 REI tent that actually works on it's own.
camping is a skill to learn...
but you're definitely capable of having a good experience out there...
•
I have a basic £30 (£50 post inflation) pop-up frisbee tent and it works just fine on its own in heavy rain. Water only gets in when the door is open. It really just needs to be double layered, taut and have a decent groundsheet, but that can all come built-in without needing to be expensive
•
i have yet to see one, but it's certainly possible...
what kind of tent do you have? (maybe obfuscate the brand name so we don't attract shills)
and what do you mean by groundsheet?
sorry, i only speak the hotdogs and freedom version of english...
I have 2 ground sheets. One for the inside and one for the outside of my tent. The outside one is a tarp to prevent water coming in or getting the tent overly muddy (but my tent actually came plastic wrapped around the bottom and half a foot up each side to prevent water getting in and I have a moving blanket (they're fairly thick and padded) for the inside of the tent that serves as a quasi carpet. Just a lil extra comfort.
Last time it was the organizer in my college time that set up the tent, and they also underprepared so 4 person have to cramp into a small camp. Lately i found a good camp site but what i lack now is camping buddy 😂
"hey, wanna go camping???"
"Why do I want to pay money to pretend I'm homeless when I can already do that for free".