i really don’t understand people who don’t like camping. i don’t. personally, i think that having the chance to stick a tent up somewhere, getting dirty and getting the hell away from people, work and life in general is something that should be cherished.

i have no issue with going out on a solo overnighter or a few days. some people seem to think that’s strange, kind of like going to a movie by yourself. i don’t have a problem with that either so whatever point they’re trying to make doesn’t stop in my head. no it keeps right on going.

and when i say camping i mean tent. i understand that some people ‘camp’ in a trailer, but frankly, if you’re not sleeping a few inches or less off the ground that hardly counts. likewise, people who have giant fucking RVs and trailers and generators and satellite tv in them and fridges and stoves and shitters and potted plants and then go park in a bush and say it’s camping and that they’re getting away from ‘the busy life’. sorry, but i don’t get the difference between your kids playing video games in your RV versus your house.

i grew up camping. literally. like, camping pre exit from the womb, diaper camping, toddler camping, tween camping, teen camping, all the way up. shit, I camped through the chicken pox. true story. i got it camping near Billings, and it lasted until Wyoming. I only ever remember asking why we didnt have a trailer once, and that’s only because we were camped in Montana and we met some other kids who were in one and they had a little tv and we were watching Thundercats or something. other than that, tent. you want to take a piss? crawl out of your sleeping bag, try and find the flashlight, get your sandals on and head out to the bush or pit toilet.

i get into this at work with people. some people say that they’re still camping even if they have a trailer because they dont have power in it. that may be, but there’s running water, and it’s heated. you know what heats a tent? farts. you ask dario or marlee that. there’s a reason why there’s an oven in Dutch Over.

if i ever have kids, im making damn sure they know how to set up a tent, how to light a camp stove, how to light a fire and what to do if you wake up in the night and find all your stuff floating in an inch of water. that last one happened in kananaskis one year while i was camping with some friends. J was not too happy about that. I had a grand old time with it. spent the whole night wrapped in every piece of clothing i’d brought in a semi soggy sleeping bag and happily waited for bacon in the morning. she didn’t quite put the same spin on it…

I realize that lots of people say they appreciate nature by going on walks on trails around town, or go on dayhikes or whatever. but until you set up camp in 30 degree weather at the side of a lake only to wake up the next morning in three feet of snow (Glacier National Park early 90s) you can’t really appreciate what it has to offer or what it can send your way.

i’ve got all my gear packed up in the front hall waiting for me to get up early tomorrow morning to haul it down to the van, load it up and get the fuck out of dodge until sunday night. heading out to the badlands to set up shop, go hiking and sit by the river.