As this post comes on-line, I will be out camping – our annual 3-generation camping trip. There’s nothing greater than the time spent outdoors with family. As I mentioned in a previous blog post, camping is something we have been doing with our family for a lot of years. Things have changed over time but one thing that never changes is the quality of time spent with others without the distraction of electronics unless, of course, you’re more into “glamping” than camping – for those who have never heard that word before it refers to glamorous (or luxury) camping.
Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against “glamping”. As far as I’m concerned any kind of holiday away from the regular routine is a bonus and something we all need. Probably, the biggest reasons we don’t do it are finances and time. With farming, the summer is a busy time and there isn’t the freedom to get away for very long, so why spend all the money for just a short trip. We do bigger holidays in the winter when our time is less busy but I’m not a winter camper – I look for a nice beach. Besides, I get a high out of roughing it.
One of the biggest changes for us has been sleeping in a fifth-wheel camper rather than a tent. That was a big change for me. As I get older, and the arthritis gets worse, it’s just getting harder to get up and down off the ground. I’m grateful for a daughter and son-in-law who have room in their camper for us to come along. I do miss sleeping in a tent – you’re just a little closer to nature some how.
There are other things that I’m not quite ready to give up. I love cooking over an open fire or using our propane cook stove – cooking outdoors. The food just seems to taste better when it’s cooked outdoors and I love the smells of the food mingled with the fire, the trees and so forth. We have only resorted to indoor cooking once when the weather was quite inclement. (Here's a link to the Tri-Light Stool Wash Stand - something that would be a handy item for the campsight.)
Another thing that I enjoy (but that is getting harder) is hiking while we are out camping. I have to go a little slower and the terrain has to be a little less rugged but I do enjoy the sights and sounds along the way. There is a big advantage to living and camping on the prairies – a lot of the hikes are pretty flat. As you can see in the photo, the hike was easy enough to use bikes and strollers. This was last year’s camping trip in central Alberta. (Not a lot of trees, quite a few mosquitoes, but there was a nice lake where we enjoyed swimming and canoeing.)
Whatever your camping style, enjoy your summer and spend some time enjoying the beauties of nature all around us. We are so fortunate, even in our cities, to have lots of green spaces so let’s take advantage of them.
