When you get down to it, the negatives of camping definitely outweigh the
positives, but that drive to get away from the computer screen and out in
the fresh air is always there for me when July rolls around.
I guess it's an exercise in perseverance and the sense of accomplishment and
stark tan lines are the rewards.
Right up to the moment the vehicle is packed up, and we hit the highway, the
excitement is intoxicating.
Then we get to the campground.
The tent needs to be put up. Struggle.
Then the air mattress needs to be blown up. Ugh.
Once the arms are nice and sore from that, it's time to go for a good long
hike to find the washrooms  unless you're a guy, then lucky you.
And then the search for the water tap begins, and usually there's a large,
steep hill involved.
When you get back to the campsite with half the water gone, and your shirt
soaked, it's time to cook supper.
If you have a good cookstove, and not one from the stone age like me, the
propane canister is a convenient little invention that will hook right up
and boil your water in no time. But if you happen to have the antique
version like me, the line will leak and there will be flames spewing out,
threatening the forest and everyone in it. That¹s why I'll be adding "fire
extinguisher" to my checklist next time.
So, that little experience gives you just enough adrenaline to muster up the
energy to light a fire to cook supper and to sit by until it's time for bed.
At which time you wish your tent-mate a good night. But what you really mean
is "I hope you make it through the night," because by morning the air
mattress is flacid, the air is cold, your skin is damp, eyes are swollen,
muscles aching, and worst of all, the lighting inside the tent makes you
look like the the trash that was raided during the night by raccoons.
The second day is a bit easier. There's not much set-up to do, so it gives
you time to relax.
But down time makes for boredom, and bored, tired, bug-bitten, sunburned
people aren't the best company.
So you find something to do.
We'll play Cards. Cards results in competition.
Competition + crankyness = fight.
And so it goes for the entire, um... vacation.
But peppered throughout are experiences that become life-long memories, like
swimming in a waterfall, finding a ladyslipper, being able to see a million
stars, or seeing a moose for the first time (or second time, or 100th time).
And nothing tastes better than camp coffee, or maple brown beans heated up
on an open fire.
Those few things make it all worth it because you just can't get them
anywhere else. I'm just freshly back from a weekend in the bush, and now
that the discomfort has worn off and the smell of smoke washed out of my
hair, I can't wait to go again.