what ever happened to camping??

[MelGoddard]

Originally Posted by wayne&sam

this is camping: Arctic ocean, near barrow, ak, 1971.

exactly:d

[MelGoddard]

Originally Posted by FCStreamer

I don't like to sweat. Or freeze. Or do my business in a hole in the ground. Or get wet when it rains. I'm just funny that way.

YER WIERD!

[Piggy Bank]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

Just to point out how long this particular debate has been going on ....

The Conestoga Wagon (locally produced in PA) was the "Class A" of it's day. If you started out on the Oregon Trail with one, you probably didn't make it to the other end. The darn thing was simply to ghastly big and hard to "tow". Hauling 12,000 pounds over that terrain with a couple horsepower ... not so much. What did get used were much smaller "farm" wagons.

The whole "Conestoga Wagon" name has stuck because it *was* the top of the line. Feel free to consider this a very biassed plug for a local product

Bob

That's why they came up with the Prairie Schooner. Tall grass trails were not the old king's road

[Hans627]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

Just to point out how long this particular debate has been going on ....

The Conestoga Wagon (locally produced in PA) was the "Class A" of it's day. If you started out on the Oregon Trail with one, you probably didn't make it to the other end. The darn thing was simply to ghastly big and hard to "tow". Hauling 12,000 pounds over that terrain with a couple horsepower ... not so much. What did get used were much smaller "farm" wagons.

The whole "Conestoga Wagon" name has stuck because it *was* the top of the line. Feel free to consider this a very biassed plug for a local product

Bob

I wonder what the "payload" was and what type of "hitch" they used to prevent "sway".

[Milo1952]

equalizer

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by Hans627

I wonder what the "payload" was and what type of "hitch" they used to prevent "sway".

Hi

I doubt they ran them over 60 MPH .....

It is a bit crazy to think about controlling that much weight on even a "good" road in the 1700's or 1800's. The bottom line is that they did get into trouble pretty often.

Bob

[OTRA15]

One of the main risks was going downhill, so they had systems for using rope tethered back to a tree or large rock to "brake" the rig if the manual wheel friction brake pads could not grab enough. Imagine going through an area with miles and miles of steep ups and downs . . .

"Are we there yet . . . ?"

Tenacious and courageous folks, those wagon trainers!

[ijoe13]

Originally Posted by Hans627

I wonder what the "payload" was and what type of "hitch" they used to prevent "sway".

Hensley. [emoji51]

[PKI]

Originally Posted by ijoe13

Hensley. [emoji51]

He was a pretty good old horse, but wobbled a bit by the time he got to Oregon.

Pat

[PKI]

Didn't he pull a Studebaker?

Pat

[Knuff]

What a great community!
It is amazing reading about all these different views on one thing.
It is very clear that this is a very diverse group. Diversity is a blessing [emoji322]

[Hans627]

No one mentioned Blue OX. Of course maybe they were not blue but just plain brown or black, or whatever color ox came in!

I know this is off topic a bit (maybe a lot) but at the York County Historical Society (York, PA) they have a Conestoga Wagon from nearby Lancaster Co. on display. Much bigger than you would think and an awesome piece of engineering and workmanship.

One of my ancestors, Daniel Jacobs, drove (mostly walked beside) that wagon between Baltimore and York. Perhaps some of you might know the steep rolling hills between these two cities. What a tough job. I can hardly imagine what it must have been like to cross the rockies with mules, horses, oxen and human power in one of these, or similar, wagons. They were indeed hardy hard working people. We owe a lot to people like them.

Now they were camping! If they could see us complaining about a screw coming loose or the A/C not working they would call us all crazy! So everything is relative.

[PeterH-350LE]

Originally Posted by Knuff

What a great community!
It is amazing reading about all these different views on one thing.
It is very clear that this is a very diverse group. Diversity is a blessing [emoji322]

Yes, I very much enjoyed all the different stories and camping experiences.
I spent my childhood vacations in a tent close to beach outside of Venice, Italy, later many "roughing it" trips in VW vans all over Europe, North Africa and North America. I finally graduated to and rightfully earned the comforts of "camping" in an Airstream Motorhome or trailer over the last 20 years.
So, it seems that "camping" is what you make it, to get the most enjoyment of your time away from the everyday grind.
Thanks to everyone for chiming it!

[OTRA15]

One user here has a great signature:
_______________________________

"Hot meals, cold beer, dry bed & flush toilet - everything I look for in a wilderness experience..."
_______________________________

Thanks Tim for a good belly laugh with every one of your posts!

[JamuJoe]

You must not have been on any Interstate recently, if large motorhomes were a shock to you. Seems a bit disingenuous to go 'camping' in a 30' Excella and criticize others in somewhat larger rigs. If you are amongst big motorhomes, then you are probably not very deep in natural surroundings yourself.

[wolf146]

Our family immigrated from Germany when I was almost eleven years old back in 1956. What I knew about America was: that it was big country, that they had cowboys and indians in Texas. Americans where rich and nice people and gave us candy and chocolate that we could never get anywhere else, and they won the war. That was a vague concept for me, because our town, Heidelberg, wasn't bombed.

In this country I discovered the National Graphic Magazine and was enamored with the pictures of this great land. I was itching to go camping and discover it.

My wife and I had never been out of Jersey,except for some trips to NYC.

So soon after our marriage, we went to Sears and bought a tent, sleeping bags, three air mattresses, a stove, lantern, table and two chairs and off we went. We didn't even know that campgrounds had tables and benches. We camped with that tent for seven years. Cooked almost every night, set up the tent etc, made breakfast the next day, packed everything up and drove further west until we came to the "big sky country" and the "American Alps". What a wonder to behold!

Years later we saw a used 15 foot Sunline trailer for sale. It had a stove, sink, refrigerator, toilet and beds, ( no air) and we now had two kids. So when my wife saw this 2 year old beauty with all those conveniences was for sale at $1800 we bought it. What luxury! We still called that camping, we sat around the fire, toasted marshmellows etc.

After getting a 22 footer then a 25 footer and then 28 footer ( each of which we used for about 7 to 8 years) we went from camping to "trailering" or camping in style!. Our object now was to use this as a "motel " on wheels. We wanted to see this great country but now the trailer became a comfortable way of getting to see the many historic and natural sights.

For the last 11 years , and now in the twilight of our years, we have had a 30 Foot Classic Airstream, which provides us with all the comforts of home. We still use this as a base for exploring , but we are really not camping anymore. We also use it to extend our summers by heading south in the fall and in the spring.

We do prefer state and national parks, but we aren't big into smelling a smokey fire from a neighbor, or sitting outside with bugs flying around or listening to the TV of a neighbor, and hate to see "Christmas in July" stuff hanging all over the place!!!! We do like to keep up with the news, read books and local newspapers in our comfortable beds and couch and listen to our music. I don't feel a bit of guilty about traveling this way

So like almost everybody on this forum we evolved from camping to "trailering" as our creaky bodies have demanded more comfort!!!

The Airstream has been the best of all of the trailer we had before and we hope to use it as long as we can!!!!

Wolf146

[TYSON PECK]

I finally concluded they bought a condo on wheels which still allows them to see the country.

[Milo1952]

Nothing wrong with that

[MelGoddard]

Originally Posted by thiel

My wife was raised in Brooklyn and I was raised in Vermont. She loves pavement and I love campfires.

If you draw a straight line between those two states of being, the center point is at a trailer parked in a state park campground with partial hookups.

In truth, we needed a vacation spot (we work at a school and we live on campus, so you really must get away sometimes!) and didn't want to settle. The Airstream is a really expensive trailer, but a really cheap vacation home.

1
Ever walk The Long Trail?
No mosquitos, and don't even need a tent, with those cabins/lean-tos.

[MelGoddard]

Originally Posted by wolf146

Our family immigrated from Germany when I was almost eleven years old back in 1956. What I knew about America was: that it was big country, that they had cowboys and indians in Texas. Americans where rich and nice people and gave us candy and chocolate that we could never get anywhere else, and they won the war. That was a vague concept for me, because our town, Heidelberg, wasn't bombed.

In this country I discovered the National Graphic Magazine and was enamored with the pictures of this great land. I was itching to go camping and discover it.

My wife and I had never been out of Jersey,except for some trips to NYC.

So soon after our marriage, we went to Sears and bought a tent, sleeping bags, three air mattresses, a stove, lantern, table and two chairs and off we went. We didn't even know that campgrounds had tables and benches. We camped with that tent for seven years. Cooked almost every night, set up the tent etc, made breakfast the next day, packed everything up and drove further west until we came to the "big sky country" and the "American Alps". What a wonder to behold!

Years later we saw a used 15 foot Sunline trailer for sale. It had a stove, sink, refrigerator, toilet and beds, ( no air) and we now had two kids. So when my wife saw this 2 year old beauty with all those conveniences was for sale at $1800 we bought it. What luxury! We still called that camping, we sat around the fire, toasted marshmellows etc.

After getting a 22 footer then a 25 footer and then 28 footer ( each of which we used for about 7 to 8 years) we went from camping to "trailering" or camping in style!. Our object now was to use this as a "motel " on wheels. We wanted to see this great country but now the trailer became a comfortable way of getting to see the many historic and natural sights.

For the last 11 years , and now in the twilight of our years, we have had a 30 Foot Classic Airstream, which provides us with all the comforts of home. We still use this as a base for exploring , but we are really not camping anymore. We also use it to extend our summers by heading south in the fall and in the spring.

We do prefer state and national parks, but we aren't big into smelling a smokey fire from a neighbor, or sitting outside with bugs flying around or listening to the TV of a neighbor, and hate to see "Christmas in July" stuff hanging all over the place!!!! We do like to keep up with the news, read books and local newspapers in our comfortable beds and couch and listen to our music. I don't feel a bit of guilty about traveling this way

So like almost everybody on this forum we evolved from camping to "trailering" as our creaky bodies have demanded more comfort!!!

The Airstream has been the best of all of the trailer we had before and we hope to use it as long as we can!!!!

Wolf146

A wonderful story. Thanks for sharing.