Nothing screams hiking and campfires quite like camping does. It's a fun filled getaway from the world just for a while. You're surrounded by nature. What could be better? Whether you've gone camping once or half a hundred times, there are some things all campers know. Here are the 6 things you know to be true if you go camping:
1. You're either a tent camper or a trailer camper.
There's no in between. You either go full out camping in a tent and devote yourself to the many challenges it brings or you go camping in a trailer.
2. If you do go camping in a trailer, you're questioned on if you're really camping.
Some campers are decked out with two bathrooms, a fully stocked kitchen, a fireplace, surround sound, and an outdoor kitchen. I've received comments from friends and family about whether or not I am really camping. And I guess the answer depends on your definition of camping. This is up to you to decide if having four TVs in a 40 foot camper is actually camping. If you do camp in an RV or trailer you will get this question frequently.
3. You have a camping group.
Whether it be small or big, if you frequently go camping, you have a camping group. It may change throughout the years and become bigger or smaller but you have a group. You decide where to go camping and when. You pick sites next to each other and plan the vacation accordingly. At one point, our camping group consisted of eight different families.
4. You make almost every meal together.
Before the trip, even if you're just camping for the weekend, you plan out meals together with whomever you're camping with, from a big breakfast one morning to all-out dinners every night. In years past, we've devoted a full campsite as our food gathering location. Just one site decked out in picnic tables, camping chairs, and tents to block out the sun. If a family cancels last minute and their site is still available, it is now devoted to the sole purpose of being the dinning room table.
5. You've had a run in with the campfire.
Campfires are fun but they can also be dangerous and if you regularly go camping, you've had a run in with the campfire. Our group has had a flaming marshmallow accidentally flung into the air while everyone below it was scattering to avoid it's fury descent back to earth. We've had one incident where someone actually caught on fire.
6. You collect an item from every location you visit.
Some people collect magnets, while others collect pins. Whatever it may be, you collect something and keep it somewhere in your camper. I've seen people keep a map on the side of their camper and they mark each location they've gone to while camping.