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| RVs | 33% | 287 votes | Total: 859 votes | |
| Tents | 67% | 572 votes |
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Add to FavoritesWhat image comes to mind when you hear the words "going camping?" The non-camping public would most likely envision several tents with a picturesque backdrop of mountains and forest. This is not an unrealistic image as many campers will attest.
The thoughts of other campers however, are of pleasant campgrounds with Rv's being in the majority. A good nights sleep in a sand free bed and a bathroom close by. A/C in the summer and warmth in the winter with a roof which doesn't leak. No camping junk to load in the truck and none to unload. RV'ing is just too easy say the traditionalists. Not so.
When the early settlers were traversing the continent I'm sure they would have loved an RV. I've never found the camping rule stating camping has to be hard or uncomfortable. And that's what it really comes down to. A tent roof and an RV roof serve the same purpose and so does a sleeping bag and a comfy bed. In each case one does a better job than the other.
Having a great camping experience is possible with all types of camping. Observing nature's beauty and the way animals co-exit with the changing environment is possible in all scenarios.
There is no completely correct answer to this question, but having experienced every mode of camping, including tents and RV's of different sizes and types, I would have to choose the RV. I say this because I'm older now and like my comforts which are rare anyway.
But really, where you are camping usually factors in the equation. You can't take a RV out into the wilderness and when I say wilderness I mean forest and mountainside. Lots of people enjoy the desert, but that's a different kind of wilderness.
My wife and I have camped many times in a tent and enjoyed it immensely. Especially in those out of the way places where nature can really be appreciated. After our son was born we acquired a camper top to fit over the pick up bed. By sliding a mattress inside we had a dry and virtually sand free sleeping area.
After many years of tent camping I discovered that almost all of the work was in gathering up and transporting all of the essential camping gear. Well, not all of it was essential but that's the way most camping trips are. Most of our trips were to state parks for the weekend so by the time we arrived and set up camp I was exhausted.
I used to watch people arrive in RV's and think, wow, they could have stayed in a lot of motel rooms for what they paid for that camper. I would soon find out why they bought their RV's by my own experience. After a particularly hot weekend camping at the beach I began looking around for a small tow behind RV. The next week I found one.
My cousin knew someone who had a 1959 Serro Scotty for sale. You've seen these ham can shaped little campers before. Only about ten feet long and about six and a half feet wide it had just been redone. We bought it and took it to Florida the next weekend. It rained a lot but we were snug in our little beauty.
With a fridge, stove, AC, and color television, we had every thing we wanted. My wife had a ball furnishing it with all the necessary utensils and new curtains of course. We kept it stocked and ready to go at a moments notice and this saved me a lot of time and energy. Setting it up only took about fifteen minutes and this too was great.
But what really surprised me was no matter where you were, or what direction the camper was pointed, it seemed like a bit of home. If you wanted something you knew just what drawer or cabinet to look in. By being used to the bed you slept better than you would on a strange cot or sleeping bag. Not waking up with sand in the sheets helped too.
One very important difference in tents and RV's is the safety factor. A thunderstorm with bolts of lightning popping around your rain soaked campsite while water seeps into your sleeping bag could change your mind. Lie there in your soggy clothes and tell me you are having a good time.
Another thing you might consider is protection from animals and insects. While I am sleeping in air conditioned comfort the mosquitoes and bears may be paying you a visit. Security has its own benefits especially in the great outdoors. All these things factor in.
I eventually bought a bigger tow behind RV but not a huge one. I've used a motorhome before but you still need a car to get around in and it wasn't worth the trouble for the extra space. I still have the Scotty cause my wife won't let me sell it. I probably wouldn't anyway
Learn more about this author, Randy Godwin.
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Tents
I have fond memories of camping out as a young boy with my father in the crisp coolness of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia's Shenandoah National Park. I can still hear the mosquitos buzzing around the tent screens trying to get in; the peaceful chirping of cicadas, locusts, and crickets; and the occasional rustling in the woods that signaled some forest creature trying to find a nocturnal treat.
One year my father decided to take us on a "real man's" camping excursion to Matthew's Arm, a primitive campground within the park with no concessions, no showers, and gravel pads for campsites. Our days were spent hiking, fishing, and canoeing with an occasional evening park program. One program in particular taught us how to search for owl pellets, or owl poop for lack of a better word, which proved the existence of an owl in any particular spot. Owl pellets contain small fragments of bone from the owl's ingestion of small rodents.
I am convinced that the best camping experience is tent camping. It's the only way to go. Sure you can kick up your feet in that comfy RV and watch reruns of King of the Hill or Seinfeld, or maybe even your favorite movie in the DVD player. You can be relatively bug-free and sleep in your cushy RV bed. You can have your own personal bathroom 2 feet away from you, and your own kitchen, and living room area. But what you won't get is the unforgettable, character-building experience of tent camping and communing with nature on a level you may never have the chance to experience again.
With tent camping, learning is half the fun. You are challenged to put up a tent; provide yourself with bedding; plan how you will light your campsite; and plan your meals. Then you go out to your local camping, sports, or hardware store and purchase camping supplies such as portable stoves, pots and pans, utensils, lanterns, flashlights, matches, coolers, tents, sleeping bags, air compressors, air beds, and of course, the makings for smores.
Tent camping also provides a much stronger family bonding experience. You have to work together to get things done camp cooking, the washing of the dishes, blowing up of air mattresses, setting up of the tent, lighting of campfires, lighting lanterns, and watching for curious raccoons. In an RV, everything is already prepared. Convenient, yes; but this sort of "prepackaged" approach isn't as effective at creating lasting memories or fomenting bonding between family members forced to cooperate with each other.
Indeed, the nocturnal sounds of the forest, the dewey sweetness of the crisp evening air wafting through tent screens, the bonding of family, the cementing of memories, and the close communion with nature are best experienced through tent camping.
Learn more about this author, Daniel J. Gansle.
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