Solo camping Mack Daddy style

This post in not about becoming more green and I'll warn you now that there will likely be other posts in the future that might be a little off topic.

I spent my 4th of July weekend camping. While camping I ran into someone I met while camping at the same place Memorial Day weekend. At the end of my Memorial Day trip I wrote an email to several friends that described the experience. What follows is the the email that I sent.

I hope you all had a fantastic Memorial Day weekend. I went camping myself. As everyone that was supposed to go camping with me managed to bail I was faced with a choice. I could either go camping by myself or sit home wishing I was camping. I decided to go solo and I’m so grateful that I did.

In my typical fashion I managed to grossly over pack. I took the big tent, the big cooler, enough food and fuel to last a week, 2 lanterns, 2 sleeping bags, 3 pillows, a queen sized air mattress, 3 stoves and a plethora of assorted items that any gear whore such as myself could possibly manage to stuff in a Chevy Cavalier.

I took Friday off work so I spend the morning organizing and cramming stuff into my car. By early afternoon I was on my way. I stopped at the little deli right around the corner from the campground to pick up bread, rolls and tuna salad. When I arrived at my campsite I sat down at the table and had a couple of tuna salad sandwiches before setting up camp. I took my time setting up not realizing that others had also arrived a bit early. For those of you who have never camped with me I should explain that after setting up camp I drive to the other campsites to gather up any firewood that previous campers might have left behind. That’s why my trunk and back seat are constantly littered with bark and leaves. Well low and behold, another group of industrious campers were just ahead of me and managed to gather up much of the wood I scouted on my way to the campsite. Not to worry though. I ended up with nearly a trunk full of firewood. That in addition to the usual 4 bags I generally buy from the front office on the first night should be more than enough to get me through the weekend. In fact, I brought 3 of those bags home. I learned a valuable lesson about competition here. When you realize that there is enough for everyone you no longer have a need to compete. I applaud the efforts of those industrious campers scrounging for wood ahead of me and sincerely hope and believe they had enough wood to get them through the weekend as well.

First night of camping is always a magical one for me. Especially so on the first trip of the season. Camp is all set up and there’s little else to do except enjoy the weekend as it unfolds before you. And what a weekend it was. Early on the weather forecast called for rain but we really couldn’t have asked for better weather. It was a little chilly the first 2 nights but that’s expected this time of year. I really kind of enjoy slightly chilly nights and mornings anyway. It gives me a chance to sport my Campmor hoodies.

After dinner I took my usual walk around the campgrounds checking out my fellow campers and especially their tents. I have this weird fascination with tents. On my way around the grounds I happened to walk past my favorite site in the park and had to take a couple steps backwards to make sure I saw what I thought I saw. Yes, it was a mountain of wood that put everyone else’s to shame. On my last step backward a friendly looking gentleman waved me up to his site. Being neighborly I walked up the little driveway to campsite. The occupants were the nicest couple you could possibly meet. I spent most of the evening hanging out with Craig and Diana at #46. Turns out that Craig and Diana make their own wine. Not just wine but all natural stuff without sulfates. Well, you probably know that I love a good dry, red wine. Let me tell you, I’m no wine coinsure but that was the best cabernet I’ve ever had. Craig had brought a laptop with some pictures and showed me their basement setup. It would be an understatement to say that it was quite impressive. As the evening drew on I got a bit tired and started yawning. I excused myself and strolled back to my site to enjoy my first night sprawled out in 2 sleeping bags laid out on a queen sized air mattress. As I curled up for a most peaceful evening of slumber I was so grateful that I brought the extra gear.

The next morning was the usual coffee and sausages but with a twist. I now have this little thing (for lack of a better word) that allows me to make toast on my propane stove. Since I had leftover bread from the previous days sandwiches I decide to give it a whirl. It works great but I forgot to bring butter so the toast ended up a little dry. Again I strolled around the grounds for my typical after breakfast walk. I couldn’t believe how many campers were out to enjoy the beautiful camping weather we had. There were a larger number of pop-ups than usual and the array of tents was enough to satisfy my weird tent fetish. A fairly uneventful afternoon left me to admire the view from my campsite. Although I booked late and didn’t get one of my favorite sites I realized how fortunate I was to be camping where I was. There is nothing behind this site but a most impressive wall of trees. As I lay in the hammock admiring the view an amazing sense of peace and contentment just washed over me. Man I love camping.

At some point during the day I ran to CVS to pick up a radio. I don’t normally bring a radio camping but I’ve grown accustomed to one ever since camping several time last year with Michelle. She brought her little radio every trip and my aversion to one has since faded. As I enjoyed the classic rock emanating from my new purchase I fondly reminisced about our camping trips last year. The one that stands out is Voorhees and I don’t think I’ll ever forget the look of complete terror on her face after seeing our tiny little campsite surround by nothing but the vastness of the forest that made us seem as though we were in the middle of nowhere. She quickly got used to it and I’m pretty sure she enjoyed the trip as much as me. Again pangs of gratitude tugged at me as I looked at the large tent with the screen porch she bought for our first outing. Not only is it large enough that you can stand up to change clothes but the screen porch gives me plenty of space to stash all that gear I was able to stuff into my car. I really enjoy having a clear picnic table so a place to put everything in a fairly organized fashion was one of this trip’s highlights.

I took an early nap and ended up sleeping until 11:00. Although I had promised to teach Craig and Diana how to play cards that evening I thought 11:00 was probably a little late to be strolling into someone’s campsite so I enjoyed a nice fire, a couple of cold beverages and my nightly walk around the grounds.

The next morning I went down to the bathrooms. There was a line of 4 or 5 guys with towels draped over their shoulders waiting to use the shower. I decided that it could be quite a while before getting to shower and since I live 15 minutes from the park I opted to shower at home. I ran in to my upstairs neighbors in the parking lot on my way back to camp. They seemed quite surprised that I was camping alone as did most others who were aware of this. Campers are some of the nicest people you could meet and with the park so crowded this weekend it’s really hard to think of this outing as being alone.

During the afternoon I did a little hiking and late afternoon or early evening a friend from work stopped by to visit. He was gracious enough to bring some cold Sam Adams. I had a cooler full of frosty beverages so we enjoyed those while chatting a while and strolling around the grounds so he could see what the different sites looked like. That evening a young couple rolled in a little late and I noticed this guy dragging firewood into their site. I looked at the 4 bags of wood I bought plus the remaining stack I had collected and decided that it would be neighborly to offer them some wood. When I strolled into their site I noticed they were just finishing up their 6 pack so I offered them the Sam Adams my work friend brought. I remember the guy’s name was Nick but I don’t remember if the girl was Jessica or if Jessica was the park cop that snuck up on me later that evening to tell me that my fire was extending past the fire ring. In any event I invited them over to play cards that evening along with Craig and Diana. Craig graciously bowed out but Diana came over along with the young couple and the 4 of us played cards, drank frosty beverages and chatted about camping and backpacking.

The next morning I was a little sad at the thought of having to break camp and end this weekend. The thought of having to pack up all that gear and shove it into my car and then unload it all when I get home was anything but pleasant. I made coffee and broke camp pretty quickly. As I was running the last bit of recycling and garbage down to the receptacles I bumped into the guy camping across the road from me. It turns out that he shares my sorrow at having to end the weekend and go home. As we walked and talked we decide that it’s better to look forward to the next camping trip than to be sad about the present one ending. As he informed me that his wife had booked a site for the 4th of July weekend I vaguely remembered Diana telling me they had also booked for that weekend. On my way out of the park I stopped by the office and made my reservation as well. Again, all of the best sites were taken so I opted for the same site I had this weekend and was grateful to get it. I look forward to bumping into Craig and Diana again. Craig is like a big kid who seems to enjoy each and every moment and Diana has a spirit that could fill a room. Perhaps I will also get the opportunity to get to know the campers across the road from me.

When I arrived at home the daunting task of unloading the car seemed like nothing. It’s usually quite unpleasant but the thought of my next camping trip somehow seemed to make unloading rather enjoyable. I anxiously look forward to my next camping trip and sharing a toast to last night and first timers with my fellow campers.