Date: Wed, 9 Jun 2010 10:22:01 -0700
Reply-To: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Scott Daniel - Turbovans <scottdaniel@TURBOVANS.COM>
Subject: Re: Oxymoron Alert: AC While Camping
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Wow.
I think Don's basic point is valid.
And that point is ..
it's barely camping if people are still inside with 'inside' type amenities
while supposedly 'camping.'
Where do you draw the line of course to no longer call it camping ?
I would say, if the whole rig is supported by a running generator, and the
people are inside with powered amnesties like air conditioning, TV,
microwave etc. it's not camping.
and 'RV-ing' is a good term for it.
And particularily, a gernator that other people have to listen to....
that ain't camping.......or let's say, that ain't Friendly Camping. It's
RV-ing.
Heck, when I look inside a 5th Wheel say, and it looks more like a motel
room or yacht in there.....
I feel no sense of roughing it ....I barely see the point. ( unless the
point is to have a huge consumer item that one can show off )
I suppose if one is always 'in the city' and now one can be comfy and
look out the window at trees and a stream say, that's a 'step up' in a way,
but barely in my book.
Camping per se, involves being in touch with the outdoors...and when that's
lost, and a vehicle is involved, then it's RV-ing.
Very good term too.
And mostly we 'car camp' out of our westy's it seems.
But that's fine. Just get that fresh air, hear those birds in the trees,
that brook burbling, a few bugs , some campfire smoke...that's camping.
Scott
----- Original Message -----
From: "mark drillock" <mdrillock@COX.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Wednesday, June 09, 2010 9:18 AM
Subject: Re: Oxymoron Alert: AC While Camping
> Why do so many here seem to think that how they live and do things is
> the only ideal and anything different is verging on evil?
>
> The "majority of humanity" does without a lot of things you have, is
> that really the standard you wish applied to yourself or only to those
> you deem your lessers at camp?
>
> Camping in a Vanagon of any sort is far above where I and many others
> started out. A knapsack and blanket was all I needed 40 years ago when I
> was 16. I later moved on in stages to bike camping, motorcycle camping,
> car camping, and now van camping. At what point did I go wrong? How do I
> reverse the effects of aging so I can sleep on the bare ground again?
>
> I have seen people be happy with almost nothing at camp, as well as
> others that were content with far more than I would even want. The point
> is to go places and do things with a smile in your heart. Build a wall
> of smug superiority around your heart instead if you must but please
> leave it off the Vanagon list as we are a diverse bunch with varying
> ways of doing things, evolving at our own pace.
>
> Mark
>
> Don Hanson wrote:
>> Yeah, "camping" in a Westie....that's really what is called
>> "car-camping"
>> . When you pull your vehicle right up to a picnic table and live out of
>> it...that is "car camping".
>>
>> If you spend most of your time inside, in your air conditioning, I'd
>> say
>> you aren't camping anymore, you are "RV-ing" I'd be really put off if
>> some
>> Westie spied us in a formal campground and "camped" next door (because we
>> are Vanagon folks, too) and then they fired up a generator to run their
>> air
>> conditioner and watch videos and run the microwave...etc etc.
>>
>> I don't really get the point of driving to some semi-remote "campsite"
>> only to spend the whole time "indoors"...especially indoors in a
>> Vanagon..You may as well stay home indoors or bring a "real" RV, one with
>> a
>> couple of pop-out rooms and some TVs and stuff..
>>
>> Doesn't the majority of humanity do ok without AC?
>>
>> Don Hanson
>>
>>
>>
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