A Camping Trip With the Family - More Fun Than You May Imagine

Do you remember when you were a child. If you were lucky as I was, you were introduced to camping at an early age. Well, we did not go to a camp in a tent until we were about eleven years of age but we used to go to a wonderful old farmhouse in the countryside from the time my siblings and I were old enough to walk. It was a beautiful old house. It did not have electricity nor running water. It had a big wood stove in the kitchen. Above the stove was a big round oven where our mom baked bread. Not far from the house was an old mysterious barn with old things like a huge, handmade loom. A few spray cans with stuff to kill flies. Hand operated of course. In a corner near the back step was a rain barrel for use in the kitchen. A deep well not far from the house was where the food was kept cool. Upstairs the floor creaked when we walked on it. The outside toilet was a two hole type. A bag of white lime had a wooden scoop to help to spread a coat over the poop. It kept the smell away. Everything was whitewashed.

When dad drove us there on the weekends we made a game of sorts, trying to identify houses of people we met at church on Sunday. We loved electrical storms as they lit up the sky and the thunder rolled through the hills.

A little later dad bought us a tent. We pitched it near the lake below the house. Our whole family enjoyed the campfires our dad taught us to build. We used to visit the folks next door who also camped nearby. One evening we had a campfire at their tent and toasted marshmallows. We returned after dark to our tent only to find a rabbit was inside eating our bread.

Our mom and dad would tell stories after dark by the campfire. They were both very smart and taught us how to identify certain stars, constellations and of course the big and little dippers. There were no lights in our part of the countryside at that time. Electricity came a little later. When it was dark it was really dark.

During the day we swam in the cold waters of the lake. Our dad taught us how to build a wharf. We had to scrounge driftwood along the beach, always on the lookout for a diving board we could use.

As the years passed by and we ended up with our own children, we tried to emulate some of the fun things our parents taught us while camping. The one lesson we all learned was that children are the ones that count when it comes to camping. Let their imaginations loose and you will enjoy camping for years to come as we have done.