4 Reasons Camping as an Adult Is Superior to Camping as a Child

When I met my husband, he was the biggest outdoorsman I’d ever come across; he went rock climbing, hiked and scaled mountains, skied in the winter, and he spent every free hot summer moment in the river. He also adored camping and wanted to take me with him.

I couldn’t understand the appeal. Camping was the absolute worst. The cold nights, the inconvenience of setting up a tent, and the constant rain of my childhood haunted me. Nature is great, but why would anyone subject themselves to the torture that is camping.

I have since seen the light of the propane lantern. It turns out, camping does not have to the be drab experience I remembered. My mind has been forever changed and let me tell you why:

1. Tents

My memories of setting up camp are not pleasant. It starts out well enough, three kids tumbling out of the backseat of the car desperate for air and sunshine after a long drive. We’d hurdle ourselves toward the campsite, immediately staking claim to “our” spots – most often a large rock or stump we planned to use as a personal reading or drawing site. Our joy was short lived once our father pulled out his heavy, slightly moldy, left-over-from-the-army canvas tent and began his annual tirade. Imagine if you will, three children left to assemble this monster of a 1970’s tent on their own while our patriarch shouted, “Faster, faster!” and “You should remember how to do this from last year.”

In his memory, we were the perfect hustlers and knew how to get the job done. We did him proud. The thought holds little comfort. My mother, finally having enough of my father’s decrepit shelter, eventually bought us a nylon tent and it became easier.

Speaking of nylon tents, I can only imagine the look on my face the first time my husband set up his tent on our ocean-side, beach campsite. I stood by in awe as he worked with quick efficiency to raise our brightly colored shelter from the ground up – all on his own. This was my first introduction to what camping could be. Poles are color-coded to match their insertion points and the material is so lightweight we may as well be living in the space age.

We now tackle our family sized tent together, but it remains a non-issue. No one raises their voice, no one rushes, and we still manage to get our temporary housing up efficiently. There’s even time for fun afterward.

2. The Weather

It seemed the rain would never stop and our bodies would remain damp for all eternity. For whatever reason, my family camped out at the same location every year. Crater Lake, Oregon is beautiful and, looking back, quite the reprieve from the sweltering summer heat of California. I also thought the banana slugs were the absolute coolest.

Yet, we managed to arrive smack in the middle of the rainy season each time. It was like we were thrown directly into a middle of a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon strip and we were destined to spend year after year camping, hiking, and sleeping in a downpour. We also saw the inside of a lot of museums – which did not always hold the attention of three adolescents. The occasional sunny day was met with reverence and a wild attempt to cram as much fun into a single day.

As master of my own destiny, I can now choose to vacation where it’s dry and the sun shines bright - being that it's possible to research weather conditions ahead of time. Not only do I have the power, but I can also select new locations so my family can see what we’ve never seen before. With so much beauty and majesty in this world, and so much fun to be had, why waste time in the same place again and again?

3. Activities

Four out of five family members agreed reading was an acceptable camping activity. Relaxing after a day of swimming or hiking in a folding chair, either in sun or shade, with no care as to what time of day it is. Paradise. My father, however, did not agree. We were in nature for Christ’s sake, we needed be actively enjoying it at every possible moment. How dare we sit? How could we possibly be enjoying the light breeze or the chirping birds if our noses were in books? I recall more than a few slippery, muddy hikes in the rain (remember that rain I talked about?) where I would have rather been inside the shelter of our tent with a Goosebumps novel.

The key to a good vacation, like all things in life, is balance. I love moving my body in healthy activity and I cherish the outdoor time with my husband and daughter. Being among the four elements breathes new life into me and there’s so much beauty to go out and see. However, I will no longer allow myself to be shamed for wanting to take time to rest my body after hours of traversing a trail with a day pack hitched onto my back, sore legs, and sweat beading across my forehead. Nature is therapeutic and sometimes sitting still and letting it wash over you is the best way to show appreciation. Movement is important, but quiet gratitude for the world around you and the world inside of you is too. I can, and will, do both.

4. Sleeping

Imagine the cold, hard ground (usually wet. Again, see item 2), a layer of canvas (later, nylon), and my sleeping bag. Cozy, right? As a child, I was under the impression sleeping pads were something you earned once you crossed an invisible threshold into adulthood. That I could only achieve full body comfort after I had whittled my own bow and arrow and killed my first boar; or maybe I just needed a driver’s license. I had no way to know. What I did know is I grew used to the feeling small rocks digging into my back and I woke up every single morning – no exaggeration – huddled down as far as I could go into the toe of my sleeping bag, curled around myself like a fetus in the womb, desperate for warmth no matter how many layers of clothing I piled on.

I later learned sleeping pads are for everyone – it’s even possible to buy kid sized ones. One doesn’t have to let their child “rough it” against the frozen ground, they too can slumber in comfort. My children will never know what it feels like to have rocks jammed into their bodies while they attempt to find the most comfortable position; not if I can help it. As for me, my husband and I recently bought a cot – an actual queen-sized cot – to sleep on. A raised air mattress, providing both comfort and space away from the chill of the earth beneath us, it also provides room for our gear underneath. It's practical and guarantees physical comfort I would never have thought possible as a child.

In all fairness, my childhood camping experiences were not all doom and gloom. I benefited greatly from my father’s knowledge and experience, and I owe my love of the outdoors to him. Unfortunately, the darker memories of camping were what stuck. Once he was out of the house and no longer included in our lives, camping was an activity I experienced only once during my teen years – an effort lovingly put together by my mother to prove that not only could she camp, but we could have fun doing it. It was wonderful but it was not an experience we repeated.

I am forever thankful to my husband, and the comforts of the modern world, for allowing me to unlock the part of myself that enjoys spending weekends cooking on a fire and sleeping among the stars.