Whether one adores camping in the great outdoors, or shudders at the thought, may have a lot to do with certain childhood memories.
Experiences like sitting in a damp tent playing endless rounds of Go Fish with siblings while the rain pours down … eating tiny wild strawberries still warmed by the sun … catching our first fish … and collecting jars of fireflies and releasing them into the velvety darkness, form memories that stay with a camping enthusiast for a lifetime.
On the other hand, if our memories of camping include late-night encounters with predatory stinging insects and something that had menacing orange eyes and made weird whuffing noises in the underbrush, vicious plants with the power to make a person itch horribly for weeks, beaches covered with decaying guck, and incinerated marshmallows for dessert every night, our idea of a pleasant vacation probably does not include tents and sleeping bags. It may not even include Taj Mahal-style trailers that have more luxurious amenities than most houses.
Still, now that summery weather is here, thoughts are turning to those Taj Mahals on wheels. Imaginations run wild in hardware store displays of tents, coolers and outdoor gear for everyone from the hardcore camper to the kind of person who would rather not share living space with bugs and raccoons.
Mind you, technology has changed camping from what we remember as kids. We may find ourselves sitting around the campfire toasting marshmallows, while using our cell phone to check our home security system and the expiry dates on the food in our refrigerator. Most camping areas around here have Wi-Fi.
No need to hyperventilate trying to blow up air mattresses and pool floaties – there are ones that blow up automatically. Sleeping bags are light, washable and warm. Stoves are compact and easy to operate. Water bottles come with their own purification systems.
As for food – forget the tinned beans, unless you like them. There are tasty dehydrated meals that could fool a gourmand into thinking they were eating takeout from a fancy restaurant.
One other thing has changed – camping is not only more comfortable than it ever was, it is also more popular, and expensive. Expect to book your campsite of choice well in advance, and be prepared to pay a substantial fee, especially for a serviced site.
That said, recreational camping is a wonderful way to reconnect with the local flora and fauna, in May.
Camping is not fun when it is a matter of survival, on makeshift sites with no plumbing or Wi-Fi, in February. This is the reality experienced by a growing number of people in this community.
The encampments that have appeared in parks and behind public buildings in large cities for years are now a fact of life in our small towns. Until recently, the usual response has been to destroy the encampments.
Not only are they an eyesore, they are dangerous. People trying to stay warm start fires, which can get out of control and spread quickly in an environment filled with cloth and debris rather than bricks and mortar. Even the most basic sanitation is non-existent.
Cold, damp conditions are miserable for anyone staying in a tent. However, recreational campers have the option of hopping in the car and going to a hotel or returning home for a night – dry bed, warm shower, automatic washer and dryer, and piping hot pizza delivered to the door.
The people in the encampments do not have that luxury. Those tarp-covered tents and shopping carts filled with garbage bags are all they have.
At some point, it appears tents became the answer to homelessness. They are not. They may be adequate in this kind of weather, but we do not live in Florida, we live in Canada. We get fierce winter storms that can freeze exposed skin in seconds and kill overnight.
This is just a reprieve, a chance to find some bricks, mortar and centrally heated solutions, with plumbing, for our less fortunate neighbours.
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Pauline Kerr is a Local Journalism Initiative Reporter currently working for Midwestern Newspapers. She can be reached at pkerr@midwesternnewspapers.com.
