1. Camping is a traditional national pastime. Kids are raised going on camping trips with their whole family.  For fathers and sons, camping presents a great opportunity to bond.  Remember your first camping trip, those memories of looking up into the night sky for the first time, unpolluted by the city lights?  The quiet peace of camping allows families to bond.  Things that are left unsaid during the daily bustle finally have a chance to be said.
2. Campfires are unforgettable. Around campfires, parents share stories of their childhood and pass down their own ideas and thoughts on life, the outdoors, and the nature of the universe.  While camping, timeless folk and ghost stories are shared.  Because we remember those fun times camping, it’s only natural that we take our kids camping during the summer just as our parents did with us.  While camping, families can come together and relate to each other in a way that often isn’t possible at home.
3. It’s a time to “get back to nature”. No matter how many conquests we make in the business, political, and technological world, many people still like to “get back to nature”.  Camping connects people to a part of themselves that often gets lost in the busy city.  It is easy to forget that there is such a thing as nature.  All that rushing around, trying to pay the bills, and get ahead in life.  Camping is quite different.  There is no rush, no stress, just a sense of belonging in nature that is unique to camping.

Camping can be a fun pastime and a strong family tradition.  People continue to go camping year after year.  And as the world around us may constantly change, camping will always remain a much loved experience.

Every spring, we sit down and discuss the three big weekends – Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day.  The 3-day weekends.  We like to camp these weekends for several reasons.  We don’t have to take any vacation days from work to camp for three days.  Most campgrounds have the most activities on these weekends.  There are lots of people to meet and socialize with at campgrounds on these weekends.

Unfortunately, the trend we’ve seen in the past three or four years is that it’s harder and harder to get sites.  Campgrounds are booking up so quick.  Part of that is because of the economy.  For the past few years, more and more people are getting into camping.  It’s a cheap and fun vacation.  With it’s increase in popularity comes, of course, and increase in media attention, which just creates the unending loop.  Talk to camper dealers – they can’t keep them in stock.

Anyway, so this past week, I called our favorite local site for Memorial Day Weekend.  With the kids still in school, it’s easier to stay closer to home.  Guess what?  BOOKED SOLID.  I thought for sure with a two month head’s up we’d get a site, but no such luck.  It took THREE tries before I found a campground with room for us.  Needless to say, I didn’t waste any time.  I booked 4th of July and have some promising leads for Labor Day.

My point?  If you haven’t already done so, get on your bookings for the holiday weekends!

I personally know a couple who RVs for a living – working in different campgrounds along the way.  They LOVE it.

We found a great article on this topic here. Take a peek!

If you are like us, and live in a climate with four distintly textbook seasons, you’re ready to get out of the house.

I’m sick of winter.  I’m sick of snow.  I’m sick of ice.  I haven’t seen the grass in three months.  Now, FINALLY, it’s going to be 63 degrees tomorrow!  That, added to the 40s and 50s we’ve had the last few days, has melted almost all the snow.  The rest should disappear in the next few days.

I’m hearing birds.  They’re starting to build nests.  Today I saw a chipmunk cross the street.  I bet they’re happy too!

I’m starting to plan our big three camping trips this year – Memorial Day, Labor Day, and Fourth of July weekends.  Book early – the full hookup sites go fast.

This year I am going to start researching new campgrounds to try.  Every year we visit our favorites, but I’d like to try some new ones.  I’ve found the following books helpful.

We had a nice holiday.  Two days after Christmas, it got up to 70 degrees in Pittsburgh.  A far cry from the normal 20 or so degrees.  What a treat.  I know it can’t last forever, but while it was nice, we started thinking about where we’re going camping next season.

This is the time to plan.  Campgrounds are filling up quick now – especially the holiday weekends.  Last year we reserved a campground for Labor Day Weekend in April and got the last full hookup site!

We are interested in your favorite places to camp.  If you want to send us a quick review, we’ll post it in our campgrounds category.  You can even include your website URL and byline for the credits!  Just click on “Submit Article” at the top of the page.

We’ll be adding polls, contests, and links to goodies in the upcoming months, so subscribe via email or RSS (to the right) and you’ll be among the first to know!

Happy New Year – stay safe!

What it looks like here in February

Well, if you’re like us, the camper has been winterized with the infamous “pink stuff”, roof air conditioner is covered, and the “feet” are put up for the winter.  I got some of those huge ziplock bags and put all of our paper products, pillows, linens, towels, and such inside so they won’t mildew or smell musty next spring.  Now it’s the long, cold WAIT for spring.

We generally take our first camping trip of the season around the beginning of May, or at the latest, memorial day weekend.  Some of the KOA Campgrounds around here offer a BOGO on Mother’s Day weekend, so if we can swing it, we’ll go then, too.  But usually it’s still too cold to do much camping.

Inevitably, a nice weekend comes up after the camper is winterized and we want to take advantage before the snows set in.  So we’ve started renting cabins in October/November at some of the campgrounds around here.  It’s perfect!  The cabins are warmer, have bathrooms (can you say outhouse in 28 degree weather?  I THINK NOT).

Our Favorite Cabin at Kozy Rest

So, next time you want to camp after the warm season, or if you don’t have a camper and are thinking of trying camping any time of year, think of a cabin!  You still have to bring your own linens, dishwear, etc., but it offers an alternative to a traditional camper.

Now that the camping season is over for the year (we are in the Northeast, don’t forget!), we won’t be posting as often to the blog, however, we welcome any content you might like to submit, and will be posting any info that comes to mind (and reviews on any good camping stuff we get for the holidays!).

Here are ten ways to save money on campground expenses:

1. Use a directory. You can minimize driving miles off your route and pick out lower priced places to stay. Call ahead to verify rates and availability.

2. Join a membership park or join a half-price camping club. Both offer lower rates to members. Investigate membership parks before joining. They may or may not save you money. The half-price clubs cost around $50/year so if you stay in three or four parks at half price, you’ll be ahead of the game.

3.  Extend your stay. Many parks offer weekly and monthly rates that lower your nightly rate.

4.  Try boondocking. When you are traveling and are only stopping for the night and not needing or using campground facilities, find a boondocking spot. Many RVers blacktop boondock at Wal-Mart parking lots or at truck stops. (Be sure to follow proper etiquette.)

5.  Choose cheaper sites. If you don’t need to dump your tanks, request a site that has only water and electric for a cheaper rate than a full-hookup site.

6.  Set up your rig for boondocking. Add solar panels and a catalytic or ceramic heater to your RV so you can boondock for extended periods of time on public land. There is an initial setup cost but camping is free or low-cost.

7. Look for free camping. Some towns, particularly Midwestern ones, have municipal RV parks where you can stay free for a night or two.

8. Stay in public campgrounds. Many public campgrounds operated by federal and state agencies are less expensive than private facilities. Many will not have hookups but are in beautiful locations.

9.  Stay with friends or fellow club members. Several RV clubs have lists of members who welcome club members to stop overnight for one night on their travels. If you stay with a friend or club member, don’t abuse your privilege. Offer some money or take them to dinner.

10.  Work or volunteer where you get a free site. Many volunteer or Workcamper jobs come with a free or reduced-rate RV site.

Jaimie Hall Bruzenak is an RV Lifestyle Expert. She has been RVing since 1992. She and her late husband weren’t retired so RVed on a budget and worked on the road. She is the author of Support Your RV Lifestyle! An Insider’s Guide to Working on the Road and other RV books. See http://www.RVLifestyleExperts.com for more information about the RV lifestyle.

©2008. Permission to reprint as long as the full article and bio is included.

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We lucked out in that the weather was beautiful – upper 70s and sunny the whole time.  Perfect for walking around outside.

You can get a map from the Visitors Bureau in Johnstown that lists I think 15 historic covered bridges in the area.  We decided to check some out.  It was kind of like a scavenger hunt.  Some of the bridges were well marked and out in the open, some we had to find on old dirt roads, back in the woods.  It was a lot of fun.  Some are used for storage, some are used for walking, and one we even were still able to drive over.

This particular one in the photo needed a lot of work – on the other side was what looked like it was once a picnic area, but now is overgrown.  The bridge was used to store what looks like a wagon used for hay rides.

But the highlight of our trip was definitely visiting the Flight 93 Crash Site in Shanksville.  If I say one thing about seeing this site, it’s that it was very humbling.    It was very sad, but afterward I was so grateful that I went there – I think everyone should.

You drive down a narrow, one lane residental/farm road through the woods.  Suddenly you turn left onto a small road – if you blink, you’ll miss it.  Then, suddenly, there it is.  You come out in an open field and you can see the chain link fence with all of the memorials stuck to it.

You can see waaayyy out in the field (see photo below) a single American Flag that markes the exact spot the plane went down in.

There is a small shack with photos of the event and we had a guide there telling about some little known facts that made me appreciate those heros on that plane even more.

Right on the other side of that line of trees behind where the plane went down is the only school Shanksville has – K-12.  The entire future of Shanksville missed being hit by mere yards.

Anyway, I don’t want to depress anyone, but I really feel this is a place everyone should visit.  Ground Zero in NY is of course, humbling as well, but this was a whole different type of feeling.  Really brings back pride in your fellow man and our country.

Fall in PA

Well, it’s official. Summer is over. What a drag. But with the fall comes a whole new set of things to do and see. Crisp air, the smell of wood smoke from fireplaces (mostly mine because I can’t light a fire to save my life).

And if you happen to live in the Northeast, you get the treat of seeing the fall foliage colors. Depending on where you are and what type of summer it’s been, the colors can be not so hot (last year) or beatiful (the year before).

This photo was taken driving near Johnstown, PA. We went camping in the Laurel Highlands of PA and drove through the area on the covered bridge tour. You can get a map that’s marked with the covered bridges and then go on a scavenger hunt to find them. We had a blast. The leaves were just starting to change, it was still warm enough to walk outside without a jacket, and the weather was beautiful.

Fall is a great time for camping. There are a lot of places to go in PA, NY, and New England.  I love camping in the fall.  It’s cool at night, so sitting around the camfire is so cozy.  We spent four days at Jellystone Campground near Ohiopyle, PA.   We spent one day touring Frank Lloyd Wright’s Falling Water, about a mile from the campground.  But at this time of year, make reservations early, because they book up fast!

Laurel Caverns

We spent another day in the Laurel Caverns.  It rained that day, and the higher in the mountains we drove, the foggier it got.  It was so foggy, we barely found the caves.  You can get a tour that takes about an hour – the guide has lots of great information, and the price is reasonable.  If you are really adventurous, you can do the “extended” tour – you even get a hard hat with a light on it.  That tour takes you to parts of the caves that are not light, and don’t have handrails or safety features. That tour takes about four hours and I’m too claustrophobic to brave it

We took the tour two years in a row, it’s a fun place to bring people who haven’t seen the caves before.  We picked up some cool souveniers, too.  Too bad the weather was so bad that year – apparently the view is amazing from the entrance to the caves – accross a deep valley full of fall colors.  Maybe next year.

Do you have AAA?  If you do, many campgrounds offer a 10% discount.  Many won’t make this offer on holiday weekends, but some will.  Some didn’t used to, and now they do, so ask every time you go!

If you camp regularly at a KOA, consider getting the value card they offer.  Not only do you get a discount on your stay, but after you collect enough points, you can get free nights.  A lot of KOAs also offer a free night Mother’s Day weekend- but they limit the number and type of sites, so you need to get your reservation early.

Consider also getting on a waiting list for a full campground if you can afford to make last minute plans.  You never know when someone will cancel, and a campground may offer a discount to fill that site at the last minute!

Other ideas for discounts?  Post them to the comments section!