WHY GO CAMPING?
Rex Burress
With the coming of summer, various people plan to depart on vacation trips and camping in the out-of-doors, some roughing it in backpack tents along some mountain trail, and others content to sit in a chair at the edge of a lake. What is the allurement that draws campers forth from the comforts of home to the hardships of living on the edge of civilization?
Harking to the call of the wild, some adventurers go forth trying to keep a degree of comfort by using a motorhome or other type of mechanized assistance. Roadways and automobiles are fundamental in getting to the great beyond, but even with modern aids, the mosquito hoard, ticks, potential pitfalls with cantankerous animals, and weather extremes can cause some discomfort. But outdoor lovers accept the challenges and are usually gung-ho to go onward into the Great Unknown.
The lengthy 1803-06 Lewis and Clark Expedition party practically camped out every day for those three grueling years to the Pacific and back, enduring hardships unknown to the modern camper. But what wondrous discoveries they made and each day had its surprises. Was it worth it?
Thus my young relatives in central Missouri took off on a June outing, “to show their two kids the mountains” in Colorado. Caleb put a photo of their loaded station wagon on Facebook, Coleman camp stove plainly in view! I well remember our Rambler station wagon packed with Coleman gear, tent, and all the trimmings, plus Ben 7, Becky 9, Jo, me, and Freddy the dachshund. We were equally loaded for a three-week venture out into America some 40 years ago. I can still hear Ben's plaintive query,“Are we there yet?” Some things never change!
Why go camping? The call is somewhat akin to a primeval time when our ancestors wrestled with living close to nature and “camping” was the norm. Arising from some cave or crude hut in the freshness of a new day and seeing the beauty of the rising sun in a misty valley must have helped them endure. Even now, hearing the morning symphony of the birds, lingers pleasantly in our minds that are so subdued by the clanking sounds of modern civilization. There is a yearning to recapture some semblance of those memorable memories in the march of time.
Memories make memories. The thought of previous pleasant and exciting trips urges a repeat of that approach to nature, whether it is a short excursion along the river or a full-fledged cross-country camping trip. There is an exhilaration in breaking free from everyday responsibilities and “taking to the open road,” completely thrown into a sense of open space and freedom. You can feel that surge in a trip to the desert after winter when the spaciousness after being confined lifts sullied spirits to the sky.
Mountain explorers find the same rejuvenation in being able to look beyond the immediate intricacies to the hazed horizon where peaks fade away into the distance. “Going to the woods and the mountains is going home,” John Muir said.
Another type of camping is to go to a place like Oakland Feather River Camp and enjoy some semi-wildness while having the comfort of airy cabins and tents along with prepared food. From this rather luxurious base, the nature watcher can spread out into the woodsy confines of Tollgate Creek to look for Sierra rein orchids, lady slipper orchids, leopard lilies, and a host of water-dependent species clinging to the sliver of hope trickling out of the mountains. One of those streams that feeds the larger Spanish Creek, flows under the railroad tracks into a meditative pool bordered by thimbleberry and a leaning alder. The Feather River accepts it all and pushes on toward the ocean.
As Yogi said, “You can observe a lot by just watching,” you can also live a lot by camping!
“Camping: nature's way of promoting the motel industry.” --Dave Barry
“The glories of a mountain campfire are far greater than can be guessed...One can make a day of any size, and regulate the rising and setting of his own sun and the brightness of its shining.”
--John Muir