How’s the weather?
- Thread starter The Masked Shadow
- Start date
Lol, hardly...I'm a firm believer in properly-chosen quality gear and clothing. 
Dress properly, and you can be comfortable outside all day in -30C or colder. Don't dress properly, and you won't last an hour. We had Arctic-grade clothing and sleeping bags and were nice and warm...
...but I admit that after a couple nights of that, sleeping at home last night in a toasty warm bed after an evening in front of the woodstove was heaven...
Dress properly, and you can be comfortable outside all day in -30C or colder. Don't dress properly, and you won't last an hour. We had Arctic-grade clothing and sleeping bags and were nice and warm...
...but I admit that after a couple nights of that, sleeping at home last night in a toasty warm bed after an evening in front of the woodstove was heaven...
I must admit I do like camping, though in sensible temperatures of course! In the UK we have a relatively new phenomenon known as "glamping", glamorous camping. Camping sites with all mod cons, electricity, shower blocks, shops, I'm sure you get the gist. A total insult to the traditional and much more fun no frills camping style which you do.Lol, hardly...I'm a firm believer in properly-chosen quality gear and clothing.
Dress properly, and you can be comfortable outside all day in -30C or colder. Don't dress properly, and you won't last an hour. We had Arctic-grade clothing and sleeping bags and were nice and warm...
...but I admit that after a couple nights of that, sleeping at home last night in a toasty warm bed after an evening in front of the woodstove was heaven...
When we were kids you could pitch a tent anywhere but those days are long gone. You'd get shot off the landowner if you did it nowadays, and if you lit a fire then you'd be in serious trouble. You've got to go to special sites now which totally takes that wild in the middle of nowhere aspect away.
Lol, my stepdaughter is an avid "glamper"...she and her hubby have a monstrous trailer that they have set up in a "park" about 30 minutes from their home. They have hook-ups for electricity, water, sewage...the park provides laundry facilities, day care, a store, internet,...their glamping neighbours are about 20 feet away on either side...there isn't a mature tree in the whole place. They have an electric golf cart which they keep inside the trailer; one entire wall opens to allow access. When they comment that they are looking forward to a weekend at "camp" I just shake my head...
But it is indeed a different world. Camping as it once existed is no more...and many folks from the city seem to think that they can just park alongside the highway and traipse off into the bush whenever and wherever the notion strikes them. We had an unfamiliar car stop on the secluded gravel road on which we live, a short distance up from our driveway...and I watched in total shock as the guy and gal in the car got out and marched into our woods with a chainsaw! I went out to meet them, and they smilingly explained that they were looking to cut down their first Christmas tree.
Now, we have a limited number of spruce trees on our land; few enough that I don't cut them for my own Christmas tree...so the conversation that ensued was very short and very animated.
But it is indeed a different world. Camping as it once existed is no more...and many folks from the city seem to think that they can just park alongside the highway and traipse off into the bush whenever and wherever the notion strikes them. We had an unfamiliar car stop on the secluded gravel road on which we live, a short distance up from our driveway...and I watched in total shock as the guy and gal in the car got out and marched into our woods with a chainsaw! I went out to meet them, and they smilingly explained that they were looking to cut down their first Christmas tree.
Now, we have a limited number of spruce trees on our land; few enough that I don't cut them for my own Christmas tree...so the conversation that ensued was very short and very animated.
True camping I believe is when you’re out there is the bush, with nothing but a swag and wondering where the next petrol station is. I’ve done this a couple times, and absolutely loved it. Another trip might be planned to FNQ for a fish collecting trip....
I do every year go to a “camping ground” with my relatives and close friends, but I wouldn’t consider it camping. It’s mostly a time to catch up, fish, go to the beach, and play sports. And I definitely don’t camp at that camping ground. My brother has a spinal condition and is in a wheelchair and needs access to a proper toilet, so a cabin is required! (I must admit 80% of my waking time is spent with my mates fishing).
Like John, I live where in winter months -40C meets -40F and beyond. Last week with wind we were at approx -40, and snow up past my knees. No plans on camping….
40°F is about 4°C, which, relatively speaking is tropical for a Canadian winter, lol. When John says -30, -40 or -50°C, that's jolly well exactly what he means, no mistake....and damn cold, temperatures which you in Oz, and I in blighty, thankfully, will never experience.
We haven't hit -40 yet this year; it'll come...but so far our limit has only been a hair colder than -30C.
40C? Do you actually mean positive 40C???!!! The only way I am exposed to that is if I open the lid of the barbecue to flip the steaks...
When it's cold, you can always add an extra layer of insulation; but when it's hot...you are, literally and figuratively...cooked.
My summer camp when we are at the lake - a place to crash and burn after playing hard. Boat and truck stay there in camp, and we commute by car the 4 1/2 hrs between house and camp. When our summer is over, the boat comes home and the trailer goes into storage. Since we only use it in the summer, heating it is a non-issue, but the AC had better be working in the 115 degree heat.
