An Experiment in Long-Distance Camping

In our everyday world, Mr. Ed (hubby dearest) and I have a winter environment that looks like this. Not quite what you'd picture as camping-friendly. We live in the northern part of Idaho, where it stays this way for quite some time.

So this year, as an experiment, we decided to try something that we hoped would help to make the winter pass faster. We hauled our vintage Airstream 120 miles away from home, to a lower-elevation RV park that stays open year-round. It's right along the mighty Salmon River, in some incredible Idaho country.

See what I mean? It's amazing in all directions.

 The trailer really serves as a cabin, and is warm and cozy in all weathers. At this locale, it's rare for the snow level to come all the way down to the river, but on one of our visits, it did. We didn't care. We just snuggled in and watched another movie instead of doing something outside.

Our latest visit coincided with Groundhog's Day, also the midway point of winter. Once there, we found a hidden pocket of spring.

It had been months since I'd been able to sit outside, soak up rays, and put something pretty out on a table.

I opened up doors and windows on the old girl and let her breath in some great fresh air under a perfect blue sky.

We walked along the river and scouted out little beaches.

We watched steelhead fishermen go by in their boats.

This was our first morning view out the back window of the Airstream.

By the time we had to drive back up to the snow country, we felt like we'd truly had a break and an escape.

Is the long-distance camping experiment working out so far? You bet--I'll even drink a toast to it!

Camp@Home, January 26

Camping fever, anyone? It always seems to heat up the true camp-o-holic's blood right about this time of year. So no surprise, perhaps, that Saturday, January 26, has been declared Camp@Home Day.

Some will be so lucky as to take this literally. They will have ready access to their roll-estate, and won't risk hypothermia by spending the night camping in it.

But if your luck doesn't run this far toward paradise, you don't have to skip the particiption-party. (Your trailer is in storage; you haven't even found your dream trailer yet; it's way too frigid to be outside for long; you haven't met any camping friends yet; you know what we mean.)

A few thoughts:

* Make fire. In an outdoor firepit, an indoor fireplace, or just a single candle on a table.

* Instead of sleeping in your usual room, 'make camp' in a different spot, and comfy-it-up to your heart's content. Guest rooms can be perfect for this, but what about a friend's-house sleepover, a night in a hotel, or even a sleeping bag on the TV room sofa?  Point being: Change your space, which is what you do when camping, and why it feels so refreshing.

* If you've collected any trailer toys, have some fun with them in your camping@home space.

* Experiment with some recipes you've been meaning to try. Make a favorite camp meal, and eat it by your fire.

Even if you only get 5 minutes to turn your brain to 'Camping!', you will feel the better for it. So get ready and get set to camp@home January 26 (or--in the world of Girl Camping--ANY time you can!)

Excited about a New Year's Worth of Girl Camping

We regret having had to go dark on you for a while--the real gig reached that point on the calendar where it HAD to get all the attention.

But now that we have The Crunch behind us, we are mentally free to be getting excited about a new year's worth of camping. Depending on geography, hardiness and druthers, yours may be underway already.

Some members of Sisters on the Fly are camping this weekend in the desert near Quartzite, Arizona.

Saturday, January 26, has been declared Camp at Home Day. If you don't have a trailer or can't get to it yet, come up with a way to pretend. It's the I Want To Go Camping spirit that counts.

And our for-real camping calendar is really starting to fill in, starting in April, with the unclaimed weekends and holidays through September beginning to look scarce.

What does your camping/getaway year look like so far?

First Post of 2013, Last Trailer Sleep of 2012

Happy New Year! We just love that clean-slate factor--don't you?

We have to say, though, that 2012 was a great Girl Camping year. Right down to the very end! For the last weekend of 2012, Mr. Ed and I got in one last trailer sleep by visiting the campsite where we're keeping our Airstream for the winter.

We'd started 2012 with a winter campout, so it only seemed fitting to end it with one.

We'd just come from 2-foot snow country, so it was great to be outside with a campfire, listening to the Salmon River go by.

By nightfall, we were ready to return to our now-warmed-up trailer...pour a glass of wine...and tuck in with some fun reading material. This new hardcover by Phil Noyes was a Christmas gift from Miss Shelley.

Here is a picture from one of its pages. Wow--imagine having that red and white Shasta when it was brand new.

It didn't take long for Mr. Ed's lights to go out. He didn't even bother to pull out the sofa or remove his cap.

The Little Man, G'petto, curled right up into his bed in the trailer's center cabin.

Nestled in with tea and remote control, I watched James Dean strike it rich in 'Giant.' The trailer has a small TV with video player, and I've been collecting classic movies to watch when I'm there. For about 50 cents apiece at garage sales and thrift stores, they make excellent low-cost entertainment.

We woke to a light snowfall that was all the way down to river level. You can see the snow on the rocks lining the Salmon, outside the Airstream's rear window.

It also collected a bit on trailers that belong to some of our fellow Sisters on the Fly members. We have yet to all be at the RV park at the same time, but we do look in on one another's trailers to be sure they are OK.

Note my tracks on the way to the shower! There also are some very nice modern RVs spending the winter at the same park as our vintage trailers.

I always sleep like a baby in the ol' Airstream, and the last trailer sleep of 2012 was no exception.

Now here it is, the first day of 2013, and I already have a recent trip to keep me going until the next one.

Life is good!