Had a great time tent camping in the Netherlands this weekend

[lebkuchen]

Was dressed in a T-shirt and light cotton PJ bottoms, and stayed very warm in a meager Coleman sleepingbag. Animals that typically hypernate now are up and at 'em, moles keeping busy digging in the fields, hedgehogs scavenging through garbage, birds singing, bulb flowers starting to pop through the ground, buds making their appearance on trees...

No snow in the alps, but the Keukenhof Gardens should be in bloom come late Feb/early Mar.

[illinoisprogressive]

1. I envy you. I wish I could go to Europe and hike and camp....

[lebkuchen]

5. I'm considering...

taking leave w/o pay for a year and travel the last year of Bush's presidency rather than worry about it. In a camper, it's easy to live very cheaply, w/the abundance of free (and safe) "camping" areas, access to good cheap food/wine/beer, and an IPOD to provide the evening music at the camper table (and candle :) ). It's a lot of fun. If you ever get the opportunity, I think it's a wonderful way to get to know the countryside.

[BlooInBloo]

2. How does one camp *without* tents? Construct wigwams?

[mike_c]

3. I only break out a tent about 1 time in 10 that I camp....

Usually I just spread a ground sheet and lay my sleeping pad and bag out on it. I only use a tent if I'm expecting bad weather.

on edit: or if the insects are absolutely ferocious. I used a tent in the Everglades, for example, even during the day sometimes....

[BlooInBloo]

7. Wow. Would never occur to me to go camping w/o a tent. lol!

[lebkuchen]

8. The Hymer would provide warmer camping but

in this weather, who needs fiberglass protection?

[Cleita]

4. All you really need is a sleeping bag and a piece of tarp

you can rig if it rains. I usually sleep outside in the summer anyway cause I like to look at the stars. I use my tent to store my gear.

[lebkuchen]

6. Europeans prefer small mobile homes to tents

Hymers are the cadillac of campers.

[BlooInBloo]

9. I don't call that "camping" - ymmv (esp. in a camper - lol!)

[lebkuchen]

10. I noticed camping American-style last summer in MN

campers longer than Greyhound buses, usually pulling the family car behind. I was in my little dome tent one night watching one of those behemoths trying to pull between two pine trees...tore up the side of the "camper" real good. I quietly laughed like hell.

The campfires these folks eventually lit could be seen from the next town.

[mike_c]

11. I once watched a guy unload a lawnmower from under one of those...

...and proceed to mow his "camp site." I am not kidding.

[Cleita]

14. I've seen so many weird things that campers do to make a

home away from home in the forest. As a campground host I usually had to stop them from doing things like trying to cut down trees and rearrange fire pits.

[lebkuchen]

17. That mentality is the reason why

I can camp in the Netherlands in mid-January. If the Behemoths get more than 3 mi. per gallon, I'd be amazed.

France in early Dec. held the prior camping record, two years ago. I'm going to try for Feb. camping in the alps next.

[Cleita]

12. Those behemouths don't belong in campgrounds. They

have RV parks to accommodate them. DH and I use to pull a small 16' trailer that we could camp in national and state forest campgrounds when we got older. The spaces are really only intended as a place to park your car although some forest campgrounds accommodate small RVs like ours with limited hookups.

[lebkuchen]

16. Folks must rent those things

The US doesn't build garages next to houses that tall and long, does it?

[Cleita]

19. There are storage facilities if your house driveway isn't big

enough. Many retirees live in them traveling from state to state. That is their home. You can usually tell the rentals because they have the rental company and telephone number painted all over the exterior of the RV.

[izzie]

13. the Keukenhof Gardens I have been in them

Lovely.

[lebkuchen]

15. The best pics I ever took were from there

Biking around the area later, next to the fields carpeted with tulips etc., is breathtaking. The entire camera frame was filled with brilliant color.

[izzie]

18. I am so glad you went out and saw the fields.

What a pretty country.