Summer Camping
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WarMachine posted 16 weeks ago.
You might be better off getting a cheap, crappy apartment on the outerskirts of town-a step above camping. It appears you haven't had a whole lot of long term camping experience, so try it for a couple of weeks before committing to a couple of months.
...and your bike...i'm sure people have commuted on less.
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PrinceofClydes posted 15 weeks ago.
The difficult stuff is: Cooking, washing-up dishes, laundry, stocking groceries that need refrigeration, the usual domestic stuff that apartments are really good for.
Five years ago I spent the summer living out of a camp on the back of my truck and bike commuting to work. The camper was parked on a horse ranch and I liked the country setting, the sounds, the fresh air and so on, but fetching water in a bucket for simple things like tea, brushing teeth, washing and cooking was a drag.
Best of luck with that,
PoC
"Pain heals, chicks dig scars, glory is forever." - Shane Falco.
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Brad Nicholson posted 15 weeks ago.
if you had a pop up camper that might change the calculus some...
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brittda posted 15 weeks ago.
gonna give you the "girly opinion". While the bike commuting is admirable and totally do-able, not too many girls will want to hang out in your camper with you and your buddies more than a couple of times. Same thing goes if you bat for the other team (don't want to make any assumptions there). I cannot imagine that would be any fun for more than a week.
things you are over looking:
1. AIR CONDITIONING-- Doesnt St. Louis get hot and muggy? A couple of sleepless nights and you will change your tune.
2. laundry
3. showers
4. cooking
5. Security for your belongings. Do you want to trust your locked car?
While there may be facilities they certainly will not be easily done. Pay your dad a couple hundred a month for a room or get a cheap appartment.
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FlashRedGLS1.8T posted 15 weeks ago.
Everyone has a different threshold for what/how they are able to live.
Maybe yours is living in an apartment in St. Louis or maybe it's living in a small pop up on the outskirts. One way to find out.
I suggest doing a 1 week or 2 week trial run on it. If you are comfortable with it...then why not do it.
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Brad Nicholson posted 15 weeks ago.
what i find amusing about brittda's commentary other than the overt sexism (bat for the other team? wtf?) is that most people in the world live without the majority of the stuff in her list of five items. yet 4 billion folks seem to survive just ok.
i would go for it. years from now it will be a grand adventure. but then again i am the same guy who lived in a tent/car three summers in a row in college while in wyoming.
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Socket posted 15 weeks ago.
When I was a camp counselor for a few years, I went 3 months at a time in either a WWII era canvas tent or a 3 walled shack. You could do it no problem.
I wouldn't discount brittda's commentary; my girlfriend didn't want to hang out more than two nights ;-)
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brittda posted 15 weeks ago.
Brad Nicholson wrote:
what i find amusing about brittda's commentary other than the overt sexism (bat for the other team? wtf?) is that most people in the world live without the majority of the stuff in her list of five items. yet 4 billion folks seem to survive just ok.i would go for it. years from now it will be a grand adventure. but then again i am the same guy who lived in a tent/car three summers in a row in college while in wyoming.
Was not meant as overt sexism, really more "open -mindedness" did not want to make any assumptions as to who if anyone would be spending extra time there. I personally would not. And while 4 billion folks survive, sure, given a choice I would not choose to put myself in the planes of Africa to live on a permanent basis.
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jperubog posted 15 weeks ago.
sounds pretty cool, I agree that cooking and food would be a major concern over a long period of time. I guess it depends on your situation, are you a student and you just have the summer off? do you have a real job? if you are only doing it for the summer I would definitely consider doing a trial run maybe early spring, take a couple of weeks and try it out before your lease or rent runs out. If you don't have a great job why not take that camper and go on a road trip somewhere for a month or so during the summer, get out of St. Louis for a while. Whatever you decide to do, think about the logistics of it now, start planning out the costs of food, laundry and any camp fees, and always budget for the worst case scenario. Good luck, would love to hear how it turns out.
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ChunkyB posted 15 weeks ago.
Brad Nicholson wrote:
what i find amusing about brittda's commentary other than the overt sexism (bat for the other team? wtf?) is that most people in the world live without the majority of the stuff in her list of five items. yet 4 billion folks seem to survive just ok.
4 Billion folks seem to survive ok? Many of them don't survive at all. And, just because the majority of the world lives in poverty, it doesn't mean we all should. But, I agree that the things mentioned are not at all necessities. I guess there are plenty of people that don't live in poverty that live without them.
I agree that it's doable, and it could even be really fun. I say you give it a try, but don't make any huge commitment to stick with it long term or anything. Some people really love living like that, and some don't. You probably have to try it out to see if you like it.
"The melting point of wax means nothing to me": Thrice
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krazyfranco posted 15 weeks ago.
Thanks for all your comments.
Brittda:
Quote:
things you are over looking:
1. AIR CONDITIONING-- Doesnt St. Louis get hot and muggy? A couple of sleepless nights and you will change your tune.
2. laundry
3. showers
4. cooking
5. Security for your belongings. Do you want to trust your locked car?
I don't really feel like I am overlooking these things. I will be able to live without A/C, I have the past couple summers at home (similar climate). Laundry I will be able to do on-campus. Showers are available at many campgrounds, as well as on campus. Cooking would be a hardship. As far as security goes, I won't have many/any expensive belongings (except my bike). I think I would be able to deal with all those legitimate concerns, thanks for brining them up. But, thats part of the reason I want to do this in the first place. I'm a little sick of living in such a privileged/preppy campus bubble. Also, my GF will be here, living in a posh city apartment, so I can shower-up and visit her whenever :)
I am in school, and planning on working in a lab on campus for the summer. I would like to bike commute, but another person I would be camping with also will be working on campus in labs, so thats a back-up ride for me.
A cheap apartment in the city, near campus is pretty dangerous. There are some bad parts of the city that would be much worse than a campground.
Anyway, thanks for all the feedback. I'm still searching for the right campground, and wondering if I could get around the 2-week maximum at state parks somehow...
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krazyfranco posted 15 weeks ago.
Quote:
tri-ac
why not just move in with the GF?
it has all the benefits and more...
Right? I agree. But alas, 2 main problems:
1) Her other roommates
2) Her mom (who is paying her rent) wouldn't approve
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Triguy98 posted 15 weeks ago.
krazyfranco wrote:
Anyway, thanks for all the feedback. I'm still searching for the right campground, and wondering if I could get around the 2-week maximum at state parks somehow...
I think I can help you here!
It really depends on the policy of the parks. Some parks, It's no more than 2 weeks at a stretch- but no limit to weeks a year. One can simply go someplace else for a night or a week and head back to the state park. Or rotate parks if there are enough of them.
Other parks allow no more than 2 weeks a month or even a year. This is specifically to avoid squaters. But if there arte two parks, you can rotate between them.
Call the parks and ask their policy.
Life is short. Play hard and get dirty doing it.
This is a little off topic, but let me know what you think:
I want to try to camp (in a pop-up camper) this summer with a couple friends around St. Louis, rather than renting and living in an inner-city apartment (like I have the past 3 years). I've found a suitable campground (showers, electric, sewage, etc.) for long-term campers that is 15 miles and a 20 minute drive away.
What do you think the hardest things to do would be camping rather than living in an apartment?
Also, I would like to bike commute at least a couple days a week. I read the interview with BBB that came out this summer on the topic, but any other ideas? I only have my Calfee Tetra-Tri, would I be able to commute on that?
Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated. What am I overlooking as a zealous 20 year old? How should I pitch the idea to my dad (and pop-up owner)?