Earliest Camping Memory

[patm]

In 1963, I was camping with my father's family - 25 in all - in surplus army tents at Wildwood State Park on Long Island, New York. My three sisters and my two cousins sleep in one tent. This tent did not have a floor so we sleep on old army cots. Every morning we would all wake to the sound of chipmunks running through the tent and the smell of bacon on the Coleman stove. The simple life and any happy memories.

[danimal]

It was 1968 in a 1966 Chevy Impala somewhere in Wisconsin to go fishing. We lived in suburban Chicago. Yep, green canvas tent with a red canvas top and external aluminum poles, Coleman camping stove and lantern. Didn't take long for a new tent to smell musty. Unfortunately, more of the vivid memories include heavy rain during these trips as well as "don't touch the sides because it will leak". Well, it still leaked anyway. My dad hand built a canoe from plans (fortunately, not in the basement as we know that joke) which was subsequently slapped on top of the Chevy for trips. Yeah, he's a DYI guy which made me a DYI guy.

We graduated to a Starcraft pop-up aroud 1970 and went to the Smokey Mountians, Black Hills, Cape Hatteras, Washington DC, Disney World among other places. I guess you could say camping and fishing is im my blood.

[Randy_K]

Could only find one photo in colour. I would guess this was in the late 60's . ( man I feel old ) Check out the trailer that my Dad built. Tents and chairs inside and fold down kitchen on one side and pantry on the other.

Randy

[suza]

Originally Posted by Randy_K

I'm not sitting outside watching the rain and having my coffee while thoroughly enjoying this thread tents THANKS!

How about a few old old photos of camping as a kid, there has to some photos of the old canvas tents around.

No luck, yet, finding old pics of our canvas tent. But, we did see someone camping in one at Silver Falls SP a few days ago. I felt funny about taking a picture, but I do believe I got a whiff of that "musty canvas tent smell" as I walked by

[ctpd814]

I haven't had any luck either. I spoke with my grandmother. She thinks she may have some pics of the trip. She is looking also.

[Rusty]

1967.

The whole fam damily loads up into the what I believe was a early 60's Pontiac, and hitched up a pop up canvas tent trailer and drove east, east towards New Brunswick.

We camped on the beach in Cap-Pele NB and visited family and ate tons of lobster and dug thousands of clams which hardily consumed by the campfire that night!

The tent trailer was rather small but the all 7 of us had a grand time in it, a long as you didn't touch the canvas, most times we would touch it to set dad off! :-)

Most times while growing up in Southern Ontario we would pile everybody into what ever vehicle dad had patched together and head up to Sauble Beach.

Funny thing a couple of years ago my brother was visiting us and we went to Nanton just south of Calgary, we were in a Antique store rummaging around in the basement and damn did we see a felt pennant from Sauble Beach!!!!!!!!! I grabbed it and it is sitting in the man-cave in a cheap frame.

Some awesome memories from oh so long ago!

After 7 years of camping while in the Army I moved up to do 18 years in the Air Force and I always said that if I take up camping again it will not be under canvas! Since then we have moved on to our 4 th 5th wheel........this one is our fave!!!!

[JeffS]

When we were first married we got the bright idea to go camping. So we bought a 2 man mountain tent on sale, it was bright orange & blue canvas tent that apparently no one wanted, plus 2 sleeping bags and air mattresses. Threw it all on the luggage rack of the MGB and headed to Houston Woods State Park (Ohio). Since rain was in the forecast I tied my old Army poncho between a couple trees to enable us to get out of the tent without immediately stepping into the rain. Late that night, after the rain stopped, my wife slipped on her robe and tennis shoes to head over to the restrooms. Once out of the tent she stood up and all the COLD rain water that had accumulated in the poncho ran out the head hole and gave her a good shower. To make matters worse some idiot, that would be me, made a crack that it must be “wet nightie night”. After 46 years of marriage I still don’t think she has forgiven me.

[sfraige]

Not technically a 'camping' memory but it was my first memory in a tent! I was at my cousins house in CT for a birthday party. When they have parties it's always like 100 people, but they have a huge yard and whoever come from out of town stays over. The parents/adults get bedrooms and any pull out bed; the kids get the basement floor. Earlier that year they got a 14 person tent or something crazy like that, and all the cousins pitched the tent (on a hill) and we all squished on with a bunch of pillows, sleeping bags and blankets. The next morning we all woke up on top of each other on one end of the tent because we slid down through the night from us kids being smart setting the tent up on a hill. Still it's one of the best memories I have to date and is one reason I love sleeping in tents.

[suza]

Originally Posted by sfraige

Not technically a 'camping' memory but it was my first memory in a tent! I was at my cousins house in CT for a birthday party. When they have parties it's always like 100 people, but they have a huge yard and whoever come from out of town stays over. The parents/adults get bedrooms and any pull out bed; the kids get the basement floor. Earlier that year they got a 14 person tent or something crazy like that, and all the cousins pitched the tent (on a hill) and we all squished on with a bunch of pillows, sleeping bags and blankets. The next morning we all woke up on top of each other on one end of the tent because we slid down through the night from us kids being smart setting the tent up on a hill. Still it's one of the best memories I have to date and is one reason I love sleeping in tents.

Sounds like "camping memory", to me. Great story!