Camp On

I have to vent - and I should start by saying I participate in the very activity I am about to lambaste, so don't take it personally.

I really think camping should be something we do to get away from our civilized, mechanized, nifty tool for every small task we need to accomplish in our lives. It should not be an exercise in packing nifty tools for doing every small task we need to do at home in the woods. It should not fund the next generation of clever inventors. It should not require a minivan full of gear to move our entire lives - albeit now in plaid and tarpaulin material - into the forest for a weekend. It should not advertise that our entire last paycheck is now property of REI.

Camping SHOULD be different than our everyday lives. All too often what starts as trying to bring a few creature comforts from home turns into living our exact same lifestyle with a nicer backdrop - at the expense of the backdrop. Really, do we need to bring sports gear to the lake? Do we need to bring stereos to the woods? Do we need a tablecloth in the forest????

We need another word - some folks use car-camping - to designate the simplicity-challenged who enjoy the spell of pine but not the reality of being outdoors. But even "car camping" denotes that some camping should be happening - and I would argue most car campers aren't coming close. A line needs to be drawn in the needles and dust and rocks and bugs that constitute a campground....so here is my attempt:

Camping should NOT involve the following:
showering (unless in lake, sans soap),
using anything electronic or requiring access to your car battery,
anything requiring a generator,
cooking gourmet meals (no recipes involving spices other than salt/pepper/tabasco/garlic powder, no fresh meat or fish that needs to be kept cool - unless you caught it within 5 miles of your campsite, etc, no drinks except those that can be made from a mix)
sweeping (you are outside! in the dirt!)
pianos (no really, on the Rubicon Trail in the Sierra Nevada, they haul a piano up on a jeep)
fireworks (also can be experienced on the Rubicon Trail, if you don't believe me)
4x4s, ATVs, dirt bikes (not saying you can't use them, just use them in a designated area, preferably where there is already a lack of peace and quiet)
makeup, hairspray, or mirrors
inflatable water toys
mass quanitites of alchohol (at the very least, there are more tripping hazards)
RVs (don't get me started)
cell phones/blackberries/laptops/video games

I think there is something healthy about being challenged on how much stuff we really need. I think we are drawn to camping because we come back with a renewed confidence in our ability to be creative and survive without material goods (at least to a small degree). When we don't face that challenge - when there isn't a small fear of starving or wrestling a bear, its not camping, its just a long picnic in someone else's backyard.
Getting out in that big world is supposed to give us perspective - on how small we are, on what we really need to get by, and on what really makes us happy. We can't obtain that perspective unless we leave our little self-centered techno bubbles behind. If you can't have the guts to really get out there and experience the natural world, at least leave the campsites available for people who are up to the challenge.

Really, if you want to enjoy all the comforts of home with some fresh air, open your windows and leave the woods to the stinky people who don't need a shower.