Camping Methods
"Camping means many different things to different people, and can cover the range from "hard camping"
wherein one simply puts a sleeping bag on the ground and crawls in, thus "sleeping under the
stars" (and leaving oneself prey to all sorts of nocturnal forms of life), to use of a luxury
trailer or a diesel powered bus type recreational vehicle that includes a microwave
oven, satellite TV, etc. The majority of camping is done with equipment that falls between
these extremes, starting with tents and extending upward to pop-up tent trailers, small travel
trailers, van conversions, pickup truck campers, smaller motor homes constructed on a truck frame
with a van front end provided by the auto manufacturer, etc.
Although my wife and I originally had a small travel trailer that we purchased in 1967 and used during the
70's, our activities began in earnest when we obtained an 8 foot slide-in pickup truck camper in 1983.
This had an icebox, a small fresh water water tank and hand pump water spigot with sink for
washing one's hands. I never quite figured out how one could effectively wash one's hands when one
hand has to be constantly used for working the pump handle, so I fixed that problem with the addition of an
electric water pump that ran off the truck battery and was activated by a foot kick switch. I also added a wall mounted propane
catalytic radiant heater and a Thetford "Porta Potti" which I placed on a platform in what was
intended to be the wardrobe. A makeshift cold water shower and external waste water tank
completed the amenities. Taking showers with cold water, when it is snowing outside during
an unexpected mountain weather change and
the 3000 BTU heater leaves you shivering in your heavy jacket inside the camper, is a real
experience.
 When that
camper fell apart in 1995, we purchased an 8.5 foot slide-in pickup truck camper (see picture at
left) which, with much maintenance work, we are still using. It includes a refrigerator,
fresh water tank, demand water pump, hot water heater, shower, flush toilet and waste water tanks.
Although this type of unit is referred to as "self contained" because it provides most of the
amenities of home (and thus allows one to avoid public "facilities"), one is still living in a
small box, and if the weather is bad, that can quickly get old. It is the sort of unit that a person
needs to live "out" of. However, it does provide an excellent way to travel to places and
down roads that are simply not accessible to larger vehicles or trailers and it does it at relatively
reasonable cost.
As expensive, luxury RV's have become more and more common in recent years, pickup truck campers
seem to be rarely seen in some parts of the country, and thus many people do not seem
to be familiar with this type of unit. Hence, I included the picture, which I took
while we were in a campground in Grand Teton National Park. If you should happen to
become interested in purchasing a pickup truck camper and have not previously been aware of them,
there are a number of potential problem areas you should be aware of that too many dealers (and some
manufacturers) frequently try to hide from you. If you fall in that category, please feel
free to contact me with any questions you might have, since I have learned a lot the hard way,
over the past years in owning and using them.
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