To Camp or Not to Camp…That is the Question!

The tranquil image of camping is beautiful. The idylic thought alone lowers your blood pressure and brings happy sighs. Imagine sitting by a crackling fire in the cool early morning with a cup of coffee in a beautiful mountain setting. The music of a bubbling brook sings to you as the butterflies play in the nearby wildflowers.

With these thoughts in mind, plus getting away from the summer heat in the Basin and spending weekends closer to the fishing, my husband, Dave, and I embarked on the GREAT HUNT for a small camper. Here in grizzly country the appeal of the old tent is gone and it was time to move up to a hard sided camper.

We eventually scored! Late in June a 2007 15′ camper became ours! It’s certainly a baby sized camper compared to most of those you see around, but it’s what we wanted.

The maiden voyage was over the 4th of July weekend. Our trip to Soda Butte Campground just out of Cooke City, Montana was “an experience”! Most of it was good, there was little bickering, and no major problems. Before the next trip we’ll figure out the water so we’ll actually have indoor plumbing! Oh, for a toilet at 2 AM! Oh, for a hot shower!

The greatest excitement was at 3:30 AM the first night when the alarm went off. It took us a while to figure out what was happening. Luckily, Dave, the engineer, had actually read some of the manuals that came with the camper! It seems that at elevations over 7,000 feet propane refrigerators can act up. After resetting something the refrigerator worked again and the alarm quit alarming when the battery was reinstalled. What you don’t learn in the middle of the night.

Fireworks seen right from the campground was pretty special! Half the town was along the roads near the campground. With the mountain backdrop these were the prettiest fireworks I’ve ever seen! Of course, every one is my favorite!

Life is good and camping is a wonderful part of a good life. I’m so happy we’ve joined the ranks of campers once again.