Camping?...Not really...Its much more than that...

May long weekend, and we decided this year, we would be one of the die hards and head out early in the year for the first practical camping of the year. Truth of it is, there is nothing 'die hard' about what we do. We purchased an RV last year, and we'd be lying if we said we were really 'camping'. It's RV'ing for us, and we love it.

We headed out to Jasper Thursday afternoon, and got back Monday night, and had just an awesome weekend. As a family, we really have found a passion, and we wish we could do it more often. This year, we have made an oath to use our RV as much as possible.

There are many things that I personally enjoy about hooking up the trailer, and heading out. First, and foremost, we are 'heading out'. That means, escaping the city, work, the computer (I admit, I brought my notebook, with an Aircard, but used it all of 10 minutes), and everything that we do 5 days a week, and spending focused, quality time as a unit. (I love that word. Reminds me of my grandfather who had a motorhome...always called it 'the unit').

Getting out to the mountains (or whereever), provides lots of time to do what you want to do. This weekend, we spent a LOT of time together. Throwing ball with the kids, Mark loves baseball...spent lots of time chucking around a tennis ball. Court loves football. She's getting the hang of it. We took all our mountain bikes, and rode a few trails. Dianne spent some good quality time reading, while I built an airplane, and fixed up my pal Greg's Mini-T monster truck.

We ate. Oh ya, man, we ate like kings. Almost the number 1 reason to go camping. BBQ steaks. Eggs and bacon in the AM. Sandwiches. Beer. Jasper fudge. Coffee and Baileys by the fire. Ice cream. Eat Eat Eat. Drink. Eat. Drink. Drink.

The other thing I really enjoy about RV'ing, is just being out in mountains, and being self sufficient. Having the RV certainly helps, and I love having all the ammenities (Call me spoiled, but I'm far from done 'camping'). The fridge. The running water. The 120 Volt inverter. The bathroom. The BBQ. The cookstove. The Coleman lantern. The furnace at night. The air conditioning during the day (if needed). I'm a bit of a mechanical nut, so I enjoy seeing all this stuff work.

This year, I invested in two GOOD 6V high capacity batteries, wired them in series to power the 12V system in the trailer. These are made by a company called Trojan batteries (T-125+), and have WAY more power than a traditional 12V deep cycle battery (and they weigh a freakin tonne). The batteries I had last year lasted about 2 nights. These babies lasted through the 4 nights we were there, with the furnace on every night (a serious battery sucker), and showed only half run down by the end of the weekend.

All in all, our camping adventures are memorable for all of us, and we intend on creating more memories all summer long. Beats the hell out of work, and helps to provide some balance in our busy work and regular life schedules.