Camping is pretty great. Most of the time.

There is a right way and a wrong way to go camping. And I think I discovered a little of both over the weekend. Here's the recap:

The right way -- camping on the beach of an island with wild horses. Even though the horses look more like domesticated ponies. "Who's gonna riiiide your wild horses?" sang in my head all weekend long. I didn't dare sing out loud, for fear that my fellow campers would do something really mean to me in the dark of the night.

The wrong way -- borrowing an old, musty tent that's been sitting outside for about 20 years.

The right way -- Camping at a site near a Wal-Mart so you can buy a new tent for $26 on Day 2, after two campers have slept in the Ford Explorer because the musty tent wouldn't stand up.

The wrong way -- Driving to camp in a Ford Explorer with a weak battery that dies on the first night while trying (unsuccessfully) to set up the old musty tent in the middle of the night.

The right way -- Having camping neighbors with jumper cables that give your dead vehicle a boost the next morning.
The wrong way -- Not realizing that the car battery is worthless and having to ask your neighbor for a second jump 4 hours later.

The right way -- Going back to the Wal-Mart to buy a new car battery.

The wrong way -- Not bringing waterproof matches on an island with a lot of moisture in the air and realizing that sometimes Bic lighters don't actually solve all the world's problems.

The right way -- Starting a campfire with lighter fluid purchased at Wal-Mart.

The wrong way -- Placing pots on the picnic table where an unsuspecting camper can burn himself.

The right way -- Eating bacon, eggs and pancakes after icing the camper's burnt fingers.

So, all in all, we did more right things than wrong things on this trip! Especially considering that I haven't actually been camping in ages -- not counting the time I spent a weekend in a tent in someone's backyard woods on Cape Cod. (We had access to the most amazing outdoor shower, so we definitely weren't roughing it by any stretch of the imagination). I feel terrible saying this, but Wal-Mart saved us this past weekend. Ugh, I feel so dirty after typing those words.

But I might be hooked on this whole camping thing. I might not have truly been "in the wild" on this particular trip, but I'm already thinking big -- like maybe a week-long camping trip in the Grand Canyon over winter break....or conquering the Appalachian Tail, a la Bill Bryson. Hmm. I better find a really capable (and hot) Eagle Scout to accompany me.



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