Darren's RV Adventures

The first year we got our camper we went out a good bit.  The second year we were shopping for a house and then moving, so we didn't get to do any camping that year.  The next year we only managed to get out a couple of times. I often wonder how many days of camping are enough to really warrant the expense of the camper.  We got a deal on our camper, so we don't have payments, but towing it incurs more in fuel costs than normal driving.  I only own the truck so that I can tow a camper (it was the plan when I got the truck).  We don't keep the camper at the house, so there are storage fees. I'd like to think, even counting all of that, if I get a couple of weeks a year camping, I'm doing pretty good.  We managed to get a long weekend in early Spring this year, but we might not get another trip until Late summer or early fall.  We are taking a trip to the opposite coast in July, but it's not nearly long enough to be able to drive it with the camper. ...

I love a campfire.  Unfortunately every trip we've taken the closest I've gotten was when I managed to cook a few pork tenderloin cutlets over a fire in my cast iron skillet. Mostly it's been an issue of wood and weather.  Many places don't let you bring wood, due to the risk of certain insects and other tree health related things.  The other factor is rain.  When I have taken the step to get wood, either from a local market or the campground, I've had to spend more time in the camper due to rain.  Most of our trips tend to be in the early part of the season or later in the season, so Spring and Fall rains tend to be the norm. This year I spend a lot of time on You Tube watching videos on how to start fires even in bad conditions.  I was in the Boy Scouts as a kid, so I have had experience with these sorts of things, and I recalled a lot of those skills, but practical application of knowledge is the only way to really get good at it. We bought a fire ...