Defining 'camping' depends on phase of campers' lives

By SUSAN M. COVER
Staff Writer

Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.

E-mail this story to a friend

AUGUSTA -- It's a debate as old as a covered wagon, a conundrum as vexing as starting a fire without a match.

Is it really camping if you aren't sleeping on the ground in a tent?

Hard-core tenters who hike miles to a remote campsite say no. Former hard-core tenters who now walk a few hundred feet to the campground Dumpster say yes.

As summer winds down, Mainers can reclaim their campgrounds for a fall full of great camping. Campground owners say despite friendly ribbing, camping is camping, whether it's in a tent designed to hang off the side of a cliff, a family-friendly pop-up, or a comfortably-sized recreational vehicle that allows for a hot shower, television viewing and microwave popcorn.

Richard Abare, executive director of the Maine Campground Owners Association, said it's not a competition. He describes it as an evolution:

First, a guy or gal goes camping in a tent. Once married, the couple has a child or two and decides that a pop-up camper will be a lot easier.

Then they decide they want a few more amenities, and they move up to a small camper, called a tag-along. Once the kids become teenagers and want to sleep in their own tents, the parents move up to a small motor home.

Now that the kids have left home, the couple decides to move up to a motor home they can drive. Eventually, if they tire of travel, they may pick their favorite campground and park there for the summer.

For some, it's a financial decision, said Diane Rogers, owner of The Birches Family Campground in Litchfield. Her aim is to bring families together.

"We do see a lot of young families and people who started out in tents," she said. "They move up to get off the ground, and up to the big humongo things when they are able to afford it."

Rogers has more than 100 RV sites and only two designated for tents, although tenters are allowed to set up on RV sites as well, she said.

Jon Dennett, a sales associate who sells tenting gear at The Great Outdoors of Maine in Winthrop, said he doesn't pass judgment on those who camp in an RV. He just prefers to sleep in a tent.

"We prefer more things in the outdoors, not a home-style RV," he said.

In Skowhegan at Two Rivers Camping Area, the number of tenters has decreased in the last few years, while more RVers have started to show up, said Elaine Strout, who works in the office. She finds plenty of interaction between both crowds, and said just because RVers sleep inside doesn't mean they don't enjoy the wildlife.

"My husband and I are RVers, and we're outside more than inside," she said.

Abare, who said campground business picked up once it stopped raining in the spring, said it's not an "us-versus-them mentality." (Although he concedes there are hard-core tenters who won't visit a multi-amenity campground.)

For all campers, the most important thing is having fun in the outdoors.

"They'll meet at the pool and have a beer together later at the campsite," he said. "It doesn't matter what you go camping in, if you are there."

Susan M. Cover -- 623-1056

scover@centralmaine.com