More dumb camping questions!!

[gardendame]

Okay - you guys have been such a huge help (so much more helpful than other camping forums I have visited!!) We decided to stick with the tent (stored somewhere???) through this season, see how the kids like it and how often we go, then graduate up to the pop-up if we see we will actually use it. Haven't 'roughed it' since before we had the 3 kids, and truly don't want to 'rough it' any more than I have to. All of you have posted about getting a site with electricity, bringing a fan, an electric skillet, and possibly even a tv/vcr combo. So, in order to bring these conveniences, I have even more 'camping for dummies' questions. Please don't snicker - well, if you do snicker, please be polite and cover your mouth first. Here goes...

What type of extension cord do I need? Are there certain voltage requirements/restrictions? Do I bring a power strip and plug more than one thing in at a time??? I nave read that at FW, tents can request and use a partial hookup site, but is this true with other campgrounds also? Or, because we use a tent, we will be forced to use a site with no electricity? Are RV'ers 'offended' when they have a tent on the site next to them???

Bring it on

 

[Gunship Guy]

First of all, we're never offended by someone in a tent. We just like being around people who enjoy camping regardless of how they do it.

In my job I tent camp about 6 months a year anyway. Afghanistan and Iraq aren't nearly as nice as Ft Wilderness. I don't want to tent camp when I'm on vacation.

If you have a few electrical items you want to hook up a power strip would be fine. That's what they're made for. A grounded (3-pronge) extension cord should work fine.

 

[gardendame]

So, any power strip? I know it sounds dumb, but I have read about 30 amp sites, 50 amp sites, blah blah.
DH was going to toss out a small box fan we kept in the garage - I moved it over to the corner with the camping stuff! It is a lightweight plastic and should work fine. Also moved to the corner is the toaster-oven my parents gave us years ago that I didn't want and have never used - may come in handy when camping. We pulled the tent out of storage and put it up in the back yard. Boy, there is absolutely NO WAY I could put it up by myself. We may have to invest in a new one if I am going to take the kids a day or two ahead of him. Any suggestions on a tent that a newbie camper (okay, a not-so-helpless-female) can put up by herself???

 

[clkelley]

OK

First off, at Ft. Wilderness the Partial Hookup Sites ARE for tents and popup campers.

The group camping area is the only area at Ft. Wilderness that does not have electricity, and there is no way you'll be put there, so don't worry about that.

When I set up at Ft. Wilderness, I use at least three power strips. On the power pole at Ft. Wilderness there are several types of plugs. There are two of the "normal" type receptacles that everyone uses in their homes that you can use for your electric stuff.

I have one power strip that I plug into the electric pole and I place that inside a tight sealing plastic shoebox with holes cut in each end for cords to come out. That helps keep it dry.

I have 40' three prong outdoor extension cords that runs into each of my tents and I have a power strip at the end of each of those. Then I plug in alarm clock, computer, fan, scooter charger, etc.

Any of the newer, lightweight dome tents are SUPER easy to set up. You can check out Wal-Mart camping section for a tent that will be plenty durable at a reasonable price, or if your sure you want to continue tent camping for a long time, check out Campmor.com for a wide range of high end tents that should last a lifetime if cared for properly.

Oh, and on the number of people it says a tent will sleep, divide that in half!!!

My 10x10 tent states that it sleeps 4 people, believe me, unless you want to be a sardine, the most that it will sleep is two without any extra gear!!!!

I keep all of my clothes in a bin in my truck or if I fly down and camp, I bring an extra tent for my stuff.

Hope this helpsl

Carol

 

[gardendame]

Thank you so much for all of your help! I am looking forward to camping, and hope to take the kids on a short, 1-2 night trip at a nearby state park over Spring break!

 

[tim5055]

Here is a picture of a common power pole:

Fort Wilderness Power Pole

In addition to the power poles, FW has been adding a duplex outlet to the back of the site number poles to allow you to plug in the golf carts near the front of the site. I have a picture of that in the Site Electric Service section of my FW page linked below.

 

[lindsey]

I agree with the new tents. They are soooo easy to put up, in comparison to the older ones. Make sure you put it up at home first so you have a good idea how it is supposted to go. My husband put ours up and spent several afternoons putting extra rain sealant on the inside of all of the seams - just as an added security.

 

[Tuffcookie]

Hi Gardendame, I haven't checked this board out for awhile so I don't know when your trip is planned. If DS, age 12, and I hadn't gotten an offer we couldn't pass up at the Swan Resort, we would be camping again at FW. We love that place!!! I am a single mom and we have a dome tent and it is so easy to camp there! One thing I did different at last year's Spring Break camping trip was, I got the air mattress off the ground! I took a queen size bed frame with us, cut wood slats to fit all the way down inside of the frame, to lay the air mattress on. Make sure your bed frame has plastic wheels so it doesn't damage the bottom of your tent and make sure you cover all sharp edges on the frame with duct tape. Being 50, it was much nicer to sleep this way than on the ground. Also, if you're going in Spring...At the last minute I tossed our electric blanket in the car. Good thing! We would have froze to death the first two nights we were there last year if it hadn't been for the electric blanket! I would love to get a pop up but I have a small 4 cyl Toyota Camry. Belive me, when it comes time to replace this vehicle, I am going to keep the towing capicity in mind with the next one! Happy camping! I miss all of you on the camping board!!!

TC

 

[1Venus]

I went camping for the first time in October. I'm so happy I had this board and lots of helpful people to offer suggestions. It turned out that I loved camping which really surprised my husband!

On our first trip we took a cabin style tent that I found at Target on clearance. It was terrible! It took so long to put up and never really "looked" right. Every morning it looked as though it was going to collapse and we'd have to set it up again. My husband decided he would never camp with that tent again. We got a dome tent (Eureka Blue Mesa) for Christmas. Although we haven't spent the night in it yet, we did set it up to seal the seams. It was up in just a matter of minutes! I think we're really going to like it. Plus it has more nylon netting stuff for ventilation.

Last time we took a very, very long extension cord and found it to be much more than we needed. So this time I bought a shorter one that should do fine. I bought one for "outdoor" use since it will connect the electric post to the power strip in our tent. I'm so glad that we had electricity as the fan was so necessary!

Finally, I agree with Tuffcookie about getting off the ground. Even though I was on an air mattress, I still felt that I was sleeping on the floor. I hated sitting on my knees to make the bed each morning. I hated being on my knees to get out of bed. So I found an air mattress on a frame at Target. I love it and I feel that I can always use it for overnight guests at home too.

I learned alot from my first trip and I'm sure I'll learn more in May.