Single mom with a question......or 3!

[vital]

I'm pondering the thought of tent camping in Oct with my son. Let me give some history and y'all help me decide. My son will be 8 when we go. It's a surprise trip for him. We'll be arriving on a Thursday night around midnight or so. We're going to AK on Friday for the day and back to MK for MNSSHP that night. Sat morning we'll be leaving to go on a cruise. Now, with the info I've given can y'all answer some questions for me?

1. Do you think we'd be safe alone there? It'll just be my son and I.

2. How miserable is it camping in October? I live in Mississippi so humidity is not a factor for me. I'm more worried about mosquitoes. I don't want to look like we have chicken pox on the cruise.

3. Would you do it for 2 nights or would you stay at All Star Sports?

We go camping with his boyscout troop so I'm not clueless about camping. We literally will only be there to sleep and change clothes. I have a simple tent that I can set up myself.

Thanks for all of y'alls input!

 

[Tent Camping Mom]

1. Do you think we'd be safe alone there? It'll just be my son and I.

In the tent, yes. But I wouldn't be comfortable letting my DS8 go to the comfort station showering and using the facilities alone. There are no family/companion facilities at the comfort stations.

2. How miserable is it camping in October? I live in Mississippi so humidity is not a factor for me. I'm more worried about mosquitoes. I don't want to look like we have chicken pox on the cruise.

We have tent camped in October and will again this October. We have been lucky as far as weather, it's always been nice (warm in the day and comfy at night with a fan going) and maybe a couple of quick light showers....it did take us a couple of days to adjust to the humidity. Mosquitos have never bothered us They feast on us in Alabama but the Florida mosquitos just don't like us We keep spray handy, just in case. You will need spray anyway if you are visiting any of the ports of call after sunset.

3. Would you do it for 2 nights or would you stay at All Star Sports?

Definitely All Star Sports. We have never camped before a cruise but we have done a park and MNSSHP the night before a cruise and we will not do that again! DS was 8 years old at the time we did it. We did Epcot during the day, went to MNSSHP that night. We were exhausted by the end of the night and we were up bright and early the next morning. I truly believe that's the reason DS got seasick the first night. We have taken a couple of cruises after that (with a good night's sleep beforehand) and DS has never been seasick since.

Also, you will need to dry out your tent soon and 7 days is too long to leave a moist tent packed up (I'm assuming it's a 7 day cruise since you're leaving on Saturday).

Hope this helps!

 

[vital]

Thanks for your answers! I just checked and the campgrounds are full for those nights. A sign from above? I do have another quick question for you if you don't mind.

We are going camping at Oak Mountain, AL in May with the Boy Scouts. Have you been there? If so, your review, if you don't mind

 

[Tent Camping Mom]

A neighbor recommended it to us but we've never made it there yet. From what he said, it has nice hiking and biking areas and doesn't have a lot of loud drunks running around....which is what we look for in a campground. He said it's popular with families.

 

[vital]

Thank you!

 

[djblu883]

Hey Vital we are going to be camping at the same time...you are welcome to throw up a tent at out site if you like and save yourself the expense of the campground... it will be warm in the day time but tolerable at night..If you are doing the dining plan like us we are still going to have drinks and stuff there so you could use the fridge as well for any cold stuff...we are cooking 1 meal the entire time we are there I think ...(using too many double TS for 2 nights so we will be short one meal) and we will most likely have a light breakfast before heading to the parks...if I can help let me know...my daughter is 30 and would enjoy having another single MOm to talk to I'm sure...we are arriving on Sunday the 21st and leaving Monday the 28th!!! Janet

Thank you!

 

[vital]

Hey Vital we are going to be camping at the same time...you are welcome to throw up a tent at out site if you like and save yourself the expense of the campground... it will be warm in the day time but tolerable at night..If you are doing the dining plan like us we are still going to have drinks and stuff there so you could use the fridge as well for any cold stuff...we are cooking 1 meal the entire time we are there I think ...(using too many double TS for 2 nights so we will be short one meal) and we will most likely have a light breakfast before heading to the parks...if I can help let me know...my daughter is 30 and would enjoy having another single MOm to talk to I'm sure...we are arriving on Sunday the 21st and leaving Monday the 28th!!! Janet

Cool! Now that's a thought! I forgot you were going to be there at the same time! You should meet up with Kimmielee, rer and I!

 

[clkelley]

As a previous poster stated, yes staying at the Fort is fun, but drying out the tent would be my biggest concern also.