Where do you draw the line?

[James.]

I have been wanting to go camping for a couple months now but haven't been able to because of the holidays and work. I will admit that while it isn't as cold here in Arizona as it is in most of the country, it still gets pretty cold at night. Definitely into the 30's. And while I don't mind being cold it occurred to me that even if I was able to get away I would think twice because of the cold.

It got me thinking and wondering where everyone else's limits are. At what point do you call off a trip. Rain, snow, temp...hot or cold.

For me I think if the lows are in the mid to low 20's I am out. I would also say that mid 80's are my high limit. I have never been in the rain and would love to spend some time in it as long as it isn't a freezing rain. I am not sure how I feel about snow. I am watching a movie right now where it is snowing and I think it would be pretty cool to camp in the snow....but I admit that it is easy to say while I am sitting on my couch.

[MacGyver]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

I definitely won't camp in Summer heat and humidity. Sitting and sweating while swatting bugs isn't my idea of a good time. Other than that, I'll go out in just about anything but pouring down rain. I don't mind if it pours once I'm set up, but trying to get a tarp up while getting soaked is sheer misery.

Living in Arizona, I guess camping in the snow would be kind of a foreign concept to you. But believe me - as long as you've got the right gear to keep warm, it's great! Pretty sure I've said it on here before, but it's probably the most peaceful camping I've done. It's quiet, there's little chance of critters getting into your food, you can build huge fires with no threat of burning down the forest AND the beer stays cold. Then, if it snows while you're there, listening to it coming down through the trees is something almost surreal. The first time they're expecting a good accumulation in western Maryland, I'm going to take a four-day weekend, even if I have to go solo.

[JoeN]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

Most of my camping is done in East Texas or Southeast Oklahoma and I don't like camping in the summer heat. I don't sleep well if I am sweating. I have camped once when the low reached near 20 and there was some residual snow on the ground. The cold wasn't bad but it was just hard to get out of the warm sleeping bag in the morning. My preferred camping is when the low temps range from low 30s to low 40s and the highs stay below 80. Around here though those temps mean spring or fall and thunderstorms. I don't mind the rain at all but I don't want to set up camp in the rain. The nice thing about spring and fall is that there are few if any snakes, mosquitos, and other campers.

[Happy Joe]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

I readily admit to being a fair weather camper anymore.
Hot for me just means going farther (up) into the mountains (unless desert camping then it pays to set up a trip for the milder times of the year; spring/fall).

I don't like cold so if the high temperature looks to be much below freezing for a couple of days (especially if its wet) the trip gets shortened.

Since even on nice weekends, in the mountains, you can wake up to frost (even snow) on the tent, I don't really consider calling a trip off until the snow looks to get bad enough that I might not be able to get down the mountain in relative safety. Even clouds, when driving through them, can reduce driving visibility to dangerous levels (think thickest fog you ever saw/might not be able to see the end of the hood).
Snow can be kinda neat, if its not going to hang around (gets really quiet and the sound of the snow falling is kind of a light faint hiss). Deep dry powder snow can be neat to drive through, if you can reach traction (can actually make waves ). Wet heavy snow can be miserable (may have to get up and clear the tent every couple of hours) although it can insulate the tent, the relative high humidity usually makes it miserable.

In terms of rain I'll usually call a weekend trip off early after being forced under cover for 2 days. (When you can't find any fire wood that will burn, and the forecast says more rain, Its time to consider calling it).

Enjoy!

[terasec]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

camping in northern NY
if i put off cold weather camping that would be a big part of the year
i will camp in the teens, possibly single digits
negative temps i am sleeping in the jeep
for summer, heat doesnt really bother me, will camp in +90 degree temps in my swampy marshlands,
through out the year i think of winter camping alot, then when i am out there freezing cant help but think to myself, WTF am i doing? this sucks!!!
but even after freezing miserable nights, when sun comes up, have fire going, and coffee in hand, its a beautiful thing and makes the long cold night worth it

[MacGyver]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

When you can't find any fire wood that will burn, and the forecast says more rain, Its time to consider calling it.

I view that as a challenge. Unless it's a Noah's flood kind of rain, I use a couple of tricks (like some Trioxane, the military fire starter) to get a fire going that withstands a moderately steady downpour. I start with a lot of kindling (and the aforementioned Trioxane) under some aluminum foil. Get that going, then add progressively larger birch limbs until I have enough of a base to get harder wood going. Fortunately there are a lot of birch trees around here. It dries out fairly quickly and burns pretty easily. I guess it would appear pretty foolish to most people because, once I have the roaring fire, I have two options. Sit under a tarp and watch it burn or stand next to it in a rain coat. But I've never claimed to be all that wise and prefer either of those options to being trapped in the house in the rain.

[Happy Joe]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

...I hear you...
Have spent many days under a dripping tree in a poncho sitting on a (cold, damp) camping chair watching the rain put the fire out...
Friends to talk/BS with help, a canopy/rain tarp helps a lot, but there is a point beyond which its just better to say "enough fun"...

You know its cold;
When you have to break up the ice cubes in the cooler (because they froze together) to get another beer...
...When your beer is in danger of freezing in your hand before you can empty it; Its getting a bit too chilly...

...just some fair weather camper opinions...

Enjoy!

[toedtoes]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

For me, it depends on the purpose of the camping trip. If it's about just getting away for a while, then I don't mind the rain at all - I can just cuddle up in the clipper and read, etc. When the rain lets up for a bit, I'll take the dogs out for a good walk/hike, then hole back up in the clipper when the rain starts up again.

If I'm going for photography, then the weather plays a more important role. If it's a drizzle here and there, then I don't mind, but if it's raining the entire time, then the photography is a no-go, so it doesn't make sense to use up vacation for it.

I haven't camped in the snow yet, but expect I will in the future at some point. Have to insulate the clipper plumbing, etc., first. Of course, there aren't a lot of campgrounds that stay open in winter that would get snow - and those that do cater to winter sports. So, not sure how often it would actually happen.

I am OK with warmer days as long as it cools down at night. If the nighttime temps are 70 and above, then I'm not happy. If the daytime temps are above 90, then I'm not happy. I have no problem at all with cold nights (I'm camping, if it's too cold to get out of bed, then I stay in bed). I stopped camping at one campground in the summer because it doesn't cool down at night and I was miserable. It's wonderful in the winter even when it rains.

[James.]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

You guys have me wanting to get out in some bad weather.

[bluestar99]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

My limit is around freezing at night. I can do 100 if it's dry western air. Humidity is another story. When you are damp all the time it makes for a miserable day. Next June I'm heading out to Southern Utah and I expect heat. But not humidity and I expect the nights to cool enough to sleep. We will see.

[Happy Joe]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

You guys have me wanting to get out in some bad weather.

101 mph wind yesterday on Cheyenne Mountain (where Tesla had his lab, the tunnel entrance seen on the StarGate TV series, is much lower)... tipping semi trucks on the news...
...supposed to be low 50s F today...

Enjoy!

[MacGyver]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

101 mph wind...

OK - I'll definitely have to add ridiculous wind to weather I won't go out in.

[actad]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

I will camp in the travel trailer down to the thirties if winterized, plenty of propane for the furnace, and no snow forecast. Makes no difference if at an electric site since I can use the generator to charge the battery.

Tent camping is down to the mid forties if I am at an electric site, mid fifties if no electric.

[JoeN]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

I don't care for the wind, it plays havoc with my allergies and sinuses, and it can cause problems at camp. Several years ago I took a group of boys camping in late summer. It was a hot, still August afternoon and I set up my tent, a Eureka Timberline 2 person tent, and then started helping the boys set up camp. As often happens in East Texas, a sudden thunderstorm blew in, literally. One of the boys yelled " look at that tent" and I turned around to see my tent rolling across the pasture. I had failed to stake the tent out. I learned a lesson that day and now even though I may have a free standing tent I still stake it out even though there is no wind. It didn't hurt the tent and the boys thought that was just about the funniest thing they had ever seen - me chasing a tent across a 40 acre field.

[MacGyver]

Re: Where do you draw the line?

I got some weird looks and more than a few laughs years ago after a full day of sideways rain soaked everything in our site. Imagine a 3 person dome tent, hanging 3 feet in the air and swaying in the breeze next to blankets, sleeping bags, pillows, clothes... That was before I discovered the strategic placement of tarps. I'm a little better prepared these days.