'Adapted Camping' - You're Going to Laugh

[CanadaSue]

I used to camp a fair bit in my salad days. Lots to love about it. Campfires, great views of the night sky. Critters rustling through the woods & lots more. SO loves it as well for the same reasons but WE have never camped. Until the last year or so, SO couldn't. His pain wasn't well enough controlled. Now, he could easily, if we think it through & bring the right stuff, spend a night or two camping.

We think we have the perfect spot. Kingston Mills, just past the lock system has a trail that threads through the woods along some small granite rock faces. A few hundred yards in, you hit a trail going up that's not hard to negotiate. Climb it & suddenly you're on top of the world. You overlook the last part of the river & some of the city in the distance. There's a huge, flat, wide ledge with lots of spongy moss, plenty of dead wood & tons of bare rock where small fires can be safely lit. You can see where others have periodically camped & partied there.

Our problem & frustration was... how to get there. To make sure SO is comfy, I'd want some decent padding for under him. Our tent is fine but heavy to carry. Food, water - in short the amount of stuff we'd have to take with us just can't be managed on bikes easily. The Mills site advertises potable water - I'd have to ask where it is & if there isn't any... well, that's one item you have to have.

We were just out walking & a light bulb sparked. The Mills are only 3 miles away. There's nothing on earth, (this is the don't laugh part), we could pack up a couple of large duffles with everything &... TAKE A CAB. Yip - $7 or 8 would get us to the site. We can shlepp the duffels to the bottom of the uphill trail, I then offload them one load at a time to my backpack & scramble up. When we're down to the last bits, we both head up & set up camp.

Well, why not? I can see the purists snickering & shuddering. That's okay - I'm ignoring you. The method may not be pure but we're focusing on the goal. First, we'll scope out a few sites & clean them up if there's trash around. We'll come back a week or two later & see if they're untouched. If they are - should be safe enough. At that point, we'll collect firewood, clear a proper fire pit or more aptly; circle & locate areas of old moss we can use for underpadding.

Then unconventional or not, we'll cab up to the Mills. 15 minutes later, we'll be on the short trail & the adventure starts! Get everything up the hill, set up the tent, find a good 'outhouse' location & start enjoying. Good simple foods like breads, cheeses, canned meat spread & fruit/veg. Lots to drink. Field Guides, souvenir collecting bags, first aid kit & marshmallows.

We can explore, watch the stars, do the campfire thing, fish, hike around a bit & just chill.

It may be unorthodox but... I try to be when I can - stretches the brain & lightens the heart.

[dyrt]

Yes, the cab business just does not sound right even though making several trips with the backpack will certainly be penance enough. But just to make it sound better, you should rent a packmule or hire a sherpa. Don't you have those there?

[CanadaSue]

You're right - the authenticity factor is sorely lacking. Alas, no sherpas or packmules available locally.

[dyrt]

Originally Posted by CanadaSue

You're right - the authenticity factor is sorely lacking. Alas, no sherpas or packmules available locally.

How about a 14 year old kid with a big dog?

[Potemkin]

Samsonite rolling duffel. If it is an improved trail, this should work.

[D. Gale]

Pffft, who cares how you get there? There are plenty of people backpacking the Appalachian Trail who take rides for part of the way.

I'd check with the park system or whoever manages the Locks. If that's private land, camping on it could be a big no-no. You may have to cab it to a designated campground instead.

http://www.rideauacres.com/index.php

http://koa.com/campgrounds/kingston/

[CanadaSue]

Ah, that's what's been stumping us - it's not improved trail by any means. Getting to the Mills is easy. Then we have several steep flights of stairs down to the water's edge, followed by a sketchy, very unimproved trail. It's a narrow path, going up, down & sideways. We have to duck around an enormous granite boulder, around some marsh... then we get to the uphill scramble.

We'll eventually figure out something more 'independent' but for now, we'll do the cab thing. In all honesty, we don't know when SO will be beyond the ability to even think about doing this, so if we have to 'cheat' to do it this summer - we will. If it works & he doesn't end up spending a week in bed due to spending a night out camping, we'll look at better options. And we'll budget for them.

In the meantime, we're planning on having a blast figuring out different problems & issues. Me, I can hardly wait to catch a sunrise from the top of the small... escarpment, I guess it's properly called. No way I can get bored out there in a couple of days - no way at all.

[Potemkin]

Originally Posted by D. Gale

Pffft, who cares how you get there? There are plenty of people backpacking the Appalachian Trail who take rides for part of the way.

I'd check with the park system or whoever manages the Locks. If that's private land, camping on it could be a big no-no. You may have to cab it to a designated campground instead.

One of the things I learned in the Boy Scouts and my younger days, if low key is the best. A lot of times you could go to places, keep low, and no one ever questioned anything.

One thing I learned is if you wanted to go to public places and asked for official permission, you would never go camping. (Private places is something else.)

[CanadaSue]

Ms. Gale - it's a national park site. There's a 'proper' grassy campground nestled in behind the park staff's office. There's even a bathroom with a couple of sinks for a quick sprucing up. The cliff top we want to camp on is part of the park site, although park staff rarely go up there.

We'll be speaking to park staff before we do anything. We're getting a tad long in the tooth to wing it like kids looking for a secret place to drink underage.

[MDINMT]

I say go for it! One of your best story's might start "Yup, we called a cab to go camping and then...."

[CanadaSue]

We're definitely going to go for it - it's unorthodox, dare I suggest weird to GET to a 'trailhead' by cab but once we're there, who cares? The look in SO's eyes when he talks about the time he could spend freely in the wild spaces when he was younger & before his disability is a look I'd like to see in the context of an actual event.

I'm grateful we're that close to an area where we can do this in relative safety & safety will be an important consideration - that's why a couple of recon trips first to see if anyone is... using... the area for idiocy. I'm inclined to do this during the week - avoids the problem of underaged, weekend drunks. The biggest 'wild' danger we'd encounter would be a startled bunny or shy deer. There are coyotes in the area but no shortage of food for them & I've not seen sign of them up on the escarpment.

We'd have safety gear with us - emergency lighting for signalling, probably snag SD's cell phone from her - just in case - first aid kit & even in pitch black, I can get down the trail up to the escarpment, along the river & back up to the pay phone & road within 15 minutes. Give me daylight & a sense of urgency & I can do it in less than 10. In any case, down below us & 50 yards upstream is a long tieup area for overnight docking & there's always at least 1 boat there.

We're just looking to have a simple, back to basics fun day or two exploring the river, marsh, escarpment & woods up there. I always wanted to know exactly how many photos my memory card would hold - good chance to find out.

And yeah, I might get some killer stories out of it; some might even be true!

[Mrs. Hermit]

How you get there is irrelevant. That you get there is prime. I have to use a lot of "adaptive" thinking to accomplish things. Go for it.

[linttrap]

There is wisdom that age and self awareness brings. You are using it. No fault there at all.

[Feather]

Using a cab to get to the area is no different than driving to a camp area yourself. It sounds like a very fun adventure. It's been over 16 years sinceI've been camping but now I'd have to take a cot or some strong men with me. That might not be to bad of an idea.

[AndreaCA]

Call that cab and GO! There is absolutely no time like now! Oh, btw, I camped & backpacked quite a bit in my late teens and early twenties. Last summer we camped in the high Sierras for the first time in 20 years. Be warned, it must be that global warming thing or something, but something has definitely hardened the ground over the past 2 decades! It was damned hard to get a good night's sleep!

[dyrt]

Confession: My last 4 camping trips were with the Girl Scout troops. Drove to the site in my full sized van with a queen size air mattress in the back.

[Exodia]

You may want to think about making sure you have a way to contact the cab for the trip home (phone, charger, numbers, what to do if you have no signal, etc).

[Potemkin]

Originally Posted by CanadaSue

We'd have safety gear with us - emergency lighting for signalling, probably snag SD's cell phone from her - just in case -

Get some old piece of cr@p cell phone.

I would assume Canada has the same telecommunication rule as the US where any mobile phone, even one that is "unregistered" will call 911, emergency services. (Did you know that the very first 911 deployment was in Manitoba? Winnipeg I think.)

As for carrying stuff up an unimproved train, how about a used baby jogging cart from the thrift store? You could also use it to carry groceries.



How about a 2 or 3 wheel golf bag cart? I see them all the time at the thrift store. This one folds with one click.
Amazon

[blue gecko]

Originally Posted by Exodia

You may want to think about making sure you have a way to contact the cab for the trip home (phone, charger, numbers, what to do if you have no signal, etc).

+1

Sounds like a fun adventure! Keeping it simple so you don't have to lug around too much stuff makes good sense.

[CanadaSue]

Phones - this exotic wild location has a pay phone...LOL. From the top of the escarpment I can scuttle back to it in 10 minutes when I have to; just a few more minutes needed at night to allow for getting off a rough trail in pitch darkness. Yes, I have headlamps & flashlights galore.

SD might have an old cell phone tucked away in her stuff - I'll ask her.

[Potemkin]

The one thing I learned is if you plan too much, plan for every contingency, have no risk in the trip there is no adventure.

Don't plan too much.

[CanadaSue]

You're right. I'll plan, then eliminate roughly 80% of what I think I need to bring. We're not exactly heading into the tundra. The mor stuff you bring, the more time you waste seeing to it while there.

Camera, note pad & pencil for stray thoughts & descriptions & a wide open heart & mind will be the most crucial things. Hell, only bring one change of clothes & only to be used if I manage to fall into a swamp... which I might manage chasing a turtle or something.

[Ought Six]

Why not use one of those folding things people put shopping bags in? They can carry quite a bit of stuff.

[Amberglass]

Sounds wonderful Sue...as soon as I started reading your post I thought TAXI...why not?

We haven't camped much the last couple of years. Of course my idea of camping is different then most. I love sleeping in the tent, on my big air mattress with my duvet and big fluffy pillows.

I love the camp fires, the stars.... and I don't even mind the communal showers. We usually go to Sauble Beach for about 10 days. I do get sick of cooking and washing dishes. We have it down to an art now. We spend the day at the beach or head to Tobermory, South Hampton or where ever. If I don't feel like cooking we will stop at a restaurant and eat dinner before we head back to the camp site. Then when we go back, we just light a fire and relax. I find making and freezing things like spaghetti sauce or chili at home and heating it at the campground or whatever makes life a lot easier. I like to cook on an open fire every now and then too. I like to think I can cook anything...anywhere.

I know...I'm lame. but.... I could still throw up a tent in the back 40 of no where, light a fire and cook a decent meal with nothing more then food and aluminum foil....or die trying. years and years of being a girl guide leader.

I can't wait to read about your adventures.

[CanadaSue]

Wouldn't work on the trails, Ought. Think a deer path through the woods - that's the level of 'trail' I'm talkng about. It can be walked but forget dragging anything along, never mind up or down. And the uphill part really is uphill - parts are a bit mountain goat trackish.