Rain Camping

Some hearty folks partake in snow camping; digging snow shelters or pitching the tent on top of the snow.  It is said that snow camping really isn't all that cold (if you have the proper gear) as it can actually be cold enough to be dry.  I have never snow camped, but imagine it is beautiful.

And then there is rain camping.  This may be a uniquely Oregon activity.  People who have warm, dry houses pack up a bunch of gear (and not necessarily the "right" gear) and head to the mountains where it will most surely rain; for example Timothy Lake on Memorial Day weekend.

Activities while rain camping include erecting tarp villages with no ladder (and being sure NOT to get them too close to the fire), lighting and keeping a fire going in the rain, managing puddles and pools that collect in the tarp city and of course, drying shoes and clothes without burning or melting them.  As a parent, an additional activity is trying to keep your kid from getting irretrievably wet, while they she is hanging out with friends not too close to you.

Benefits of rain camping include sparsely populated campgrounds; who in their right mind goes camping in the rain?  Another benefit of rain camping is the exquisite pitter-patter of rain on tent, )as long as you are completely secure that no water is getting in the tent), and the close bond you establish with your co -campers as you endure, err I mean enjoy, the weekend together.

This weekend will mark our family's ninth (and last) Memorial Day weekend camping with the terrific families from Winterhaven School.  There have been drops of rain all none years, and all but two of those years it has poured.  Next year I expect will gather with some of the families we have camped with over the years in a warm, dry, sunny, spot.