Camping in the rain

[Foodsafe]

It’s shit isn’t it?

everything is wet. The sound of the rain on the tent is too loud to sleep.

I think the thing about camping is that while you may get miserable ,everything is a challenge .I get easily bored and being nice and dry at home contemplating all the cupboard clearing and housework I have to do is more boring than working out how to apply guy ropes and bungees to keep the big tent upright .
It's a rollercoaster of emotions,a distraction from the worries of real life .

I love camping but I find it tedious in wet weather. However, childhood camping holidays in the shadow of Tryfan with sideways rain didn't put me off... It was character building!

Waking up into nature is one life's greatest pleasures ☺️

However, childhood camping holidays in the shadow of Tryfan with sideways rain didn't put me off... It was character building!

Childhood camping in the west Highlands in Scotland really did put me off. It was not character building, it was shit. Living like you have no choice to move into a tent because you have been hit by a flood/earthquake/tsuanmi is not fun by anyone's stretch of the imagination.

"nature" is all around us. Sleep in your clean bed, use your plumbed in loo, brush your teeth, have an easily-cooked breakfast, get out and enjoy nature, back in the evening. It's light from 5/6am to 9pm at least at the moment. Plenty of hours of daylight to do whatever you want and not live like one of those people desperate to get across the Channel on a small boat.

Lets face it, everything is shit in the rain.

I have only camped once in my life and that was a few years ago with my two eldest kids. It rained solidly for the three nights we were there. They loved it. I hated every minute. We have never done it again.

Even as a child camping didn't appeal to me. I was very pleased that Brownies weren't allowed to go camping and had to sleep in indoor accommodation. I went on all those lovely indoor residentials and then with Guides, who were allowed to camp, I only went to a Christmas 'camp' which was in indoor accommodation!

I can just imagine what I would have thought/said/did if my mum had told me we were going camping in the back of beyond with no toilets as a treat for finishing my exams! 😆

I can just imagine what I would have thought/said/did if my mum had told me we were going camping in the back of beyond with no toilets as a treat for finishing my exams!

I know what I would have said. No chance. Let's just stay at home, get a pizza, watch the tennis/football.

Camping in wet/windy/stormy weather is the worst holiday. But when the weather is good, it’s the best kind of holiday.

We camped lots when our kids were little and often seemed to manage to pick the worst week of weather in the entire year. It was hard work for us as parents- finding things to do, driving round local towns to find a launderette so you can dry out the sleeping bags, husband outside at 2am in his pants tightening the guy ropes etc. But the kids absolutely loved every minute of it and reminisce about those camping trips being their best holiday memories (despite having since been on some long haul and more luxurious holidays).

Eventually we decided we were never going to be lucky with weather on our UK camping trips and bought a caravan. I feel vaguely embarrassed about it because I identify as a camper not a caravanner 😂 I tend to have more in common with campers than my fellow caravanners. But I can’t deny it’s great to enjoy some of the benefits of camping but without the downsides! Having a solid roof and a comfy bed is great. We do still have a tent which sometimes gets used for weekend trips if the weather’s good, and for festivals.

And of course camping on the continent is often a much safer bet with the weather, but then very hot weather while camping isn’t ideal either, and France can have some very dramatic thunderstorms! Flashback to the time I observed a group of young Frenchmen in Speedos taking their tent down in torrential rain 😂

Supposed to be camping next weekend for the first time with 10 year old and thinking of cancelling.

Can I just ask if anyone has switched from tents to a small camper van and found it radically more comfortable? I'm tempted to get something like a Toyota van conversion . ignore if I'm derailing the thread!

I'd much rather wake up in a nice comfortable, warm, dry bed with access to running water, electricity and heating

I work outdoors and love being out and about, but not when the rain is hammering your face and there's absolutely no relief from it, even at night. It's just grim and certainly doesn't build character, lol.

I think it actually is character-building! Kids learn some resilience from it. There’s something about going back to basics that gives you a renewed appreciation for all the little luxuries in your daily life. I like the simplicity of it- the fact that you have to go and fetch your water which makes you more careful about how you use water etc. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve stayed in luxury hotels, I’ve done AI holidays. But I really like the simplicity of just hanging out in a field for a few days.

Each to their own but it sounds like absolutely hell on earth to me.

Why would you pay to go on holiday in worse conditions than you live in at home?! I don't get it 😂

@EyeOop I am guessing you have some really lovely teens who enjoy keeping fit and the outdoors, and clearly who love being with their mum! I personally would love some camping and hiking, but I quite enjoy a bit of hard work and just see setting up as a bit of a work out. Enjoy it

@EyeOop dying to hear how your trip goes. Unimaginable how that can be a treat tbh? Sorry about the bold can't turn it off

When we decided that we were cursed campers, we thought about switching to a camper van and we hired one for a long weekend. It could have been great except that weekend there was one of those big storms that’s bad enough to have its own name (Katy, IIRC) so it wasn’t really ideal. I was scared the top box sleeping bit was going to rip off in the night so we had to close it and all four of us slept in the van and there really wasn’t enough space 😫 I’m sure they’re great in better weather though.

We bought a trailer tent instead (which was great) and then a caravan some years later.

It won’t. But if you all have positive attitudes then even memories like that eventually become good memories too.

It's so unseasonably wet and cold here I didn't even want to take my kids to their swimming lessons. Fuck camping in it.

Although I'm not a camper and after a few festivals in my 20's I will never camp again. It wasn't even pleasant in relatively good weather

(And FWIW I did take the kids swimming, but we're not doing much else today in this shit weather!)

@fieldsofbutterflies- like I said, it’s the simplicity- it’s hard to explain to people who don’t get it, but that’s what a lot of campers enjoy about camping. I have at times enjoyed luxury experiences, but I don’t enjoy being ‘pampered’. It feels uncomfortable/embarrassing to me.

A long time since I camped in wet weather, though never camped during the time Wimbledon is on, which is almost a guarantee of wet weather.

Hope the rain stops and somehow you can enjoy your break OP.

My mate bought a camper and we've been out in it a couple of times. It's more comfortable, it's warmer, it's drier, it's more protected from really extreme weather. It's "better" in every sense of you like that kind of thing.

I caution against sleeping in a pop top in really heavy snow

It’s not. I wonder what other activities they do for fun.

I guess I don't see the enjoyment in spending money to have a less comfortable time than you'd be having for free in your own house, lol.

I don't need luxury but I don't find being uncomfortable, damp and cold even remotely enjoyable, especially when there's no escape from it. I work outdoors and spend a huge amount of time getting wet, muddy and windswept, but I certainly wouldn't want to do it if I couldn't come home to a hot shower and comfortable sofa afterwards

@fieldsofbutterflies Each to their own! (I do always go to campsites with decent showers though! Wild camping probably wouldn’t be for me)

The world would be a boring place if we were all the same!

I had a colleague who used to wild camp a lot, and while the views etc. could be amazing, I could never imagine finding sleeping on the top of a mountain in the pouring rain to be anything other than hell, lol.

Always buy a tent much larger than you think you need, EVEN IF camping alone.

We camped in a tent for years then bought a folding camper. The base is caravan and the top is canvas and the beds pulled out each end. Not a trailer tent, they are different but I think they have gone up in the luxury stakes

Built in cooker, quicker to set up and definitely more comfy. The awning gave us more living accommodation. Sold and bought the upgrade with a toilet. Was manufactured by Conway who got bought out by Pennine

Sold as kids grew up and we stopped going on holiday as a family so much

On the comfort debate, always taken duvet with us and as I've said up-thread a hot water bottle

It's about 15 years since we last went camping and I think there are a lot of products out there to make it more comfortable