Camping is a very popular activity among the under Forties. People like to go hunting, fishing, hiking, walking or just camping with their friends, family or lover. The outdoors is attractive and can be romantic. Lots of people want to get a little closer to nature and the easiest way of doing this is sleeping under canvas, or nylon or something man-made like that. Another benefit for the young is that it is not expensive.
However, it is not only inexpensive, it is healthy and instructive. All children should go camping either with their parents or the scouts in order to learn something of nature before they get locked into a career to pay the mortgage and forget that there is life outside the city. You know, there are inner city children that do not know that milk comes from cows? How ridiculous is that?
So, if you are going to take an education in nature by the horns, you will have to have some camping equipment. Inexpensive though camping equipment is relative to the equipment required for other activities, most people still have to be a bit careful how much they spend.
If you fall into that category, then this article is for you. Before we get into the nitty-gritty, it is worth pointing out that if you have the money, you can do worse than simply going down to the local sports shop or camping shop and buying all your equipment from them. Buy everything you require in one go and ask for a discount. if anything ever goes wrong they will remember you as a big spender and fix it for you right away.
However, the rest of have to be a little more cautious with the cheque book. If you know a bit about camping gear from your parents or from the scouts and do not mind second-hand, then car boot sales and garage sales can be just the thing.
Often people are selling stuff because their kids have left home and they are having a clear out or perhaps they have had more children and the pup tent is no longer any use to them.
I sold a lovely tent not so long ago for peanuts because I knew that I would never need it again. The beauty of these sales is that you can put the tent up or get the seller to put it up for a closer inspection. Look for rot, sniff for mildew, check the number of pegs and guide lines et cetera, but do not get carried away with perfection, you can buy extra pegs, lanyard and a mallet, but you do not want to have to sew up holes or replace zips or fly screen.
Classified ads are another good source of equipment, but pick the device up yourself so that you know where to take it back if you do not have the opportunity to inspect it in the correct manner before handing over the money.
EBay and Amazon are also pretty good, but you have to do some research on the manufacturers’ names and the regular retail prices otherwise you might end up purchasing an expensive copy, a kiddies’ toy tent or just junk.
One of my favourite shops to browse is the Army and Navy Surplus store. Try going into an A&N and coming out empty-handed. If the gear in there is good enough for our troops to risk their lives with, it’s decent enough for a week in the Poconos.
Owen Jones, the author of this piece writes on quite a few subjects, but is at present concerned with thinking about the Poconos International Raceway in Pennsylvania. If you would like to know more or check out some great offers, please go to our website at Poconos Vacations.