We usually go camping in the woods of Vermont, but dh found a nice campground on the ocean on an island in Maine that we are going to next week. Any suggestions on what to bring on this trip that I would not bring on a regular camping trip? The camp site is right on the beach.

By Karen~admin on Friday, July 28, 2006 - 02:42 pm:

Stronger sunscreen, plenty of bottled drinking water, tarp or umbrella for shelter from the sun.....

By Trina~moderator on Friday, July 28, 2006 - 03:49 pm:

I'm extremely envious! I LOVE the beach and camping! However, that's something I could never get DH to do.

By Jjb on Friday, July 28, 2006 - 04:23 pm:

It sounds like a lot of fun. Maine is gorgeous! Make sure you bring plenty of strong insect repellent.

By Kaye on Saturday, July 29, 2006 - 08:19 pm:

We beach camp here. Our sites are not directly on the beach, just across a little bridge. The ground is very soft, easy for pitching the tent.

What to bring extra, an umbrella and beach chairs. Also if you don't already use a mat for the entry, you will want one, sand gets everywhere fast! Also bring some clothes pins and rope, so you can hang those suits up to dry.

Ditto the extra water and sunscreen. Also I think we make sure to pack extra soap (hand and shower), nothing like eating all salty handed

By Colette on Wednesday, August 2, 2006 - 01:33 pm:

Don't be envious Trina. It wasn't what it was cracked up to be. We ended up leaving a day early. I am sticking to State campgrounds instead of private ones from now on.

By Trina~moderator on Wednesday, August 2, 2006 - 01:44 pm:

Oh no! What happened??

By Colette on Wednesday, August 2, 2006 - 01:56 pm:

Not the cleanest place I've camped in, tstorm that lasted 3 hours in the middle of the night, tents leaked, zipper on tent door broke, absolutely no supermarkets up there, just small overpriced convienent stores and walmart, small tent sites, on a slope!, I could go on and on and on...

the good thing was that the beach was absolutely full of hermit crabs which we don't usually find around here.

By Dawnk777 on Wednesday, August 2, 2006 - 11:59 pm:

I'll stick to the hotels, with wireless internet and a pool! LOL! Our hotel in Rapid City had a wonderful pool, that was sooo warm. It was small, but big enough for the girls and me!

By Fraggle on Thursday, August 3, 2006 - 08:22 am:

Colette, just curious-where did you stay in Maine? I'll make sure we stay clear of that area. Hermit crabs are a lot of fun-one of our town beaches is loaded with them. My girls have actually gotten brave enough this year to pick them up with their bare hands :-).

By Colette on Thursday, August 3, 2006 - 10:07 am:

Orr's Island in Harpswell.

By Bellajoe on Thursday, August 3, 2006 - 04:34 pm:

LOL Dawn, i'm with you! My family camped all the time when i was little. There were 7 of us and this was the only vacation that my parents could afford. My mom still talks about how much she disliked camping because she had to do all the work, figuring out what to pack, and packing it all. She told my dad that if he wanted to camp, he had to do the cooking that week (yes, we camped for a week at a time, sometimes more than that).
It was fun as a kid though. I would take my kids camping for like, a night and that's all i would be able to handle. Then give me a nice hotel with a/c, no bugs, and comfy beds.
Colette, sorry that the beach camping didn't work out for you!

By Eve on Thursday, August 3, 2006 - 05:14 pm:

Oh no, Colette! I'm so sorry!

By Karen~admin on Thursday, August 3, 2006 - 07:41 pm:

Sorry to hear that Colette.

Patti, when I was in middle school, my mom, uncle and grandparents went in together and bought a camper, paid yearly to rent 2 permanent, side-by-side sites in the back of a campground near the beach, and left the camper there. My aunt had a huge tent that they brought to set up on the other site, with smaller tents belonging to whoever happened to join us. My mom drove this monster station wagon and the seat folded down and we had a mattress that fit it, so my sister and I would *volunteer* to sleep in the back of the car, so we could sneak out. LOL

I remember my mom, aunt and grandma cooking, etc. for 2 days before each camping trip, filling ice chests, etc., and then b**ching about how much work it was.

We did have fun then, and when we were older teens they would let us use the camper and go camping with friends. However, you couldn't pay me enough to camp now. Give me A/C, high speed internet, a hot shower and a comfy bed!

By Dawnk777 on Friday, August 4, 2006 - 01:12 am:

My parents weren't into camping! The only camping I have done is with Girl Scouts, my church youth group, and once that I got to go with a friend's family. I don't think I would want to go camping and have all the food and stuff, be up to me!

How do you keep food cold enough to not spoil, over the course of a week, in the summer? I can't remember what anyone did with the food, when I was a kid.

By Colette on Friday, August 4, 2006 - 07:39 am:

Rule #1 when I go camping...we go out for dinner or get takeout subs and pizza.

By Karen~admin on Friday, August 4, 2006 - 07:41 am:

Sounds like a great rule to me!