Camping in the Great Outdoors

My good friend Susan and I went camping this past weekend. We left Thursday afternoon and returned Saturday afternoon. I believe that I have paid my "camping dues" -- years spent in a tent on a foam pad and then later on an air mattress, huddling around a campfire each morning and night trying to fight off the cold, and digging a latrine with my heel. And having paid my "camping dues" I am completely entitled to enjoying the luxury of a camper trailer, guilt free.

About a year and a half ago, my brother Ryan and I talked my dad into getting a pop-up camper trailer, for the whole family to enjoy. In case you didn't know...it is not very hard to talk my dad into buying cool toys. I must say that we all thoroughly enjoy mom and dad's trailer. It's a great little pop-up trailer with sleeping room for about 6 (as long as 2 of those people are either children or shorter than about 4 1/2 feet). There's a great little dining area -- a table and two bench seats. A kitchenette with a 3 burner stove, a kitchen sink, and a small refrigerator. As well as a potty. However, the best part may just be the heater. Yes, the trailer is heated. So camping on the Mogollon Rim in April can be a pleasant experience, even with it drops to the upper 20's at night. And after doing a little camping with the trailer, I don't imagine that I'll be doing too much tent camping in the future. That is unless I want to "rough-it".

Anyways, we parked the camper trailer in Canyon Point Campground on the Mogollon Rim, between Payson & Heber. It is actually only about a 2 hour drive from Mesa. The weather was fabulous!! It dropped down to the upper 20's at night and then reached the low 60's during the day. We enjoyed the scenery as well as the time to play games -- yahtzee, arm & a leg, zilch, etc. And of course, some reading. It's hard to beat a camp chair in the woods with a good book. Gotta love the Great Outdoors.