Just because you camp in a tent doesn’t mean you can’t have the luxuries of staying in an RV! I’ve scoured Calgary stores to find some unique camping gadgets to make “roughing it” a little easier! The best part is…we’re giving them away!
Watch the segment, then add a comment here on my blog! Tell me about your worst camping experience! We’re giving away nearly $1000 worth of gadgets! Good chance you can take one home!
Contest closes Noon today!
Special thanks to Canadian Tire (HunterHorn Drive), and Bass Pro Shops.
My worst camping trip EVER was in September 2007. I was almost five months pregnant and I was not looking forward to camping in a tent. On the way up to the campground, we got lost several times, and by the time we were headed in the right direction, it was dark out. Off in the distance we could see lightning. I was hoping and praying that it would not rain, but sure enough, as soon as we arrived at the campground, the rain began. And so did the wind, thunder and lightning. The boys began to set up the tent, which took much too long due to the rain and wind, and I was ready for bed. As soon as they were done, I crawled in and tried to sleep. Almost right away, the tent came down on top of me. Not only did it happen once that night, but shortly after it was set up again, it came down on me a second time. Luckily the rest of the trip wasn’t a huge failure, but that night made it the worst trip of my life.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:30 amIts not just one experience in specific but I would have to say the worst has been waking up almost EVERY May Long Weekend with a foot of snow surrounding my tent.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:32 amMy worse camping trip would have to of been my grade 8 camping trip. My girlfriend and I were sharing a school tent. The class went out for a hike and of course (murpheys law) (murphey should be shot) it starts to rain. We get back to our camp site and yep you guessed it, everything in our tent was floating our sleeping bags were soaked it is a good thing the only thing we took to eat was in cans ( beans of course, the staple of camping food). That was the first night of our camping trip. So for the rest of the 3 nights we had to sleep in other peoples tents with no blankets. It may of been the worse trip ever, but I do have to say Faith and I were the only ones that did not complain the whole trip. It rained the whole weekend, and it was fun. Other then having no blankets or our own tent!!!!!!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:33 amPlease pick me, I need to improve my camping experiences!!!!
My worst camping experience happened as a teenager when we used our camping gear after lending it out to some friends days earlier only to findout the sleeping bags were infested with lice. We found this out the next morning in the middle of nowhere. What a way to ruin a camping weekend.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:33 amJust let me say…when your husband sends you to Pine Lake with a six man tent and says go ahead and set it up, expect that she (I) will be smart enough to put a plastic sheet under the tent and out past the door ten feet. What you shouldn’t expect is that she (I) puts the door facing uphill……..IT NEVER RAINS AT PINE LAKE!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:34 amMy family and I used to go camping for 2 weeks every year in Algonquin park, Ontario. One year we arrived at our camp site late in the evening and had to set up in the dark. My dad backed in the small apache pop-up trailer in what looked like an ideal spot. That night we got a severe rainstorm. When we finally awoke, we realized we were barricaded in. We had apparently set up the trailer on a small incline, and the rain storm caused our trailer to slide a few feet down an embankment resting the door up against a tree. We quickly realized that our portable home didn’t come with an emergency exit.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:34 amMy worst camping experience has been every time I’ve gone because I don’t have any of that neat Coleman gear!!!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:35 am2 years ago my family went on a camping trip in BC – we thought it would be a good time to introduce our sons ( 2 and 4) to the great outdoors. We had set our tent up in a very nice secluded spot and started a nice family dinner – when just 20 feet away from us we spot a black bear. We spent the next 45 minutes sitting in our van until the bear left. That night both my husband and I had the worst sleep as any noise had us quite nervous. We packed up the next day after seeing the bear yet again.
We have camped since and although seeing the bear was really quite exciting – it was the most nervous I have ever been camping – especially with my two small boys
May 14th, 2009 at 10:35 amOkay, Mike, so here is my worst camping experience. Two guys took me into the Waterton backcountry for my first backpacking experience ever. It began with me getting heat stroke on the way up the mountain. They decided to go on and hike up to a ridge while I stayed at camp trying not to die. Evenually it got dark and they hadn’t returned so I crawled into the tent for the night. As I lay there, bears (probably just deer) were licking the tent, threatening to eat me. I musn’t have smelled very good because they did eventually leave me alone. Sometime during the night the guys managed to find their way back to the campground and none of us perished in the end. It’s a wonder I ever did it again!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:35 am30 years ago, my husband and I went tenting to BC for our honeymoon. The first night out, he was trying to re-pump up our Coleman lantern and unthinkingly put his hand on the top for grip. Burnt his hand! A few days later while he was washing dishes, he took his brand new wedding band off and hung it on a branch of a nearby tree. We had to drive hours back to get it – thankfully it was still there. Next, we stopped at a McDonald’s for lunch and I left my purse with all of our money at the table. When we went back for it, there had been a shift change and it took a couple of hours, of searching nearby school dumpsters, etc. to discover that some nice waitress had found it and put it in the safe. You would think we would never camp again but both of us have spent over 20 years each with Guiding and Scouting – teaching them what NOT to do!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:37 amMy husband and I went camping in June 2005 for our honeymoon. By the end of the weekend we ended up with water running through our campsite. Our tent and everything in it was wet.So we packed up and started on our way home and got a flat . We put the donut on and was escorted by a nice policeman to the closet tire shop. We have recovered.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:37 amBack in the 60’s our parents took my 4 brother’s and myself to a camp ground near Radium. The place was infessed with gophers, So much so that we named it `Gopher Gultch` We as kids thoght it was a hoot. Our mother who was petrified of rodents spent a great deal of time in the tent or on top of the picnic table. LOL
May 14th, 2009 at 10:37 amworst experience,
took friends camping for the first time 10 years ago. It rained the whole time. We were in tents. The kids (we had 6 under the age of 15 in total between the two families) were becming wet – as the one tent was leaking. We started to pack up and it began to down pour – we had the kids in the cars and the adults running around throwing stuff in the cars. Just as we were about to leave my wife shuts the hatchback and boom – the window explodes as it seems the cooler was sticking too far out. A back window that cost over 1000.00 replace, all 6 kids were sick and we were drenched.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:38 amHi Mike,
My family and I went to Westward Ho for a May long weekend camping/ball tournament weekend. We arrived Friday night and everything was great, weather, friends, ball, etc. We woke up Saturday morning to screams around 2am. We were hit with a May wet and heavy snowstorm that collapsed over 25 tents and tent trailers. Ours was saved only because we were under a huge spruce. We had stayed up to play cards and run the propane heater to stay warm. Our left fielder and their 3 children were not so lucky. Their tent collapsed while they were in it.
They managed to dig out their truck, with everyone’s help, took our daughter and two others to Sundre to find a hotel while we made it through till the morning. The sun was out and the real carnage could be seen. Tents abondoned in the middle of the night, people sleeping in their vehicles, the ball diamonds under a few feet of snow. What made this weekend even crazier was that by noon, most of the snow was melted, all ball players got out in their shorts and bare feet and started to clear the diamonds (imagine mud wrestling without the scenery and a whole lot of laughing) and by 5 pm Saturday the first games were played.
We had an incredible weekend with memories that are still as clear as a bell. It was a fun way to spend 3 days surrounded by family, friends, snow, sun and ball:)
Cheers
May 14th, 2009 at 10:38 amRHonda
“Camping gadget giveaway” Got flooded out on our honeymoon, ended up with a flat tire and had to be escorted by the police to the nearest tire shop.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:39 amWhen we were first married we borrowed a tent from a friend and it was the first time putting up a tent arrived at the camp ground at night and tried to put up a tent i n the dark after two hours in the wind and cold we gave up and got a hotel room in town.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:40 amMy worst camping experience was as a teenager when we went camping after lending out our camping gear to some friends days earlier only to discover that the sleeping bags were infested with lice the next morning. There we were in the “middle of nowhere” with lice and noway to treat it. What a way to ruin a camping adventure?
May 14th, 2009 at 10:40 amGone Camping with friends family, NOT know what the weather was going to be. So When we got there it was nice and hot. So… set up camp. All good. Gone to bed. Now waking up with the tent on your head and freezing, would only be on thing SNOW.. At this point didn’t know that to to do. Wake up friend, freak out, than started to punch the tent, to set the snow off. Get out of the tent, i swear to this day 2 feet of snow… and more snow. So that weekend we didn’t leave the camper.. because it was to cold and, didn’t dress for the weather.. the was my worst camping trip. P.S. now always check the weather
May 14th, 2009 at 10:41 amMy worst camping experience ever was many years ago. Our friend decided to move the log on the fire and instinctively she grabbed the HOT grill to maintain her balance. We ended up spending our first night of camping in the Crowsnest Pass emergegency room. We stayed the rest of the weekend while returning to the ER every 12 hours for dressing changes.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:42 amThis one time when i was about 13 i was camping with a friend and his family. It was night time and we were roasting marshmellows on the fire. My friends marshmellow caught fire and instead of blowing it out he decided to wave it in the air to get it out. Insteat of going out it came off the rod and i had a fire ball coming straight for me. It ended up hitting and sticking to the side of my face. Needless to say I pay attention to people roasting marshmellow on fires now.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:43 amMy friends and I thought that hiking/camping the West Coast trail would be a FANTASTIC idea! Three days in I made the grave decision to rinse my bottle out from a nearby creek. After a long night SICK and stuck on the side of the Pacfic in a pop up tent while my friends had fun by the campfire, I was ceremonously voted off the trip (really there were quite nice about it!) to be shuttled by a stinky fishing boat up the narrows to the nearby reserve where I had to hitch a ride in the back of a pickup truck loaded with dogs, down the logging roads, vomiting off the side, to Victoria. Upon arriving home to Calgary I found out I was one of the unfortunate souls to have picked up Beaver Fever in their lives (STUPID!) ….and as a consequence can’t drink milk anymore! But I still love camping!!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:43 amMy worst camping experience has to be tenting in the rain. I took a city type friend camping once. I slept very well only to wake and find my friend standing in the door of the tent with everything packed up and ready to go home. It had snowed during the night and she spent the early morning without fire and keys for the vehicle to warm up. She was miserable. Years later my family is still tenting but fortunatly girl guiding has given my daughter some common sense on how to make a bed roll nobody gets cold anymore.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:44 amAsking for the worse expereince in camping. We headed out to Kananaskis Country on the May Long Weekend many,many years ago(20yrs). Set up the tent and all the sleeping bags,blankets etc put in tent.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:44 amWas rainy and cold but still tried to make the best of it. Went hiking with our dog and spent most of the day outside. When we opened up the tent the dog ran right into the tent and pee in the the middle of the blankets. We managed to get some useable blankets for the night. When we woke up we could not believe it but it had snowed and everything was soaked and cold,even the wood, so it was impossible to start a fire. My spouse was pissed off and cold so we threw the tent and all the wet stuff in the vehicle and took off. Made it back to Calgary went to Smitty’s had breakfast. Took the tent and stuff out of the vehicle and went to bed. Did not camp in a tent until last year because i refused to have a experience like that ever again. I do not camp May Long weekend unless we are in a camper or hotel.
Worst camping trip So hard to choose… I hate Camping May long weekend, 8 yeara ago, Traverse Dam, set up tent on a hill, rained and sleet all night Friday, tent filled with about 16 gallons of water/sleet. Friendly camping neighbour wanted to bet their dog could beat up ours. Add a 5 year old with sandals and sweatshirt compliments of his dad forgetting anything that may even resemble anything appropriate for this trip, throw in some wet dogs, wind and some fog and put in a 4 person tent. After a few hours throw it all in the back of the truck, with the sleeping bags still inside and come home to a hot breakfast, hot bath and some hot chocolate.
i think it must be better otherwise why would so many others do it
May 14th, 2009 at 10:45 amWorst Ever? Camping in a tent trailer with our 6 and 2 year old about 15 years ago in the Kanaskis on Labour day weekend. It was a great time until the Sunday Morning when it had snowed about 8 inches over night and the roof of the tent trailer was beginning to colapse and everything we had outside was covered in snow. It took a few hours to get everything dug out and a fire going to warm up. Then we had to begin the process of digging our way out so we could get home. It still brings back laughs and bad memories.
Mike
May 14th, 2009 at 10:46 amWorst camping trip was August of last year in Carseland. We have camped there many times with no problems. We awoke the first morning to have our wobbly cooler, food cooler, barbeque and bikes stolen. We planned the trip for the week with friends so had to head back to town – went to Canadian tire and bought new coolers, chain and a lock, went to safeway and got groceries and to the liquor store and headed back to finish out our week. Still need to replace the barbeque and bikes but a warning to everyone lock down your things. We have never felt the need to do so but not anymore.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:46 amWe head out camping every May long weekend. Generally we part-take in some beverages although as I was six months pregnant I had the wonderful opportunity to watch my friends literally, drink and dance around the campfire. I sheltered myself with a picnic table cover to keep warm and protect myself from the falling snow.
In the morning we had to dig ourselves out of our tent, pack our wet gear and head home. The friend we were traveling with had a low tire and had a difficult time driving on this muddy logging road. We were forced to push our friends vehicle up this hill although with out warning I was covered in mud from their spraying tires.
Cold, drenched and muddy, I determined that this was the worst camping experience yet.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:47 amThe worst camping trip was a few years ago, camping in a tent and all my friends were camping in motorhomes. It started to rain late in the evening, I got up during the night to go to the washroom, opening the flap on the tent, there was a stream running under the centre of the tent under the ground sheet in the centre of the door. I made it out and back … but early in the morning about 5 AM, it turned into a creek. My friend and I decided to get up and leave…it was pouring. As we put the last of it in the car, my friends in the motorhome next to us came to the door and said we were chicken and wanted us to stay….I replied…only if we could change accomodations. We left and I ended up selling my tent and buying a Camper Van (VW) it has been great and I do not miss sleeping in a tent. I enjoy camping as you always meet lots of nice people. When you stay in hotels .. you never meet anyone or very few people.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:48 amThankyou Gloria
My worst camping experience was on the West Coast Trail on vancouver island. It started out as a semi-tough trek through the rain forest eventually making our way to the beach where we had to climb over boulders. Now when I first thought of boulders I thought of them as waist high, but no, these boulders were no ordinary boulders, the were as tall as modern two story homes. Climbing over dozens of these boulders it took us much longer than first anticipated to get to our campsite, to make it worse the tide came in and instead of an easy stroll and a nice calm view of the ocean we had to hike through the water, and up a cliff which was eroded away by the raising water levels. Eventually finding out way to the top of the cliff we only found one our last objective for the day. Surge Channels.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:48 amNow if your not familiar with surge channels they are eroded cuts in shelf where water rushes in and rushes our, sucking everything that was in it out into the ocean. Looking on the map provided by the park officials there were only a 3 channels to navigate. The map was hardly accurate with more than a dozen surge channels which we had to navigate around to make our way back to the trail head to get to the first available campsite. It was at this point it started to rain, and when it rains in the rain forest it rains for days because of the water drips from the leaves. The next 4 days were about the same, rain, bruises, boulders. It wasn’t until the last day where the sun appeared from the clouds and we had a really enjoyable experience. Stumbling off the trail with a sprained ankle from days earlier, this trek was finally over.
ps love the gadgets
May 14th, 2009 at 10:50 amWorst Camping Trip: Every year my bf and I (as well as many friends) go camping at MacLean Creek as our anniversary/my bf’s bday getaway. This has been our tradition since we met 4 yrs ago on July 19th, and since his bday is July 21st we make a trip out of the occasion. Last summer my brother and his wife came with us as well as some friends met us at our destination. We arrived early Saturday morning and had a blast setting up, going out wood hunting and making some bevies. Later in the day, around 8pm a parks officer pulls up to our site. We weren’t worried bc each yr they usually come chat and tell us to be tidy and keep our fire confined, but little did we know this yr there was a new reason the officers were patrolling. The officer told us we had to leave our site and in a timely manner or we’d be fined well over a few hundred dollars. We were speechless for we had been coming to this very spot for 3 yrs and it was very memorable to us. After some attempts at persuasion to extend our evacuation until the next morning, the officer would not budge and said he’d be back in one hr and if we weren’t gone we would get the fine. Upset we started packing up everything from tents to bbq. We knew we still wanted to camp for it was our anniversary/ bf’s bday weekend. The officer gave us a map where we could camp so the guys scouted out all the areas with our truck and came back to say that the cars would not make it
Finally well after 10pm we made our way to our last resort, a designated campground just 10 min South of MacLean (I think it was called Gooseberry Campgrounds). We rolled up and were greeted by a very angry campground owner who asked us to pay 40$ per tent! We did and unpacked. Each hour the owner drove by our site and had some nasty remark to make from where our tents were pitched, to where our vehicles were parked, to what firewood we used to how big our fire could be to how loud we could be. Now we are not teens and are very respectful of our surroundings as well as pretty mellow/quiet so were getting tired of the constant warnings from the owner. Our special camping trip was turning into a disaster trip and this looked pretty bad since it was my brother’s first time camping with us. Nevertheless we stuck out the weekend and on the day we were planning to leave the campground attendant came and yelled at us that it was illegal to throw our wood into the bushes!!! OMG I had enough, we burned all our wood for the last 2 nights and had no idea what he was talking about. So frustrated we left and I felt very tense from the weekend, as well my bf’s bday was not what he planned either. This yr I hope things can be better 
Thnks for reading my lengthy disaster story haha.
Anett Meszaros
May 14th, 2009 at 10:50 amPh# 403-473-1060
Hi Mike,
My worst camping trip would be my Grade 6 outdoor field trip to Banff. It was a 4 day adventure and on the second day we left the camp ground for an all day hike, when we returned to the camp ground we were faced with one less tent. While we were hiking a bear decided to shred our tent and eat a sizable amount of toothpaste – even though we had all been worned of the dangers of leaving food in the tent at the tender age of twelve who would have thought that bears liked toothpaste. All our sleeping gear and clothing was strewn around and we were left to clean the mess up and spend the rest of our 5 day trip bunking with other class mates.
Lesson learned. Bears like toothpaste.
Bev
May 14th, 2009 at 10:51 amInterestingly enough, my worst camping experience was also my best camping experience, to date.
.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:51 amI was 17 and on a 7 night canoe trip, in the heart of central Ontario wilderness. In the moment, portaging a ridiculously heavy canoe for over 1.5 km, digging ‘pooh holes’ for our natural bodily functions and being attacked by what seemed like a gazillion mosquitoes on steroids in our tent, was more annoying than anything. Yet, at the end of our journey, it was all those moments and more, that seemed to be the most memorable
My dad was takeing winter camping training when i was in scouts it was all leaders and his
May 14th, 2009 at 10:52 amroom mate in a two person tent didnt like going pee out side to cold so he peed in zip loc bags well thay brake he woke up all wet
As kids 25 years ago, we would go out to the Okanagan with our family every summer for 3 weeks. One summer we were late leaving the house (of course) so my Dad had to make up some time driving the 10 hours to get to our campground before dark. We had an old Ford truck and a big heavy old school trailer….the poor old truck overheated in the August heat that the Okanagan is famous for. We had to pull over on the side of the highway and un-hook the trailer and my Dad made the decision to leave us…my mom, sister and I, with the trailer while he nursed the truck to the next town to do some repairs.
When he returned to us hours later, my sister and I (we were 3 & 5 at the time) decided to have a “cereal fight” in the trailer while Mom and Dad were re-hitching up the trailer. There was a whole box of rice krispies and a whole box of cheerios from end to end in the trailer.
Needless to say, Dad was livid, Mom was laughing, and we did not make it to the campground till way after dark. As punishment my sister and I had to sleep that night in our mess of cereal, in the gross heat of Osoyoos. And now, this year I will be taking my 2 year old back to that same campground…I can only hope our truck makes it there just fine.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:52 amBears like toothpaste. Grade 6 camping trip – our tent was shredded and we were left with a mess of no tent and belongings for the remainder of our trip.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:53 amMy worst camping experience was when my 4 yr old developed a out house phobia. On the third night she woke me up around 2 am and handed me something!! It was warm & soft & b/c I couldn’t see it ( in a pitch black tent ) & b/c i was only half awake I smelt it!! & yes, my daughter had handed me a big handful of poop!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:53 amShe had woke up enough to catch it & pass it to mommy, she never remember this but it is one camping memory mommy will NEVER forget
One summer night, we arrived late at the campsite. Also it was raining hard so we hurriedly put up up the tent in the dark and in the rain. Sure enough in the early morning, because of wind and rain the tent came down. So we rushed to the station wagon, all five of us plus Grandma, and tried cramped sleeping, in varous uncomfortable positions ‘We were out of that campsite by 6am and into our cozy beds. We surely had a quiet drive home.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:53 amUnbelievable..the stuff. I had always considered ‘camping’ to be sort of ‘roughing it’ in nature. With all this stuff , ‘roughing it’ would be trying to get it all there, unless of course your are RVing rather than camping. Do they come with one of those equipment trailers.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:54 amMy worst camping — leaving home (Sask) in the sun, getting to our first camping spot – it was dark, on a slope and pouring rain. By the time we got the tent set up we were soppin’. Woke up in the middle of the night to move one of our bags out of the lake that had formed due to the rivers running through it (the tent). By morning everything in the tent was drenched from the flood waters. But being that was normal Calgary weather (I now know), the sun was out in the morning enough to dry things out quickly enough to move on to our nex destination. This was worse than the time in Yellowstone – laying awake in the tent, listening to the grizzly mozying around our tent in search for food in the early morn. Getting up in the morning, finding bear paw prints all over the car, where he had been sniffing the aroma of an apple left in the car and the window down about an inch. Unlike the commercial, he did not damage the car.
When I was six years old I went camping with my parents and my baby brother.. My brother cried all night long in the tent. I was ready to kill myself. Not good for a six year old. As it turns out he had an ear infection. It was horrible!! I am 21 now and going camping this weekend. So glad I got over it!!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:54 amMy worst experience while camping happened when my three children were all under the ages of 8. We had rented a tent trailer to go camping at Wasa Lake in BC. After setting up we did have two reasonable days but on the third night the weather turned quite considerably colder. Children all in small tent trailer early and they seemed to be feeling a little under weather too. Winds and rain started about 10 and continued all night. Around about 4 the winds became worse and my awning collapsed covering the door. I got dressed in the dark then proceeded to try and get out the door. It must have taken me at least 45 minutes or more to finally get the awning unhooked so I could get out. By then I had three kids crying as they weren’t feeling good. In the meantime the rain continued and the wind got worse. It ended up with me joining the kids in tears as it became apparent they really weren’t feeling good. Nausea, etc and in a small trailer with bathroom facilities a ways away, not good. By noon all three were broken out with the chicken pox. I was able to get thru the next night and by then the rain had stopped and I could pack up to go home. Needless to say my husband got quite an earful when I arrived home.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:56 amSo last year my husband agreed to go camping with my 2 year old son and I. My husband, Joed, had never been camping before; as I child I frequently camped with my family. Being our first camping trip as a family, we decided to borrow the gear. I should add that as well as our immediate family, my husbands brother (who also had never camped accompanied us). We drove to Jarvis Bay Provincial Park to set up Camp. About half way there I remembered; I forgot to pack pillows…. ouch. As I mentioned earlier we borrowed the gear from my sister, whose family now camps in a RV, so the tent hadn’t been used in some time….
May 14th, 2009 at 10:56 amAs we set up the tent we found one of the poles (it was a large 10 person dome tent) was broken the pole had spilt through the connector, but without this pole we would be tentless. So Joed went off to buy duct tape. After duct taping the connector keeping the pole in place, our challenge was to sucure the tent so the wind wouldn’t knock it down. So after some creative mounds of earth, wood and rocks… the tent was stable. On to fire starting….. after convincing the brothers we should teepee the wood instead of just piling it in the pit, they attempted to light it using lots of twigs, lol, after fighting to start this fire for awhile…. off to the general store for some fire starter, and after a few packets… wallah camp was set… It was too funny to watch, and although the only one with any camping experience, I could not compete with all that testosterone. So after three nights our tent held up, the fire starting got much quicker, but our necks suffered. My husband did enjoy our trip and we’ve already purchased our own tent, and this year the first thing I’ll pack… Pillows!!!
Hope you enjoy a laugh,
Take Care,
Ashley Chahal
My worst camping experience was about 1 week long. It was in the Barrie Ontario area. It started off with my aunt and uncle’s car breaking down on the way there. So we waited a few hours until my other uncle came to tow their trailer the rest of the way.
The next day my dad and uncle went into town with my brother and cousin to get my uncle’s car to a shop. On the way there my dad’s car broke down! So we were not going to be going on our day trip that day, or the next 3 days. Then after the made it back with the car we decided to go out in the canoes.
The weather was great when we left and then it took a turn for the worst and thunder storms started. We had to make it back to the beach as fast as we could! With the rain came the leaking trailer and wet beds! We wanted to go home but had to wait for my uncle’s car to get fixed!
There were a lot more things that went down during that trip, but too much to write!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:57 amMy worst camping experience was while on a capming trip on the west coast of Tasmania. My girlfriend and I found a perfect spot or so we thought with a great view of beach. We set up in the morning so had the whole day to explore, the clouds became thick and dark a slight breeze turned to a gale. Back at the tent the only thing that kept it from blowing away was us in it. We stuck it out till dusk then make the move to hitchike as we had no wheels to better shelter. We were lucky enough to get a lift from 2 nice old ladys who also were travleing in Tassie they said their campground was a bit in land and would have shellter from the what we found out was a hurricane. We found a flat spot with just a bit of wallaby poo so pitched the tent there, got bit of sleep untill the final gust snapped a tent pole and we abandon ship to the wet concete slab of the cooking area.
It was the worst camping trip as far as sleeping went but the 15 meter waves made up for it.
good times,
May 14th, 2009 at 10:58 amCharlie
My worst camping experiense was a grade 9 school camp out. We where at a camp ground at the base of Castle Mountain, to hike up to the old fire look out location the next day. We set up our tents on wooden platforms. That night the sky opened up to huge down pour. In no time we were flooded out of our tent. Sleeping bags soaked, we retreated to a shelter close by. Hanging the sleeping bags up to dry and stop the wind, no sleep that night. Thankfully there was a stove to add some comfort. A soggy and cold hike in the morning. This was the worst camping trip ever…….
May 14th, 2009 at 10:58 amOn our honeymoon, we didn’t have a lot of money se we borrowed my parents little boler and went to the back country. As we were backing the boler in the site a branch went through the window above the bed but we just put a bag over it after all we were young and in love. Then that night my husband “jumped” into bed the entire flipped up on to the rear bumper. I thought we were being attack by a bear but in reality he had forgotton to put the jacks under it. It continued to rain for 3 days as we were stuck in the boler with our 2 large dogs. On our way home we blew a tire out of the boler. Although this was our worse camping trip it was our most memorible.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:59 amHi Mike,
My worst camping story, thats easy. About 9 years ago my boyfriend at the time, my 2 children and my self went out camping in Pipestone park near Grande Prairie. I decided I would chop some wood for the fire. Now here lies the problem. I have carple tunnel and my hands go numb when I hold a heavy object in my hands for to long. Well not thinking I am chopping away and everything goes great for the first 10 minutes. so after what felt like the 100th time i lifted the ax i had my hand on the log and brought the ax up and then nothing. I did not feel the ax and the next thing i know I look at my finger and it was white then it started bleeding. after that I do not remember anything for the rest of the weekend due to the fact i was in shock and my now ex, being the silly guy he is, did not want to leave and take me to the hospital, my children thought i was going to die. Not the most pleasant camping trip to say the least. Thankfully it healed nicely and no scarring!!!
Hope you have a great day!!!!
May 14th, 2009 at 10:59 amOne of my worst camping trips was being invited along to this big group campout (like the “in” crowd if you know what i’m saying) Drive 5 hours to get there… believing I’m headed to a beautiful camp spot…. only to find out it’s just this like barren spot… nothing beautiful or pristine about it… and worse than this, i’m the only one in a tent while everyone else has brought there home…. motor home….
the jist of my story is camping is no problem… I’m good at it….. but with no lake or stream… or a motorhome to boot…. you can get feeling pretty grungy….(and down) having a shower would make the worst camping experience… much more tolerable… probably enjoyable……
the clue today was: paddle
Have a good weekend with your oven eh !!
Cat
May 14th, 2009 at 11:00 amMy worst camping experince was when we 1st. started camping with our 5 children. We had gone out & purchased new camping gear We went up into the Spray Lake area. Set up the tent & equipmet. My husband took the 3older kids fishing along the shore .I stayed back with the younger ones,seting up the sleeping bags ect..When evening came got the kids ready for bed, sitting around the fire. getting dark out time for bed. Asking the kids if they had to go to the bathroom. They asked if there wrer any bears around, my husband told them they were all around us in the trees.(big mistake) Naturally no one had to go to the bathroom then !
May 14th, 2009 at 11:00 amGuess what. They all wet there sleeping bags that night . Being in the mountains it was too cold for the bags to dry. So we had to pack up in the afternoon & went home. So much for c.amping
My worst camping expereince was a grade 9 school camp out. We where at a camp ground at the base of Castle Mountain, to hike up to the old fire look out location the next day. We set up our tents on wooden platforms. That night the sky opened up to huge down pour. In no time we were flooded out of our tent. Sleeping bags soaked, we retreated to a shelter close by. Hanging the sleeping bags up to dry and stop the wind, no sleep that night. Thankfully there was a stove to add some comfort. A soggy and cold hike in the morning. This was the worst camping trip ever…….
May 14th, 2009 at 11:00 amMy worst camping story has to be way back in the 80s… went into Kananaskis with some friends one weekend in June. Started out as a beautiful day! We set up our tents, and got ready for a great time. Had a nice fire that night, and sat around and talked and laughed into the night. Hit the sleeping bags at a fairly reasonable hour.
Then the poo hit the propeller… in the early morning hours, we got snow. That really heavy, wet stuff, weighing down the sides of the tents – in fact one of them collapsed completely! Tried my best to stay warm and dry, but the tent was getting closer and closer. When we finally got up the next morning, we were all covered with about 3 inches of wet snow, soaking our tents – ergo the sleeping bags! I went to get some dry clothes out of my backpack and discovered that I had nothing dry left! The snow had permeated my pack. Everything was wet!!
It was then that I began to develop hypothermia. I didn’t realize what was happening to me, but a friend noticed that I was looking not at all like myself. I was shivering and not very alert. Then the shivering stopped, and my friend noticed that I wasn’t really making any sense. Well, my friends managed to scrape together enough dry clothing from everyone to get me warm and dry, and then gave me lots of hot tea. I recovered fairly quickly, as we headed back to Calgary putting paid to the rest of the weekend.
Yup, that was one crappy camping trip!!
Didn’t put me off at all, though. I still LOVE camping! I just make sure to go a little more prepared now!
May 14th, 2009 at 11:01 amOur worst camping trip had to have been in the Peace River Country. After travelling all day with 2 kids and towing a tent trailer it was getting dark and of course it was raining. With all campgrounds full the idea of setting up in any open field seemed like a good idea. With the tent trailer set up, food in all stomachs and kids in warm dry beds every one drifted off to sleep.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:04 amAt 5 am we woke to the sound of many birds and cursing nature at this point, opened the camper door and discovered we had set up in the city dump.
When setting up camp in the dark my husband was cursing all people who litter! Needless to say we did not stick around to make breakfast or take in the sights.
My worse camping experience was when we went camping during hunting season in the fall. We pulled our old tent trailer miles back in the bush, up and down hilly cutlines. That night we froze, I filled my longjohns with hot shots to keep warm (little hot packets you break and they heat up). We could hear wolves howling very close to us so I was scared to go to the bathroom by myself in the dark. It snowed that night so in the morning we could see wolve tracks close to our tent trailer. Then because of the snow and slippery conditions we couldn’t get out without winching our way up the hills. We were covered in mud, wet, cold, tired and even though it was the worst it is the one I will always remember as the most exciting, although I would never do it again.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:06 amThe worst camping trip I ever had was when we went camping on the May long weekend way up the Forestry Trunk road past Waiperous – I think it was called Hunter Valley. Well, it rained and it rained and it rained the first night and our trailer and truck was stuck deep in mud when we attempted to move camp to a better place the next morning. We had to get major chain help to get us out. The next night we had our propane tanks stolen in the middle of the night and then we woke up to about 3 feet of snow. We had heard the rain stop in the middle of the night and we were thankful until we saw the snow. I was 7 months pregnant at the time and had a toddler. So, we made snowman together!
May 14th, 2009 at 11:06 amThe worst camping trip I ever had was when we went camping on the May long weekend way up the Forestry Trunk road past Waiperous – I think it was called Hunter Valley. Well, it rained and it rained and it rained the first night and our trailer and truck was stuck deep in mud when we attempted to move camp to a better place the next morning. We had to get major chain help to get us out. The next night we had our propane tanks stolen in the middle of the night and then we woke up to about 3 feet of snow. We had heard the rain stop in the middle of the night and we were thankful until we saw the snow. I was 7 months pregnant at the time and had a toddler. So, we made snowman together!
May 14th, 2009 at 11:08 amWe were camping at Pine Lake and after a great day at the beach, beautiful camp fire supper, a few wobbly pops with friends, it was time for bed. Climbing into my bed, getting comfortable,and as I was dozing off to la la land I was woke to this horrible noise. The worst noise possible! Both of my neigbors Snoring. I had the noise in Stereo! And not the little snorts, O no, it was the suck in the side of the tent snore. It was imposable to get any sleep. It was the worst 3 days ever…
May 14th, 2009 at 11:09 amOppps!! I sent my comment to your blog.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:14 ami dont know how this works but i know that my dad deserves this giveaway he started bevers were we lived long time ago he was the leder from bevers to venchers the best time of my life im 36 and what he tout me throu my lif e and thous ten years i can never pay him back
May 14th, 2009 at 11:15 amAside from forgetting food, condiments but never the alcohol our worst was when the furnace went out in our trailer. We woke up quite chilled, just like in a tent I bet. Our camping, mechanic buddy came round and tried to solve the problem. When in doubt he pounded on the furnace and camper side and behold, it worked, we had heat. It was a short term solution.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:17 amMy worst camping experience was when I went to Johnston Canyon for the weekend 2 yrs back. The first day was the bad day. It started off when my friends and I were putting up the tent. We tied the lines to these trees and my friend was bit by something in his forearm as he wrapped his arms around the tree trunk. He was ok as we put applied some first aid to the bite but we had to make a trip into Banff just to be sure. The girls we went with had no clue about how to set things up so when we came back it was like almost nightfall. We should have picked something up to eat while we were in town because we had a tough time starting a fire. It was better as soon as we had some grub in us. Now it was time to go to sleep as everyone was tired for the day.
It’s been a while since I went camping and I forgot all about the noises at night. To make things worst it was raining a little so all I could hear was the rain hitting our tent and then there was the wind howling. It wasn’t that bad though, the rain had stopped about an hr later but I couldn’t sleep. Just as I was about to, the ground under our tent was moving. I think it was a mouse or something but yeah, it was weird cause it kept moving all night. All I could do was stare at the side of the tent that had some weird shadows casted by the moon. To make things creepy there was this spider just hanging there and due to its shadow it was like the size of an apple or something but yeah that was kind of freeky. As moring came I passed out but then everyone in the surrounding campground started to wake up. I was so tired and my friends decided that they wanted to go hiking today. I didn’t want this day to go to a waste so I got up. Looking for the washroom, we didn’t realize our campsite was at the other end. This was not a good start to the day.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:19 amMany years ago – camping with my parents and 5 of kidlets – we were on our way from Saskatchewan to the big TO!!!!!!!!!!!! We fought all the way there and back – don’t know how my parents stood it…
May 14th, 2009 at 11:20 amBut we camped each night and one in particular stands out. We had driven a long day and it was dark. Could not find a campground so my Dad pulled on to a side road and drove in. We were all exhausted and CRANKY… the ground was real lumpy and Mom was ticked and when we woke up in the morning and crawled out of the tent we found ourselves on the edge of a landfill – needless to say we did not stop to make brekkies….
Oh, one bad experience would have to be, sleeping in our Trailer, hearing noises outside. We look outside and see a skunk going through our Garbage! It stayed there all night and made a HUGE mess!
May 14th, 2009 at 11:20 amThis one time when i was about 13 i was camping with a friend and his family. It was night time and we were roasting marshmellows on the fire. My friends marshmellow caught fire and instead of blowing it out he decided to wave it in the air to get it out. Insteat of going out it came off the rod and i had a fire ball coming straight for me. It ended up hitting and sticking to the side of my face. Needless to say I pay attention to people roasting marshmellow on fires now.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:21 amOh the joys of camping, sure there are some. Why is it the worse of everything tends to happen though, yet we go back for more? My biggest camping nightmares revolve around cooking.The inadaquate cook surface, the burners that wont stay lit, the camp stove always seems unbalanced, the food that gets half cooked. Ugh, I vote for smores when that happens.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:23 amMy worst camping trip was when my husband could not come up on the day we were supposed to leave so I decided to go ahead myself with 4 kids aged 12, 9, 3,and 2. We left Airdrie and headed up to Sylvan lake. There was an accident on the deerfoot and a 90 minute trip took us 5 hours. We finally got to the campsite at 9:00pm just a the sun was setting. I had to get up our super high tent using flashlights for light and my 10 year old inside the tent holding up while I got the poles into place. Needliess to say after that stress nothing else was set up that night. We went straight to bed. I agree that the Coleman Coffe Maker is a necessary luxury. I have one and really enjoyed my cup of Timmy’s the next morning after such a disaster the night before,
May 14th, 2009 at 11:25 amMy worst camping trip was 20 years ago. I went camping with my dear friends from Calgary and I met my friends sister in law for the first time. we were basically roughing it; cooking over the open fire, cleaning ourselves in the river. This was somewhere in the Sundre Area. I love camping always have. This particular trip I had just found out I was pregnant and I was going through terrible morning (basically all day) sickness. My dear friends and the sister in law tried everything they could to help me eat. The Sister in Law made me a tofu type dish….yuck….I did not go camping for a long long time after that. Now my boy is 19 years old…at was all worth in.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:25 amWe thought we would rough it with camping in a borrowed tent in the woods (not a campground). The tent leaked in the rain and we couldn’t even start the fire (we had no portable stove). We ate cold canned food. We forgot the can opener so we wrecked a set of keys prying the cans open. The only saving grace was that we didn’t use the car key so we could pack up, soaking wet, at about 3 am and drive back home.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:38 amOur worst time camping was actually around this time of year (Victoria Day long weekend) probably 15 years ago. The setup to this was that my best friend and I had both recently wed (we were each other’s best man) and after the hecticness of two weddings within 8 months and the settling in to new marriages we thought it’d be nice for our wives and us to spend some time together as couples in the woods. Victoria Day weekend rolls around and we pack up the gear to head into Kananaskis for the weekend. I had packed out my trusty tent I’d used when I was single so it was small and cozy with two people. My best friend on the other hand had borrowed a tent that would have made a Mongol chief proud from his parents — large enough that we were able to sit around playing cards in the tent and hear an echo.
Bedtime rolls around and we retire to our respective tents. In the middle of the night I wake up to the stomping of feet through the campsite and flashlights bouncing in the dark. My wife and I wonder who would be so rude to crash through someone else’s campsite at 2 in the morning but decide not to confront them. As we fall back to sleep, we note that it’s gotten colder but think nothing of it.
In the morning, we wake up and it’s now quite cold. We peer outside and realize that two feet of snow have fallen over night. Our tent, being nice and small, withstood the weight of the snow but our friends’ tent being much larger with a larger roof has collapsed under the weight of the snow. As it turns out, the stomping in the middle of the night was them grabbing their stuff and retreating to sleep in the car. Unfortunately after the collapse, even more snow fell and the remains of the tent is now buried under the snow. With nothing more than our cooking pots and plates, we dig out the tent, pack the rest of the stuff in knee deep snow and retreat back to town for a long, hot bath.
May 14th, 2009 at 11:57 amfirst – worst – and last for a very long time. At 13 went on my first camping trip with a youth group and spent three very miserable nights shivering in the fetal postion all night long wondering why no one else was awake and cold. Years later my husband convinced me to go camping promising I wouldn’t be cold. I was amazed laying in a real sleeping bag how warm and cozy I was. The sleeping bag of my youth was really a worn out comforter with a zipper – not ideal for camping in northern Alberta!!
May 14th, 2009 at 12:07 pmThe worst camping trip that I ever had was one for the record books! I was pregnant with our second son and my husband Shawn and I packed up our 2 year old and headed for Vancouver Island with our tent trailer (with no bathroom). We were having a great time until our 4th night. Shawn had cooked some chicken on the BBQ for supper. All was well, and we headed to bed. By son started to throw up about 10:00. By 11:00 we were on our way to the Duncan hospital. We had to search the campground for security, since the gates were locked at 10 PM. On the way to the hospital, the food poisioning hit Shawn and we had to pull over several times. Suffice it to say, by the time we got there, we all had full fledged food poisioning complete with vomitting and diarrhea (lovely). They shot us full of gravol and fixed us up as much as possible. The thought of going back to the tent trailer with no bathroom was beyond us, so we asked the hospital staff about hotels in the area. They were wonderful and called around to find us a room. Litlle did we know that there was a huge baseball tournament going on and there was not a room to be had for MILES (and I mean miles!). We ended up having to go back to the campground at 3 Am, the gates were still locked, it was pitch black and we couldn’t find security. We ended up having to park the truck at the gates and walk 15 minutes to our trailer, in the dark, while throwing up, and carrying a very sick 2 year old. The hospital staff were even so kind as to give us some blankets, since my son had thrown up over on ALL of our sleeping bags and blankets. Suffice it to say we managed to pack up and started home the next day. Of course, we were on an island and to get off the island, you need a boat. So there we were, sick as dogs on the ferry. It was a very long trip home, and the wost trip in recent memory!
May 14th, 2009 at 12:18 pmThe worst camping experience I ever had was when I was 13 years old, and it was in the middle of July. I was backpacking over Gwen Pass, which is basically scrambling over a shale, all the way up a mountain, only to have to go down the other side with just as much difficulty. As my uncles and I began to get close to the top, we were suddenly stuck in the middle of cloud. At that high altitude it crept up on us and we were literally in the middle of a snowing cloud. It then proceeded to thunder and lightning, and I could see the lightning only meters away from us! As we hurried over the pass, I slipped and tumbled dwon a large snow bank. So now I’m exhausted, scared out of my wits, soaked to the bone and we have another 10-15 km to hike. Next thing you know I have hypothermia. Somehow we made it out of there, but that was one of the most miserable things that has ever happened to me.
May 14th, 2009 at 12:23 pmI would have to say the worst camping trip I experienced was just last year. Our plan was to camp at Kananaskis for a week for my birthday in mid July. To start it off, I held off buying hotdog buns at our local grocery store and bought them at the little convenience store in Bolder Creek. I figured this would ensure they would be fresh. Well all the buns at the small store expired that weekend. This was a minor incident so I just shrugged it off and bought the soon to expire buns.
Arriving at our campsite we envisioned fishing, hiking, and relaxing by the campfire everyday. Our fishing expedition turned out poor, as all we caught were weeds. Not a single bite. A day or two later there were signs up everywhere in the campground waning the campers of bear sightings in the area. Luckily no bears approached our campsite, however we did see a bear when we were fishing, which gave me a bit of a scare. He was across the lake running along the water’s edge.
The weather was a bit chilly, and didn’t improve any during our stay, in fact it got worse. The average temperature was 5 degrees! You would have thought since it was summertime that it would have been warmer. We are tenters and travel by vehicle so we can only bring the essentials. Our essentials weren’t enough to keep us warm. Huddled around the campfire one morning we both admitted that we would like to just pack up and go home. We love camping and can usually rough it out, but not this time.
We gave our notice at the camp registry, but unfortunately our notice didn’t come soon enough. No mater how much arguing, the campground staff would not refund our money for the two remaining nights. If we had told them 5 hours earlier we would have at least received a day’s refund. It just so happened we had also purchased $20 worth of wood the night before. Obviously the wood wasn’t returnable, but we were able to sell it to a near by camper…at half the cost.
We packed up our belongings and went home. When we arrived in our nice warm house my boyfriend took a quick shopping trip to the grocery store. He bought some trout and pretended that he had caught it on our fishing trip. I had my bbq fish dinner for my birthday after all. Later that night we heard on the news that it snowed in the mountains. Our vacation was cut short, but at least we were now toasty and warm.
May 14th, 2009 at 12:28 pmMy worst camping experience goes like this…
May 14th, 2009 at 1:37 pmA group of us were sitting around a campfire on a Friday night after a long week. The campground manager had been around a number of times during the week to tell me that there was a bear in the area and to keep an eye on my kids and my dogs. My husband was back in Calgary working for the week, and I was on my own with the kids. I am also terrified beyond most people’s fears of bears. I was a basket case all week. Finally, on Friday, my husband arrived and we were sitting outside by the campfire when I heard breaking branchs in the woods directly to my left. I instantly screamed “BEAR”! and when I looked, I saw this hairy beast crashing through the trees! I was petrified! I literally dove from my seat into my trailer scraping my shins along the metal steps and tearing my jeans. I paniced! I then turned and locked my trailer door behind me leaving all my friends and my husband out there to be eaten by this hungry, mad, grizzly. When I heard everyone laughing, I looked outside the window to see a friend of ours dressed in a hairy monkey costume. They were all laughing their heads off! Not me! I was locked inside my trailer trembling beyond beliefe! I have since learned that bears do not often mozey up to crowded campfires! But I would still run like hell if I heard that sound behind me. I might let my husband in the trailer next time though!
The first time my husband and at the time boyfriend went camping we went in my little sundance car and showed up at night in this back road campsite (that we had never been to and got lost finding) in the rain and not much camping gear and proceeded to try and put up a tent in the rain. Plus the water jug had opened up and spilled all the water all over the newspaper that we brought to start the fire and then we only had a lantern that took fuel and no funnel to put the fuel in. So we were trying to make a funnel with paper – it wasn’t pretty and now we look back at that experience and laugh. Thank goodness we are still together.
May 14th, 2009 at 1:59 pmMy worst camping trip had to be when my wife and I first got married and thought that having a week long camping trip would be fun for our first year’s vacation. After getting lost in Northern Ontario, we finally managed to set up camp only to have our Coleman Stove catch on fire and blow up (remember the days of carosene?) . The first day didn’t get much better. We were awaken at 2:00am, in the rain, by a family of squirrels who somehow managed to get into our food bins, which meant hauling everything back into the hatchback. About an hour later we were awaken by the growling nose, of which we thought was an extremely large man eating animal, and the front of our tent was on top of us. After quite a bit of coaxing from my wife to go out and deal with the beast, I stuck my head out of the tent to discover the squirrels had come back and knocked over our tent poles and the very loud growling was a man snoring in the trailer in the next camp stall. Both my wife and I laugh at this story now, and miraculously we still find ourselves out camping every year in a tent.
May 14th, 2009 at 4:45 pm