In 2024, the founder of Camping Tools, Robert, posted a story about why he created Camping Tools. He shared some lovely stories about his love for the outdoors and how that love was passed down to him from his father and how he then passed it down to his sons. Reading this story made me reflect on my own relationship with the outdoors and the connection to my family. So, that’s what I am going to share here.
The History
Now that I am in my 30s, my memories from my childhood feel a bit cloudy and I definitely don’t remember things in any sort of linear order but many of the memories that I do have involve outdoor adventures.
My dad grew up in a small town way up north in BC (a few hours north of the city of Prince George) and at a few points in his life he lived on a farm, so he definitely lived for the outdoors. While my mom was much more of a city kid, she grew up with a single mom in the lower mainland and never even learned how to ride a bike, she was always up for adventure and never shied away from a challenge.
Me, I was an athletic kid who loved to explore and wasn’t afraid to get dirty. One thing I do distinctly remember is being called a mountain goat as a kid because I wanted to climb everything and was fearless. Sure, I cut my feet up a few times on the barnacles at the beach, or got slivers from the dock (I hated wearing sandals), but that didn’t deter me for one second.
The Memories
So, what are the strongest memories I have from my outdoor adventures growing up?
Some of my fondest memories growing up are from on our family boat. I honestly don’t remember a time where my dad didn’t own a boat and we would get it ready for the water as early as we could to maximize our adventures. Thankfully, living in the Pacific Northwest, the weather is pretty mild, so we often had the boat out as early as Easter weekend. One year we took out the boat on Alouette Lake with some family friends (who also had a boat) and a few of my cousins, and somehow one of our parents was able to sneak away to hide Easter eggs on the beach for us to find. I was young enough at the time that I was completely blown away that the Easter bunny was all the way out there.
Our family also loved to camp and there is one story that always sticks out in my mind. Back when I was a small kid (probably under 5), there was a huge downpour overnight when we were out at the lake. That’s not uncommon for the Pacific Northwest, but apparently my parents were not prepared because they woke up in the middle of the night to a tent filled with water.
Of course, I was too young to remember, but I distinctly remember the re-telling and my parents exclaiming, “We woke up and our air mattress was floating!” Definitely one of the reasons you always need to be prepared for rain when camping in the Pacific Northwest. Now, my partner and I have a tent that is completely rain proof (it has a bathtub bottom)– we have woken up to our tent in a puddle that’s at least three inches deep and we were completely dry.
As you can see from the picture below we don’t even put our tent underneath the tarp, choosing to tarp the seating area to keep that dry instead.
My Families Biggest Camping Trip
When my sibling and I were a bit older, I want to say around 10 years old or so, our family took a road trip in our fifth wheel around the interior of BC. My dad bought the fifth wheel after he hurt his back at work and couldn’t camp in a tent anymore. I wish that we had something like Camping Tools back then, because I would really love to be able to remember the exact route we took and all of the wonderful places we stopped at. My dad might have it recorded somewhere, and I think there was a paper map of some sort, but who knows where any of that has ended up since my dad has now retired and moved to Costa Rica.
That trip was similar to the one that Rob took with his kids but not quite as long. We traveled a big loop around the interior of BC, only staying a few days at each location. Two things stand out in memory of that trip.
First, I experienced hot springs for the first time. We went to Nakusp hot springs and it was beautiful. I have always connected with water in such a profound way and that day I learned so much about the amazing things that the world can do. I felt so incredibly lucky to live in such a brilliant place at the time and even today I can’t imagine living anywhere other than the coast. Beauty is absolutely the main thing that endears me to the Pacific Northwest. We have almost anything you could ask for within a four or five hour drive from the city– from the mountains, to the coast, and even the desert.
Nakusp is a more resort style hot springs experience that was wonderful for my family at the time, but there are also so many amazing natural hot springs in the Pacific Northwest!
Photo by Ian Liberry on Unsplash
Two, the summer of that trip we were experiencing a terrible wildfire. It’s not uncommon for the Interior of BC to get fires, but that year was especially bad and it was moving fast. Almost the entire trip we were about two days ahead of the progression of the fire and had to pay close attention to the radio to know our next move and my dad made it clear that we needed to be able to pack up and go on a moment's notice.
One of the campsites we stayed at was completely destroyed by the fire, less than three days after we had departed.
When you go camping, please keep fire safety top of mind, it can make all the difference. Read the BC government's website for more information about wildfires and how you can help. You can also donate to the BC Wildfire Recovery Fund through United Way that supports folks who are displaced due to wildfires.
My family also has another interesting connection to fires. We actually lived in our fifth wheel on the street out front of our house for 6 months after our house burned down. I would have been just finishing up the 5th grade at that point. Unfortunately, that's the reason I don't have any old pictures from my camping adventures as a kid.
My Love for the Outdoors Today
Now, I live in the heart of downtown Vancouver and while there are so many perks to living in the city, I always feel drawn to nature. I love escaping to the amazing mountains we have here and feel so lucky that there are so many hiking trails close to the city. But there are also so many ways to connect with nature. In the summer, there are many beautiful beaches and lakes (who doesn’t love a lazy river?) and if you go to Vancouver Island there is even surfing.
In the winter, there is snow shoeing and other winter sports. You can take a gondola up to the top of one of our many beautiful mountains (ex: Sea to Sky or Grouse) and take in the incredible views or go for a hike. I definitely still go to the beach in the winter because it’s quiet and the weather here is incredible. It’s January 2025 and I actually went to the beach last weekend because it was beautiful and sunny (I think it was around 8 degrees Celsius).
Currently, I don’t have anywhere to park a trailer (I actually don’t even own a car), but I absolutely love tent camping. To me, that feels like real camping (no judgement to those who have RVs, there are many reasons why that is preferred for people, and I can definitely see myself switching to an RV down the road).
My partner and I have our camping gear packed up in such a way that we can easily throw it together and head out in the evening after work if the weather is nice. Camping doesn’t need to be a challenge, we regularly just take his Tesla and there are a few user maintained sites that you don’t book in advance.
I am so grateful to have had parents who were so willing to go on adventures and taught me how to camp and now have a partner who is equally as excited to get outdoors and not afraid of the weather. (In the first 5 years of our relationship, we had not camped a single time where we actually got sunshine).
When is the best time to go camping in the Pacific Northwest?
One of the best things about living in the Pacific Northwest is that if you aren’t afraid of the rain, you can camp pretty much all year round (you just want to check to make sure the campground is open because not all campgrounds are year round).
Sure, the best time of year for many is probably during the summer months, we tend to get the best weather between the middle of June and the middle of September. That being said, I love camping during the off-season, or what some people may call the shoulder season. It’s generally quieter and easier to get to a campsite, but the biggest appeal for me is that the campfire ban typically hasn’t hit yet.
Winter camping is also quite feasible in the Pacific Northwest and there are some great destinations close to Vancouver that are open year round. Want to try winter camping? (I definitely recommend it) Check out my article on winter camping tips that will help you be prepared to tackle any winter camping challenges. This article also includes some amazing hot spring locations in the lower mainland, which is one of the best winter activities in my opinion.
Looking to go camping in BC and new to camping? Check out my guide for booking Provincial campsites and some of my favourite places to camp in the lower mainland.
