To camp or not to camp

[Richprins]

I think I had too many horror stories while camping in my youth...slept in the boot of my Citigolf once in Shingwedzi to escape a Dimwit's snoring. Forgot I could have lowered the back seat.

[RobertT]

I can stay 3 to 4 nights camping to 1 night bungalow, so the hour setting up is then one of the biggest savers for me. Almost a R1000 that day saved for an hours work. We will be here at Letaba for 9 nights at almost R3600 where in cheapest chalet or safari tents would have been R8000+ . My equipment has been paid off many trips ago by the savings and as each year SANparks increases their fees the savings between camping and chalets gets bigger.

Well , I am sure you did not pay nothing for your equipment .
Lets compare TODAY's prices .
A decent tent easily costs R50 000 - ( and that is already at least 50 nights in a bungalow ) .
A new caravan , not big , sleeping two people , at a price of around R250 000 or more . Add equipment ?

Finance charges at prime plus 6 % , say 15 % on R300 000 ( excluding equipment which probably cash ) , is then R45 000 per year .

As the saying goes : there go the children's college fund .......

My equipment cost roughly R40 000 over a couple of years. I bought stuff over time and some 2nd hand. Best time for 2nd hand camping equipment is Jan after guy used it once in Dec and is now short of cash.

Mine is paid cash so no interest rates and at end of period I can sell it and get something back, you are not going to be able to do that if you stayed in chalets. That gellet is gone. I was staying in BD3U at Lower Sabie and Letaba. Not sure what there prices are now, but it was frustrating paying the prices in those days and still units were dirty, curtain rails falling down, shower doors not closing properly, huge chunks plaster out walls, cupboard doors falling off etc etc.

I also enjoy camping and the people I meet in campsites and I can now come 3 times a year instead of once.

[Lisbeth]

Like I said: The advantage is economic in the long run, with the prices of accommodation these days, not so long any more
And of course, the lack of a private bathroom does count for a lot of people

[stefan9]

Not a camper never will be one. Give me a bungalow every time.

[Peter Betts]

Not a camper never will be one. Give me a bungalow every time.

There is only one way to experience ..Kruger and Nossob and that is to camp and to get the TRUE wilderness at Tsendze and Rooiputs you can ONLY camp ..Its the way of life of camping that gives you the feel of Africa even behind a Kruger camp fence which I still battle to live with ..Lisbeth a Bathroom is nice at home ..2 x 2 litre Coke bottles with holes drilled in the caps and water from the kettle on the fire makes a better shower experience standing out in the open with just a Cape Fox as a spectator than any Hilton Hotel or Lower Sabie Guest house with fluffy towels and aircon and you get to sleep in your OWN Bed ..thats priceless

[Peter Betts]

Hmmmm...... Hah ! IMHO , camping sucks
I really do not know what all the hoo-hah is about camping
It seems to be all about suffering discomfort , even after having brought the whole caboodle with you from home , including the latest high-tech kitchen sink
Firstly , it takes up oodles of time setting up camp , erecting tents , and deploying equipment all around the in order to make things " liveable" and life more " comfortable" during your stay .
Man , the stuff you see in these setups are amazing to behold
You see small families , digging themselves in next to the fence ( what for , only they know ) , erecting a site that eventually looks like a whole neighbourhood , including its own in-house TV room , surrounding area lit up like a christmas tree .

I just cannot for the life of me understand why people bring the city to bush

For me , I enjoy the comfort of a bungalow .
I do bring along a couple of paraffin lanterns , which I hang up outside while making/preparing/braaing food outside . Of course , the bungalow lights are switched off while we are busy outside .
And for mozzies ? On the farm I extract essential oils like Khaki-bush and Lavender , which I then blend with the paraffin for the lamps .
It smells good and works much much better than the so-called " Citronella oil " which you buy in stores . That stuff is about 99 % paraffin and 1 % citronella , and hellishly expensive

I do have a duel battery system in the Landy to keep my freezer going , and to keep the beer cold .
Therefore , power outages do not bother us at all . If necessary ( and only if necessary ) I can also plug in a string of LED lights into the duel-battery socket and also light up the neighbourhood -- but why bother
And , at bed-time , we can sleep easy on comfortable and soft(..ish..) beds , which is much much more kind to these old bones
Oh , and we have an inbuilt shower , plus toilet , so , no need to use a potty

A guy who lives on a farm and drives a Defender that prefers a Hut ..Thats total Sacrelidge ..Okie were you at school at Drakensberg Boys Choir then onto Bishops My Boys in their 30s now still thank me for the Camping holidays we had throughout Central & Southern Africa ..They have Africa in their veins. Sleeping in a Hut Bed ..you never know what you can pick up ...I mean WHO slept there last and what 'baggage' were they carrying ??..My Bed in the Skipper Trailer is more comfortable than my R 15 000 Base and Mattress at home and its ONLY me that has slept on my trailer Bed NOT TO MENTION all the money I save going camping in the wild (R 140 per night for wife and me at Rooiputs and my 3 weeks stay during FORTY PERCENT pensioners Discount in Nov I hae paid the booking in Full = R 3380.00 = 2 days in a hut with noisy aircon ..Go figure The pic below is my one son Andrew 31 years old now on the roof of the Defender in Central Kalahari Game reserve Bots and The camping scene below is on a 4x4 Trail somewhere deep in on the Bots side of Kgalagadi with my then young teenage boys and our friends from Pretoria

[Peter Betts]

When we " unpack " for a bungalow , it only needs one suitcase .
And I can do that , carry the suitcase in one hand , and a beer in the other hand , already chilled and ready to drink .


By the time the camper drinks his beer only 30 minutes , I am busy with my 2nd or third one already , and the braai-fire already lit
In fact , I can even do it quicker if Okiedokie unloads the suitcase .........

Oh , and BTW , no problems with monkeys and 'boons .......

Have you ever seen the damage caused by Baboons to Huts in P Kop, Shingwedzi , Talamati (Looked like Hiroshima ) , Letaba River Huts , etc etc ..You need to get to Kruger more often ..We dont get taken out camping at all ..Food is locked in a Steel boarding School Trunk with two serious Padlocks ..The 90 Litre nat Luna has 2 Padlocks and Nothing is left in the tent or van ..Meds , Biltong , Choclate ertc etc ..that all goes in the Nose cone or boot ...The unwary hut dwellers get taken out REGULARLY ..Free entertainment for the campers

[Peter Betts]

If it takes 45 minutes how can you drink after 30 minutes already?

We take a day to properly set up and another to take down but wouldnt have it any other way ..Camping is a way of life ..its good to get away properly ..We want for nothing ..Fridge , Silent fans , COMFORTABLE CLEAN beds, L shaped Kitchen , Solitude , Atmosphere ..1000000000 Star accomodation and atmosphere grading..Go camp at Rooiputs and watch the stars set in the horizon ..You wont see any stars in Circle C at Satara with all that Light pollution ..Cant put a price on the Wilderness Stars

[RobertT]

I am quite comfortable in my set up.

Inside, queen sized double height blowup bed and Jordan stretcher.

Then tables for suitcases etc and sometimes the fridge 110l is next to fan or in trailer.

Have a light also inside the tent which I hook up and switch by door.

[RobertT]

Forgot to mention Persian mats for floor, helps protect the beds as well. from thorns or sharp object on ground.