Camping? That's right....Camping.

I live in Portland...hands down my favorite city in this country. If you were to stereotype a Northwesterner...some of the things that come to mind would be green, bike riding, coffee slurping, beer snob, foodie, wearer of skinny jeans, thick framed glasses, tattooed, indie-folk rock lover and of course your blood flows with all things outdoors especially camping. I am...most of those things...(well...okay a few) but if you ask anyone who knows me...camping has NEVER been one of them.

I am a Russell. Which roughly translates to non-camper. Many things contributed to that fact starting with my parents of course...(doesn't it always start there?). My parents do not camp. In fact I laugh at the thought. I can't even imagine them at a Motel 6... much less a tent...with a sleeping bag. (AHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAAAA..*deep breath* AHAHAHAHAHAHA) In fact the only outdoorsy thing I can ever recall doing with my parents was a really sad attempt at fishing. Oh boy...that was really really sad.

Another contributing factor is the really horrendous group of memories related to church summer camp while living in the south. Just for your information...camping in the south...in middle of the summer... is equal to one of the levels of Dante's Inferno. I came home one summer with over 80 mosquito bites, chiggers (look it up) in my legs, ticks, and having been stung by a yellow jacket on my arm four times. Bees in the south (I know not technically a bee) are even more evil than non-southern bees and sting multiple times before they lose their stingers. In addition to the lovely bugs...it was HOT and soooo humid. Your only option to cool off was to swim in the lake full of poisonous water moccasins and leeches. Awesome. Those are the memories that would turn anyone into someone who hates everything about nature.

I guess the last factor would be me... and the fact that I have a slightly higher level of maintenance required than your average typical person who enjoys camping requires. What can I say...I enjoy showering, feeling clean and sleeping on my high thread count sheets. Just the other day someone pointed out to me that they have never seen me wear shoes with laces. I went home that night and looked in my closet and yep...she was right...I only own one pair of lace shoes...a pair of shoes I wouldn't ever wear anywhere but than a gym (we all know how often they get worn...just by that statement). Me in tennis shoes is just wrong...wrong wrong wrong.

So okay...camping isn't in my blood. BUT I do live in the Northwest. Some of the best camping in the country is in the Northwest. Of course, having lived here for a while it only makes sense that I would become acquainted with (and in this case) end up loving and adoring some serious campers. It was only a matter of time...

Last August I finally sucked it up (and really my pride finally got to me) and I was determined to try camping. It was my first serious camping trip as an adult. I was determined to show my friends that not only can I camp...but I can do it well and with style. I went out and found an adorable camping chair. It had polka dots on it and fit my personality perfectly. I went through my parents garage and found the tent that was rarely used. I purchased a purple COLEMAN..(that's a camping name I recognized) $10.00 (super awesome deal) sleeping bag. I bought a headlamp and borrowed my parents cooler which I filled with hotdogs and ice. I was excited to camp and even brought my mary jane merrells in case we went hiking. They got me around the cobble roads of Europe and that was some serious walking. I was ready. I grabbed my 15 pound pup, Poppy and we were going camping baby!

Camping...my first time in years and it rained pretty much the entire time and was freezing. My parent's tent...yep...had a leak...(just so you know..rainguards eventually die from old age). My adorable polka chair became a blurred dyed mess with the rain, stained my clothing and was uncomfortable. My purple Coleman sleeping bag...was as warm as it was expensive. My mary janes were promptly made fun of.(I can still see the look on my friend Paul's face as we prepared for our hike on Mt.Hood.) Needless to say...I was NOT prepared. But...even under those horrendous conditions...made worse by my horrendous camping gear...I was smitten. The crackle of the fire, finding out how dark night can really get, having my breath taken away by an amazing sky full of constellations I never see unless I am in a planetarium (on the one clear night), fresh air, and charred hot dogs. It was amazing. I loved laughing with my friends around a fire and waking up in the morning not knowing what time it was. Even the coffee tasted better outside.

Now that spring is here I can't wait for the upcoming camping trips just around the corner. This time I will be better prepared. I have been slowly adding to my camping gear. THIS time doing research, getting advice and buying from stores that I never had a reason to go into before.(yes...REI...I mean you). I will do it right this time.

I guess this makes me officially a girl of the Northwest. Portland is my home and now I consider myself a native who loves camping. BUT...don't ever call me granola...I am not quite ready for that one. Not to mention I still can't bring myself to buy hiking boots. They are truly the ugliest things I have ever seen and I do have some standards.