Holly, I’ve only recently discovered your substack so I haven’t had the chance to read a lot of your writing to have much to compare this post to, with that out of the way, I love this post so much! Tents & backpacks are something my husband and I also appreciate having a plethora of! I have many fond feelings for our tents that alway feel like “home” to me in our travels & adventures, whether it’s just for a weekend, cross country road trips or week’s long backpacking. Loved this essay!
Renee, I'm so happy you are here! I remember reading along many of your family hiking and backpacking adventures across the years, so I know you love a good tent :-) Thank you for your kind words—I'm grateful to have you reading along.
What a lovely theme to riff on! I still have (and keep close ~ it’s under my bed in the van, not in the separate trailer which sometimes is hundreds of miles from me) my backpacking Kelty my mama bought me when I graduated high school. I have used it backpacking, road tripping, camping at festivals, overseas… Still the best! (Cool design too, with a fabulous vestibule)
For awhile I had a tent similar to your Blackout – I loved it for festivals because it was so big and breezy. But I loaned it to a friend to take to Burning Man, and he was too embarrassed by its condition afterwards to even let me see it again. (Gratefully, he did pay me for it 😅)
I did have a small Coleman dome for some time too, which was surprisingly delightful. Heavy, but easier to set up than the big one, and more spacious than the backpacking one. Perfect for car camping. I would still have it, but I gave it to my best ex who had Never Owned A Tent! I had to send him off with one… (Hopefully he uses it someday! But we did already have some good times in it ;-)
I’ve gotten a little soft with my cushy #Vanlife, haven’t actually used a tent in awhile… 🥺 But there is something so satisfying about sleeping so close to the earth. (It’s literally grounding.) Thanks for the reminder, the reminisce…
As for the whole topic of homelessness versus nomadic life – that’s a whole can of worms I won’t even open, but I know it so well. I guess if I say one thing, it’s interesting to me how in different places that I live my nomadic ways, I am perceived as either cool, normal, or homeless. It takes a lot of courage and diligence to not take on the projections of the latter one when in those places!
In my own way, I am creatively both on the search for and continually crafting home. I’m appreciating your conversations on this, as it’s always such a relief to remember there are others living out of the box… (and instead in vans, tents, etc 😅)
I love hearing your own tent stories, Ariana :-) Glad you were able to share some tent love with a few others in your life, too. Happy to be living out of the box and digging into that whole experience alongside you and others!
What a great post, I love that you can chart your marriage through your tents. They are, after all, a kind of home. I have the same fond recollections of ours too.
You captured your tenting history in a most detailed and entertaining manner. As one who grew up taking family vacations in tents and associated campgrounds, I so appreciated your reflections on how one defines a home and what it means to be homeless, or at least, the concept of not having a permanent, structured abode. The fluidity of the term is most fascinating ..and you nailed it perfectly.
Beautifully written and so obviously expressed from your heart and soul. It makes your family so grateful to know that you are so happy living a meaningful life in all the dwellings you have chosen--wherever you are on a given day.
Holly, I’ve only recently discovered your substack so I haven’t had the chance to read a lot of your writing to have much to compare this post to, with that out of the way, I love this post so much! Tents & backpacks are something my husband and I also appreciate having a plethora of! I have many fond feelings for our tents that alway feel like “home” to me in our travels & adventures, whether it’s just for a weekend, cross country road trips or week’s long backpacking. Loved this essay!
Renee, I'm so happy you are here! I remember reading along many of your family hiking and backpacking adventures across the years, so I know you love a good tent :-) Thank you for your kind words—I'm grateful to have you reading along.
What a lovely theme to riff on! I still have (and keep close ~ it’s under my bed in the van, not in the separate trailer which sometimes is hundreds of miles from me) my backpacking Kelty my mama bought me when I graduated high school. I have used it backpacking, road tripping, camping at festivals, overseas… Still the best! (Cool design too, with a fabulous vestibule)
For awhile I had a tent similar to your Blackout – I loved it for festivals because it was so big and breezy. But I loaned it to a friend to take to Burning Man, and he was too embarrassed by its condition afterwards to even let me see it again. (Gratefully, he did pay me for it 😅)
I did have a small Coleman dome for some time too, which was surprisingly delightful. Heavy, but easier to set up than the big one, and more spacious than the backpacking one. Perfect for car camping. I would still have it, but I gave it to my best ex who had Never Owned A Tent! I had to send him off with one… (Hopefully he uses it someday! But we did already have some good times in it ;-)
I’ve gotten a little soft with my cushy #Vanlife, haven’t actually used a tent in awhile… 🥺 But there is something so satisfying about sleeping so close to the earth. (It’s literally grounding.) Thanks for the reminder, the reminisce…
As for the whole topic of homelessness versus nomadic life – that’s a whole can of worms I won’t even open, but I know it so well. I guess if I say one thing, it’s interesting to me how in different places that I live my nomadic ways, I am perceived as either cool, normal, or homeless. It takes a lot of courage and diligence to not take on the projections of the latter one when in those places!
In my own way, I am creatively both on the search for and continually crafting home. I’m appreciating your conversations on this, as it’s always such a relief to remember there are others living out of the box… (and instead in vans, tents, etc 😅)
I love hearing your own tent stories, Ariana :-) Glad you were able to share some tent love with a few others in your life, too. Happy to be living out of the box and digging into that whole experience alongside you and others!
What a great post, I love that you can chart your marriage through your tents. They are, after all, a kind of home. I have the same fond recollections of ours too.
Thank you Fiona! Yes, it's a fun way to look back and remember. Glad to hear you've had fond moments in tents along the way, too.
You captured your tenting history in a most detailed and entertaining manner. As one who grew up taking family vacations in tents and associated campgrounds, I so appreciated your reflections on how one defines a home and what it means to be homeless, or at least, the concept of not having a permanent, structured abode. The fluidity of the term is most fascinating ..and you nailed it perfectly.
Beautifully written and so obviously expressed from your heart and soul. It makes your family so grateful to know that you are so happy living a meaningful life in all the dwellings you have chosen--wherever you are on a given day.