Camping and Trail Riding

[Mike Gooding]

I'm going to show my ignorance but I'm have some questions. I've noticed that a lot of you on here do a lot of camping and riding. Several have stated they have living quarters in their horse trailers. By the way my trailer does not have LQs and I won't be buying one that does anytime soon. But I don't mind roughing it. So here are my questions. What do the rest of you do? Do you camp in tents? I've noticed some the the horse camps/trails have cabins, do you stay in them? What do you do for meals, cook on a campfire or what? I'm just getting into trail riding and would like to go camping but I need to get a feel for what's available at the various camp/trail riding places. (I used to camp many moons ago) I would like to hear any input you have. Feel free to give me any advice or tidbit you have. Tell me what works for you and what doesn't work.

[The Rossons]

Hey Mike, staying in a cabin would be the easiest way to enjoy an overnight trip.Call ahead for availibility. Closeby you might try Circle E or Many Cedars . Cabins have most everything you'll need except your food. If you stay in a tent, cooking can be done on an inexpensive propane stove or portable grill.

[Adrienne Walsh]

Hey Mike, I have done both, camped in a tent and rented a cabin. I base my decision on cabin availability, weather, and length of stay. I have a coleman propane stove I can cook on or can cook over coals from the fire. I usually prefer to stay in a cabin only when it is real hot. I have big plastic bins with lids that have all my camping stuff in them (paper towels, plates, etc. my cooking gear, trash bags, utensils, extension cord, hatchet or machete, heavy nylon twine, etc.) so when I get in the mood to go all I have to pack is my clothes, food, and horses. I have a blow up mattress to sleep on, too old to sleep on the ground! I take an extra thick blanket or comfortor to put on the mattress under the sheet. The air in the mattress is cold, and you will freeze in cool weather, no matter how many blankets you put on top. I generally try to keep the cooking simple, hamburgers, (I season the meat and make the patties at home) steaks, sandwiches and snacks, fruit, etc. I am usually too tired after riding to want to cook anything too involved. Somethings you can semi prepare at home before you go. You can wrap corn on the cob in heavy foil with butter and salt at home, then just throw them over some coals from your fire. You can peel and cut up potatoes and onions and seal them up in a heavy foil package the same way and cook them over coals. Some places have grills at the campsites. Or you can make your own with 4 rocks, chunks of wood, coke cans, etc and a rack from your grill at home. Oh another must have for tent camping for me is Tylenol PM and earplugs. It is hard for me to sleep away from home if I am hurting or can hear other people/animals etc. Last time I camped, an armadillo kept wandering around our tent and in the bushes! Noisy little bugger! Oh, I forgot to say that, in a pinch, you could even sleep in your horse trailer (after being cleaned out of course). Just put a blow up mattress in there with a camping lamp or flashlight.

[Mary]

Hey Mike--You might also consider using a cot inside your "cleaned out" trailer. Personal hygiene is another topic. Sometimes there are no bath houses or the line is waaaaaay too long. You can use a coleman stove to heat small pots of water until you have a 5 gal. bucket full. You can put up a shower curtain, etc. in the horse trailer and have quite a nice bath. Use a plastic cup for wetting down and rinsing. You'd be surprised how much scrubbing and shampooing and rinsing you can do. You might even have a little warm water left over!!!! Happy trails.

[Vanessa]

Hi Mike! Welcome to Camping. You will have awesome times. When I first started I carried a tent and gradually added to my "gear". Go ahead and go to the campsites, as you walk around you can pick up ideas, horse campers are definitely inivative. It'll be a lot of trial and error but in the end it will be the most fun you can have and all worth it.
Happy Trails

[julie]

Before our LQ, we had a stock trailer and put a mattress in the nose. We brought a fan when it was real hot, and just grilled everything. We never really rented cabins much.

[Bob]

my wife and I camp in a tent we cook on a small portable gas grill and sleep on a air mattress when it is to cold out we rent a cabin in the summer we use a fan in the tent we camp a lot with our horses

[Bertie]

I really vote no on the air mattress. They are full of cold air and it is impossible to stay warm at night--maybe it's cause mine was in an unfinished trailer and that cold aluminum just went right through to my bones. Might be better in a tent.

[Adrienne Walsh]

Hey Bertie, a thick blanket or comforter under your sheet will keep you warm on a blow up mattress. Of course in cool weather thermal or flannel PJs are nice also!

[Bertie]

Hi! I have seen people bring tents, sleep in their horse trailers (no LQ), sleep in their truck! Lots of places do rent cabins--and that is wonderful if you have the budget. They will be advertised on the individual campground's web site.
We put a mattress in our gooseneck, plug up a fan. If it is cold I rent a cabin. We eat better on camping trips than ever at home! We grill steaks, chicken, make salads, We pack our cooler full of food...and our friends that have refrig. in their trailer will bring some stuff we need also. We try to plan meals together to make it lots of fun and we have snacks all day, lots of deserts. Way too much food!

My first trip I did not know how to plan for the food and we did not have enough, so I had to learn the hard way. Then, I left our bread sitting out at night at the racoons got it. It's great to have good friends who feed the newbies!

[julie]

Lowes or any home improvement store has those pink sheet type (look like sheets of paneling) of foam insulation. Those work real well to put between the trailer or ground and mattress. They are a little bulky though, if you don't have a gooseneck to leave it in.

[Stephanie]

We have a dressing room in our horse trailer. I joke and say I have an 18 INCH short wall. Just big enough for a porta-potty. Ours is insulated NOW. Before it would seem okay, until water droplets started gathering on the ceiling and eventually falling on the mattress etc. I, too, have 2 plastic boxes with all my camping "stuff" in it. I also have put a micro-wave and coffee pot in when we have electric. I have a coleman stove and an old style perculator when no electricity. A couple of battery lanterns and some tiki lights and we're ready to go......For the horses, we have a three horse slant, only haul two, so that leaves that extra stall for hay, grain, buckets, grill, extra tack, folding table, lawn chairs and whatever else needs to go. Back of truck - firewood and coolers ! Lots of fun ! ;~) We only camp when the weather is warm.....................

[Bob]

we put a sleeping bag on the floor of the tent under the air mattress then a soft blanket on top of the air mattress
then a sheet then we cover up with sheet and comforter or if its real cold and there is elec. at site you could bring a elec. blanket we also put our camping stuff in totes