Camping, Glamping, Bikamping

If you're into tractor abuse there are a lot of clips up on youtube of people dangling the backhoe attachment out far enough to balance tractor on back wheels and get creative with brake steering. Or loaders with buckets extended and screwing around balanced on front wheels. A lot of those vids come from eastern block countries.

If I thought the operators paid the purchase price and the repair bills I still wouldn't spend much time watching those.
 
My neighbor Charlie, who srill rides his conventional bike at age 85 plus, is involved in an antique tractor club. They have square dances on tractors, and he is the caller. I couldn't make that up.
Promenade across the floor,
sashay right on out the door.
Out the door and into the glade,
and everybody promenade.

Step right up, you're doing fine,
I'll pull your beard, you pull mine.
Yank it again like you did before,
break it up with a tug o'war.

Now into the brook and fish for the trout,
dive right in and splash about.
Trout, trout, pretty little trout,
one more splash and come right out.

Shake like a hound dog, shake again,
wallow around in the ol' pig pen.
Wallow some more, y'all know how,
roll around like an ol' fat sow.

Allemande left with your left hand,
follow through with a right-left grand.
Now leave your partner, the dirty ol' thing,
follow through with an elbow swing.

Grab a fence post, hold it tight,
womp your partner with all your might.
Hit him in the chin, hit him in the head,
hit him again, that critter ain't dead.

Womp him low and womp him high,
stick your finger in his eye.
Pretty little rhythm, pretty little sound,
bang your heads against the ground.

Promenade all around the room,
promenade like a bride and groom.
Open up the door and step right in,
close the door and into a spin.

Whirl, whirl, twist and twirl,
jump all round like a flyin' squirrel.
Now don't you cuss and don't you swear,
just come right out and form a square.

Now right hand over and left hand under,
both join hands and run like thunder.
Over the hill and over the dale,
duck your head and lift your tail.

Don't you stray and don't you roam,
turn around and promenade home.
Corn in the crib pen, wheat in the sack,
turn your partner and promenade back.


And now you're home.
Bow to your partner.
Bow to the gent across the hall.
And that is all.
 
You people just aren't into tractors. I'm going back to the Tractor By Net forum 😉
Hey, I learned to drive on one of those Farmall tri wheel unsafe beasties. I was 12 years old. We had three of them, two were for parts and one was kept running. Thank goodness we had flat ground.

It would be way more interesting if it was a demolition derby. There is a combine demo derby held in one of the little towns on the Palouse to Cascades trail. I've been meaning to go see both.
 
We travel in a minivan equipped with a bed, kitchen and 1500 watt solar generator. But in most cases stay in motels and tried to find 30 to 40 mile loop rides around the places we stopped.View attachment 112722View attachment 112723
We make it to the west coast. Took I-70 to Saint Louis then I-44 to Oklahoma City finally I-40 through New Mexico and Arizona. From there secondary roads to Death Valley. Death Valley was my first ride since a bike accident last August. It was a 30+ mile ride in 35mph winds and gusts of 55mph. My wife ran out of battery with two miles to go. Paso Robles was the next ride and was perfect. A loop through wine country. 64F and sunny.
 

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We make it to the west coast. Took I-70 to Saint Louis then I-44 to Oklahoma City finally I-40 through New Mexico and Arizona. From there secondary roads to Death Valley. Death Valley was my first ride since a bike accident last August. It was a 30+ mile ride in 35mph winds and gusts of 55mph. My wife ran out of battery with two miles to go. Paso Robles was the next ride and was perfect. A loop through wine country. 64F and sunny.
Excellent. Glad to hear you made it through OK. Although those winds sound pretty rough.
 
Hanging out for a month on the east side of the Salton Sea with unlimited trail and gravel riding in every direction.
 

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I built a custom aluminum cabover camper. I made an extra wide door so the bike would fit inside. This required raising the kitchen counter so the bike would fit underneath. My bike wasn't electrified then but it is now. i cruise all over the PNW for 2 summers. Good times.:cool:
 
Here’s some pics all from the PNW. Pic 3 is on the beach and pic 4 is on Obstruction Point Road in Olympic National Park with Mt Olympus in the background.
 

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My wife and I glamp for sure. We carry our e bikes in the back of our RV. Our RV is a Riverstone 37 FLTH toy hauler. She is 21,000 pounds loaded.
 

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Here is how we store the bikes in the garage.
I have tied loops from rope which is on the handlebars of each bike, then using the loop I connect a ratchet tie down to each side and secure them to the d rings on the garage floor.
 

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I have a molded fiberglass cargo trailer, so when I camp I set up a bed in the trailer. My bike gets strapped inside to one wall, and I build shelves on the other side for 18 gallon rubbermaid bins to hold my gear.

I don't need a cargo trailer for work any longer, so I'm going to sell the Li'l Hauley and try to find an affordable preowned Escape (the molded fiberglass variety, made in British Columbia, not the boxy KZ Escapes).

I took this pic last summer at a roadside rest area north of Charlevoix MI on the shore of Lake Michigan. After my picnic lunch I got the bike out and went for a ride on the MUP that parallels the shoreline from Charlevoix to Petoskey (not that I went so far myself). I camped all the way from OK to MI and back on that trip.
Big Rock Point MI.jpg
Big Rock Point MI.jpg
 
Here is how we store the bikes in the garage.
I have tied loops from rope which is on the handlebars of each bike, then using the loop I connect a ratchet tie down to each side and secure them to the d rings on the garage floor.
Do your bikes have suspension forks? If yes, any issue maintaining tension on tiedowns?
 
My big thing is, I want to be out of the weather when it's not good. I want my own bathroom and my own (comfortable!) bed. I've bought a 19' Escape travel trailer, molded fiberglass.

I've van camped before. It was a real pain, having to scrounge through bins for stuff and shuffle bins out of the way every night. And then it would be too cold, or too hot, or too humid, or too many bugs. Always something, seemed like. So I can't imagine enjoying bike-camping, personally. But I'm sure some people would positively love it. Like my eldest brother, when he was younger... at college age we transported him, his buddy, and a canoe & stuff to Quetico Provincial Park in SW Ontario, and the two of them canoe-camped for a couple weeks all the way to Michigan. I'm sure I never would have made it half that far!
 
I'm torn between camping, glamping, and bikamping for my next adventure. Each offers a unique experience, but I'm struggling to decide which one suits me best. Camping brings me closer to nature, but glamping offers those creature comforts I sometimes crave. Then there's bikamping, the perfect blend of cycling and camping, promising adventure on two wheels.

I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences! Have you tried all three? Which one stole your heart? Any tips for a newbie like me?
For me anyway, it's an age thing. In my younger years, my brother and I would take my 17' boat up along the Erie and Champlain canals in New York. Back then, you could just beach the boat and camp along the shore. Later on, we did some bike camping, particularly on the C&O Canal trail in Maryland. The 150 mile trail has a dozen campsites scattered along it's length.

I never owned an RV, but I borrowed my fathers a few times. Although enjoyable to a point, I found the cost, maintenance, maneuvering, and reservation process of using the rig to be detrimental to the overall experience. I like to just pick up and go when the mood strikes, and there is too much advance prep & planning required with the RV. Good weather is a major factor for biking, and long range weather forecasting can be a problem.

Now, in my later years, I much prefer the creature comforts of a good hotel. I can usually make reservations a day or so in advance, throw my bikes in my truck and go. No worries about heat, cold, bugs, bath & laundry facilities or where my next battery charge is going to be. I select a hotel central to a variety of good riding locations, and use the room as a "base camp". I do occasionally use B&B's along a trail when travelling solely by bike. There are several long trails I ride on a regular basis where this is practical.

Which do I prefer? I liked them all during that particular time in my life. My advice is to try each one, and decide for yourself which you like best. 🙂
 
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