49 What qualifies a person as a “camper”? Is it all the fancy gadgets? An affinity for fire-roasted marshmallows? Are campers people who spend every free moment in the great outdoors, hiking and fishing until the sun goes down? Or do you simply need to own a camper? Camping comes in all variations, whether it be the diehard primitive outdoorsman who sleeps on the ground, sets up camp in the middle of the woods and forages for their food, or the weekend warrior who owns a camper and likes to hang out at the lake. There are people who camp only when their friends schedule a large trip, and there are people who make camping their lifestyle, selling everything they own and deciding to live more simply. Misty Jensen is one of those people. “My husband and I have had a camper ever since we have met. We were avid weekend campers, and we would do various long stints of camping on and off for the last 22 years or so. And two years ago, my daughter was graduating high
school, and we wanted to take a little bit of an adventure,” Jensen says. She and her husband sold everything, bought a 33-foot fifth wheel and headed for Florida. There they have lived for the past two years, settled in their camper, moving around as they saw fit and creating a community of a lifetime. “We’ve loved every minute of it,” she says. There are, of course, challenges that come with this lifestyle. Downsizing was one of these challenges – it’s not easy to sell your belongings, though Jensen admits it was fairly cathartic. There were also the learning curves, the hard lessons that no one really teaches you about this style of life. Like the fact that you can’t just pull your camper up to a random campsite and expect to be a able to find a place without reservations. Storms, as well, can be a bit risky. Parks don’t usually contain tornado shelters. Finally, there were the social challenges that came from living in a 20foot area. Sharing a confined space with your husband 24/7 CONTINUED ON P. 50
Camping &
Glamping
Taking it Outside in an Inside World After “Glamping” for two years straight, Misty Jensen offers advice to those those looking for their own outdoor adventure. by
Sydney Shrimpton // photography
by
Jason Dailey
