You never know what happens at your campsite…until no one knows you’re there.  The thing to remember is that a campground is a microcosm of society.  A campground is a mini-neighborhood.

A campground is a mini-neighborhood

A campground is a mini-neighborhood

Since our truck was in for service, Tammy and I were in the trailer with no vehicle; which I guess sends the message that no one is home.  In fact even with our shades up and windows open we had someone who decided to checkout our campsite. This was the second person that decided it’s perfectly ok to just stroll around our site.

The first time was when we were just returning from a grocery run.  We found a woman walking along the woods in our site.  As we got out of the vehicle she seemed totally oblivious to the fact that she was at our camp site. We watched as she continued to roam where ever she pleased at the campground.  Sporting a strange smile she eventually returned to the Motor home next to us.  We pondered why someone would do this…perhaps dementia?  Probably not, Tammy and I have seen this rude behavior many times before.  The woman left the next day and a new motorhome took it’s place at the campground.

A few days later when we, once again, had no vehicle in front of our trailer, one of the new neighbors visitors decided to check out our spot.  She arrived with their large poodle, thinking we weren’t home.   Again, with the windows open and shades up,  she meandered into our area.  At this point I decided enough is enough.   I said loud enough for her to hear me “what the…”!  Her head popped up and she moved back towards their campsite.  I’m not sure if she was curious about our site, or just wanted her dog to poop in someone else’s yard; but we weren’t having it.

There’s a certain etiquette that we always maintain when camping; you are respectful of your neighbors privacy and their site. You don’t walk into their site, and you don’t do anything to ruin their camping experience. That means keeping your dogs leashed or tied out and supervised, being quiet, not pulling into your site at midnight and making noise, keeping an eye on what your kids are doing, etc…..

A campground is a mini-neighborhood, and should be thought of that way. I don’t expect to see my neighbors walking their dogs in my backyard or taking a leisurely stroll by my patio. Unfortunately some people don’t make that connection.

It’s amazing what you can see when no one knows you’re home.