Truck Camper Magazine Blog

Hobbies on the Road: Readers Respond to our Question of the Week

This week’s Question of the Week was, “What hobbies and interests do you bring on the road?”.  There are a few hobbies that we hadn’t heard of before, like “lawn chair beer drinking” and “forgetting about work”.  Are they really hobbies?  Maybe, maybe not, but they sure are fun!

As always, thank you for participating in our Question of the Week.

“Workamping, Jeeping, gold panning, and snowbirding!” – David and Sheila Knapp, South Dakota

“Angela – We have five hobbies that occupy 110% of our time; shade tree reading, sunset photography, horizon gazing, lawn chair beer drinking, and campfire building.” – John and Cheri Cook, Colorado

“My wife and I enjoy metal detecting and gold prospecting.” – Jess and James Husband

“I love to knit and make jewelry while traveling.  I just wish my husband would pick up a hobby.” – Donna

“Sight seeing, photography, exploring the wineries of North America, backroad exploration to learn the real United States of America, enjoying good non-franchise food, and meeting and talking to people, both natives and visitors.” – Allen Williams

“When it comes to truck campers and hobbies, I think the first priority hobby is forgetting about work!  I love that hobby, but sometimes it takes a day or two.  Once we forget about work, it’s all about slowing down and enjoying wherever we are.  Hiking the trails of the North Shore of Lake Superior is something you just can’t get enough of and that’s in our backyard.  Hiking beaches, whether North or South, is a favorite too.  The truck camper allows us the chance to pull off into some pretty tight parking places that you could not get into with a travel trailer or a motorhome.  I like to use our truck camper when I work with amateur radio to support long distance trail runs on the Superior Hiking Trail and dog sled races in the winter.  It sure beats sleeping in the front seat of your vehicle and the family has more fun.  With the truck camper on the truck, home is always wherever you are.  It’s a great feeling!” – Bigfoot Dave, Duluth, Minnesota

“Angela – My hobbies are three fold.  I love to travel in my truck camper, to volunteer during disasters, and help churches work on their buildings.  While going and returning, I love to explore and take in the beauty of this great country.  And the last hobby is to introduce trout fishermen to our lures, Trout Magnets, and to use them in some of the great trout streams of America.  I’m looking forward to leaving after our daughter’s graduation from college on May 5th and spending a couple of months doing the above.  How about a fuel card to use for the trip so I can stay three months?  Take care and happy camping.” – Ed Krech

“Hi Angela.  How did normal girl like you end up with Gordon?  Anyway not my business but here it goes… Every hobby I have ever had I’ve turned into a business.  Writing was a hobby and now a business.  Photography was a hobby, but when one of my photos became a magazine cover it became a business.  Bead work was a hobby until I started selling earrings, necklaces, and anklets.  Well now I’m old and running out of time, so I’ve had to double up on my hobbies.  I have combined my photography and beading and have designed absolutely gorgeous bookmarks that are selling like hotcakes, certainly outselling my books, drats.  Starting April 1st my bookmarks along with my nine Adventure-Travel books are going to be displayed in some local libraries.  I’m entering some of them into two contests under photography/mixed media.  I’ll let you know how I make out.  ‘No officer, it’s not a Pull Over, it’s a scarf.’  So there.  Really, Gordon… THE HOBBY POLICE?  Well, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.” – Joei Carlton

“The hobbies we take to the road are fishing, playing cards, photography, and cooking.  When we want to rest from fishing, we love to play cards, and watch movies.  Yes, all truck campers should have a boob tube.  I love to take pictures as I like to share where we have been with others.  The last thing is my cooking skills and I can get creative when I cook on the road.  Thanks.” – Joseph

“My main hobby is astronomy.  Everywhere I go, I take at least one telescope with me for stargazing.  I also bring books on places of historical interest with me so I can take a look at historical places around the country.” – Bob

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“Hi Angela.  I go to the desert to fly rockets.  The launch sites are usually filled with RVers of all kinds as well as tent campers.  There are launch sites all over the country.  I can be found in places like Brothers, Oregon, or the Black Rock Desert in Nevada.  It’s a great excuse to see some spectacular country and boondock with geeky friends.  Here’s a picture of my 2004 Eagle Cap 1150 with just a few of the rockets I fly.” – Gary Lech

“Oh Boy, hobbies on the road with the truck camper.  We are always ready for hiking.  We also ski, mountain bike, surf, fish, enjoy photography, sometimes bring kayaks, and we always have fun!  Many of our trips involve one of these activities.  For instance, a certain peak or trail we want to hike or a ski trip to a certain mountain.  Sometimes we just load up and go and see what we find.  Bikes, fishing gear, and hiking boots are always with us.  We love to just explore.  When we find an interesting place we get out and investigate further by foot, bike, and sometimes kayak.  We keep our truck camper pretty well loaded and ready for adventure.  We can be ready to go real quick.  The truck camper suits our lifestyle well; it is the ultimate adventure support vehicle for us.” – Bill Tex

“Kayaking, surf fishing, and mountain bikes.” – Jerry and Tina Rohan

“Funny write up, Angela!  I like getting photos for my, “out the back door of the truck camper” series of pictures I’ve collected as we travel.  We’ve planned our trips around family and seeing the National Parks and I collect my National Park Passport stamps at each park.  This year I’ve stepped up my interest in genealogy and I’m hoping to visit places where my ancestors lived.” – Bonnie Belza, Arizona

“First things first, I am about 10% overloaded according to “the stickers”.  I put on just less than 9,000 miles last year with no problems.  I only take one hobby with me and that is photography.  Have a nice day.” – Matt Reinker

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“My hobbies are model electric airplanes and astronomy.  When we went out west, we flew at a number of fields; Quartzite, Yuma, and Blythe, California.  We were always welcome and camped right at the field for as long as we wanted.  Also, there are many “fly-ins” locally and the truck camper is great for the day or the weekend.  My second is astronomy with my telescope.  The skies are so clear at high altitudes and out west, away from the lights.  And, of course going out in the “boonies” and trying (as Lila says) to destroy the truck and camper.  You should see my bent Torklift tie downs… he he he.” – Dave and Lila

“I am an avid railroad fan (yes, I look for campgrounds near the tracks).  I take pictures, collect memorabilia, and ride excursion trains; preferably steam but any train will do.  That’s my only hobby besides seeing all of North America by RV and spending time with my wife.  And yes, she likes trains also, just not as much as I do.” – R.D. (Bob) Ritchie

“Hello Angela.  These questions are a lot of fun.  It makes us take a couple of minutes to think about things we do unconsciously.  So, to answer your question, I take a magazine or a book in case it rains or to read a bit before going to sleep (since we do not have a TV).  And I always take along my notebook to record anything special about the weekend.  If the trip is more than a week long, we take along the portable VCR to watch movies and I take my art equipment to do a painting.  Always with us are the digital camera, walking shoes, and bathing suits.” – Denise Hupe

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“I shoot a Civil War cannon in live competition at targets from 200-1200 yards distance.  Marylou competes in recreating authentic 1860’s clothing.  We tow the cannon in a Haulmark car hauler behind our truck camper to the events, which are held at Winchester, Virginia, and Grayling, Michigan.  See N-SSA.org for more information.” – John and Marylou Wells

“Good timing!  Next week I’m off to go camping with a tent and do a little fishing, which is one of my new hobbies.  I will also take my fly tying kit with me. (hobby #2).  I have my Nook charged up and loaded with new books (hobby #3) so I can sit around the campfire and think about things and meditate on my sins (hobby #4).  I plan to drive to Denver to see my son (hobby #5 – visiting relative) before I visit my 90 year old uncle and his wife.  When I head south again, I’ll stop to visit brothers and sisters in Pueblo.  I will also take a lot of pictures (this is the plan anyway) at all the places I stop (hobby #6 -photography).  I also plan to take my laptop computer and my Magellan GPS so I might be able to do some geocaching along the way (hobby #7).  I am tent camping since I sold my truck camper, but I have a very good Coleman stove, portable kitchen, and pots and pans.  This will let me enjoy (hobby #8), cooking.  My wife is the better cook, but I do enjoy trying to remember how to cook properly.  I was trained by the US Army as a cook, so field cooking was a real challenge!  When I get home, I need to finish cleaning my Snowriver truck camper since I sold it.  The buyer is scheduled to pick it up the end of April.  This is not a hobby, just lots of work.  Once home, I’ll start preparing the list of places to camp.  My wife and I want to get away for a few days before the schools are let out for the summer.  Kids are okay, but we raised ours already and we enjoy the peace and quiet when they are not with us.” – Harried Harry Palmer

“Hi Angela.  Along with Anne Brown and Denise Snyder, I bring my knitting hobby along with me in my truck camper.  However, I have to admit that both Anne and Denise have made several sweaters in the amount of time it has taken me to almost finish one!  But, it’s fun to sit around the fire and knit with others.” – Cheryl Lane, New Hampshire

“Angela – Hope all is well.  I think you know the answer to the question from us, but maybe not all of the answers.  You know we’re cyclists so we always have our bikes with us, carried in the truck of course.  We also carry our hiking gear and, when we try winter camping, we’ll bring our showshoes.  We also bring lots of books, both fiction and non-fiction, and Donna has recently taken up knitting.  We’re always on the look out for interesting birds and wildlife, though we’re not photographers.  We also try to cook interesting things and there might be a margarita or two with our homemade jalapeno infused tequila and rims nicely coated with a mixture of salt and cayenne pepper.  You and Gordon are more than welcome to join us for a margarita if you’re up for some heat.

We saw Don and Lucy Seijas’s TCM article about how their camper was damaged when it was towed.  It was nice of you to mention our tow story and we’re always happy to talk to folks about our experiences.” – Ed Amato and Donna Bitcon

 

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