Camping in Florida: Our First Camping Experience

The recent rains have caused us to cancel a couple of planned camping trips. It also reminded us of our first camping experience. I'm sharing the rather embarrassing story in this sixth week of my Camping in Florida summer series. While you will see that the trip was mostly a disaster, we still made memories. And, despite our rocky start, we've turned out to be pretty savvy travelers who also enjoy camping. So, don't be afraid to try camping. To keep you from making the same mistakes we did, I shared not only our story, but some tips for those traveling for the first time with an RV or travel trailer.

Also, if you think the whole camping thing sounds good, but you've never camped and you're thinking, "Where do I start?" About.com's expert Camping Guide, David Sweet, has the answers in his Five Lesson Camping for Beginners. Or, maybe you already have camping gear, but could use some advice and tips, he's got that too! He's even got reader submitted camping recipes that will be a hit with the entire family.

Camping in Florida is a summer series that will be announced each week in my free newsletter About Florida on Thursdays and right here in my blog every Friday through the end of August. If you've missed any of the series, catch up with these links:

• Week 1: Camping in Florida
• Week 2: Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground & Fort Wilderness Photo Gallery
• Week 3: Camping in Florida's State Parks
• Week 4: Fort Summit KOA & ThemeWorld RV Resort
• Week 5: Florida Keys Camping, Florida Keys Camping Directory & Florida Keys Camping Photo Gallery

^{Photo © Dawn Henthorn, licensed to About.com}