I went camping with a group of friends last weekend. I had to borrow gear from my parents because I don't own any of my own. It had been a long time since I had camped, so I was pretty excited. It was disappointing to discover that 'camping' meant 'getting drunk in a field'. I ended wandering off by myself so I could listen to the owls and watch meteors. I've been researching camping gear since I got back from that misadventure. I think I'm going to go with a hammock instead of a tent.
Camping is great stuff. This tent is heavy (being canvas), and a little on the pricey side, but we love it so much (it's a Lotus Belle 'Outback') :
It's a great tent. This location (Port Jackson, NZ) is notorious for high winds - we've had 2 other tents destroyed there in the past. This tent effortlessly endured winds stronger than those that ripped tents we had before, so even though it wasn't cheap, we consider it money well spent.
I've camped a couple times this summer, and when I tell people I have no fire and am miles from the car they all give me a confused look. Getting away from it all is fantastic. I don't understand why people bring all the baggage of drinking and getting loud with them to the woods. I use a tent but researched hammocks a bit. They have a niche, and people that use them seem to love them. I'm pretty new to it all, but I really love it.