Wilderness adventure brings to mind two conflicting persona’s – the rugged outdoor survivalist matching wits with Mother Nature, and his cousin the Nature Channel HDTV voyeur.  Each labors for his love.  The former hacks free his boulder trapped arm with a penknife, while the latter pries free his remote control trapped under the cushion.

Is it possible, or even desirable, to bring these two nature fans together on the same adventure?  Can the safety and comfort of the couch be transported into the boulder fields of the wild?  According to the proponents of glamour camping… the answer is right there in your wallet.

“Glamping” combines glamour and camping, creating a travel adventure which enables participants to be as close to their nature as they are to their nurture.  You can be Sir Edmund Hillary by day, and Conrad Hilton by night.  Imagine sleeping in a canvas tent on the plains of Africa, just a few feet away from a pack of howling hyenas.  Now imagine the tent has an attached bathroom, shower, and running hot water.  Imagine the bed is not a stiff foldout cot, but rather a memory foam mattress, with toasty hot water bottles to keep you snug and comfy all night.  You are starting to get the picture.

For some this glamour camping creates a bizarre juxtaposition, like two nature lovers staring at each other from opposite ends of civilization.  Vendors have paired up to meet this odd couple of demand.  It’s a market where Abercrombie meets Kent, and Lindblad meets National Geographic. The service offering is primal luxury.  The stark and rugged gum tree plains are decked out with banquet tables, as if daring nature to crash the party’s aristocracy.

For some,  the excitement of the wilderness is water down slightly by the pampering.  Like that all too new pair of boots at the cattle dude ranch, these adventures can seem real and yet unreal at the same time.  Authenticity requires a little more dung on the heels, but frankly, you might be surprised at how well you can giddy up without it.  The glamor camping magicians make incredible wildernesses accessible to the inaccessible.   Our family adventures have provided shared remote wilderness memories for groups ranging in age from 5 to 80.

Given the growing surge of glamping dedicated websites, facebook pages, and even pintrest boards, this trend appears to be one with legs.  And these legs seem more than willing to carry the rest of us into the wilderness on a litter, for the right price of course.  Gratuity not included.