Steve Mahaffey stands at the Grand Canyon. It was during a cross-country motorcycle journey that he was struck with the idea of providing an affordable way to enable families to go camping, and now that dream has been realized.Ready Camp Pricing
A two-person tent and gear rental starts at $45 for one day and goes up to $150 for a nine-day stay at the campground. Four-person groups start at $65 for one day and top out at $200 for nine days. Each additional camper over four has a $5 fee attached.
Ah, the outdoors. Wild. Free. Accessible to anyone. If the outdoors are so free and accessible, though, why is it so expensive to go camping?
That’s the question Steve Mahaffey asked himself when he took a motorcycle journey across the continental United States, camping along the way.
Mahaffey grew up the son of a U.S. soldier stationed in Europe. He spent his childhood camping in the Black Forest of Germany and in northern Italy. He cherishes the memories of sitting around a campfire surrounded by people singing songs in different languages, and wanted to make sure every child had the option to enjoy a similar memory.
“Single parents can’t afford to drop $500 on camping gear to use one weekend every once in a while,” says Mahaffey, who recently retired in the Scenic City. “There’s a need for an inexpensive way to take the kids camping.”
That need drove him to start Ready Camp. It’s simple: After paying for the rights to use a campsite of their choosing, campers call Mahaffey ahead of time and inform him of the site. After that, it’s the easy matter of paying Ready Camp and arriving at their fully furnished campsite – complete with tent, stove, ice cooler, chairs, air mattress, table and lanterns – the day of their trip.
Users need only bring their own food, utensils and sleeping bags.
“Everything’s taken care of,” Mahaffey says. “You don’t set up or take down anything. Our slogan is ‘All the adventure, none of the work.’ It’s our first season, but things are looking great.”
He is currently operating out of Harrison Bay State Park and Chester Frost Park, and can accommodate eight full campsites per day, but he hopes to grow. Tent sizes can fit up to 10 people.
For especially large groups, Mahaffey is willing to discuss campsites farther away.
He also offers $10-per-day mountain bike rentals for those looking for more adventure, as well as tent rentals for those who want to go farther afield or have most of the gear they need.
“The feedback has been fantastic so far,” says Mahaffey. “The outdoors shouldn’t be an expensive thing to enjoy.”
For more information, check out Ready Camp’s Facebook page at facebook.com/ready2camp.