There are a half dozen reasons helping to account for the migration to the campgrounds. Among them, according to the U. S. Department of Commerce, are: (1) shorter work weeks, (2) higher pay, (3) longer paid vacations, (4) better transportation, (5) earlier retirement, and (6) more education. The more people learn about their country, the more they want to learn. Camping is family fun, and it is helping more Americans see more of the country than they ever saw before.

But make no mistake about it, the first reason people turn to camping is one of economy. Here is the promise of a vacation trip they can afford.

The American Automobile Association, computing the cost for two people to vacation by automobile, comes up with an average daily expenditure figure of $29. The AAA then splits it down this way: $10.50 for meals, $9.50 for lodging, $7 for gas and oil, and $2 for tips and miscellaneous.

What does the camping couple do to this set of figures? The $9.50 for lodging they save. Because they prepare their own meals they also keep in their pockets a good portion of that $10.50 food bill along with most of the tip money. The automobile expenses are about the only vacationing cost they cann't either eliminate or pare down drastically by camping along the way.

Where Americans used to think of a single vacation each summer, they now think about how many vacations they can have. Long weekends enable many to get away from home for three or four days several times a year. And even if they stay in resorts part of the time, they might, if the right salesman gets them in tow, develop a yearning to spice the usual vacation fare with a camping trip into the wide open spaces.