To talk about camping in the past tense in Engpsh, you can use the past simple tense or the past continuous tense.

Here are some examples using the past simple tense:

I camped in the mountains last summer.
We set up our tent by the river.
He cooked dinner over the campfire.

Here are some examples using the past continuous tense:

I was camping in the mountains when it started to rain.
We were setting up our tent when a bear walked by.
He was cooking dinner over the campfire when the wind blew out the flame.