Getting the most from your camping trip
I am assuming that you, gentle reader, are going camping because you have a great urge to shift your environment as profoundly as possible within the realms of comfort and practicality. For those of you going damping on the North Face or Base Camp, this article will not be of much use. For those of you wishing to extract the most amount of, well, nothingness and peace from your experience, read on. Another thing - some camping trips involve only hiking, and the requirements, while the same as I outline below, require the application of weight and convenience priorities. While the advice in this article will generally hold, if you are new to camping, let the group leader or organiser know this, or go on the trip with an experienced partner.
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It is most helpful to drop all expectations of organisation by the trip leader. The camping trip leader will not be organising things exactly as you would have done it, and is probably experienced at this sort of thing. Map reading, routes to take, travel arrangements - all are going to proceed in their own sweet pace in their own sweet way. If you end up arriving a day late because of botched direction-following, so what? The camping trip starts the second you leave your own house. I enjoy the trips I go on precisely because I don't have to struggle to find a route on a badly-labelled map. If I am asked, I will of course assist.
Take some of your favourite non-perishable food with you, even if the trip is fully catered by someone else. If there is already a supply, you can leave it in the car or at the starting off point. Bring enough to share, and you will have broken the ice long before you arrive at your camping ground. A few of my favourites are chocolate digestive biscuits (a South African camping staple!), dried apricots (nothing says "I care about hiking weight" better than some dehydrated food!), chocolate itself, nutty health bars and unsalted peanut and raisin snack mix. Even if the ice remains, there is a very special pleasure in stopping to be by one's self after setting up camp, looking out at whatever view or vista is available and quietly enjoying a favourite food.
Bring a few books and non-digital games along, space permitting. There is always quiet time on most camping trips, and for a rainy interlude indoors or in the tents, a good book followed by a rain-falling-on-waterproof-tent nap can't be beaten for relaxation! The games might go down well after dinner or after a short morning walk.
Make sure that you will be able to make your favourite after-dinner beverage. I know this might label me an incurable nerd or geek or whatever, but there is also a great deal of pleasure and warmth to be gained by sitting with one's favourite night-time drink round a camp fire before turning in. The stars will be out and glowing, the faces of everyone around the fire will also be glowing and very few people are completely obnoxious when sitting comfortably around that camp fire. My father's hip flask full of superb whisky has always been welcome, especially when we hiked in the Drakensberg in spring and night-time temperatures dropped to below freezing. I like Earl Grey tea or Milo, a malt-chocolate drink best made with hot milk. (Creamer is lighter but real long life milk is wonderful on a camping trip!)
Friendly shoes are essential. Rather take along that well known pair of ratty running shoes or cross trainers than the hot new pair of hiking boots you just got. On my camping trips, even the ones involving little or no walking, my old, comfortable shoes gave me no pain and got no comments, while any footwear not older than 3 months caused some pain.
A small flashlight is a great device to have to hand, and a head-mounted climber's light even better: try and light that match while holding a flashlight with one hand…. I'll list some of the times and places it is useful, and you decide: standing outside at night when late for the first stop on the destination trying to read the map, the first night pitching a tent in the dark, cooking in the dark, walking in the dark to get to the first night's camp (dumb, I know!), undressing in the dark, dressing in the dark, answering a call of nature in the middle of the night, moving around the camp site in the dark between the fire and the tent or cabin, checking what time it is in the dark, finding things inside a dark tent or cabin and, hopefully this never happens to you: shining a light on the engine as the driver tries to get the car going again! Yes, a flashlight or head-light is essential.
It's the middle of the night, you wake up and need to move your bowels and you realise you don't have…toilet paper. A roll or even two of toilet paper (one is sufficient only for a 2 day camping trip) are the worst items to need when you don't have them on a camping trip. When facilities are rudimentary or non-existent, the last thing you want to do is leave yourself in desperate need of a shower or bath. A roll of toilet paper can also provide some sheets that can double as a plate, insulation for a very hot metal cup favoured by campers the world over, table wipes, padding for a hard log seat or just to blow one's nose. Be sure to dispose of the paper in the plastic shopping bag you brought along for garbage. Yes, another essential item - those bags that build up to catastrophic levels in that cupboard in the kitchen, must be included in your backpack, daypack or tog bag. Their primary use is is vital: as a waterproof container! For dry goods, the plastic bag is great when packing space is limited and weight is a worry. In fact, bring along 10 or so, even for a short 2 day trip. Their weight is negligible and they are most helpful for holding dirty or wet clothes and also for organising your bags' contents. Maps should always go into a plastic bag. So should matches.
Bring a small towel. Enough said.
I have outlined a few items that I have forgotten to bring on camping trips at least once. Luckily, these items can be borrowed, but if they are safely stowed in your luggage, your peace of mind is less likely to be disturbed. Some of these items, though overlooked, when asked for by another camper, will help build the empathy and friendliness I find so valuable when it happens on camping trips. Peace of mind on a camping trip? It is always there, so it helps to have any stresses removed ahead of time!