Guide to camping

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Guide to camping
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Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 9:41 am Post subject: Guide to camping

Maybe a bit of an afterthought but I know a lot of you do this, wondered if anyone would care to write a virgin camper's guide with all the tips you have picked up through your experience - I'm sure this would be a good collaborative one too and a very downsizery type of holiday, I assume?

I'm terrified of camping as it looks dangerous (mad axemen and rogue cows), cold, uncomfortable, inconvenient, hungry and difficult. Any enthusiasts able to convince me otherwise?

monkey1973

Joined: 17 Jan 2005
Posts: 683
Location: Bonnie scotland

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 10:10 am Post subject:
My wife and I are about to go camping for the first time in a few weeks so we have still got to learn from our experiences. I'll maybe do a journal of how we get on.

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 10:41 am Post subject:
That would be absolutely ideal Monkey, where are you off to?

monkey1973

Joined: 17 Jan 2005
Posts: 683
Location: Bonnie scotland

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 10:49 am Post subject:
We're going to Kinloch Rannoch, a small town 20 miles west of Pitlochry in Perthshire "The Heart of Scotland". Its only going to be for a few days and we hope to go walking, cycling, taking photos and mibbe do a bit of foraging for good measure. I've never been before but the wife went for the day last year with her college mates and said it was absolutely stunning.

monkey1973

Joined: 17 Jan 2005
Posts: 683
Location: Bonnie scotland

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 11:11 am Post subject:
Here's the view

Northern_Lad

Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 14210
Location: Somewhere

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 11:17 am Post subject:
That's not the campsite is it?

Bugs

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 10744

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 11:23 am Post subject:
Never heard of it but it looks and sounds lovely, good place for your first trip as that view will surely make up for a lot of spiders in your tea

monkey1973

Joined: 17 Jan 2005
Posts: 683
Location: Bonnie scotland

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 11:33 am Post subject:

Bugs wrote:

.......a lot of spiders in your tea

Crikey!

Don't mention that to the wife

hils

Joined: 08 Mar 2005
Posts: 568
Location: Nottingham

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 12:39 pm Post subject: !
camping is ace! The only good night sleep I had whilst pregnant - and I was 8 months gone! Treat yourself to an air bed and you'll be fine. A good warming spirit will keep you going too and it'll send you into a good deep sleep so the you can't hear the axe man coming. I favour Auchentoshen (sp?) single malt.

nora

Joined: 20 Mar 2005
Posts: 1539
Location: West Yorkshire

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 12:42 pm Post subject:
Hils, I agree with you, an airbed is essential. Also a nice pillow and a hot water bottle.

Joey

Joined: 03 Nov 2004
Posts: 191

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 2:23 pm Post subject:
If you are a virgin camper, stay away from boy scouts.

RoryD

Joined: 02 Jun 2005
Posts: 692
Location: West Yorkshire

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 2:30 pm Post subject:
Is Kinloch Rannoch far enough west to be midge country? If so, August could be just terrible for campingvirgins....Even with coil burners and mossie spray it can be quite challenging. We camped on the edge of Rannoch Moor at the top of Glencoe 10 years ago on the way up to Skye and it was pretty midgey then. Am I being a big blouse?

otatop

Joined: 01 Jun 2005
Posts: 1425
Location: North London

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 4:27 pm Post subject:

We camp in Cornwall every summer - and have experienced all weather conditions. Here are a few thoughts :-
An airbed is essential. I take a fitted sheet and use my sleeping bag as a quilt - it's much more comfortable than being zipped in.
If you have children, you really need a tent that you can stand up and move around in.
Whisky is another essential - although now we have a little extra space in the car, we've invested in a camping fridge so we can have ginandtonics at 6 o'clock.
However basic the amenities - you can always have plenty of hot water for washing etc - if you leave it in the sun all day.
Nigel Slater's "Real Fast Food" is useful for meal ideas - and doesn't take up too much room.
Bacon tastes best when cooked and eaten out of doors.

Lozzie

Joined: 25 May 2005
Posts: 2595

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 5:17 pm Post subject: Re: Guide to camping

Bugs wrote:

I'm sure this would be a good collaborative one too and a very downsizery type of holiday, I assume?

Cab, I wondered also about doing a piece about having a self-catering holiday abroad, and trying to stick to Downsizer/Ethical principles at the same time; would this be appropriate?

L x

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45676
Location: Essex

Posted: Tue Aug 09, 05 5:21 pm Post subject: Re: Guide to camping

Lozzie wrote:

would this be appropriate?

L x

Totally (sorry jumped in before Cab)

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