DO YOU KNOW HOW TO CAMP?

Camping is the best way to experience nature, but also society. Some camp on the sea, others on the mountains, but regardless of the destination, read the camping guide for absolute beginners.

Contrary to popular belief, camping is not a poor trip. Campers are not modern nomads who do not have the money to “pay for the arrangement” and be in all-inclusive hotels. They come from different social strata, have different occupations and they are all united by one thing – love of nature. Our society organizes night hiking for years, and the condition of all conditions is – camping on the mountain.

Camping is a kind of feeling of freedom, which many have never experienced. There are various campers. From the inexperienced, through recreationalists, to those who can’t imagine free time without camping. Some camp only in the summer, at sea, and they do it in organized camps or on the beaches.

Where to set up camp?

If you have decided to camp in a well-kept camp, everything is clear to you. However, if you are camping where you feel like it, the following is important: The camp should be set up (if there are more of you) or a tent should be set up somewhere where there is a source of drinking water. If there is no spring, make sure there is a fountain nearby. The reason is more than simple – we need to boil and wash water. Some also like to brush their teeth, while many often wash their feet and sneeze under their arms and where not. So, this hygiene is not a bad habit and should be practiced even in nature.

When it comes to cooking, water is always needed and that is clear. Don’t forget safety – if you are careless and do not watch the fire, you must have water to put out any fire. We will talk about the fire later, and it is recommended that the camp be up to 100m from the water source.

If you are camping near big water, which means rivers, lakes, streams or the sea, you will not have a problem with water in terms of extinguishing a fire or swimming. For a spring or a river, ask if it is drinking or cooking water.

Without fire, there is almost no camping. Unless you bring a gas bottle with a burner or primus, you will also need to warm the fire, especially on the mountain when it can cool down at night. The fire must never be left unattended. In other words, someone always has to lie down and be careful not to spread it. First, enclose the fireplace with larger stones and start a fire in the middle of that circle. Make sure the fire is shielded from gusts of wind or rain. If possible, dig a small hole in the ground and light a fire in it, and also fence the hole well with stones.

Be sure to put out the fire before you go to bed or leave the camp. Pour water well and pour sand or earth over the grill.

A tent

Modern tents are light (3-5 kg), fold quickly (3-10 minutes), are affordable (from 20 euros and up, depending on the brand and quality) and available (from shopping malls to fishing equipment stores). It is usually used as a single layer and is not recommended if it rains. Admittedly, it will generally not leak, but what keeps the interior of the tent dry, which means you and your belongings, is a stretched impregnated cloth or similar material that needs a small hole or touch to start “flooding”. If you are going to a music festival to camp, this tent is a great solution because if it is destroyed, set on fire or something happens to it – it is not a big pity.

However, if you want to be safe and secure, buy a two-layer tent that can withstand rain and snow. Their price varies, but for about fifty euros you can find a dimension for two people.

Two-layer tents consist of a basic chamber or a room over which the upper part is pulled, ie. protective tarpaulin. It is mostly rubberized and often made of non-flammable material, which can be e.g. melt, but never ignite. Modern tents can be easily and quickly assembled and disassembled, and it is possible to do that at night. However, it is recommended, if you are inexperienced, to first spread the tent in your own yard or nearby meadow, for better performance when it comes to the finished act – camping. Be sure to fasten the tent with ropes, but secure it with pegs beforehand. This is important if it is raining and the wind is blowing or if both phenomena are cumulative, which is what a storm will say.

Before setting up a tent, you need to find a relatively flat place to put it. They must not have any major unevenness, which means remove rocks that may be underneath, tree roots and anything that makes the terrain uneven. Otherwise, you will damage the tent, but also your own back if something stings you all night.

In case you expect unstable weather, with an ax or something similar, dig canals around the tent that will receive water and drive it away from the tent. It often happens that the tent collapses if you do not do this, and we do not recommend sleeping in water for frogs either.

When packing the tent on the way back, first shake it well and bend it in a dry and clean place. Except in an emergency, the tent is never packed wet. If that happens, because the rains can be frequent, dry the tent well when you arrive in a dry place.

Camping equipment depends on the affinity of the camper, but you simply cannot do without some things, such as: sleeping bag, bag pad, flashlight, primus and knife or ax.

Sleeping bag

The average camper is a man like any other – he likes to sleep when it comes to him. Although in practice it is possible to sleep anyway, a sleeping bag is actually a very practical thing. Depending on the weather conditions when camping, there are bags for winter, summer and intermediate periods. Today’s bags are mostly in the shape of a mummy, but it’s not the rule. This means that they are wide at the top and narrow at the bottom and have a hood for the head. They are packed in a case the size of half a 1.5 l plastic bottle and you can sleep comfortably in it at a temperature of only + 5c degrees.

However, you need to know how to sleep in a bag, because many who are inexperienced in camping in bags lie dressed and freeze. They lie in the bag either naked (although in underpants and a T-shirt) or in very thin pajamas. The reason is simple: the bag is designed to hold body heat, and the best way to do that is for the body to touch the bag directly.

Bag liner

The land on which one sleeps, although tents have their own floors, is generally colder than air. That is why it is necessary to put something under the bag, and that is the base for the bag. It has another function – to alleviate any bumps that may be under you.

Substrates are various, from inflatable ones that are warm due to the layer of air that is created between you and the ground, through substrates made of different sponge rubber materials to pure improvisation, it can be a beach mat that is bought in supermarkets (it turned out to be great), to an inflatable beach mattress. It is interesting that if the terrain is sloping and your surface is smooth, it is possible that you will slide down the tent all night.

Flashlight

Although there are a handful of “professional” and expensive flashlights, with the advent of LEDs for 4-5 euros you can buy several flashlights that are great and quite long. Our advice is to have at least three lamps. One for the tent, the other in the hand and the third forehead.

Primus or gas bottle

Primus or resho is a mandatory item if you stay longer in nature. It is actually a gas device of smaller size. Small primuses are with cartridges whose price is 5-10 euros, depending on where you buy. It is important to move everything that has an open fire as far away from the tent and things as you can.

Of course, keep the primus or gas bottle in the lee, whether you use it or not. Also, keep it away from rain and direct sunlight.

Knife or ax

The practical use of the knife at camping is a wide range – from cutting bread to cutting branches, drilling holes and making something out of nothing.

The ax serves you so that you can cut firewood, a stake for a skewer if you are roasting a pig, but in practice it is mostly used to drive the threads of the tent into the ground with the blunt part of the ax.

Cutlery and cooking utensils

Don’t forget that you have to eat from something, choose what is comfortable for you to wear. An ordinary sherpa can always be found, as well as a plastic plate. The same goes for all types of glasses and cups. We mentioned the knife, and bring a spoon and fork with it.

Hygiene accessories

In addition to toothpaste and toothbrushes, bring soap that should be as easy to rinse as possible. Anti-bacterial gel is not a bad thing. Toilet paper is required, in several pieces. Always keep it in a bag so that it does not get wet.

Garbage bags

Staying in nature is beautiful if nature is untouched or as little touched as possible. So, we must not leave garbage behind you! For this purpose, buy large garbage bags and pick up absolutely all the garbage that remains behind you. It helps to collect garbage if the garbage dump is formed immediately during the establishment of the camp, and the bag should be close, but not too close to the fire.

We advise you to bring an extra blanket that, in case of cold weather, can be transferred over a sleeping bag if you do not have a suitable one. Also, an excess of lighters can’t bother. Of course, always bring first aid. The fire is enough to disperse any mosquitoes, but also bring some means that will repel them.

These are the basics of camping and camping equipment. What you must have with you if you decide to camp on a mountain, sea or plain. Of course, many things can be borrowed from others, taken from home, improvised. That is the charm of camping – it develops friendship and the proverb “heroes are known in trouble” proves to be true in this tourist adventure.