Solo Camping Really is the Best Thing Ever
 |
| __________________________________________________________________________________ "Solitude isn't loneliness. Solitude is when the entire serene universe seems to surround and hold you quietly". - Victoria Erickson __________________________________________________________________________________ |
I had gone camping alone before, but usually just outside of town, so this was going to be quite an adventure. About an hour and a half up the road, I found the perfect spot to set up camp for a few days. The campground was somewhat sheltered by trees, but offered excellent views of the Sawatch, Mosquito, and Elk ranges, and even the San Juan Mountains at a distance. To the right, an ancient lodge-pole held it's ground, waving it's bare, crooked arms. Although it's expiration date had long since passed, it continued to make a bold statement on the landscape. A basalt cliff on one side of the campground offered plenty of rock hounding opportunities, and an old snow cat sat heavily on it's tracks like an old man after a long day of hard labor. I'm obsessed with snow cats, so it was a sign. (Upon returning home and examining photographs, I realized it was the same snow cat who was the subject of one of my photo shoots many years prior. Bizarre.) To the left, an open meadow would prove to be the prime location to scour my disgusting soul.
By late afternoon, I had my camp set up, and I settled in by the fire with my book, a can of Miller Lite, and a bottle of Fireball. It was the stuff my dreams were made of.
Over the next few days, I filled my time with drinking, reading, napping, hiking, rock hunting, writing, and thinking. I ran around in shorts and a sports bra with my gun on my hip, gathered my own firewood, cooked my food over the open fire, and allowed myself to just be a part of the nature that surrounded me. I felt fiercely primal. Something about experiencing life similar to how natives would have, it filled me with a sense of belonging that I had never really felt living among the rich and entitled flesh-bags that I spent my life catering to.
During my trip, I learned a lot about camping, and about myself. Throughout my stay, I never saw another human. Well, someone did pull into my camp spot, but at the time, I was perched on the side of the cliff like a scantily-clad, heavily armed goat, and I think I scared them off. Not sure if it was the gun, the hatchet in my left hand, or the awl in my right, but they sped away quickly, never to return. Not seeing other people allowed me to just be me, to do what I want, and think how I want, with no outside influences. It was a beautiful thing. It occurred to me that I love myself more than I thought, not just my physical self, but also my mental self. I enjoyed my own company, and I think that's something that can be hard for people. I know so many people who would go insane being completely alone for three days. To me, it was beautiful. Quiet. Serene. As vain as it may sound, I enjoy my own company more than that of most other people, with only a few exceptions. Being alone with myself allowed me to regain some of the confidence I'd lost over the years. It was truly a renewing, relaxing experience. There's something so intense about just sitting and listening to the world around you and inside of you. It's life-changing.
I consider myself a well-seasoned camper. I mean, let's be honest. How many 30-something women out there would be able to sustain their life for 3 days in the wild, and would even want to, for that matter? I'm pretty proud of my camping expertise. I actually impress myself.
On that note, I would like to share with you some of my wisdom, so that you can save yourself from some of the unexpected issues that are subject to arise while camping.
- Fires aren't for pussies. Know how to build a fire. Be aware of fire hazards. Check and see if there are fire bans in your area before you go camping.
- If you're car camping, keep your keys close by in the tent. If you hear something in the night, your panic button is guaranteed to scare the piss out of anything within a half-mile radius.
- Always take more water than you think you'll actually need, and make sure your containers are sealed tightly. I took 2 gallons up for 3 days, and one of my containers leaked all over my car. I learned that 1 gallon is, in fact, NOT enough water for 3 days and 2 nights.
- Keep a clean camp. It's much less stressful when everything is neatly organized.
- Speaking of a clean camp, pack it in, pack it out. Don't be one of those assholes.
- If you're camping alone and you're used to being around people most of the time, mentally prepare. Know that it's going to be REALLY lonely. If that might be a problem, find a spot with cell service.
- If possible, find a camp spot that already has firewood.
- If your phone is your camera, make sure you have a way to keep it charged.
- Do everything before you need to. For example, build your fire before nightfall, begin to prepare food before it gets dark, pee before bed even if you don't need to, etc.
- I'm one of those people who always carries around a lot of crap. When I camp, I take a backpack, and put my sunscreen, bug spray, cigarettes, flashlight/headlamp, book, water, and anything else I might want in it. That way, all of the stuff I need is easy to find.
- Take a motion-activated light. I put mine inside my tent before bed so it comes on when I step inside, then I put it outside the tent at night. I get paranoid sometimes when I'm alone, and if I have to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, I can see when I step out of the tent.
Comments