I’m sure the idea of heading out around the country and sleeping in the back of a van has crossed many outdoorsy people’s minds, and for me, this seems pretty perfect. In fact I’m so drawn to the idea that I’m hoping to eventually move into a van myself and live the full-time van life. Thankfully, a few weeks ago I got to experience staying in a van for two nights, and it’s just reinforced the idea in my mind.
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A few weeks back, my friend Ken approached me wondering if I’d be up for climbing a hill he’d found in Wales. We met up for coffee to discuss the idea, which is when he first showed me the pictures online of Crib Goch’s ridge.
I headed out beyond South London to try to make a short film about bivi camping. Unfortunately I didn’t quite account for how early the sun would go down so it was pitch-dark by the time I found my campsite.
I’ve been telling myself for weeks that I needed another sleep under the stars but every weekend I seemed to find another excuse to not go away. I’d either have plans with friends, the weather would be terrible or I just felt too tired. Fortunately this week has a bank holiday weekend! I managed to have a very sociable weekend and as Sunday evening approached, the weather was too nice not to make the most of.
With work getting stressful, my health getting worse and my age passing another milestone (only 23 but it’s the first one to not feel very good), I needed another escape to the countryside. Thankfully my parents thought so too, so as a birthday treat they headed south from Stirlingshire and I headed north from London, meeting in the middle in Derbyshire.
This week I’ve had big plans for getting outside and having fun, but unfortunately my timings haven’t worked out and I’ve not managed to get away. Therefore this is another gear post. This week, my three favourite pieces of camping gear, all of which have had a dramatic affect on how I camp.
I’ve realised recently that an easy way to keep me happy is to do things that I enjoyed when I was a child. I used to love climbing trees but hadn’t done that in years, until one day when I still lived in a village in Scotland I headed out to the woods and climbed one. When I wasn’t in the trees, I was often under “The Den” (a small wooden shed which my Dad build, featuring a trap door leading to the ground) digging away the soil underneath and distributing it like “The Great Escape” to make the best den. Again, many years later, I headed out to the woods and had a great time making a small hole.
Unfortunately due to my diminished bank account, I cannot afford to get out of London for an adventure any time soon. The train to Shoreham and back was only £17 but I want to save my pennies for Februarys microadventure. Instead, on skint weeks like this, I’ll be doing posts on some of the gear I use regularly. This week, what I use for cooking.
“You can’t do that,” said Pete as I began to leave work, with one of the most worried faces I’ve ever seen him make, and “I really don’t like that, Why are you going by yourself?” “Because who else would want to sleep on a hill, mid January, with no tent?” I replied.