Camping for the first time
Hello,
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I would like to tell you about me camping for the first time in New York. This experience helped me to be more prepared for next time. Every time I go camping I learn so much about myself. Also, you learn about the things that you will eventually need to help you with your camping journey. When we went camping, we had just a few things that we thought are the most necessary but along the way you start to realize and learn what you really need.
The weight
It was a cloudy morning. We drove 2.5 hours away from NYC. Our destination ended up being very high uphill without the service. So we found a parking spot that was very close to our trail. We packed our bags and went on our journey. If you camping near the car the weight doesn’t really matter but if you are hiking you want to have less weight with your gears since you have to bring water, food, and maybe layers.
The shoes
In the middle of the trail, it became very wet and muddy our shoes were not the best shoes for this trip. It took more time since we had to be mindful of where to step. You need good shoes for hiking.
The clouds became more and more. The whole forest looked like a fairy tale. With a bunch of green moss, the weird shape of trees, colorful carpet of leaves on the ground. The more we were walking away from our car and uphill the more we could see the change in nature.
Our highest destination was 3200ft. It was very beautiful and mesmerizing. Just the idea to be so high and actually notice the movements of the clouds was very memorable. It’s interesting to observe that when you are in the city and it’s a rainy day or cloudy day you don’t always enjoy it. When we were all the way up it felt so beautiful. And the more I’m with nature the more I like all changes in the weather. For example, I used to like only summer or early fall, or late spring. Now I actually like it more and more – all parts of the seasons.
Camping Spot
So going back to our story. By 4 pm we decided on a camping spot. Since around 5:30 pm it becomes darker. So we could comfortably unpack and organize our camping location. The area that we chose was flat which was located in the middle between uphill and downhill.
Bonfire
We found a flat rock that was our bonfire base since we didn’t want to have it on the ground where there are a lot of dry leaves. We made sure to have a safe bonfire spot. It can be a flat rock, a hall in the ground. Also, you can secure the spot with the rocks, building a circle so the fire doesn’t spread.
Stock the woods
As soon as we got our tent set up, it started to drizzle. We started to gather the woods and skin of the trees as fuel. Also, we didn’t know how the weather is going to be the next day so we saved some dry woods and store them in the bag inside the tent.
The delicious part!
After settling down with the tent and sleeping bags inside and making sure that we have everything in place we started to cook. We heat some water in a stainless pot to prepare miso soup. We had frozen fish with veggies that by the time we got to the camping site it was ready to cook. We had also apples, squash, tea and of course water.
Water
Always bring water with you not only for drinking but also for cooking because you never know. Sometimes the trail says that it’s going to have waterfalls, lakes rivers but since you don’t really have a map it can be hard to find the water source. Also, it’s very important to hydrate yourself during the hike. You think you are just walking but it’s actually worked out since we used to concrete and nice roads in the city, instead of natural roads.
Layers
Our food tasted really good. Each dish was so unique in its own way. Close to 9 pm the rain and wind became a little bit stronger. We kept maintaining the fire until late at night when we both almost fell asleep. We made sure to have our tent settled away from the fire minimum of 1 to 1,5 matters. If you want the heat to be in the tent make sure to have the front door of the tent facing the fire. Since we didn’t expect it to be so rainy and windy we got really cold during the night. Luckily we had layers because the temperature dropped really down. So bring layers when you camping in late fall.
Sleeping pads
Something to think of is sleeping pads that really will help you to keep your body warm and dry even if you have a sleeping bag. We both had different types of sleeping bags but we both really felt cold. The pads are very important when it’s cold or rainy weather. Also, use pads that give your body heat back.
Footprint
Another tip is to use a footprint for the tent. Usually, tents come with that but not all of them since they wear very fast. Usually, it’s a little bit thicker layer underneath the tent that you have to put. What it does is protects the actual tent’s floor and also keep it dry when it’s a rainy or snowy day.
Good tent
My other advice is to invest in a good tent and sleeping bag since those 2 things basically will protect you from bad weather. We had rain and wind for more than 10 hours and we were good.
The next day we woke up everything was wet but fresh and sunny. We used the fire starter sticks and the saved woods from last night. Our breakfast consisted of coffee, whole wheat croissants, and fruits. Also, you can bring oatmeal with dry fruits. I will post another article about the best foods to camp with.
Turn off the fire
We stayed at the spot a few more hours exploring around and then we picked up everything for our way back to the car. Make sure to fully turn off the fire with water or wait until it’s going to burn until the end and spread a bit of the coal around and add water to turn it off faster.
Keep the earth clean
We created a trash bag where we put our waste like plastic and foil paper. Food remains as veggies, fruits are actually a compost even fish bones. The rest take with you back! Please Take care of our Mother Nature!
Wholeness!
What to bring with you:
- wind/waterproof tent with footprint
- sleeping pad
- sleeping bag
- hiking waterproof shoes with good support and grip
- pot to boil water cook food
- bowls or a mug
- knife, spoon
- fire sticks
- water
- food
- layers
Disclaimer: This post contains my personal opinion and experience. The content is not an official statement. For more information please contact a professional expert to assist you.