Author: embraceyourinnergoat

What do you actually do when you go camping?

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“When you’re camping, what do you actually do?”

That’s something we’re often asked.  In reality we do very little – by the time you’ve waited for the kettle to boil, had your cup of tea, trekked to the toilets, lit a fire, cooked your breakfast and eaten it, it’s about coffee time!  Then you realise you’re still in your pyjamas!!

So basically we cook, eat and poke the fire.

Occasionally we manage to fit in a little adventure between meals – usually a walk to explore the area.

Our latest stay was at Hook Farm.  We’ve been there loads of times, but we can never remember where we walked the time before.  So we’re going to start keeping a note of good things to do near West Hoathly.

We’ve also updated the Hook Farm campsite scores.

R & L

The second of my finds

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After the success of the the first of my finds, we were full of anticipation about what our next campsite would be like! Our first experience of an ‘adults only’ campsite!!

When we arrived it looked very promising – stunning views, lots of space, not too many other people.  The site was called Campfire Weekends and the team running the site were very friendly – with the whole family getting involved.

Our disposition towards the site changed somewhat when we visited the toilet facilities!  They were billed as compost loos, but really they were just bucket toilets.  Even that could be coped with if there was light to see by, but you had to wear your headtorch even in the middle of the day!  And if you’d taken a lantern instead, you would have been disappointed as there was no hook to hang it on!

But before you could experience any of this, you had to overcome the challenge of opening the door!  To stop the doors blowing in the wind you were asked to lock/unlock the doors from the outside using a screwdriver!!  The less-bright goat was so confused by the system she had to go and ask another camper to help her open the door the first time!!  If you need to ask for help to access the toilet, something is wrong!

Normally when you wake in the night needing a wee, you are tempted to put off getting out your sleeping bag and try to avoid going to the toilet until the morning.  Not in this site!!  Waking in the early hours, the first thought was – oh good, all the other campers are in their beds, I’m going to make the most of the opportunity & go for a wild wee behind the tent!!

The experience cemented our plan to get our own camping toilet!!! (More of that another time!)

R & L

PS here’s how we scored the Campfires Weekends site.

 

Good job goats have waterproof coats!

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It’s a good job goats have waterproof coats… and trousers…and wellies!  We certainly needed them last weekend!!

Always, always, always pack them all… even in the middle of July. Although you can hide in your tent when it’s raining, waterproof trousers are handy so you can sit down even if your chair has got wet in an earlier shower.

Even on a sunny trip, wellies are useful to wear in the morning when the grass is wet with dew.  And being able to pull them on without worrying about laces is a bonus in the middle of the night!

We’ll tell you more about our soggy camping trip soon.

R & L

goat by kevin

Goats love adventures!

The Wayfarer

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I’ve a new challenge – the Wayfarer’s Walk!

This is a 70 mile long recreational path which runs between Inkpen Beacon in Berkshire to the village of Emsworth in Hampshire.  I liked the idea that it is going to take in towns, villages, woodland, open downland.  It starts in an area I’ve never explored, the North Wessex Downs and makes its way to the coast.

Actually, I believe we’re doing it backwards and that it’s supposed to starts in Emsworth on the south coast of Hampshire and proceed north/north-west the full length of Hampshire to finish at Combe Gibbeton on Inkpen Hill, just over the Berkshire border. But I like the idea of starting at the top and making our way down to the sea.

The Wayfarer’s Walk was initiated in 1981 by Bill Bide (Principal Officer for Rights of Way in Hampshire) and at least in parts is based on old tracks that were used by farmers to drive their sheep to animal fairs held in New Arlesford and Farnham.

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Here’s how we got on with the first section.

L

The first of my finds

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Last weekend we went  to the first of my campsite finds – Rowbury Farm Campsite.

It was easy to get to, not far from the A303.  I arrived early, but the site was already fairly full when I got there – all these people working from home who can leave work early!!

As the first of the goats to arrive, I had a bit of a panic about which of the remaining pitches to claim.  Turns out I needn’t have worried, all the pitches on this site are nice.  All get the evening sun and they are seperated by pretty swathes of wildflowers.

See how we scored it.

I’d forgotten how much I love camping!… but not long until our next trip.

R

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Repairing tent poles

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It’s time to get your kit ready for some camping trips!!

With some of our older tents, broken fibre-glass poles are a reasonably regular occurrence.  I think it’s just that they are old and well used. I used to just take the poles to a nice man in the Cotswolds Outdoor shop who fixed them for me, but then he stopped doing it.

So, I decided it was time to save myself some money and do it myself.  If you want to fix yours, here’s how!

Here are the problems I needed to fix. On one pole the joiner had split. On the other the pole had cracked and we’d done a temporary repair with tape!

First step is to fish out the elastic that joins the pole sections together. Do this from the end nearest the break.

The first time I fixed a pole I bought the Vango tentpole kit, and it came with a nifty wire hook thing. It might be worth investing in a kit for your first repair or maybe you could fashion something from a wire coat hanger?

Since that first time I now just buy the odd pole that I need. S K Camping which is one of our favourite camping shops has a bucket of odd poles. You can take the broken one, find one that matches and buy just the one.

Once you’ve fished out the elastic you need to untie the knot.

Now take the poles apart, being extra careful to keep them in the right order!

Once you’ve located the broken pole, cut your replacement section to the right size.

 

Next you need to file the end to remove any sharp edges.

Now re-thread the elastic through all the sections – in the correct order.

Tie off the elastic at the end. You’ll want to do something like a triple knot, just to be sure it holds.

And good as new – you’re ready for your next camping trip!

L

Beating the lock down rush

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I was very excited to hear that campsites could reopen from 4 July 2020. But finding one with availability was tricky!

The usual suspects were either booked up or not open…but on the pitch up website it shows similar campsites in the area…. and voila new options were found!

In my excitement, I almost booked one without toilets or running water – so my advice is to double check facilities before confirming your booking!!!

Our first two campsites of the season will be ones we’ve not been to before. Can’t wait to report back!

R

Wood storage

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In the last post I was saying I bulk bought Heat Logs at B&Q.  We also never waste wood.  If we buy some when we’re camping and don’t use it all, we take it home and squirrel it away to use another time!

But I don’t have a lot of space at home, so where to keep it?  Well, here’s where it’s lived very happily all through the winter:

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An ordinary black dustbin!  Our council moved over to using wheelie bins, so my old bin was going spare.

It doesn’t look so pretty , but the flowers help a bit!

L