Camping.

We're back in British summer time, it's getting warmer, there's a spring feel permeating the atmosphere full of promise, optimism and forward thinking. Camping season is almost upon us. It wont be long before were sitting by the fire getting drunk, singing bad songs and burning foodstuffs. I love the midge bites, animal attacks, eyes full of wood smoke, poor quality sleeping bags, swimming in jellyfish infested waters, eating wilted nettles, dehydrated hiking and endless moaning associated with camping. I love the sunsets, I love the sunrises, I love the creepy noises in the dark, I love getting soaked and shivering half the night away.
I've been in tents that caught fire, tents filled with sick and dead crickets, tents that have melted, tents that were underwater, freezing tents with no sleeping bag, tents that bent over to touch my face in gale force winds, festival tents, tents with no one around for 30 miles, tents with shady drunken girls using a tin of beans for a pillow, tents with unruly BMXers, tents with Mr Pants when he shit himself, tents with the scouts as a boy, tents in truck stops next to Gypsy encampments, tents on mountain passes, tents in the park, tents in German anarchist squats and tents on the hard shoulder of the M25.
Every time I've been camping I've come away from it thinking it was a positive experience. Even when I thought I would not survive the duration of the night it was even more amazing the next morning. Even the time it was torrential rain in Amsterdam and it felt like there was a river or quagmire under the tent and there was a constant drip drip dripping on my forehead like Chinese water torture, being unable to move sandwiched between Wally and Lewis all I could do was pull my waterproof jacket over my face and try to keep my sanity. Camping is character building, it's good free fun, it's an awesome reason to get friends together and it's associated with many of my best memories.

Here's some photos after the jump of an NSF camping trip to Scotland that went down last summer.

 

 

Let's get on it, sooner rather than later and go again. Somewhere without midges this time please.