South Africans love the outdoors, perhaps more so than ever after a revival of enthusiasm for local travel over recent years.
If you’re unpacking the appeal of a holiday under the stars for the first time, prices and the sheer volume of gear at your nearest outdoor store might be off-putting, but that shouldn’t be the case.
Learn from the Experienced
There’s no greater relief on a camping trip than going with people who know what they’re doing; they’ve thought of everything and then some – a tub for carrying the washing up to the ablution block (and a sponge and a mini bottle of Sunlight), bags for wet clothes on the drive home, and a bin for the campsite instead of the usual mournful bin bag hanging from a tree.
Camping as a first-timer with no one to show you the ropes is daunting, so try organising a group that includes experienced people. Most campers have learned to camp from the generations before them: if you’ve grown up collecting firewood and seeing your gran struggle off a blow-up mattress in the morning, it’s easy to do it yourself as an adult and not think anything of it.
Picture: Sourced
Sharing is Caring
If you’re new to camping but have friends who aren’t, chances are they’ll have the gear you need when you go on trips. Great! To reduce costs and give you time to work out what kind of gear you favour, borrow from friends, family or community hiking groups for your next trip. If you’re doubtful about borrowing from strangers, remember that nature addicts are particularly friendly and eager to support new converts to camping life. They might even set up your tent for you if you’re clueless!
Gear doesn’t need to be new and fancy to be effective; men made it to the South Pole 100 years ago without GPS, fridges and Patagonia fleeces.
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Beg, Borrow, Rent
As South Africans, we’re fairly new to the rental economy when it comes to anything but property. In the UK, for example, there are Libraries of Things, where people can borrow tools, baking equipment and games.
There are a few sites here now where campers can rent what they don’t have. Visit gocamp.co.za or scuttle.co.za to explore their catalogues and rustle up the budget for a gazebo, groundsheet or binoculars. If you don’t know where to start, they also offer camping combos for two people that cover the basics.
Manage Your Expectations
Set off with the right perspective – camping is not supposed to be convenient, like everyday life. You’re going camping, which means you willingly sleep on or near the ground where there may not be any phone signal or even electricity. The nearest tap might be a two-minute walk away, though I advise you to be as close to a water source as possible.
You might get too cold or hot as you sleep in a tent that might be too small to stand up in, and you need to pack everything away at night in case it rains, or animals raid your site. All your clothes will smell like smoke, and the sunrise will wake you up way too early. If it doesn’t, your neighbours’ kids certainly will.
And how wonderful.
The point of camping is to unplug, dramatically change your scenery from desk to dawn tea and rusks, and spend uninterrupted time with people you wish you could see more often. Don’t worry about the mattress, the miggies, the phone.
Embrace the Spreadsheet
When it comes to planning trips, the ‘planner’ friends shine. Use a shared document on Google Sheets to list who’s bringing what and how much and your meal plan – that’s a big one; you don’t want to get to a campsite and learn there are 56 eggs and one pack of bacon.
Packing for a camping trip can get complicated, especially when you’re borrowing things from your own home to take with you. Having a checklist to keep track of what you’ve packed is helpful.
Not a Braai Master? No Problem
If cooking over a fire for every meal is intimidating, there are other options. My favourite alternative to a braai is a skottel. Gas-powered and easy to use, a skottel serves many purposes: from boiling water to cooking a massive breakfast fry-up, it’s a worthwhile purchase to streamline food and water prep while camping.
Preparing food ahead for the trip is another suggestion. A cooked curry, for example, gives you a meal for your first night that saves you all the prep while you’re pitching tents, finding a good spot, and trying to do it all before the sun goes down.
Brands like Mama Alles also sell delicious, nutritious pre-packaged meals that you can easily prepare at a campsite without fussing about raw ingredients and keeping things fresh.
Set Yourself Up for Success
While there’s something admirable about spontaneity and seizing the day by hitting the road towards adventure, there’s also good sense in being as prepared as you can.
When planning a trip, check the weather forecast, familiarise yourself with the campsite’s rules and facilities, and give your group enough time to source equipment and food. Some campsites only accept payment in cash, for example, or require a printed confirmation of your booking to show at the gate.
Camping comes with enough surprises, so don’t make it more complicated by going in blind.
Simple Touches
If you were stranded on a desert island, what one luxury would you want with you? Similarly, what are one or two small things you’d take on a camping trip for your comfort?
It could be a mirror for the tent, a pack of wet wipes (although those should be in your standard packing list), a moon bag to keep all your essentials on you while missioning around the camp, or cash to buy an ice lolly from the campsite shop.
More practically and less personally, simple touches for the campsite go a long way. We’ve touched on the dustbin already, but it’s worth repeating – having a bin on site helps keep your area neat and free of flies.
Picture: Sourced
Tap into Your Wild Side
Camping brings out the best in people. Without our modern armour of smartphones, spotless shoes and schedules, we can just be. If you want to sit in a camping chair at 6 am and have three rusks with Milo and then eat a cold piece of boerie with your fingers, you can. If you want to read your book in a hammock all afternoon, you’d better do it!
I have seen women look more radiant as they camp with undone hair and no make-up chatting away by the fire than when they put in a lot of effort in the city but are stressed and worn down. Kids are happier, eat better, sleep better. Men relax and become philosophers at the braai, clicking tongs at each other and saying, ‘Ja, man, but this is what life is really about.’
So, for those few precious days away from Wi-Fi and woes, dive in. We all look a bit bedraggled, but we look that way together.
What are you Made of and Made For?
Remember why you’ve gone camping in the first place. We don’t load up our cars, leave our beds and roofs behind, and pick a place to sleep under a tree for nothing. We do it for the beauty, peace and fun! In our modern, pampered lives, it’s good to rough it occasionally and find perspective at the end of a communal sink queue.
Memories made camping are enduring, ridiculous and rich. You’ll never forget a weekend’s camping trip because there’s nothing ordinary about choosing a slower pace of life with friends in a world that tries to make us go faster and be more furiously online.
So, see you out there?
This article was written by Stef Martin for Getaway’s January 2025 print edition. Find us on shelves for more!
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