Great Camping Hunt

magpiesnest

hi swee'pee, sounds interesting. i would indeed be interested in the contents of your list or if onyone else wants to get there lists out! feel free.

rgcol5

We too, use plastic storage boxes to store everything eg. kitchen, lights and lamps, cutlery, crockery and tent pegs. It helps packing away and all is ready the next time.
We tend to take our quilt and pillows with us, in the car, for the extra comfort. This depends on car space, but is worth it .
A cool box full of beer and wine, topped up with ice is a lot cheaper (and nearer) than the pub.
Cook a curry and put it in a pressure cooker for your first night. Just heat and eat.
Stop at a supermarket for 'Hot Chicken' and bags of salad. Cheaper and nicer than cafe/pub food.
Pack things in the car like socks and underwear in glove box and door storage.
In summer the inside of your car gets quite hot, even when it rains. This is good for drying towels and wet clothes.
A condom keeps matches dry.
CARRY ON CAMPING.

therichnessinside

Here's my tips:

Get hold of a large piece of plastic or something to place under your groundsheet, to protect your groundsheet! Maybe this sounds bit extreme, but if you camp regularly there really is a good chance of stray sharp stone or glass doing its worst..

And have a real campfire if you possibly can. It changes your camping experience completely, puts it in a different league.

If you're a sensible sort of camper, ie not a drunk or whatever, think about carrying a paraffin lamp to find your way in a dark field. It's so much nicer than a too-bright gas or electric light, for other people and also to not disturb the wildlife and little night creatures. And you'll have a much more natural experience rather than changing the whole environment. After all, why blast the lovely countryside into massive brightness if you don't need to....

And of course Rule Number One, which is Whatever you do, keep your bedding dry.

Happy camping x

izoomzoom

swee'pea wrote: »

Is anybody interested in the contents of my lists?

Aaaah, go on, tell us ...

magpiesnest

finally persuaded people to come camping with us. only thing is they want good shower block facilities as it's thier first time camping. not wanting to ruin the experience i am looking for a campsite in the lakes with a good play area and good toilet block, somewhere we could light a campfire would be a bonus. been on ukcampsite but could search for hours. any recommendations out there?

kilapot

Have my eye on the following products and was looking for opinions on them..... I'm off to Europe with the girlie and car (boot space is a premium, unfortunately smaller boxes no good as they wont take a bottle of sparkling wine)

http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/5709388003300

cools to roughly 20 below ambient temp, states range of 18-25 below and is the only box of the three that can be used on mains power

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_196865_langId_-1_categoryId_33951 cools to 20 below ambient temp, cord can be removed entirely

http://www.woolworths.co.uk/web/jsp/product/index.jsp?pid=50972401
only cools 15 below ambient, cord permanently wired in

Its a shame that genuine fridges as opposed to electric coolers are so pricey.

Whilst this will be the first year of use, I'm intending on doing a lot of camping in the near future. Have really only done rough camping on long walks (West Highland Way etc) apart from my own childhood.

nickj_2

if you have found a camp site and want to know if it's next to a nuclear reactor or motorway etc you can check it out at http://maps.google.co.uk/
enter the post code if you know it or the village etc
click on the satelite view and you can see what it's like

Savvysal

magpiesnest wrote: »

finally persuaded people to come camping with us. only thing is they want good shower block facilities as it's thier first time camping. not wanting to ruin the experience i am looking for a campsite in the lakes with a good play area and good toilet block, somewhere we could light a campfire would be a bonus. been on ukcampsite but could search for hours. any recommendations out there?

Hiya

I took the kids there last year - superb facilities having both showers and baths to choose from and a fab kids adventure playground. Also a games room, TV room, pub and shop on site. When I find the URL I'll post it for you. I paid about £20 per night I think, but that was all in. The site was slightly sloping, although level pitches are available. You are allowed barbeques I think - not so sure about open campfires you'd have to check.

Here is the URL http://www.thequietsite.co.uk/

Bargainfinder_3

Hi all, we go camping quite a lot now, as it is a great way of holidaying for a reasonable cost, although the price has gone up quite a bit recently.

A few things I would suggest - beware the idilyic riverside camp sites. They look beautiful, but you will be eaten to death by midges!! Insects are a risk anywhere, but if you are by the water, the perils are tripled!!!

Don't forget to take Washing up Liquid and tea towels, I nearly always used to, and ended up having to buy some (not good), there's nothing worse than doing a cooked breakfast and then not being able to wash the grease off!

If you cant afford a cool box which plugs in to your car, simply take a bucket, and fill with cold water. This keeps milk cold really well. Also depending on where you camp, some places have a communal fridge/freezer for you to re-freeze ice-packs - ask about this as it's not always obvious.

If you're thinking of camping in the UK, some camp sites have gotten really expensive, but if you're not too fussy about brilliant facilities, there are gems hiding away. And if you really want to get back to nature, then a lot of farmers in Wales are willing for you to put a tent in their fields, as long as you ask permission. Free - but a bush for a toilet puts me off;-)

Has anyone here ever taken a dog camping? We took ours for the first time 3 weeks ago, and the tent is still suffering, does anyone have any tips?!!

Thanks,
Bargain Finder xx

ladybez

New Tent
Finally found a bargain, which my dd said I must have. Coleman 9 man tent reduced from £349.00 to £79.00. Will now be able to take my Brownies camping. Thanks Go-Outdoors, you will hvae made 6 girls very happy.