How not to pack for backwoods camping (but we survived)
Destination: First available camp site along a 7 mile loop (we walk until we find one)
Length: 3 days, 2 nights
Mission: Get the gear through the canyon floor, up the silty river, and up the foothills... with enough water for sustainable life (no reliable water sources)
Status: Successful completion minus car troubles
Ranking: 7/10
Here's the story about our Memorial Day Weekend 2017
I feel like there's a growing interest in camping, hiking, and backpacking in an attempt to get away from society and technology and get lost in your own little escape from the norm with an opportunity to discover something in you that you didn't quite know existed. So being the ever-aging somewhat crazy woman I am, I got to planning a backpacking/camping trip to a canyon area in Georgia (which is beautiful and unique by the way). I haven't camped in years and years and neither has my husband and most of my friends that joined us. Honestly, I think the last time was High School JROTC.
What's an adventure without a fair amount of unpredictability?
It's right around the same time I transition from the left side of my 20's and onto the dreaded right side and into 26 years of struggle, laughter, craziness, and all the rest of the words that could describe a life that is 50 shades of complete randomness so I'm up for anything insane to make me feel 21, fit, and fabulous. What better way than to celebrate doing something we haven't done with some of our closest also crazy friends who can't say no to the challenge?
So we prepared by buying the things we thought we needed like solar powered lanterns, discounted Greek style first aid kits, bargain sleeping bags and 50 pounds of food, loaded up our backpacks with between 65-85 pounds of "necessities" (depending upon who you were talking to) and we set out at 2:30am on a Saturday morning to reach the canyon and begin our hike by 10am. Dog included.
About 30 seconds in we started questioning my decision to do this as well as our abilities to hike down the steep hills and back up again. It didn't take long for the group to hate me (temporarily) and my husband to laugh about the situation, whilst Fiona was having the best day of her furry sheltie life, herding us up and down the trails while circling the group like a shark.
We stopped many times along the way. We panted. We ate snacks. We laughed. We may have cried and look like hunchbacks... but we made it to the campsite just about the same time as the group was about to put their plan of tossing me off the mountain in action. 
It's funny how the moment I literally thought some in the group were going to hyperventilate trying to catch their breaths... the moment I thought my back was literally going to leave my shoulders behind in the stumpy Earth, the moment the dog stopped having fun and started looking for a good place to lay and drink her weight in water... that's the time we saw the beautiful sight of a red '6' marking an empty shelter to claim as ours.
As weak as we were when we started this rather small journey, the end of it brought about a feeling of invincibility and a craving to do more, to challenge ourselves more, and to push every limit we thought we had because in the end we are capable of so much more than we think we are, and it's amazing!
I (as well as the group later admitted) learned so much over the last three days in the woods. We can carry around 70 pounds for miles and still find reasons to smile. Campfire coffee is literally the best taste in the world after a night of restless sleep... a 10$ sleeping pad is a laughable mistake, and a dog should be considered a third person in a two person tent. Oh! And as the first time peeing in the woods in a rather long amount of time it is terrifying when you hear some noise and imagine a wild animal attacking you in a squat position with your pants around your ankles. 
Overall, the love and support we had for getting each other to and from the campsite and providing an overwhelming amount of laughter and encouragement and self talk made for a priceless experience, despite the bug bites, bruises, soreness, and sweating we had to endure. We pushed our limits and found that we don't yet have any. We felt truly proud of ourselves and each other when we reached the top of that damn crazy steep hill back to the car (until we discovered the car was out of gas, but that's just crazy life).
My husband put together a video to document the trip so if you'd like to see a little more of the area and our little wolfpack in action, check it out! Our First Camping Trip
Comments
Post a Comment