Last summer, a group of friends and I set out on a big camping expedition. Our destination: a festival in Cornwall.
After the 5 hour drive from our hometown to the beautiful cliffs of Watergate Bay, we were excited for a weekend spent listening to music and exploring the nearby cliffs and beaches.
Some friends had arrived before my car load and had already selected a pitch. It was on a hill. All of you experienced campers out there will have alarm bells ringing in your ears right now. If possible, hills should be avoided altogether when camping; you are much more exposed to the elements uphill and bad weather can cause the tent to flood.
My tent buddy and I had a sturdy, fully lined tent which we pitched according to our surroundings with the entrance facing downhill and our heads up. Armed with our stash of spare tent pegs as well as a blow up bed and hanging torches we felt pretty prepared for the weekend ahead.
My friends Georgina and Kyra, however, were not so well kitted out. The night before the festival they had bought themselves a beach style, pop up tent with a loose flap covering the entrance. Whilst the weather forecast seemed promising at the time, this was a very optimistic if not naïve move. If that wasn’t bad enough, the sleeping bag that 19 year old Kyra had brought with her was suitable for a child under the age of 10 and barely came up to her ribs (what was she thinking?!).
For the first 3 days of the festival the weather was sunny and we all had a great time. One day we managed to get out walking on the stunning South West Coastal path and saw lots of birds: starlings en masse, chiff chaffs( summer migrants singing their own name) and even some little egrets.
But, on Saturday the remnants of hurricane Bertha (an unusual tropical cyclone from the northeast Bahamas) hit the Cornish coast. That night we endured the relentless rain, whilst listening to the headline acts, before trudging back to our tents as quickly as we could.
As I snuggled down into my PJs and mummy sleeping bag the tent shook in the brutal wind. But once I put my earplugs in I slept like a baby. The rest of the campsite was not so lucky.
I woke up on Sunday morning, peeked out of the tent’s canopy and saw the pandemonium caused by Bertha’s late night visit. Tents had been ruined by the winds, some lifting from the ground and flying like flags from their flimsy tent poles. Rogue toilet rolls flew through the air like white party streamers: Bertha’s breath blowing them ever higher. Worst of all, one of the portaloos at the top of the campsite had blown over... I won’t go into details.
I emerged from my tent to see Georgina and Kyra shivering on their camp chairs. They had not slept a wink; their tent was totally flooded. The loose flap covering the entrance allowed the rain to stream in throughout the night. Their hair and clothes were totally drenched and pools of water had settled on their groundsheets and in their sleeping bags. As they sat there damp and miserable the rest of the group and I wrapped them up in warm clothes and got them both a hot drink.
Due to the bad weather the remainder of the festival was cancelled. Thousands of unhappy campers began packing up and we spent the morning harnessing Georgina and Kyra’s wet belongings to tent poles to try and dry them in the wind.
Despite the backlash of hurricane Bertha we had a great time at Watergate Bay. The festival was great, the surroundings beautiful and we were lucky enough to see some really cool birdlife. Most importantly Georgina and Kyra learned the importance of thorough preparation and appropriate equipment when going on a camping adventure!
Want a camping adventure of your own? Head over to our website to find Big Wild Sleepout events near you! http://www.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/discoverandlearn/sleepout/ourplaces.aspx
Want advice on how to get ready for a camping trip? http://www.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/discoverandlearn/sleepout/getready/index.aspx
My top tips for camping:
1. Don’t camp on a hill!
2. Bring a suitable sleeping bag.
3. Bring a suitable tent
4. Bring spare tent pegs
5. Bring a set of earplugs!