The Fear

[rhyan]

I need help!

Im 42 years young, shoot after dark, walk the dog before sunrise, have camped all my life and yet......

Have a fear of wild camping on my own!

I could camp where I shoot, know some cheeky woodland spots around the area but cannot bring myself to do it.

I think I am afraid of other people stumbling across me lol! My kit is more hiker (blue bivvy, yellow tarp. I don't want to spend money on new kit when I don't use what I have!)

Any advice please or any near Grantham fancy babysitting me for a night in return for a pie and a pint?

Pretty embarrassed in all honesty!

 

[Stevie777]

take the Dog and the Gun....you'll be fine.

 

[rhyan]

Lol

 

[Harvestman]

The only way of overcoming a fear is to face it.

The fact is that after dark there is no-one in the woods anyway except people camping, and unless it is the landowner anyone who did stumble across you would just pretend that they hadn't seen you. After all, you are camping in the woods so you might be a weirdo and not safe to approach. From their point of view it is best to leave you alone

So there is nothing to work about except the landowner, and as a responsible camper you would have gained permission beforehand so that isn't an issue either.

 

[mick91]

If you're a shooting man and worry about people seeing you then drape a camo net over the top? I think many of us will have had similar fears and its nothing to get embarrassed over. I'm beating my over Reliance on kit soon by doing my no gear challenge and that's pretty daunting but end of the day what's the worst likely to happen?

 

[rhyan]

Thanks guys. I know I'm being irrational and need to just do this!

 

[Chris the Fish]

It's all in the mind.....

Seriously, I do a job which has lots of incidences of people not wanting to do/see stuff as it holds certain mental cliches which people do not want to face, yet given a bit of support they find things are far worse in their head than in reality.

Camping on your own is strange at first, however give yourself something to occupy the mind such as carving or fire by friction, so it doesn't wander and become over active, and you'll be fine!

Dogs are a great source of companionship and security, not in the guard dog sense, but help in relieving the sense of being alone (they are also the best early warning system money can buy!)

Hope all goes well and if I wasn't so busy I'd join you (I'm in Leicester which isn't a million miles away)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[FKeate]

I tend to try and remember that the only real danger we have in modern Britain is people, and there don't tend to be many of them in the woods. When my friends ask me if I get scared I like to say "what you're afraid of is the crazy man with an axe, and that's normally me"

Coming from the city the quiet of the woods can be eery, it makes the smallest noise sound loud and threatening so if I do get a bit jumpy I pop my headphones in and listen to a bit of BBC 4 (I'm essentially a 60 year old in a 22 year old body)

 

[bearbait]

I used to wild camp in the long past with bivvy bag +/- tarp. I used to sleep OK. But I was always happier in open country with something at my back - a rock, a wall, a hollow, a sheep's nest (as I call them) - rather than being open (exposed) all around. Amongst trees no problem at all.

Had a badger come and check me out one night!

As suggested earlier in the thread, take man's best friend along with you. Unless it's a terrier. My terrier thought it great fun and wanted to hunt all night long!

 

[dragon32]

Many years ago my young son and I camped on Cannock Chase in the west Midlands. We first pitched up on a hill in the woods and spent a very comfortable night there listening to the radio and playing cards before sleep. Next day I could see the weather had changed and the wind really started to get its dander up so we moved off the hill and down near the road. We found a great place about 30 yards from a footpath and about a quarter of a mile from the Shoalhill tavern. Unfortunately out tent was bright orange so in theory we should have been visible from the footpath to all the drunks walking home from the pub. However, we just cut loads of ferns from away from the tent and camo'd the tent with them. It made for a very comfortable warm night and we became invisible to the casual observer. We even had a light and a radio going in the tent. It was only after we had packed up on the final day that my Dad told me it was illegal to camp on the Chase. If you worry about other people then just camo your gear.

Don

 

[rhyan]

Thanks everyone!

I am gonna do this! I have camped all my life and don't think I am afraid of the dark. I might try the dog, Jake is a mental Border Collie who is more skittish than me - could be a match made in hell

Watch this space for a trip report....

 

[Goatboy]

Good luck, hope you have fun and find how good it can be. Being alone in some of the places I've worked or visited has made life special for me. I generally like being alone though I'll admit that I've been spooked at times, I think we all have though most don't admit to it. There was a good thread a while back (which maybe you shouldn't read on reflection) called "Fear Of The Dark" (must go find it and find out how pistachio man got on! ), where folks including myself told of spooky experiences we've had. But in forty odd years of sleeping out I've only had a couple of scares while staying out on my own and the possitive nights have far outweighed and been very magical.
Have fun and let us know how it goes for you.
ATB,
GB.

Sent via smoke-signal from a woodland in Scotland.

 

[sunndog]

Good luck, hope you have fun and find how good it can be. Being alone in some of the places I've worked or visited has made life special for me. I generally like being alone though I'll admit that I've been spooked at times, I think we all have though most don't admit to it. There was a good thread a while back (which maybe you shouldn't read on reflection) called "Fear Of The Dark" (must go find it and find out how pistachio man got on! ), where folks including myself told of spooky experiences we've had. But in forty odd years of sleeping out I've only had a couple of scares while staying out on my own and the possitive nights have far outweighed and been very magical.
Have fun and let us know how it goes for you.
ATB,
GB.

Sent via smoke-signal from a woodland in Scotland.

Ha ha, i was trying resist mentioning that thread. long before i signed up on here but what a cracking read it was

 

[Tommyd345]

I find as long as you have a fire and keep yourself distracted you'll be ok. I'll admit, my brain goes into hyper drive and has me reaching for the axe as soon as I see a funny shadow or think I hear something. Recently I got s torch that has a great spotlight. I just shine it in the area that spooked me, realise my fear was daft, and then continue with the evening I wish I had a dog to take with me, iv been out with dogs before and maybe it's a subconscious thing, but i never find myself spooked when there is a dog nearby
Anyway have fun, and keep busy!

Ps spoon carving in the dark. Bad idea, I got a nice deep cut once from doing that... Cordage or basket weaving is a good one

 

[Goatboy]

Ha ha, i was trying resist mentioning that thread. long before i signed up on here but what a cracking read it was

It's a cracking read. Speaking of reading, a good book is always with me, that and a journal to pop my thoughts and sketches into; distracts the mind wonderfully. If readings not your thing audio books on a MP4 player can be good thing. Mine also has an inbuilt radio so I can pick up Radio 4 & the World Service. The shipping forecast & "Sailing by" has a calming effect as you lay there. I know one chap who writes poetry by the firelight. Not my thing personaly but I do do a bit of creative scribbling while out as the environment gets my mind flowing.

Sent via smoke-signal from a woodland in Scotland.

 

[Draven]

I have to admit that I don't usually like being alone anywhere. Now, I wouldn't call myself a social butterfly but I like having one or two people around for company most of the time.

That being said, I like being alone in the woods more than I like being alone in town/at home.

The trick is to force yourself to do it until you're more scared of people than of being alone

I had an extremely superstitious mother who raised me on folklore, which I think was a boon. If you can see an ecosystem as a living thing, or all living things as sentient, or accept trees/squirrels/mice/bobcats and so on as being as relevant to our world as you are, it's relatively easy to be on your own in the woods without ever feeling as alone as in a city.

 

[GrizzlyGrant]

If its of any help i had my first solo camp on Friday. i pitched up and it was light (around 8pm) had a fire going and was settled down and cooking before it was dark. that helped me a lot!! i probably had one of the best, undisturbed sleep for a camp, and didn't wake needing to use the toilet either which is very strange for me. When i finally awoke it was almost 9am...

Moral of the story- get comfortable before dark.. it makes the world of difference.

All the best and i hope your conquer it

 

[Harvestman]

If its of any help i had my first solo camp on Friday. i pitched up and it was light (around 8pm) had a fire going and was settled down and cooking before it was dark. that helped me a lot!! i probably had one of the best, undisturbed sleep for a camp, and didn't wake needing to use the toilet either which is very strange for me. When i finally awoke it was almost 9am...

Moral of the story- get comfortable before dark.. it makes the world of difference.

All the best and i hope your conquer it

Good story and advice. When going solo I'm often in bed early, because there is no point sitting around a campfire with no-one to talk to. Then you wake up early and get to enjoy the morning that you usually miss.

A good result all round. Well done.

 

[Stevie777]

Just a word of advice...If you hear raucous laughter in the distance and smell burgers and or Curries, resist the desire to go investigating. You will only end up in a bevvy session with strangers. I know this because......

 

[bearbait]

Moral of the story- get comfortable before dark.. it makes the world of difference.

A +1 to this. Get all your admin done and gear tidied away before the dark, and enjoy the last few mins. of daylight.

Also consider taking a pee bottle to your bed chamber with you. Saves staggering around in the dark. I use a 1L Nalgene bottle - marked with a BIG "P" - so it should not be mistaken!