Well, I have just been on my first camping trip since the girl guides, and I'm 41!!!!!
I enjoyed putting up the tent and cooking outside and the views were amazing. We stayed at the campsite on Loch Long at Ardgarten. (Hope I'm spelling that right). We only stayed one night (to break me in).
What I loved: Sleeping in the tent. It was really cheap. The views. The sense of freedeom. Cooking/eating outside. Not having to worry about what I looked like.
What I didn't love: The whole "toilet/shower block thing". Yak! Maybe it was just the site we were on, but they seemed old.
I am now thinking I could only ever go camping for 1-2 nights because I can "clean myself" if you know what I mean, but anything over 2 nights, I would HAVE to have a shower.
Any advice on getting over this?
Thank you in advance. x
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hi there, some sites have fabulous toilet and shower facilities, (some even have family bathrooms) some are much more basic, old, or even just horrible!!!
people do rig up there own shower systems from time to time, im sure those that do will be along soon and tell you how they do it!
im glad you enjoyed the rest of the camping experience, its truly fab!
welcome to the site, there are lots of other peeps on here from Newcastle too!
------------- "He is your friend, your partner, your defender, your dog. You are his life, his love, his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion." In memory of Bear. 06/03/06 - 25/01/12 Izzie 23/09/07 - 25/03/13
Good Idea about taking the 'croc' type shoes to wear in the shower, but you will go to sites where the showers are brilliant. It is all about reading the reviews to get some idea.
Don't forget to leave a review of the campsites you have visited this year or last!
Please dont be put off by the showers - sites these days offer wonderful showers and toilets and are usually kept very clean. One site I use is obsessed with the cleanliness of the showers and toilets and check them every hour - they pride themselves knowing that they offer splendid facilities.
I have been to some sites where the facilities are old but they are still useable - as long as they are clean thats all that matters.
Kitten x
Welcome to the site and good luck for future trips
------------- Degsy Rowlands is my love, my life and a lunatic!!!!!!!! Louise x
What was the problem with the showers/toilets? Were they old/dirty/generally nasty or do you generally have "an issue" with communal facilities?
If these were just manky then read the reviews of other sites and perhaps ask for views before you go to them. I'd second having shoes to wear in the shower, I just wear cheap flip flops in the shower (I don't wear them to and from so they are always clean).
If generally you're unhappy with this stuff you can DIY. We have a porta-loo that we use on sites where there aren't any facilities. It's very straightforward to prepare, use, empty and clean - we mainly use ours in a spare bedroom but we also have a separate toilet/shower tent that we sometimes use.
When we go to sites with no showers we use one of these, we heat water either using solar shower bags or just on the stove top and then drop the submursible pump into a pot of water and shower in the shower tent (or just on the pitch in our swimming cossies sometimes!).
Well I think I can do better than that! I can't imagine anywhere more basic than where we have just come back from. It was a rather hilly field in the middle of Upper Booth, Hope Valley, Edale, Derbyshire. It was £2 each and 50p for a car.
The field was covered in sheeps do and the rather attractive looking toilet was the only one of the site and was an outside one with no light, brick built, no toilet paper etc etc.
Taking all this aside, I too am a novice and this was my second trip and I still enjoyed it. I was a little worried at 2.30 this morning when I braced myself to use the facilities to find a sheep blocking the entrance to the toilet!
I can't wait to discover more camp sites and am getting more and more enthusiastic with each trip!
If anyone does fancy the experience it was called Highfield Farm - and we will be going back there again. Cheap and the views were breathtaking. Highly recommended.
Don't forget to leave a review of the campsites you have visited this year or last!
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Been camping for the first time
