mischavandenburg

[mischavandenburg]

First camping trip in the Netherlands - part 2

For me, it's all about the experience of sitting beside your tent, boiling water for tea and food, knowing that you carried in everything you need for the next 24 hours.

You evaluate your needs, you go back to basics. And I discovered that I don't need to be in Norway for that. Norway was a great place to become an outdoorsman and learn the skills. But it doesn't matter where I practice them. For a long time I had a resistance of doing it in the Netherlands because "it wasn't genuine wilderness" or "there were too many people". But honestly whether you do it on a managed camping ground, or on the top of a mountain, this essence of the experience is the same. And I'm very glad I discovered this.

From here on out I can pack my bag on Friday afternoon, drive somewhere, and camp for a few days to go back to basics. Right here in my home country. And I can do the more elaborate trips in my holidays in the North!

[mischavandenburg]

First camping trip in the Netherlands - part 1 I went for my first overnight camping trip in the Netherlands, after I moved back here after 9 years in Norway. I went to the Veluwe, and stayed at Ravenest camping. I did a 12km hike called "het pad van Zus" It has been a lovely experience. It was Ascenscion weekend, but I met surpsrisingly few people in the woods.

I was very pleased with the forests and the nature. I felt a sense of seclusion and peace, and it honestly felt just like being in Norway.

A major advantage of the Dutch forests was that the walking path was very well marked and it was easy terrain to hike in. This allowed for a much more meditative experience because I didn't need to spend so much effort on orienteering.

However, I was very glad that I brought a map, because there were a couple of poles missing and I ended up going off course for a bit here and there. It was fun to find my way back again using the map and compass.

[mischavandenburg]

Went to Heemskerk today. Broke my running record and ran 10km for the first time in my life by running to the beach and back to the car. Picked up my backpack and continued on a 5km hike in the woods. Drank Sheng Pu Erh for the first time sitting in the sun by a tree stump.

Lovely experience to have gong fu tea out in nature, definitely something I’ll be doing much more of in the time to come!

Let’s see how tanned I can get these white legs from running outside.

[mischavandenburg]

I’m really bad at taking photos and storing them. I have my own website where I run a blog and write about the things that interest me. I am experimenting with applying this to pictures as well.