City girl, country boy: camping together for the first time

City girl, country boy: camping together for the first time

I've always been impressed with Kia when it comes to outdoor adventures. Since our first big trip, when we spent a day hiking through the Cambodian jungle in torrential rain, Kia has proven remarkably resilient.

Since then, we've hiked slippery peaks, fallen deep underground in pitch-black darkness, and waded through ice-cold highland rivers, and she's always handled it with grace and courage.

She even put me to shame when it came to skydiving, barely flinching as she plunged from a plane at 12,000 feet. She's definitely earned her stripes, so I thought it was time to put her to the test and go camping together for the first time. And where better to do that than on a tropical beach?

There's comfortable sand underfoot to sleep on, warm weather to keep her from getting too cold, and nearby amenities including showers, toilets, a small kitchen, and a covered lounge area above the Pacific Ocean surf. Electricity was available for a few hours in the evening and there were even solar lamps to use after dark.

It was a long walk from the icy and stormy slopes of the Cairngorms with nothing but a self-dug hole for a toilet - what could go wrong?

Day 1 – So far, so good

It all started pretty well. Kia was impressed with the amount of space in the tent, even going so far as to say it was cozy. We had a nice meal at a local restaurant and explored the area before turning in for the night. Her only real complaint was the condition of the showers and I can't blame her for that.

For some reason the plumber had decided to install the shower and toilet next to each other. I mean right next to each other, or rather on top of each other. So when you use the toilet the shower drips on you and when you use the shower you bang your legs against the edge of the toilet as you pour water over it.

Even I, a hardened wild camper, found them pretty nasty and think a self-dug hole might have been more hygienic and easier to use.

Day 2 – The first signs

“How did you sleep, baby?” I asked hesitantly when we woke up in the morning.

“Bad,” came the expressionless answer. "I couldn't sleep on the inflatable pillow. We'll have to try something different tonight." After a short period of silence, her spirits quickly lifted as she opened the tent to see the beautiful crystal clear waters of the ocean stretching out under a cloudless blue sky.

We ate breakfast in the common area while trying to ignore the owners' three dogs, who were, to use Kia's words, "all in our grill." Kia doesn't feel comfortable around dogs, so she was constantly restless around camp.

No matter: we soon set off to explore the island. We hiked a short trail along the Taveuni coast, enjoying some beautiful views along the way and finishing with a swim in a clear pool beneath a waterfall. In the evening she was relaxed again. However, the pillow experiment didn't go so well in the evening and Kia was close to exhaustion.

This was after another freezing cold shower, a slimy surprise from a large toad landing on her foot in the toilet (in the dark so she had no idea what it was and therefore freaked out), dogs barking relentlessly around the tent, a shower door falling off its hinges and humidity rising in the tent!

All in all, it made for a tiring evening and a terrible night's sleep. This time the view from the tent offered no relief.

Day 3 – What can only be described as a glitch

A day of lounging on the beach, swimming in the water and basking in the sun didn't improve Kia's mood. The dogs followed us everywhere, yapping at our feet and licking any exposed skin. Kia found it more than a little boring.

By now, sand had soaked everything in and around the tent, including our sleeping bags and luggage. Plus, with a year of traveling with clothes and gear, organizing yourself and your luggage in such a small space is no easy task. I could see that Kia was starting to struggle.

That night, as we failed in another attempt to make a reasonably comfortable pillow, Kia finally snapped. It was getting dark and after making our final trip to the wet and dirty toilets we were scared to death when the dogs jumped out of the bushes in one of their wild outbursts.

I recovered fairly quickly and saw the funny side of it - growing up in the country with dogs and pets meant this was a pretty common experience.

Kia reacted a little differently. I can only describe it as a collapse. I won't go into detail, but there was an unprecedented roar of anger and, yes, there were sobs... This ordeal had broken her.

Further…

Luckily for Kia – and our relationship – we were on assignment next, so we would be spending five days at a luxury resort. She survived the night and we left for more comfortable accommodations in the morning.

Incredibly, the experience didn't stop her from camping, even though she vowed to need cleaner toilets and showers in the future. She also suggested that three nights in a row remain the limit for our camping stops, and we agreed on a cap of six nights per month (20 percent).

I spend a lot of time wild camping. I enjoy escaping the confines of a city life like the one I lead in London. I like to strip away all the unnecessary things in my life and just stick with the basics. But I also appreciate that this is quite unique and certainly not for everyone.

There's no shame in needing a little comfort. And there's certainly no shame in finding a compromise. Personally, I'd like to camp more, but Kia and I plan to be on the road most of the year, so we'll have to find compromises along the way.

Camping is one of them and that's a good thing. There's no need to slum it all the time - it doesn't prove anything. We made a big decision to take this trip. The most important thing is that we are happy and enjoying ourselves as much as possible.

Mission statement: Atlas & Boots

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