Self
Camping is the Marmite of outdoor activities: people either love it, or book the nearest hotel instead. I was in the latter group, until 18 months ago, when I undertook a 30-day camping challenge – which turned into a new life of all-weather living.
When I say ‘camping challenge’, that’s how I sold it to friends and co-workers, and anyone else who thought I’d lost the plot. It made me sound more like an adventurer than a hippy. And, at that point, maintaining a successful image was everything. In reality, I was camping because I was craving an escape from the drudgery of commuting two hours each way to work every day, and paying exorbitant bills on a flat I barely lived in. This drastic change was a leap into the unknown to stop me from burning out. So, as spring approached, I put all my unnecessary belongings into storage, quit my lease and went back to basics, while maintaining a professional job in the media.