What: Overnight Fieldtrip Forest Winter
When: January 31, 20
Where: Jegersberg, Kristiansand
This was first of many field trips we will be taking this semester. This first one we went on was just one overnight. We all gathered our equipment, packed up our big rucksacks and we were on our way. Little did we know that just about a short 15 minute walk later, we were at our destination. Jegersberg is just about 1 kilometer outside of our campus. It is a nice area for hiking, camping and cross country skiing. the area is surrounded by trees and forest area. There is also a decent size lake that right now is frozen over due to the cold winter temperatures.
It had been a while since I have been camping in colder conditions, although the weather wasn’t bad, just some rain and probably around -2 Celsius. I learned many things on this camping trip, one being to always wear more layers than you think is necessary (which thankfully I did). It is always, ALWAYS better to be over prepared and not have to use the extra things you bring than to be under prepared and not have the items you need in order to have a successful night of outdoor camping. You do always have to keep in mind the Outdoor Recreation Act also here in Norway known as the Allemannsrett- right of access which began 28 June 1957. What is really cool about Norway is that you can freely almost camp,hike or walk nearly anywhere-within reason. The Norwegians simply ask that you show respect for nature. Nine out of Ten Norwegians take part in some form of outdoor recreation.(Norwegian Environment Agency, 2016) Winter camping is much different than say spring or summer camping. To me, I think that there is a lot more that goes into it. You need more equipment, bulkier clothing and sleeping bags, extra layers, etc. You always need to be thinking of how you’re going to stay warm wether the temperature is -2 or -20. The most obvious in staying warm is appropriate clothing such as; wool underwear, wool socks (an extra pair too!), a warm second layer and your outer layer. If it is raining make sure that both your top and bottom outer layer are waterproof, not just water resistant. The only thing worse than being cold is being cold and wet. Next you have to think; do you want to search for logs and a good area for a fire or would you rather just use your storm kitchen? I personally enjoy the campfire route, especially if the conditions are right for it because making a fire while camping is said to improv your experience by 20% (; So lets say we want to build a fire. We will have to determine, what type for the time of year, a good spot for it and keep in mind the wind direction. A good type of fire to make is by doing “Lincoln logs”; you Americans will know what this is. You stack two logs parallel to each other then continue by stacking two more the other direction. Throw some kindle underneath and light that baby up. It will start of slow, but if you did it correctly it should start warming you up pretty quickly. Other than the obvious heat from a fire to keep you warm, it is a good idea to be active before hopping in to bed. We played activities all afternoon and after we ate dinner we all went on a little hike together near by. As for dinner-an exciting part of camping in the outdoors; there is 3 things you need to think about: nutrition, taste and weight. You need a healthy well balanced meal that you enjoy that doesn’t add to much space or weight. A simple meal we made included vegetables, rice and chicken. You have your micro nutrients from veggies, carbs from rice and protein from chicken.Cook with a lot of water, stay hydrated! There’s always the option of cooking your meat before hand to save time. Essentially throw everything in the storm kitchen and you have a great meal within 10 minutes or so. Although a storm kitchen makes cooking easy there are a few cons such as weight and having to bring the gas along too. If you don’t want to haul a storm kitchen you can make many great meals just inside tin foil over the fire!
This short overnight was fun with all my classmates and a great start to the semester. I am excited for more camp outs, group bonfires and team building activities.
References:
Norwegian enviroment agency, . 2016. Outdoor Recreation. [Online]. [13 February 2018]. Available from: enviroment.no/topics/outdoor-recreation/rapport