Journal #23

Personally, I really do enjoy going camping and simply "unplugging" from electricity for a week or even more sometimes. My best time camping that I have ever had was definitely this past summer. I stayed in Jefferson National Forest for three weeks with seven other people that I did not previously know. While there, I worked on the Appalachian Trail building two hundred-fifty yards of brand new trail. The old section was located on private property, and so it had to be relocated. Anyway, we were without electricity, electronics, houses, cold food, sophisticated tools, and contact with the "outside world." It sounds a bit extreme, but I truly enjoyed myself. I think the reason that I like camping so much is that it gives you a chance to simply get away from it all. Of course I am referring to one's whole life in general. Before I went on this trip, I thought that I may be homesick since I had never been away from home alone for so long. But as it turned out, I was not homesick at all. I believe that this may have been because my crew and I kept so busy with work and normal everyday operations such as cooking. The simple life while camping helps greatly to take your mind off of troubling things in your life. It seems that all I really think about while camping is the situation at hand. This, along with the bonding and being in nature, is my favorite aspect about camping. I hope that someday soon, maybe in the spring, I can go camping out west somewhere, and while there, I could bring minimal supplies and possibly attempt to fish and hunt for my own food. I think this would be a really enjoyable experience for me to once again just get away from it all. While writing this blog entry, I am reminded of the novel "Into the Wild." The main character in this story travels into Alaska with minimal survival knowledge only because he is fed up with his life. I feel as though this is a good idea, but it could certainly be thought out better.