Wild camping .. sans tent

[StigBentsen]

Hey all!

I'll be doing the camino in June, and in order to keep down the weight of my backpack and the cost of gear, I'm contemplating doing it without a tent, and just bring a mosquito net instead.

Would this be a terrible, terrible idea, or is the weather and surroundings hospitable enough to allow this?


Thanks.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

If you find heavy rain, you can always retreat to an albergue!! June is reasonably dry, and normally warm, so a bug tent will be fine, probably.

 

[StigBentsen]

And there's no wildlife to be aware of (especially thinking about wild boars)?

 

[Deleted member 3000]

An interesting question! There are no reports of any, but then so few pilgrims camp, wild or otherwise, that the absence of reports may be because of an absence of beasts OR and absence of campers! There are snakes, boar, and bear in Spain. The bear seem to be in the northern mountains, but they go where the food is.

 

[Caminando]

Hey all!

I'll be doing the camino in June, and in order to keep down the weight of my backpack and the cost of gear, I'm contemplating doing it without a tent, and just bring a mosquito net instead.

Would this be a terrible, terrible idea, or is the weather and surroundings hospitable enough to allow this?


Thanks.

Take a goretex bivouac sac*, with mosquito net attached- about 500 grams -1 kilo. This will also stop the ants entering. Ants are ok till you roll on them when sleeping, then they bite. But take also a thin plastic groundsheet to keep dirt off your bivouac sac. Or use your poncho.

The way you wish to go will set you free to stop when you wish.

* mine is a cheap ex-military one.

 

[Sojourner47]

Hey all!



Thanks.

Take a goretex bivouac sac*, with mosquito net attached- about 500 grams -1 kilo. This will also stop the ants entering. Ants are ok till you roll on them when sleeping, then they bite. But take also a thin plastic groundsheet to keep dirt off your bivouac sac. Or use your poncho.

The way you wish to go will set you free to stop when you wish.

* mine is a cheap ex-military one.

Uptodate equivalent: Terra Nova Jupiter Goretex Bivi tent, expensive,heavier than some one-man tents, but easy to pitch,waterproof and low profile/discrete. My next buy.

 

[Sojourner47]

I hasten to add, I have no connection with Terra Nova, unfortunately......

 

[Br. David]

There are wolves. There are many wolves. Most wolves in Spain are in Galicia (gulp).
They are quite shy though and you will never see them - well, I say that ........

http://www.iberianature.com/material/wolf.html- apparently it is the wolf/dog hybrid that is the scary one ..... :shock:

Trick with keeping such animals away (I'm told) is to urinate around the perimeter of your camp, a little every couple of feet, all the way round :wink:

p.s. Best not to practise this at home

 

[andy.d]

These sorts of bivi bag are good:

http://bivibag.org.uk/

I use an alpkit hunka. Very light, keeps ypu dry unless it's raining very hard. You can also take a lighter sleeping bag and put it in the bivi bag in albergues if you're walking when it's not summer,

Andy

 

[Caminando]

There are wolves. There are many wolves. Most wolves in Spain are in Galicia (gulp).
They are quite shy though and you will never see them - well, I say that ........

http://www.iberianature.com/material/wolf.html- apparently it is the wolf/dog hybrid that is the scary one ..... :shock:

Trick with keeping such animals away (I'm told) is to urinate around the perimeter of your camp, a little every couple of feet, all the way round :wink:

p.s. Best not to practise this at home

As far as I´m aware Dave, there are no authenticated instances of wolves attacking people anywhere, despite the folklore.

 

[Caminando]

These sorts of bivi bag are good:

http://bivibag.org.uk/

I use an alpkit hunka. Very light, keeps ypu dry unless it's raining very hard. You can also take a lighter sleeping bag and put it in the bivi bag in albergues if you're walking when it's not summer,

Andy

Mine is the military one shown tho at half the price in a surplus store.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Another reason to camp in Spain:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-14065432

 

[+@^^]

if there is one regret i have
it is having not slept wild on at least one of my 42 nites

 

[lynnejohn]

I suddenly find this idea very appealing!

I have never camped or tented outdoors in my life, but I can think of several good reasons to take such a tent, even as a back-up, on the Camino. I've looked at the Terra Nova Jupiter Goretex Bivi tent (among others) and I think it's manageable, both in terms of size/weight and ease of setup.

Don't know if I'll make that leap when the time comes round again to walk a Camino, but it's now an option that we'll consider.

Do you think this idea is going to catch on, creating a backlash from the Spanish people and/or the government against the hundreds and thousands of tents littering the landscape? :wink:

 

[+@^^]

if all pilgrims camped wild
it would resemble Woodstock back in 1969
how cool would that be
.
maybe they should have buried Jimi's remains just outside Ourense
.
imagine "3 days of peace and music" and walking on the camino

 

[Sojourner47]

if all pilgrims camped wild
it would resemble Woodstock back in 1969
how cool would that be
.
maybe they should have buried Jimi's remains just outside Ourense
.
imagine "3 days of peace and music" and walking on the camino

My worst nightmare.
I did say,"low profile/discrete" wild camping.
Heaven forbid "thousands" decide to pitch their tents......

PS I have finally bought a hooped bivi bag - the Rab Ridgeraider, supposed to be waterproof/breathable, and a bit cheaper than the Jupiter - watch this space....

 

[Br. David]

If everyone did it you could just have one very long tent, walk along the inside of it and stop to sleep when you wanted to ..... :wink:

 

[+@^^]

Bro David
youre on to something here....
.
perhaps, for those nervous pilgrims
we could convert the Roman chariot track outside Merida
.
put on a retractable roof
macdonalds walk-through stands
fruit stalls for the crop-thieves
photo stalls with backdrops of Mt Everest, Eiffel Tower, Martin Sheen
chuck in some slaves to carry all the "essentials" that pilgrims cant leave behind
big screens showing live "lions vs christians" replays
authentic lap counter to avoid cheating

 

[grilly]

if there is one regret i have
it is having not slept wild on at least one of my 42 nites

You're giving me an idea here. Where along the VDLP would you say is the best place for sleeping under the stars?

 

[Ronald Boivin]

Hey all!

I'll be doing the camino in June, and in order to keep down the weight of my backpack and the cost of gear, I'm contemplating doing it without a tent, and just bring a mosquito net instead.

Would this be a terrible, terrible idea, or is the weather and surroundings hospitable enough to allow this?


Thanks.

A Silk sleeping bag liner often touted as a bed bug detergent would allow warmth and insect protection outdoors if you choose to stay outseide.