How to choose a good place to camp? In this guide, We help you make your choice to find the good place suited to your trip or your hike.🙂
The place where you place your tent is an important aspect of any camping and hiking: it can contribute to making the experience fun … or it can be a source of problems if you do not choose the right place. But have you ever thought about how to prepare a campsite in the best possible way?
Soil, climate, wildlife: all these factors are important when it is necessary to ensure that camping is not only safe but also comfortable. We understand that everyone has a different perspective on how to prepare a campsite.
So, we’ve put together this guide (how to set up a camping tent) to give you clear, practical and effective tips that will work every time! In this post, you will learn to choose a good place to camp properly.
Before camping, take care to choose your tent according to the seasons, the destinations and your goals. To help you, follow our advice by consulting our guide “How to choose the right tent?”
How to choose a good place to camp
In order to get a good nights sleep, take a few minutes to examine your environment before setting up your tent. Depending on your preferences, you can choose a location where a breeze will drive away mosquitoes or another location where you can enjoy the first rays of the sun.
Here are some general guidelines when it comes to determining a preferred location. And don’t forget to apply the No Trace principles to minimize your impact on the environment.
Respect the legislation / Regulation
The first question to ask yourself: “Am I allowed to pitch my tent here?” ” You are not at home! During your camping, you will cross private properties, natural parks, and protected areas that are subject to regulations governing camping and/or bivouac.
Get informed before you go. Respect the camping areas. On private property, ask the owner for permission.
Flat terrain
Opt for a flat area, which will prevent you from rolling around in the tent or slipping on your mattress at night. If you have no choice, try to put your head up and your legs down, it’s always more pleasant than capsizing on the sides.
Water storage area
Always look for a camping area that has a source of drinking water nearby. In addition, it would be good to always take drinking water with you, along with the rest of the essential elements.
Avoid areas of accumulation: troughs, basins, and spongy ground where water can accumulate. Even on flat ground, a bowl can fill up at the slightest rain! see our article 6 way to purify water when camping.
Avoid tall grass
Packed, tall grass forms irregularities that are uncomfortable when lying down. With the morning dew, the humidity will be a pleasure to wet your clothes and fabrics!
In these conditions, it is more complicated to fold a tent dry. For your comfort, avoid tall grass, there will be fewer insects near your shelter.
Watch out for stones, branches, thorns
They can damage the floor of your tent and puncture your inflatable or self-inflating mattress. Clean up your location. Remove all stinging objects, level the bumps, push the stones to level your camping area as much as possible. It is a guarantee of comfort for a good night’s sleep!
Wind: How to choose a good place to camp
The most important aspect is knowing the weather forecast and knowing where the wind will blow. A light breeze is ideal, it ventilates your shelter and prevents condensation. However, it can turn into a strong wind. Choose a location sheltered from the wind.
Secure your tent securely, even if there is no wind when you pitch it. In the mountains, the morning and evening thermal winds can quickly shake your shelter!
Choose the orientation of your tent according to the prevailing wind. Place the entrance opposite the wind (opening and apse facing the wind). See our article on how to set up a tent with strong wind.
Be careful with the sun
Nothing more boring than being awakened by the sun inside your tent, you can bet! If possible, try to set up your tent in a position where you can escape the sun’s rays in the early morning hours.
If you are going to set up a camp for more than one night in the same place, try to protect the tent with a tarpaulin to avoid direct exposure to the sun or, if necessary, to dismantle it during the day. Believe me, the sun and the humidity are the main enemies of your tent.
Near a water point, but not too much!
You will have water for drinking, cooking and washing up and washing up. Pitching your tent near a water point also involves several disadvantages:
- Stay away from rivers due to potential flooding from a thunderstorm or the release of water from an upstream dam.
Who says water, implies the presence of mosquitoes and insects. - Be aware that a wetland promotes the phenomenon of condensation which can potentially wet your equipment (tent, sleeping bag), which affects your comfort and the thermal properties of your equipment.
- We advise you to camp at a distance from lakes and rivers so as not to disturb the fauna that goes to the water point to drink.
Away from natural hazards
Stay away from natural hazards. Check if the area is not dangerous: rockfalls, floods. Leave a safe distance between your tent and the river. Do not pitch your tent under a cliff, a serac …
Avoid pitching your tent under a tree: branches may fall or resin may drip on your shelter. Stay away from ants and other insects. Formic acid secreted by ants can damage certain materials.
Be discreet!
Do you like camping? Do you want to blend in with nature? Opt for discretion! Pitch your tent away from homes and away from herds of animals.
You will not be bothered and you will not disturb anyone! In regions where wildlife can be problematic (bears, etc.), find out about the usual precautions and respect the safety instructions, for example, do not keep food inside your tent and hang on your food in height, on a tree.
Protect your privacy
Having other people camping around can be interesting, especially if you don’t have a lot of experience in nature. However, you need to prevent your group from invading another’s space.
If the first ideal spot you found already has a lot of people around or is close to the trail, don’t hesitate to look elsewhere – your experience in nature will be much more interesting and you can find an even better spot!
Likewise, if you are camping with a large group of people, look for a place to set up camp that is spacious, ensuring everyone’s comfort. see our article on how to choose a large group tent here.
Avoid camping:
- Near a standing source of mosquito-infested water
- In the meadows where fragile plants grow
- Near animal tracks or near places where they drink
- Under trees if branches fall
- Where water is likely to collect and the temperature is colder
- Where a serac might fall or in an avalanche-prone area
Still don’t have your tent? Take a look at the post we published a few weeks ago: Best camping tent: which one to choose?
I hope you enjoy these tips. Do you have questions about How to choose a good place to camp?
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