Camping holidays are a great way to get out into the countryside and explore parts of the world that you wouldn’t ordinarily see. However, the fact is that it’s difficult to camp without affecting your surroundings, so here are some of our top tips for environmentally friendly camping.
Store & dispose of your rubbish safely
You will always generate a certain amount of rubbish and waste when you’re camping, and if you’re not on an organised campsite you may not be able to dispose of it straight away. It may be tempting to simply drop a full bin bag outside your tent where the smell won’t disturb you, but this can also be very tempting for wild animals. Rather than wake up to find your rubbish strewn across your campsite by curious creatures, store it where they can’t get to it – inside your tent, or in a sealable bin or box.
Take nothing but photographs
The standard advice for “leave no trace” camping is to take nothing but photographs, and leave nothing but footprints. While you may see lots of beautiful flowers and plants that you’d like to pick, and perhaps press, as mementoes of your trip, this gradually damages the environment – and unless you’re a botanist there’s no way to know how rare or endangered that pretty flower might be. Wherever possible, stick to established paths and trails, instead of trampling virgin ground and damaging the flora of the area.
Use proper crockery
It may be tempting to buy a packet of paper plates for your camping trip – they’re lighter than ordinary dishes and you won’t have to wash them up – but, let’s face it, they create waste that is completely unnecessary! Pack proper, re-usable dishes – even if they are plastic ones – and take the time to wash them up so you won’t be generating extra waste. The Opus folding camper includes a sink which makes this task much easier.
Leave it better than you found it
Encourage more responsible camping by making sure that you leave your campsite in a better state than it was when you arrived. If previous visitors have left rubbish in the area, put aside some time to pick some of it up before you leave, and dispose of it on your way home. Imagine the impact if everybody camped this way!