Camping With Brenda

My camping trips were always fraught with bad weather and incident. Pitching tents in torrential rain on sand dunes isn't really my idea of fun! The first tent I ever bought was with money saved up from a holiday job at Ilford films. Seemed like the first really big purchase of my life at the time although it was probably only about a fiver. Still, in 1967 that was almost a week's wages for a scruffy student winding films on to a spool in the dark for 8 hours every night! Andre Jamet? I think that was the name of the maker of tents. French eh? tres swish! But from that cheapo army and navy shop in Basildon. They are still going - selling plaid shirts and walking boots, bobble hats and thick vests. Millets - yes that was the place. Lugged the tent all the way round Southern Ireland in the Summer of 1967 with some chums in the rain. When I got home I forgot to dry it out so next time I came to use it found it had rotted badly in a few places and the holes needed patching up! Used it again a couple of times in Cornwall and France. Camped on sand dunes near St. Ives- the wind whistling round the flaps. Weird sounds of the Cornish night. Didn't sleep very well - the lumpy ground and the spooky sea hags wailing! No wonder the joys of camping were short lived. Give me a nice warm B&B any day!