20^th Jun 2014

It was gone 10am when I woke and although I could have stayed in bed all day I knew this wasn't going to happen. Trying to conserve my rations I grabbed a couple of energy bars and made a cup of tea. I then dismantled the tent and gathered myself together before heading off further into the woods following a trail I'd stumbled across.

It didn't take long before the trail simply thinned out and I found myself in a bog, the mud squidging under foot I searched around for some kind of clue showing me a safe and somewhat firmer route. It didn't take me long, following a game trail that wound its way through the bog and back in to the forest and back onto a very well defined path. The path eventually led me out to a beautiful sandy bay. The tide was out so I used the firmer sea bed to simplify the hike. The sun was still beating down and I was getting extremely warm, I stopped to unzip and remove the bottoms of my trousers before heading for a rocky bay just around a small outcrop. The grey and black rocks resembling a lunar surface, it was a strange feeling, some of the boulders where pitted. After a while the grey and black rocks became red and you could be forgiven for thinking you'd been abducted and sent to a martian planet.

I'd been told that I would cross alternating landscapes and terrains by the scottish northumbrian, but I never really expected it to happen so close together. I left the mars landscape of red sandstone and into the next bay, it started rocky with boulders and slowly became a perfect sandy beach. Jutting out from the shore a rocky peninsula with a giant cross mounted on a plinth and facing out to sea. To the left of the bay there was an island which I've been told was once a prison. I guess it was the Scottish version of alcatraz. As I continued with the days hike I could see a huge castle ahead of me standing proud and overlooking another bay. I set off hoping I would be able to make my way to the bay and ultimately ascend a path to the clifftop. I climbed off the sandy beach and onto the rocks that separated me from the last accessible bay along this section. As I clambered over, keeping the castle in sight I spotted a small, very small harbour cut into the rocks. I'd been told to look out for it as it was very easy to miss.

The harbour is probably the smallest harbour in Scotland and possibly Britain. The harbour was cut directly into the rocks and provided a place for prisoners to be loaded into a small rowing boat and taken to the prison island. When the prison was decommissioned smugglers used it. Being so small only one boat can fit between the walls and today a small fishing boat was now moored up.

The tide was starting to come in now so I had to get going in order to make it to the next bay beneath Tantallan castle. Clambering over the rocks I spotted muscles in the pools of water, I was tempted to stop and grab a few but didn't. The waves were now hitting the bay with quite a force as I stepped onto the sandy bay the castle now out of sight, and also no obvious way of escaping this gradually shrinking bay. From afar I'd seen a slope leading up the cliff face but stood on the shore now the route was less than obvious. I took a moment to asses my situation and looked hard for a safe way up. I knew that the slope I'd seen before started from the right so looking around I was able to see what was once track, now overgrown with nettles and other wild plants. I started my ascent, once again wishing I had a machete. It was hard going and I got stung on more than occasion, none the less I was now out of the bay and above it looking across at the castle. A minor victory. At the top of the track was a gate which was so overgrown it wouldn't open, I climbed over and into the field that ran along the clifftop. I followed the field round, the grass pollen agrivating my hay fever, trying to get closer to the castle. From this level the castle, I must admit looked less impressive than it did from below. I followed the outer walls round til I hit the road. This is one of the small sections you occasionally find where sticking religiously to the coast is impossible. Private properties line the clifftops so i had to follow the road until a way back to the coast presented itself.

Inevitably a way down became apparent so I made my way down a slope that ran almost alongside the road and back to a sany bay below. Following the bay I eventually emerged onto the promenade at north berwick. My hay fever was now becoming a huge problem blocking my airways and I found myself struggling for enough air to keep up with the aerobic exercise of hiking the coast. I stopped and asked a passerby where the nearest shop I could get allergy relief tablets was and they directed me to an tesco store. It wasn't far from the town centre so I headed off to find relief. On the way back to the north berwick harbour I stopped of for a coffee and a short break.

The sun was starting to set now and the evening was becoming magical. I set off from the cafe and down to the harbour to pick up the trail where I'd left off. There was a statue of a bird watcher and some really old looking, yet very tiny, buildings. One of which wad being used as a restaurant, although to be honest it didn't look big enough to house a kitchen let alone customers. I followed the harbour round and walked down onto the sandy beach enclosed in the bay. The sun set was gorgeous and moment worth holding on to. Boats were moored up and clouds caused an atmospheric energy you can only ever experience whilst being part of the moment. After stopping to take in the moment I carried on across the bay, my next task was to find a place to rest up for the night. I climbed over a dune and in front of me saw Fidra island, the island that inspired the novel " treasure island " by Robert Louis Stevenson. Perfect! I searched out a grassy area amongst the bushes and made myself comfortable, gazing across the water to the island wondering if the island had changed much over the years and whether Robert Louis Stevenson had pictured it as the island in the novel.

20^th Jun 2014

It was a warm morning, a light breeze in the air. It was to be another hot day. With Fidra island in view I set off along the rocky shores, the next bay was sandy and the island slowly faded into the distance the further I walked.

The next bay was sandy followed by rocky and so on. Whilst hiking you have plenty of time to think and plenty to look at as well. In one of the sandy bays I saw a familiar looking shell. It was a scallop shell, very similar to the one I'd carried across spain when I walked the camino de santiago a few years earlier. On the camino the scallop shell is carried by walkers as a symbol of the old pilgrimage. It brought back happy memories of the journey and once again reminded me how I'd come to start the uk coastal trek and why I was doing it. I crossed a couple more bays, the tide receding and leaving vast landscapes of sand ahead of me. I could see a power station on the horizon and had planned to hike around the bays but with the tide so far out I wondered if I would be able to stay on the sand and follow the waters edge directly across. It was a long hike and I knew if I timed it wrong I could end up with the tide cutting me off from land and my immediate destination. It was worth the risk and would save me walking additional miles. I set off, determined to make the power station before the sea reclaimed the bay.

Whilst walking, the land getting further and further away from me I spotted yet another scallop shell. This one was different, it was completely black. I'd only ever seen white ones and found this fairly interesting, I picked it up and put it in my pocket.

Ahead of me the sand was extremely flat and went on for miles. In the distance I could see the remains of a wrecked ship, its hull submerged in the sand and its ribs rising up from its resting place. It resembled a rib cage from some weird sea creature that had perished many years previous. I wondered what kind of life it had seen and what the boat had been used for before it had been left to decay naturally. I couldn't stop long though as I still had a fair few miles to walk and the tide had now turned and was starting to come in pushing me ever closer towards land.

Its surprising how quickly some tides move and after about an hour I found myself walking through water. A small river now blocked my way, luckily I found a shallow spot and waded across, sinking into quicksand I realised the potential of an abrupt end to the trek. Thankfully my next step took me back to a firm sandy bank and I crossed the river. The tide moving at great speed I was determined to reach the safety of the grassy bank ahead of me. The tide had now come almost all the way and I found myself wading ankle deep until I reached the bank. My boots although waterproofed didn't stop the water spilling over the top of the ankles so my socks absorbed the salty water. On the grass bank I stopped took off my boots and socks and let them dry out a bit in the sun. I gazed across the water which had now completely covered the sand I'd just walked over. It was hard to believe how much the landscape had changed and how lucky I was to have got out when I did.

I lay in the sun for an hour, something that doesn't happen too often as I'm always trying to make progress, but I needed to try and get my boots dryer, they'd taken on a lot of water and although the squidging of the warm saltwater between my toes was like having a foot massage it was not a good idea to try hiking long distances in wet boots. My socks were still damp and I knew the boots would take a few days to dry properly so I got myself ready and set off towards the power station I had seen across the sandy expanse I'd just crossed.

The power station looked closer than it actually was. I followed the shore from one sand bay to the next. As I got closer to civilisation more and more families were out enjoying the sun sone swimming in the sea others tanning themselves on the beaches.

On one of these bays I met robbie, a roofer who'd decided to take the day off to do some paddle boarding with his puppy. He made me a milky coffee and we sat chatted about the trek and the adventures he'd been on in canada whilst working as a snowboard instructor.

As always there comes a time where I must carry on, I would have loved to hang around longer and unpacked hoolley to get some free time paddling her in the calm sea.

I set off down the beach and finally found myself on a low harbour wall, what I hadn't realised was that the tide was still coming in and that I was in danger of getting washed off the wall. I'd missed the steps leading me up into the town I was passing, luckily a little further along there was a slipway I was able to climb. Unfortunately my boots had got wet again when I found myself paddling in a rapidly rising tide.

Back on tarmac and concrete I carried on, the power station getting larger with every step. As I got closer I could see that it had now been decommissioned so I startes looking for a way to get closer, a spot of urban exploring. Unfortunately high, well maintained, metal fences prevented anyone from getting too close. A demolishion crew had started dismantling the transformers and they obviously had plans to remove the building in all its entirety. I carried on passed the power station , the sun was setting now so I had to start looking for somewhere to stop for the night. I eventually settled on a small wooded area near to a housing estate on the edge of Edinburgh. I figured I was far enough out of sight to get a reasonable nights sleep ready to walk into the city the following day where I was expected at the castle fm studios for a chat live on air.

20^th Jun 2014

Once again the sun was out, the tent unbearable I got up and set off to enter Edinburgh. Vanessa, one of the treks followers, had contacted the local community radio station and arranged a visit to the stations studio. I love radio and entertaining audiences which I'd been used to having owned my own station for 5 years. I was really looking forward to sitting behind the mic and chatting with Neil, the stations host, about my adventures so far. I walked along the coastline until I reached McDonald's where I stopped off for a milkshake and charge. I hadn't realised how close the station was. I was in lieth, and so was castle fm. In fact they were literally across the road. I contacted Neil to find out when he was going to be there.

I had several hours to kill before joining neil in the studio as we were going to be broadcasting live at 10:30 that evening. I had a few more milkshakes then head off to find a piece of grass and rest a bit. Its not often I get the chance to simply take a break so this was as good excuse as any to take the rest of the day off. Laying in the sun a leant back on my backpack and basked. The sun started going down around 9:30 so I decided I'd pop in early an introduce myself.

I was greeted at the door by ben and shown into the studio. Neil was already transmitting his show "castle sessions" and due to a band having to cancel at the last minute we jumped straight in and started chatting live to the audience. I had a fab time telling my little stories and answering some tough questions. The time flew by and before I knew it the show was over. We left the studios around midnight and I agreed to keep in touch and pass on updates as I progressed with the challenge. I now had to go and find somewhere to pitch for the remainder of the night.

The problem with concrete jungles is they're generally made of concrete and pegs don't tend to be that effective. I checked Google earth and plotted a route around the docks and towards a park on the other side of the city. It was nearly 3am by the time I found an area of waste land suitable and secluded enough to call home. It was in an industrial estate just beyond the docks and I hoped it would provide me with a little privacy, old fences cordoning off an overgrown wilderness that was probably once used as a yard. I walked over the fallen fence and found a nice flat area to make camp.

21^st Jun 2014

Anyone that says it always rains in the United Kingdom is sorely mistaken. Once again the sun was up nice and early and roasting me in my little portable oven. Looking around my temporary camp site in the morning after pitching up at night is always an interesting experience. On some occasions, such as this one, you can spot a better place to have pitched up. No matter I'd had a reasonable rest and was now ready to head to Queensferry to pick up a tshirt and some urgent post I needed to deal with. Backpack on I walked out of the industrial waste land and set off along the river bank looking across at the other side, knowing that in a day or so I would be walking along it stareing back at where I'd just come from. Now once again sometimes you find the following day that if you'd continued walking a little bit further the night before you could have found a more suitable and comfortable location to pitch. I was now walking through a lovely, grassy park lined with trees and woodland. But then again thats not always the case.

The day had started reasonably well and I had no regrets. Ahead of me was a cafe and opposite that an intriguing island. Well worth a stop I thought and a place to catch up once more with my blogs. The staff were lovely and the owner Chris ever so inviting. After reeling off my short stories Chris got me a bacon roll which was nice as I hadn't stopped for breakfast that morning, he then offered me the use of his shower to freshen up. His parents were staying in the apartment attached to the cafe and were interested in the challenge and when I mentioned I'd lost my woolly hat gave me a replacement which will come in handy when the winter sets in.

Feeling clean once again it was time to head off for the days destination and never in my wildest dreams would I have even considered anything as adventurous as what the day had in store for me. I left the cafe, the river hosting an island, as the tide went out and the river emptied a concrete causeway was slowly revealed. I will admit I was tempted to cross and camp on the island but time restraints prevented me. I needed to get to Queensferry that evening so that I could call in at the post office before it closed for the weekend.

Before I could get to Queensferry I had a small obstacle to negotiate, a river which ran down a beautiful little valley and out into the sea. When I arrived at it I stopped to see if it was possible to cross by foot. It was low tide and tempting but the soft silt and mud made me reconsider and seek an alternative way to cross.

A fair walk from me was a bridge so I decided to head for it keeping an eye out for other opportunities as I went. I followed the path alongside the river and under a canopy of fresh green leaves. It was a gorgeous walk. The river was flowing at a steady pace and rocks and shallow parts would eventually provide me with a possible shortcut. A set of steps leading to the waters edge was a sure fire indicator that a crossing would be viable so I headed down, removed my boots and socks, placed my phone into the waterproof case Darren had given me and set off across the river. A young lad watching from the bank took out his phone and with his finger poised on the screen waited for me to slip and fall in. I took it steady, pausing occasionally to steady myself and plan my next couple of footsteps. With the backpack on my back it was tricky at moments but I'm pleased to say there will be no video footage of me getting wet uploaded to YouTube this time!

On the other side of the river I sat down to put my boots back on before heading off into the woods and carrying on with my journey. A Canadian goose was intrigued by my arrival and popped over to investigate closer.

The steep bank behind me was covered by trees and also my next challenge. I slowly made my way up to the top to get a good idea of what was ahead of me. A barbed wire fence preventing me from entering into a corn field. I checked Google earth and pinpointed my position. I had to follow the river bank back to the coast amongst the trees where I would eventually find a house. I would then need to cross a wild space and head into another forest. Game on!

21^st Jun 2014

I headed off into the woods the river still insight, glistening from the sun through the leaves of the leaffy canopy. It was truly picturesque and I felt quite at home. It was a lovely change from the sandy bays and rocky coves I'd experienced til now. Winding between the trees I kept heading for the coast. Hearing the voices of holiday makers across on the other side of the river I thought to myself " they have no idea I'm here". Wild flowers and fallen logs dotted around me I finally couldn't go any further. A dense bush was forming a perimeter around a small cottage. This was as far as I could go, I now had to seek out a path to the wild field I'd pinpointed in the satellite images. I climbed the bank to be faced by a forest of nettles, now usually nettles only grow a few feet high, these were between 5 and 6 feet tall. Imagine day of the triffids, each one wanting to hurt you and in front of me was quite literally a forest of them. Once again I found myself wishing I'd packed a machete. I had to come up with some kind of plan. I took off my backpack and zipped on the bottom of my trousers to provide a bit of protection for my legs, I took another look at the terrain ahead to plot a course through the nettles to the woods on the other side. I grabbed my bag and slung it on my back. Using my feet to trample the nettles down I gradually made my way across the field, at points loosing sight of the woods ahead. It was hard going but patience and perseverance prevailed and I eventually emerged on the other side.

I stepped out of the nettle forest and into a new environment. I was now away from the river and I could no longer hear the sea. I did however know the general direction I needed to head in. Taking a deep breath I set off. Once again in to the unknown abd a place that had seen very few human beings. Once again I felt at home, the forest is where I belong. I scrambled down a huge bank to the base of the woods and set off looking for a natural path to lead me to the coast. It can be very easy to get lost in dense forest so its essential you stop every 100 metres to regain your bearings and pick a point ahead of you and a path to get there. It didn't take long before i could hear the sea. I kept on track and a few moments later emerged on a sandy beach obscured by the trees and shrubs. It was now a simple case of following the shore until I arrived at Queensferry. Well, not quite. I got so far but had to turn onto the Queensferry golf course my path blocked by wooden planks nailed together with "PRIVATE PROPERTY" painted on in large letters. Nay bother as the scots often say. I followed the path that led along side which guided me around the old building. It looked a bit like an old german castle. Not sure what you call them, a bit like a chateaux I suppose. A shame because I would have loved a closer look.

Back in the woods I was now able to follow the shore line, the Forth bridge now standing proud and looking as good now as it probably did when it was built during the 1800's. A small wooden bench on top of a little hill provided a good spot to take a break and to take in the view of this remarkable piece of engineering.

After an extended break I decided it was time to start looking for a place to pitch up for the night. I grabbed my pack and set off towards the town peering into the woods for a quiet, secluded and more importantly a level place to camp. A couple of potential sites presented themselves but I dismissed them and carried on. I then without realising it appeared at the edge of the town. Finding a place to camp in towns is always particularly difficult. Firstly you want to remain out of sight to keep an element of privacy and secondly you preferably need to find a certain amount of shelter from the elements, be it wind or rain. I walked towards the town, passed several pubs and restaurants and spotted a small wooded park. I headed in to the park and was immediately confronted by a rather steep and particularly high bank. I could also see a reasonably level section near the top. I climbed up to the area, arriving I was fairly pleased. The area was big enough to pitch and by using my boots I was able to sweep the loose earth and peat and levelled it out perfectly to form a plateau and base for the tent. I pitched the tent up, boiled some water and had myself a victory coffee before climbing into my sleeping bag and nodding off to sleep.

The following morning I realised how comfortable I'd been. It was 10:30 and I really needed to get a shift on. I packed with haste and set off to find the post office. Luckily I didn't need to go far, it was literally only a few hundred metres down the path at the top of the bank I'd camped on. I walked in to the post office and collected the packages waiting for me. One was a tshirt promoting the save Manston airport group that I'd agreed to wear whilst hiking Scotland and the other was some paperwork that needed completing and mailing off. While there I also posted off my broken video camera back home as it was now a kilo of unnecessary weight.

Armed with the tshirt I thought it would be prudent to go get a selfie in front of the forth bridge and post it on the groups forum I then headed for the newer forth road bridge, built to take cars and lorries across the river. Although reasonably impressive it wasn't a touch on the old forth rail bridge running almost parallel. It actually reminded me of a small version of the humber bridge david Harrison of the BBC had carried my backpack across several weeks earlier. I then headed off to find a way onto the newer forth road bridge, stopping off along the way to get a charge and a drink of orange juice and lemonade. Whilst caching the next few days of satellite images I got a message from jo. I gave her a call for a chat and to discuss the next supply drop and to find out how many more ration packs were left. It wasn't all good news, it would appear there are enough supplies for one more resupply and I had exhausted my budget almost completely. Nevertheless the trek would have to continue. As I finished my drink I was stopped by a gentleman at the bar, ee chatted about the challenge and he said I wasa hero. I had to laugh and informed him I was simply a guy on a very long walk. I left the pub and climbed the hill and onto the start of the bridge.

Walking over the bridge you can get a great view of its predecessor and as a climber, looking over the edge you can help but want to grab a rope and jump off for the abseil of a lifetime. I'd almost crossed the spanning bridge when I noticed an odd looking car. As it approached I was able to identify it as the Google street view camera car. With only a couple of seconds to make a plan I threw my arms up and shouted "WOOHOO!" It was the best I could come up with at the time. With the car now out of sight I wondered how long it would be before the new image appeared on the web. Reaching the other side now marked, in my head, the beginning of the next leg of the trek. I followed the path down to north Queensferry and picked up the trail taking me back to the river banks and off towards a small wood.

Thinking about my latest challenge, namely surviving the next 10 months without any supplies I decided to pitch up early. It was extremely humid and I was feeling groggy so it didn't seem such a bad idea. I pitched up, made a coffee and contemplated how I was going to mentally and physically manage the rest of the trip. Failure is simply not an option, I will walk across the Itchen bridge in Southampton at some point next year.

29^th Jun 2014

Camped in a small woods just off the path and out of sight near Inverkeithing the sun came up nice and early as it did every day. I chose to ignore it and got up when I felt good and ready. I followed my usual routine and had breakfast before packing everything into my backpack. I stepped out of my secluded spot and onto the gravel path that would take me around the bay to dalgety which was just across from me. The water was calm and light fluffy clouds did nothing to prevent the sun from shining down. I walked round the corner where I came across a small sandy beach, a perfect launch place for hoolley. I pondered for a moment and tried to ascertain whether it was worth unpacking hoolley for a quick paddle or simply walk round. The bay seemed fairly small so I decided that spending the time blowing the pack raft up and then getting all my gear wet when I put her away simply wasn't worth it. So I headed off around the bay, as I wound my way round the bay opened up and I could see a river inlet. The easy walk suddenly became a lot more difficult. I stopped and weighed up my options once again. This time I decided the extra hike would potentially be considerably longer and I would ultimately burn more calories by doing so. I turned round and headed back to the beach I had passed a hundred yards or so earlier.

Arriving at the sandy bay once more I noticed the tide was slowly going out.in some respect this was a good thing as it would carry me down river towards a beach I could see on the other side. On the other hand it could also hide a strong under current that I would have difficulty paddling against and take me out away from the safety of the shore and into dangerous waters. It was worth the risk. I unpacked hoolley and made preparations for the crossing. The last time I used the pack raft to cross to holy island I noticed a small rip in the inflator bag used to inflate the boat so I figured now was as good a time as any to make repairs. I took out my sewing kit and set to work. It didn't take long and the repair was complete.

I took one last look at the flow of the river, plotted my route and fixed a point in my head to aim for. I climbed into hoolley and set off.

The water was extremely calm and for once I wasn't battling any strong currents. I paddled out of the bay and headed across to the other side, negotiating a large rusty jetty that had seen better days. I came up to the first sandy beach with people walking their dogs, one man in particular stopped what he was doing and stared out towards me. I can only imagine what he must have thought as I kept paddling past him. A few minutes later and the second beach, dalgety bay, I'd seen from the other bank was upon me, I headed in to land on the shore where I gave hoolley a good clean before packing her away. Once again she did me proud and safely took me across.

I now had a fair hike to do along the shore. I set off along the path and followed it through a wood and around the next little bay which had signs up warning the public not to dig due to nuclear contamination. I wondered what had caused the contamination as I wasn't aware of any nuclear power stations nearby. A bit further along I met an elderly couple walking the other way so I stopped to ask them about the problem. They were friendly and admitted they didn't know for sure but they believed that old planes from the war were laying under the silt and that they were responsible for the higher than normal levels of radiation. I guess its a plausible explanation, I'll probably never know for sure though.

It was indeed a lovely day and the sun was out in all its splendour. Keeping close to the water I kept following the path. I passed an old church which had no roof yet all the tenants were still resting peacefully in its grounds. The path then turned into a track passing beneath a canopy of leaves as I entered another wood. It was quite peaceful. I could smell the smoke of a camp fire ahead. I kept walking and was soon able to see a couple of tents erected amongst the trees. A few yards further on and I came across the campers, they had a good fire burning on the beach and were playing cards. I stopped and chatted to them for a bit and joined them for a couple of rounds before setting off once more.

It was a welcome break but as usual getting my joints working again takes several minutes. I followed the sandy beach as far as I could before heading back up into the woods briefly. I then made my way down to another small beach. This beach was extremely secluded and would probably only be seen by the locals as getting to it was tricky. On the far side of the beach was a small port, which meant I'd have to go inland to get round it. Spotting some footprints in the sand I found a small track leading up an extremely steep hill. I knew this would be the only way round so set off deeper into the woods. About half way up I heard a howling, it sounded like wolves but I'm pretty sure there are no wolves in Scotland so figured it was probably the sound of a seal. As I climbed the steep hill I spotted something I really wasn't expecting, cherries! You don't generally find cherry trees growing wild in the UK, a bird must have dropped a pip and the tree flourished. Well I wasn't going to pass up some free food so gathered as many ripe cherries as I could see and munched them as I went on my way. At the top of the hill were some old pillboxes, but they'd been sealed up so I wasn't able to explore inside. The path was now more defined and led me passed the port and out onto Aberdour golf course. Across from the golf course was a bay and across from the bay was burnt island, the town I was now heading for. I followed the bay round but was cut off by a small wood. I could have simply walkes round the woods but figured it would be more fun to go through them. It was  on the other side was the other part of the golf course. I followed it round but had to exit the course by the main entrance as it was impossible to get any further any other way.

Walking out of the golf course I then had to turn right and head down a steep hill to the quaint harbour below. I then had to follow the coastal path signs around the harbour and up a very steep set of steps to the clifftop. From the top I was able to look back at the Forth bridge in all its evening splendor. A brief moment of reflection and then back to the task at hand. I headed back down the cliff on the other side and followed the path around the bay and through a public gardens. On the far side of the gardens was a path I had to take which ran alongside a railway track and into the town. It was now getting late so I had to locate somewhere to stop. I checked Google earth and found an old industrial area that looked like it had overgrown. It was on the other side of town but not too far to walk to. When I arrived I scouted around and found a small woodland. I headed into the trees, found I nice spot to set up camp and bedded down for the night.