The Camping Trip

There was nothing that Sian liked to do more than to explore the woods and lakes of nearby parks. Residents who had houses looking out onto her regular routes would say, "Look, there goes Sian, with her backpack and her wellies. Off out again!" They might just as well have pointed to her compass, or her folded map, or the forest-green binoculars that swung and bounced a little bit with every adventurous stride the explorer took. Sian took it very seriously.

Imagine, then, Sian’s exuberant response to her friend’s parents when they invited her on a camping trip! Her mum could not speak to Alyssa’s mum soon enough. In fact, Sian’s case was packed before the mothers had even finished with the pleasantries.

"No, no, it’s absolutely no trouble at all. Alyssa will enjoy herself so much more if she has a friend there with her to chat to. Sian will be doing us a favour by coming along."

"Oh right, well that’s so lovely. Thank you so much. You probably know how much Sian loves exploring the countryside. Next weekend it is then. Speak soon."

As the phone call ended, there followed a loud thumping sound. "Are you alright, Sian?" her mother called out, alarmed.

"Yes, mum. I was just putting my case by the front door!" Sian was grinning from ear to ear.

The weekend arrived, and very quickly they were heading out west to a campsite in Welsh Snowdonia. Next, they were pitching their tents in the foothills of the mountain. It didn’t look too much like a mountain, Sian thought. It was a very gentle slope from the girls' tent as far as the eye could see. It was just the same when she used her binoculars. Nevertheless, she knew that it was a mountain because her newly-unfolded map told her that it was. It was the most enticing grid reference Sian had ever seen.

Tents were set up by late morning, which meant that there was enough time for a mountain climb on the first day. Delicious-smelling eggs and bacon were fried over a tiny gas stove and scooped up hungrily from white tin plates by the appreciative girls. Alyssa’s dad swilled the plates and plastic cutlery clean with warm water from a Thermos. Then the four of them set off: two parents, two friends. Three, yes just three, backpacks.

"That was exhausting!" exclaimed Alyssa’s dad as they reached the summit and sat down to drink. "It’s taken us three hours of steady walking. Sian, look on your map and work out how many metres we’ve done in that time."

"Yay!" Sian yelled. "My map reading skills are in demand. Where did I put my backpack?"

Everyone looked around. "I think," ventured Alyssa, "you might have left it at base camp?"

Poor Sian! It made the other three with their brand new, designer bags look like they were the seasoned experts. Never mind, thought the brave mountaineer, it was a fantastic climb, and they could do it all again tomorrow, after all.