Parenthood is all about compromise… and I’ve come to realise, taking the path of least resistance.
Our eldest has been nagging us for ages to go camping (he’s massively into Famous Five at the moment) but the thought of pitching a tent whilst wrangling a toddler, sleeping on the ground in a sweaty sleeping bag, the 5am dawn wake ups and cooking, huddled over a dodgy camp stove with a 2yo and 6yo have been wholly unappealing.
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve camped tons as a footloose and fancy free 20 something with friends; heading off with a 2-man tent over my shoulder and enough alcohol to numb out the lack of creature comforts – but as mother to a potty-training 2yo and recovering from sepsis – I decided our first family camping trip needed to be a bit more of a gentle intro.
Enter: Readycamp.
I’ll hold my hands up. It’s cheating. There is literally NOTHING you have to do. We zoomed down to South Devon after school one evening back in June and there she was – quite literally, ready to camp.
Not only have Readycamp taken the stress out of the actual erection (snigger) of the tent – they’ve decked it out with ALL the comforts. There are ACTUAL beds (double for us, bunks for them – both in separate sleeping pods); dining table and chairs, sofa and an almost fully fitted kitchen (microwave, hob, fridge, toaster, kettle). All you need to bring is food and your own bedding.
We were one of only two Readycamp tents on the California Cross site, about 20 mins from Salcombe.
They’ve positioned them perfectly for families, right next to the showers/loos and a stones throw from the playpark. The site was relatively quiet whilst we were there with mainly retirees. Whilst we got our bearings the boys had fun making themselves at home (we take Raf’s Dilli Grey handmade cotton monkey quilt everywhere – it’s super soft and more comfy than a picnic blanket, he loves it).
There is a massive deck out the front of the tent where we hung out the most – we dragged the table out there to eat, play Uno, draw and read (main pic).
Whilst it is most definitely glamping, Readycamp have definitely kept that ‘magic’ of camping intact. They loved going to fetch water to cook dinner (there is no running water in the tent) and the fact we were going to sleep outside. Minds blown.
Once the boys were settled our evening activity consisted of read (actual books – not screens!) and watching the sky slowly turn from this:
To this…
Maybe it was all the fresh air, or the super comfy bed but we all slept like logs. The genius tent design meant that the sleeping pods were lined with black-out fabric, meaning none of the early morning wake ups I was dreading.
After some bacon butties al fresco on the deck, we headed 15 mins down the windy South Devon lanes to Bigbury on Sea and Burgh Island.
It’s a windswept headland that feels like a 360 panorama of sea and sky. In peak season you need to get there early to get parking and any chance of a spot on the sand. If we were adults-only we may have ambled over at low tide for a leisurely half in the Pilchard Inn on Burgh Island.
As it was, we spent the morning fossil hunting and staring extensively at the sea tractor that trundles tourists back and forward from the island.
Living the dream.
Back at base camp we went full throttle on the ‘camping experience’ with bbq (no campfires allowed on site) and ‘Smores for dinner. Then early nights for two very happy little campers.
DETAILS: We were fully paying guests of Ready Camp, it was around £160 for 3 nights in June 2018. We are going to try the Dartmouth site next weekend.
