Many people don’t realize that the simple act of camping can help shape them into a better expert. I would even argue it’s been helping us since the dawn of time.

It was only when I started writing for Inspired Camping that I realized just how much influence camping has really had on all of us, and how if we take a look at yesterday, today, and tomorrow we will see the huge part it’s played in all of our lives, whether you like it or not.

I believe we’re actually all prehistorically hardwired to go camping and to travel. The human race wouldn’t have spread across the globe if we hadn’t been compelled to become nomads, explore, and hunt out resources.

Setting up camp simply allowed us to do this successfully and make the most of where we ended up. You could say we’ve had to become travellers, adventurers, and campers simply to survive, and this in turn has hardwired these instincts into our system.

Today’s modern life has speeded up significantly. We’re still on the move but instead of just doing it physically we’re also doing it virtually.

So, to make the most of where we want to go next we’ve had to become experts in adapting to our ever-changing surroundings by picking up as many different skills as we can. The Internet is one of the tools that help us to do this effectively, allowing us to evolve into virtual nomads who are always on the move and on the look out to hunt and gather new information, ideas and knowledge.

People often tell us to sleep on it, but that doesn’t always work as just when we find the answer we also find sleep, leading to us forgetting our ‘eureka’ moment.

The thing that does work however, is getting away from it all by going on a camping trip. This helps us switch off without shutting down, so we can make the most of our creative thinking time. Taking ourselves out of our normal environment and immersing ourselves in practical things like pitching a tent or building a campfire also helps this switching off process, then out of the blue the answer we’ve been looking for simply present itself like magic.

Hiking is the preferred term, in Canada and the United States, for a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails (footpaths), in the countryside, while the word walking is used for shorter, particularly urban walks. On the other hand, in the United Kingdom, and the Republic of Ireland, the word "walking" is acceptable to describe all forms of walking, whether it is a walk in the park or backpacking in the Alps. The word hiking is also often used in the UK, along with rambling (a slightly old-fashioned term), hillwalking, and fell walking (a term mostly used for hillwalking in northern England). The term bushwalking is endemic to Australia, having been adopted by the Sydney Bush Walkers club in 1927.[1] In New Zealand a long, vigorous walk or hike is called tramping.[2] It is a popular activity with numerous hiking organizations worldwide, and studies suggest that all forms of walking have health benefits

What’s the difference between hiking and mountain climbing?

A.Hiking is a long distance walk along a specific trail, most commonly across country. Some hikes can be challenging and last for days including camping, but others can be a long day walk at a steady pace. However, mountain climbing is a challenging sport in which people climb steep rocky slopes to reach the top. Specific equipment is needed in order to mountain climb such as an ice axe and rope depending on the terrain. You physically climb using both your hands and feet onto the rocks or ice and snow to get to the top.

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