Australia & New Zealand Outdoor Adventure Forum

We had done that several times during my days of scouting. Our scoutmaster was fond of adventures and the boy scouts, about 20 of them, really enjoyed those adventures. But sometimes it is scary when no one knows the terrain because we don't know what might happen. In one overnight near a dam, we were not able to sleep at all because of the night sounds that were scary. All the boys were terrified... including me hehehe. But looking back, those screams were sounds of monkeys that we didn't know.

I have been to different camping locations with my friends and relatives in strange places but never took the services of any guide so far. I agree that I have never been to camping alone during my childhood days including during school time so maybe I missed the thrill of getting scared at night . I can understand about the imagination power of children while spending nights in jungle camps having watched horror movies or having read ghost stories. They would certainly expect something strange coming out of dark any moment.

I think it is not safe to travel or camping in a strange place without a guide. It could life taking as you don't know the situation of the place. One of my friends was fond of going for camping all alone and he was eaten by wild animals at night as he does not know about the critical situation of that place at night.

I hate camping at unknown places without any guide or an experienced person. The fear of the unknown always over rules my mind. The fun and adventure factor is replaced by stress and anxiety. Henceforth I always prefer to be in company of experienced people capable of handling emergency situations.

I too have experienced this when I was a part of scouts and guides team in school. We went camping in a village and we felt it more like living in a jungle than in a village as it was densely covered with trees. It was a five-day camping and we will all get credits accordingly how much work we do efficiently. During the third night when we were sleeping, we heard a weird noise like the sound of a big animal like a lion or tiger. We were all scared to death. Until today I remember it and don't know what that sound was. When I think back I smile on those memories.

I always plan my trips so I always know where I am heading to. Going and camping in a strange place is very unsafe as we don't know who or what may be around that may be dangerous. What if a wild animal goes and attacks or maybe someone strange and dangerous lives around there. I wouldn't be able to stay calm to be honest so when anyone invites me without planning ahead I say no.

I would probably do that considering how strange the place is because I like to try new things. I have an adventurous spirit, but I recognize my limits. A guide is very important for very strange places... There is no doubt about it, but on the other hand... Feeling an extra adrenaline is sometimes very good, isn't it?

@jahanzeb ali qureshi I generally go to new camping locations but I make sure that the place is safe and I will not be alone there. In fact, there are are very few places where I go repeatedly like my favorite camping destination near Rishikesh in Uttrakhand state in India otherwise I try to go to as many new camping sites as I can.

I cannot really say that I have been camping at anywhere that is particularly strange, but we did get in the worst blizzard that the region had seen, and that made for some interesting terrain, and some wet socks the entire trip.

I don't even quite understand this "guide" thing. If it's guide as in a map, then obviously it's crazy and dangerous to do so. But if it's guide as in a forest/tour guide person, I'll say it's absolutely unnecessary as maps give you all the information you need about a place. And since it's not your first, you should know your way out in most situations, unless it's your first time where you're naïve.