Many people say that humans are social animals. But there are plenty of social animals. Our obsession with things is what makes us human. Our ability to use and make everything from basic tools to the most complex modern technology is what makes us different from the other animals. It’s not surprising that this has bled into our experience of the outdoors.

While the outdoors is a way to escape our human made environment, at the end of the day most of us are not capable or willing to experience the outdoors without our things. It’s not uncommon for people to go into the outdoors with thousands of dollars of designer equipment strapped onto their bodies. To be sure, I not only posess such gear loadouts but know the place for them. But is an overnight or weekend camping or backpacking trip really that time and place?

The bushcraft community has become much more popular with Covid-19 and the wide(r)-spread acceptance of self-reliance and preparedness. These outdoorpeople try to make things from the natural environment. Bushcrafters live off the land, so to speak. They can make shelters, bedding, and warming layers. But doing this can be difficult to the point that they would never do anything else. Therefore, they often carry relatively minimalist camping equipment with them so they can focus on other things while still escaping the modern buzz.

To me, the minimalist camping philosophy of the bushcrafter is, in itself, a great contribution to the outdoors way of life. (Although, it really wasn’t invented by them. At one time, this was camping.) They remind us of an age old concept: the bed roll. No, not a $500 tent, $400 pack, $200 sleeping pad, and a $300 sleeping bag. Rather, a tarp, a blanket, a sleeping mat, and some rope all rolled up. If you can’t put such a thing together out of your garage, you could do it for $50. Bring your own pillow (BYOP).

Granted, when given the weight and bulk of my bed roll, many ultralight backpackers would need to dig an emergency cathole. But what’s the point of ultralight backpacking? Well to have fun and challenge oneself. I get it. But too many urban outdoorspeople have reduced outdoors recreation to how far they can walk in how much time.

The world could use more physical fitness. At least I could. But from a practical point of view, there are few places east of the Mississipi more than a mile from a vehicle accessible road. Even west of the Mississipi, most ‘wilderness’ is really just gaited forest roads. I can see the point of seeing miles of outdoors on foot. But in many cases, I wonder if people have lost sight of what they are seeing.