My first camping trip
I had never slept in a tent before last August, so I was both excited and nervous when my cousin invited me to join his camping trip in the mountains. I packed far too many things: three jackets, a heavy book and enough food for a week. My backpack weighed almost as much as I did. After two hours of climbing, my shoulders were aching and I was seriously thinking about going home.
Everything changed when we reached the lake. The water was so clear that we could see the stones at the bottom, and the mountains around us were completely silent. We put up the tent, lit a small fire and cooked soup. For the first time in weeks I did not check my phone, because there was no signal anyway, and I did not miss it at all.
The night, however, was colder than I expected, and a strong wind kept shaking the tent. I hardly slept. But when I crawled outside at dawn, the sky was pink and gold, and I understood why people come back to the mountains again and again. Next time I will take fewer clothes and a warmer sleeping bag, and I will definitely go.