Teenagers are addicted to a world full of gadgets. It is as if they feel life is unimaginable without technology. They have little or no experience of the great outdoors or the unthinkable splendors that nature holds for them. Making them visit wilderness camps can be one of the ideal ways to break their jinx of over-dependence on gadgets and to enjoy nature to the fullest. Moreover, these camps let the young people develop their personalities which they can never expect from their regular life. Wilderness camps, precisely speaking offer something for everyone. Even the adults who seek adventure to take a break from their routine lives can find great satisfaction.
Adventure camps are specially designated to immerse the campers in various activities that help them learn survival skills, teamwork, and leadership, and educate them on their roles in the environment. Presently, you can find a wide array of such camps which are based on the suitability of one and all.
Reasons that make adventure camps so appealing
As we touched on some of the points earlier, there are several reasons that make these wilderness camps appealing. Any person who has visited these camps once would want to go back there whenever they get an opportunity. Let us explore the reasons in detail:
- Adventure camps are close to nature: The main reason to visit these adventure camps is the option we get to reconnect with nature. This is true, especially for people who are habituated to living in the city life and spend most of their time indoors surrounded by an artificial world. These camps offer the golden opportunity to escape the busy schedules of daily life and to soak in fresh air. The location of such camps is usually in forests, mountains, near rivers, or lakes, which makes the experience more thrilling.
- Regardless of our age, when we remain close to nature, we get various benefits. It helps reduce stress and improves mood, and engagement in physical activities also contributes to our overall well-being. Furthermore, these camps organize various events that help us to challenge and push ourselves beyond the limits.
- Best for teenagers: These wilderness camps are best suited for teenagers as they can experience something that was so far unknown to them. Such camps primarily focus on character-building exercises that aim to enhance their adaptability, self-confidence, personality, and independence. When they navigate the forests with people of similar age groups they learn to make the right decisions and it boosts their leadership skills. Likewise, activities like setting up tents and spending nights amidst the woods can be a scintillating experience for these young people.
Types of Adventure Camps
While searching for such wilderness camps, you ought to make the right call. These camps are available in various forms, and you must pick the one most suitable for you. For your convenience, here are the various types of camps you can choose from:
- Conventional summer camps: These camps offer a mix of outdoor activities which include hiking, swimming, sports, and much more. These camps aim at making teenagers accustomed to the fascinating nature. While staying at the camps, the organizers give special impetus to building their overall skills. Furthermore, they are also surrounded by fun-filled activities and get the chance to make new friends.
- Survival camps: As the name suggests, these camps are generally located in the wilderness and the participants have to do everything needed to survive. It can include building shelters, finding food and water, and navigating places without the help of technology. Ideally, these camps are best suited for those who want to explore and test their survival instincts and get a feel of the ways to survive in the wild. Participants here get the much-needed experience in various activities and it helps them prepare during emergency situations.
- Adventure or sports camps: These camps are ideal for adventurous-minded people. Here, they can expect to engage in a wide array of activities like rock climbing, mountain biking, water rafting, and zip lining. Do understand, that these camps are ideal for people who have the physical strength and are ready to push it beyond their acceptable limits. Yes, these activities can be exhaustive and tiring, but the experience they gain would be incomparable with anything else.
- Family adventure camps: Although we tend to associate adventure or summer camps with teenagers, there are camps that are designated for the entire family too. These camps offer the opportunity for families to spend quality time away from their daily monotonous routine. Based on the age, the camp organizers can design activities that would become appealing to everyone. These camps are the best places to be as they can help increase the bond of the family members and they get the chance of creating unforgettable memories.
Benefits of Adventure camps
- Improved physical health: When teenagers or anyone spends time in these adventure camps they engage in several physical activities. As mentioned before, these activities can vary depending on the type of camp you choose. Nevertheless, it promotes the wellness of cardiovascular health and builds strength. Remember, these camps are far different from the activities you perform at a gym, as the activities in the camps are more enjoyable and guaranteed to provide a full-body workout without feeling like you have done exercising.
- Boosts mental health: Irrespective of age, whenever someone stays close to nature for a few days, it can have a great impact on their mental health. Issues related to stress, anxiety, and depression will take a back seat, and engaging in adventurous activities would help improve mood and instill a sense of satisfaction.
- Breaking the digital jinx: As mentioned earlier, teenagers in particular have become habituated to spend their leisure watching phones or computers. These wilderness and adventure camps can help them overcome the habit of being addicted to digital life. Since these camps are without any such amenities, they can explore nature closely and build their social skills which can later help them to connect with others.
- Build everlasting friendships: Adventure camps help in making everlasting friendships. As many activities here are required to be done as a team teenagers manage to create strong bonding with each other. It is far different from online interactions where people communicate via a medium and are not available physically.
Preparing for adventure camps
So that is it, we have emphasized the fine points related to adventure or wilderness camps. However, when you decide to go, remember to prepare yourself for it. Otherwise, you might find spending time difficult there. For a start, you should know the essential items you need to pack. You can get the information from the camping website itself. Then, you must prepare yourself physically as these camps would test your physical endurance. It is worthwhile spending time in pre-camp workouts like jogging, strength training and so on which would help you sustain better in these camps.
