What could possibly go wrong?
Few things can be more enjoyable than travelling with friends. Sitting around the campfire, recalling the highlights of the day with a fully belly and a nightcap or two, while taking occasional glimpses of the starry sky, far away from the competing lights of civilisation.
With good company, the fun factor always seems to ramp up a notch or two. Those extra laughs all work to help unshackle the binds of daily life, so you can kick back and relax.
Friends add value in different ways. If you leave something at home, friends may have something you can use or help modify something to suit.
If you break down, they help you make roadside repairs. If you injure yourself, they can help patch you up or at least keep you calm until emergency services arrive.
Friends also keep you on your best behaviour; people are less likely to be grumpy, testy, or otherwise in mixed company.
They can help in other ways too. If one group arrives at a campsite early, they can assist by getting the campfire going (outside fire risk periods) or chopping wood for the evening fire; anything that reduces the workload for the latecomers.
You can share the cooking. We often share meals with our travelling companions in various ways.
Best of all, you share the memories and the photos from the trip. Friends can capture a moment from a different perspective from behind their camera lens.
# How to choose good Travelling Friends
It’s critical to identify friends with similar interests, for example those with an interest in four-wheel driving, camping, exploring, cooking and more. This shouldn’t be too hard, considering you already know them.
You want to spend time with people with a balanced sense of humour. They should exude a positive vibe and bring out the best in you, rather than drag you down. And they should be even tempered – no-one likes a grump!
Often people with the same vehicle or camper trailer travel together. You may have met them through work, a forum group, or a four-wheel drive club. Groups often introduce new friendships which lead to trips outside of the club activities.
However, Club trips will often include larger groups. The bigger the group, the greater the chance of finding someone you don’t see eye to eye with, which may work to the detriment of your enjoyment. In some respects, you need to be able to manage different personalities, but it doesn’t mean you need to seek out those experiences to develop your character. Forget that!
# What’s the magic number?
For a remote extended trip, we reckon 6 is a good size. Not too big, not too small. Make sure you’ve travelled with these people before. It’s one thing, spending a weekend with someone you find out you don’t really like that much. They might be a loud talker, an over-bearing alpha male, or someone who must always be right. Imagine spending an extended trip with such a person!
For us, we frequently travel with another couple, friends that we met through a four-wheel drive club. They’re virtually carbon copies of ourselves with a similar mindset and a thirst for adventure, which makes for a great time together.
# Tips for Happy Campers
Be flexible and open to new ideas. While history and museums may not be your thing, you may glean something unexpected from it.
On extended trips, share the leadership, with each vehicle responsible for a day’s itinerary. This gives everyone an opportunity to be involved and exposes you to different styles of leadership.
Be wary how easily noise travels. Something as simple as tent zippers in the middle of the night. Did you know if you undo a zip far enough to grab the zip puller from the other side, you can virtually open it silently, without the zip zinging on the zip train?
Music, doors slamming early in the morning, voices at night. They all travel surprisingly far.
As a backstop, we always take some earplugs. It may not be your friends creating all the clatter. It could be another group nearby.
