How to Properly Set Up Camp on a Trek in Kyrgyzstan

How to Properly Set Up a Camp While Hiking

After a long trek, every hiker needs a good rest. The place where hikers relax, eat, sleep, and regain strength is called a tourist camp. It will protect you from bad weather and provide an opportunity to sit by the fire.

Based on the duration of the camps, they are divided into the following types:

1. short and lunch breaks;
2. day stops;
3. overnight stays.

The main rule in organizing a camp is the correct choice of location. It is also important to protect the camp from bad weather, prepare a site for the tent, and build a fire.

How to Choose the Right Spots for Breaks

Short Break

For this type of camp, flat, dry areas are ideal, such as clearings, road edges, or forest edges. It’s great if there’s a nearby water source from which drinking water can be fetched.

A forested area will effectively shield the resting spot from strong winds. If there are no trees nearby, thickets or riverbanks will suffice. Don’t forget to consider the presence of insects—pay attention to this. In summer, it’s better to take breaks in the shade, while in winter, choose sunny spots.

Lunch Camp, Day Stop, and Overnight Stay

A good spot for a day stop or overnight stay would be a flat area for setting up tents, ideally near a water body (river, lake) and dry brushwood for fuel.

In winter, when choosing a place for an overnight stay, pay attention to the availability of good fuel. At this time of year, snow can be used as drinking water; it’s enough to melt it over a fire.

In summer, it’s best to stop near a river, not far from a village. In this case, choose a campsite slightly upstream from the settlement, fords, and watering spots. Look for areas where the river has a sandy bottom, easy access, and calm waters.

When selecting a site for overnight camping, consider how much sunlight the area receives. In this case, the eastern side of the riverbank or the slope of a hill would be ideal. This choice will ensure quick drying of the tent and dew on the grass.

If the route passes through forest parks or protected natural areas, the camp can only be set up in designated spots.

Safety Conditions for Break and Overnight Locations

When planning to set up a camp in mountainous areas, it’s important to consider the specific weather and terrain conditions.

To avoid landslides, avalanches, rockfalls, and mudflows, do not stop under overhangs, at the foot of cliffs, or in avalanche-prone couloirs.

When a thunderstorm is visible, avoid choosing spots on hilltops, ridges, or passes to protect yourself from lightning strikes.

To prevent fires, do not set up a tourist camp in areas with dry brush or in dense coniferous forests. Remember the sudden changes in weather; a lightning strike or a gust of wind can fell rotten trees, which also applies to undercut trees.

How to Properly Organize a Camp

Organizing a Short Break

The leader chooses a suitable spot for the break, then stops the team and assigns responsibilities among participants. In most cases, it’s enough to assign one person to fetch drinking water and another to distribute sandwiches, etc. The other participants can rest for 5-10 minutes by taking off their backpacks. They can rest on fallen trees, stumps, or dry ground. It’s beneficial to lie down and elevate your legs, comfortably resting them on your backpack. After resting, it’s recommended to do some light stretching.

In winter, immediately after stopping, you should put on warm clothing, such as a vest or jacket. Also, to warm up, it’s good to drink hot coffee or tea if possible. In winter, a short break should not last longer than 5 minutes. Do not use your backpack as a seat; you might easily crush your belongings and food.

Organizing a Lunch Break

Organizing a lunch break involves several people. Two bring water, one lights the fire, another builds the fire pit, and the rest go for fuel. Once there is water, firewood, and a fire, duty personnel are assigned. These participants are responsible for maintaining the fire and preparing food. Meanwhile, the others can gather berries or mushrooms, fish if possible, or simply rest or play various sports.

A lunch break lasts about 2-4 hours. If the weather is sunny, you can dry your gear and clothing; in rainy weather, first choose a site for the tents, place all backpacks in a separate area, and cover them with a tarp or poncho.

A winter lunch break is shorter than in summer; its duration depends on how quickly the duty personnel can light the fire and prepare food. First, the entire group, without removing their snowshoes, needs to compact the snow in the area where the camp will be. After that, the leader assigns tasks to each group member. One makes a platform or digs a pit for the fire, another is responsible for the brushwood, and a third lights the fire.

In a winter break, the main goal is to engage all group members actively; this will prevent them from getting cold and reduce the duration of the break.

Organizing a Day Stop and Overnight Stay in the Field

The organization of this type of camp is similar to that of a lunch break but involves more duty personnel. Additional duty tourists are needed for setting up the camp. Their role is to gather fuel for the fire and clear the camp area. For a well-equipped camp, benches, drying racks, and hangers are constructed from available materials. Some duty personnel clear the path to the water if necessary and dig a pit for trash.

In winter, duty personnel also dig a pit for the stove and compact the path from the fire to the tents. In case of strong winds, a windbreak system is built. Two or three tourists provide the group with "small-format" firewood to keep the tent warm at night, using camping stoves for this purpose. Organizing a winter hike takes more time (about 3 hours), so the stop should be made before it gets dark.

Schedule for Day Stops and Overnight Stays

The key aspect of a hike is the proper schedule, which allows for normal rest and, importantly, good sleep. It’s very pleasant, especially with good company, to sit by the fire, but it’s important not to forget about sleep schedules. Don’t stay up until morning and feel tired the next day. A competent leader should announce the bedtime in advance, around 10:00 PM. After bedtime, there should be no loud noise or conversation in the camp to avoid disturbing other participants’ rest.

In addition to rest and sleep, the organization of day stops and overnight stays should include time for communal work, repairing and checking clothing and gear. There should also be time for entertainment, exercise, games, training, and gathering berries and mushrooms. During day stops, it’s good to take walks and excursions, which help to better familiarize oneself with the area.

Packing Up the Camp

The team begins to gather by packing their backpacks.

If the weather is bad and it’s raining or it’s winter, backpacks are packed inside the tent. If the weather is good, warm, and sunny, all items are removed from the tent, leaving the entrance open for drying, and the backpack is packed outside.

Do not break benches, tables, and barriers—they may be needed by other tourist groups. However, wooden posts and stakes should be placed with the leftover firewood near the fire pit.

Collect all trash and take it with you. Paper can be burned in the fire. Then extinguish the fire by pouring water on it, covering it with snow, or dirt.

Readiness Check

Before leaving the overnight or day stop location, the leader checks the group composition, ensures all belongings are accounted for, checks if anything is forgotten, ensures the break area is cleaned up, and confirms that the fire is extinguished.

Tip: Don’t forget to rest on the route! Stick to the schedule: 45 minutes on the trail – 5 minutes of rest.

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