u/Confident-Stomach215

After my trip to Chilao earlier this month, I took my second solo foray to Davy Brown campground in the Dick Smith wilderness inland of Santa Barbara CA. This is an area I used to galavant around in as a 20-something with wildass 15+ mile day hikes. This time I went to relax, and at site 7 with a private waterfall and swimming hole, I definitely relaxed.

I was all alone in the campground on the first night, the only other campers bailed before it got dark. I was a little freaked at first, but then I was really happy to play music and sing and really feel alone. Even my satellite reception wasn’t reliable, I was truly out there. The dark moon stars were incredible.

I am usually a freeze dried food gal, but this time I brought salmon and potatoes and spices and cheese and such, and my tinfoil dinners were top tier. That was a super fun thing, to have fancier food.

I was in my hammock by the stream when a huge log cracked off a dead tree and fell into the stream about 10 feet from my head. I’ve never seen or heard that happen before but I was shocked at the unexpectedness of it! Always check for dead branches!

Huge shoutout to my Thermacell backpackers device, the one that attaches straight to an isobutane canister. That thing saved me camping creek side, I had only two mosquito bites after three days out there with incessant swarms. I paired it with the bigger weird plastic version, plus a ton of mosquito coils.

My bed setup kicked ass again. Two foam sleeping pads, double foam + inflatable pad folded over, puffy sleeping bag all wrapped in a fitted sheet on top of a cot, then top sheet and blankets and pillow. Excellent nights of sleep beside the stream.

I am all camped out for the month! Might join others later this summer for a weekend one-nighter, but this has been very satisfying.

I solo camped 3 times in 2021, before grad school & a big career change. This week I took solo trip #4, and hit it out of the park.

This is Chilao Campground in the Angeles National Forest near Los Angeles, I am purposefully sharing this as a woman solo camper because I felt really safe here and want my other LA county babes to know this spot is legit. This is a first come first serve cash only campground. It’s bear country but the campground flyers say securing food in vehicles is sufficient. While I was setting up camp a guy who had just parked his RV with his family a couple sites down came and asked if I could hear the generator because he was concerned about noise (green flag!). I couldn’t hear it at all, but I was glad to make an acquaintance I could go to if I needed help. He turned out to be 1 out of 3 other campers in the whole campground of 83 sites.

I hiked a bit of the Silver Moccasin trail, hung out in my hammock, read a great book about a family cult in the Angeles (Forager by Michelle Dowd) and enjoyed the cherry & almond firewood I got from a local firewood place instead of the grocery store. The views from the campground were spectacular. I had instant couscous, arugula, and tinned fish bowls for supper & lunch, 10/10 camp meal.

All my gear was used and needed. My bed setup kicked ass - 2 ground pads, a folded double mattress pad, and a fluffy sleeping bag all encased in a fitted twin sheet on top of a cot. Top sheet and 3 blankets folded around and under the “mattress” and a real pillow to top it off. I am turning 40 in a few months so sleeping comfortably off the ground was much appreciated. No water at this campsite, and I used up the 7 gallons I brought with me for a 2-night stay.

I have another trip planned for the Santa Barbara backcountry next week and I’m super excited for that even as I’m exhausted at home after this trip. Long live the solo camp trip! Women deserve time alone to stare at a fire and trees!