Camping can be an intense adventure

These letters are in response to an editorial by Julie Eley asking readers about their scariest camping experience. After a random draw, C. Scott of Nelson wins the six-month subscription to TV Guide.

Years ago, we used to go camping a lot with our neighbours. We had three young children and they had four. This time we pitched our tents side by side with a walkway between and a tarpaulin as a roof to keep it dry. Still unpacking stuff and kids all playing around, we suddenly heard this terrible loud rumbling noise coming towards us. We gathered children and popped them into the trailers, just as a herd of what I would call steers came thundering around the corner, some straight through our walkway. Luckily, the tarpaulin was high enough that they didn’t take it with them. The neighbours’ youngest child was asleep in his cot and never knew a thing. We often chat about it if we meet now. Just one of the camping adventures. C. Scott (Nelson)

I used to love camping as a kid but I remember in the very early days, when our family just had a basic tent, I was so scared one night when I heard scratching noises at the side of our tent where I was sleeping. Everyone else seemed to be asleep and I was petrified. I was young and thought it was a ghost or something. I shook my big brother awake and told him to listen. He was annoyed at me for waking him. But he listened and then told me to go back to sleep as it was probably just a possum looking for food. I had never seen a possum so I was still scared. But eventually it must have moved away as the scratching stopped and I finally fell asleep. My brother thought I was so silly to be scared. I still don’t like possums. Anne (Christchurch)