On May 5th, we had the opportunity to enjoy a long weekend, and we decided to make the most of it outdoors. We debated whether to head into the woods or opt for a skateboarding/outdoor trip to Tjøme. In the end, we chose Tjøme and its fantastic skatepark this time, and we didn’t regret it. The weather had been quite poor recently, but over this weekend, summer temperatures arrived, giving us a real holiday feeling.
We had camped on Tjøme before, but always at a campground. We’re not particularly fond of crowded campgrounds and lots of people when we’re on a trip; we prefer more remote places with beautiful nature experiences. We googled and found Lilleskagen. After four hours in the car, the boys were eager to stretch their legs. We decided to explore and see if we could find a camping spot before hauling all our gear. The boys ran and hopped along the trail, amazed at the sea of wood anemones they saw. “Look!! There must be more than a thousand thousand, and much more than that!” It was incredibly refreshing to stroll down the path with happy, running children, wood anemones as far as the eye could see, and bird songs from all directions. – Magical!
This is where we should have stayed,” I said to my husband. He agreed it was lovely but admitted he prefers being among spruce trees and freshwater. After walking along the trail for a while, the landscape opened up, revealing a beautifully pristine sandy beach.
After much deliberation, we finally found a small patch of grass where we decided to set up our tent. We returned to the car and loaded our Nordic Cab with clothes and gear. I got quite annoyed when I realized I had forgotten the baby carrier, so I had no choice but to carry our little one with me, but we made it there eventually.
The kids went wild! Climbing, running, jumping—especially the 3-year-old who wanted to be in the most precarious places he could find, as high as possible and preferably right by the water. We decided to set up the tent as quickly as possible. In the end, my husband had to handle everything while I kept an eye on the kids.
When the tent was up and darkness started to fall, it was a relief to lie down. Finally, it had become mild enough for our 4-month-old to join us on a camping trip. We’re looking forward to many more trips like this in the future. However, that night I had trouble sleeping. I was cold and woke up several times during the night. My sleeping pad was ice-cold, and I felt chilled to the bone. I silently resolved that I wouldn’t endure many more cold nights in a tent. I checked on the kids multiple times that night, and they were snug and warm. I managed to wedge myself onto the reindeer skin with the kids, added an extra blanket to my sleeping bag, and slept well for the rest of the night.
When we woke up, it was warm inside the tent, so we opened our sleeping bags, took off our hats and layers of wool. “I’ll stay another night if we get another reindeer skin!” Unfortunately, the sports store was out of reindeer skins, but we found a new and better sleeping pad. The next nights, I slept through the night comfortably. I learned firsthand how crucial a good sleeping pad is and definitely plan to invest in a reindeer skin. We spent the weekend by the water, in the sand, and at the skatepark, and we had some fantastic days together.
On our way home, we reminisced and concluded that our 4-day trip felt like a week-long vacation with all the experiences and impressions it provided. Sometimes, it can feel daunting to get the whole gang packed and ready for a weekend trip, especially when it’s been a while since the last one. We were clearly out of practice, and with an extra child in tow, it was complete chaos the day before. We didn’t finish packing until the evening as planned.
However, every time, we agree that it’s absolutely worth it! Next time, we’ll plan and approach it with a bit more structure.
