To spend time in nature you don’t need specialist equipment or survival training, but you will enjoy it much more if you think about for example how to dress and move around. To be dry, warm and full up while you are out is the most basic requirement for an enjoyable outdoor life. Whether you are trekking for several days in the mountains or picking mushrooms in the woods where you live.

Dry - Warm
The secret to keeping dry and warm enough is often called the Layering System. This is based on the fact that wearing a number of thinner garments makes it easy to adjust your clothing to suit the activity, ensuring an even temperature. By wearing fewer clothes when on the move and more when taking a break you avoid unnecessary sweating, but still keep warm.

The Layering System is based on layer-upon-layer: Undergarment - Midlayer – Outer layer – Shell. Remember that a careless choice for any of these layers can ruin the whole trip.

Undergarment
The undergarment usually consists of a long-sleeved jumper and trousers with long legs. The garment should have a snug fit and be flexible. It also doubles as sleeping garment or as reinforcement in general.

Midlayer
A shirt/jumper in a cotton/polyester mix or a thin fleece is plenty. It is important that it is not too tight or thick/warm. The trousers should be loose-fitting and quick-drying. Jeans are often unsuitable as they are often tight and can cause chafing (when wet they will definitively chafe), as well as being slow to dry.

Outer layer
A thicker sweater in wool or fleece which is easy to put on and take off. Could have a roll-neck, if so with a zip.

Shell
The shell garment should be loose-fitting, hardwearing as well as wind and/or waterproof. If you are not going to spend a lot of time outdoors, two separate garments, one for wind and one for rain, will work well. If the trousers of the midlayer are windproof you only need to add a windproof jacket.
Suitable materials for windproof garments are cotton/polyester mix or polyester only. These can be waterproofed to better withstand water and dry fairly quickly. The garment should have pockets adapted for carrying a rucksack.

Don’t forget... a woolly hat and a pair of gloves. A scarf or neckerchief makes it easy to regulate neck temperature. A baseball cap can be useful in sunny weather.

Full-up
With food in your stomach, energy-levels are at their highest and any problems during the trip are easier to avoid. A communal coffee-time or lunch break during the trip also fills an important and enjoyable social function. Full up also means not thirsty. To feel well we must drink around 3 litres of water/day. Make sure you drink little and often and that the water bottle is always within easy reach.

Fire
A fire gives warmth, safety and light. To be able to make a fire neatly, without leaving any marks is a real art. However, you are not allowed to make a fire just anywhere. The Right of Public Access describes when and where you are not allowed to make a fire.
 
Before making the fire
Start by building a proper fireplace. The most common method is to remove the top layer of grass and then building a ring of stones. A better way is to build a bed of stones and make the fire on top. This has many advantages such as allowing oxygen to get in from underneath, reducing the risk of root fires and being nicer to sit around. Have plenty of water within reach in case the fire spreads.

Lighting the fire
Get away from the moisture of the ground by putting a couple of large pieces of wood in the fireplace. Then add the tinder (dry thin fir twigs, birch bark, juniper bark, and sticks of pinewood). Split thin sticks from dry wood. Chop up a pile of larger pieces. Light a piece of birch bark then build up a little fire with the thinnest sticks. When the fire has become a little more established it is time to add the split logs. Don’t light the fire until all wood is collected and chopped. Remember that split wood burns better than round.

Putting out - tidying
Once the fire has died down, put the well-cooled embers in a pit, under a stone or by a little stream. Check carefully that the ground underneath the fireplace isn’t hot, if it is there is a risk of root fire. If necessary, ‘water’ with five-six buckets of water to cool the ground. The stones should be put back and the remaining wood can be placed beneath a thick fir-tree (perhaps for the next time?). Make sure you don’t leave any traces!

Knife
Choose an all-round knife, which is comfortable to hold and has a blade about one hand wide. There are many different models to choose from, one example is Frosts Moraknivar (good value).

Axe
An axe made for chopping and lopping is probably the most versatile and useful for outdoor pursuits. Choose a good quality axe. There are often a lot of sweat and tears to be saved by buying a more expensive axe. Don’t use the axe’s head as a hammer or sledge hammer, as this can cause the eye to open and the head to fall off.

When using the axe, make sure you are standing with your legs well apart, so that you don’t hit your legs if you should slip. Axe injuries often affect knees/lower legs and can make it difficult to reach a doctor quickly.

Remember to uphold the Right of Public Access when you are spending time in the great outdoors.