Camping for Wussies

A nature-phobic city girl finds her way into the wild--sort of.

There are few things I hate more than camping. I love the outdoors--fishing, kayaking, perhaps a nice nature walk--but at the end of the day I want a hot shower and a soft bed. Yes, I know, this admission renders me dangerously close to being classified as high-maintenance, but I've tried it enough times to know camping's just not for me.

Up until now, this hasn't posed much of a problem. But it turns out my new boyfriend is a camping fiend. He's been dying to go for a weekend, and at some point I know I'm going to have to suck it up and be a "good girlfriend" and go with him.

In preparation for that day, I've been doing a little location-scouting, and I actually think I've found the perfect spot: El Capitan Canyon near Santa Barbara. There are tents and tons of outdoor activities for him, as well as beds, fans, and, most importantly, fully equipped bathrooms nearby for me. Sure, it's not exactly roughing it, but at least I can picture myself peacefully at one with nature here.

After we decided on the destination, I started thinking about what in the world I'd bring. I've never owned hiking boots in my life, but a college friend of mine (who works every summer in Bar Harbor, Maine, for Acadia National Park) swears by her pair from L.L. Bean. She's bought the same basic style three times over the last 10 years.

I feel like if you're going into the woods, layers are necessary, and one of them should be flannel. Maybe I'm taking this a little far, but a shrunken flannel over a floral Henley is exactly what I want to be wearing. Finish it off with a few pairs of utilitarian khaki shorts and that's pretty much what I'm envisioning my look being for

the whole weekend.

I'm fully admitting that this is a Hollywood vision of what camping actually is--I realize it usually doesn't involve a four-poster bed and massage facilities--but tricking myself with a little glamour is at least going to get me there, and let my boyfriend have his weekend in the woods.

Heather Summerville is the senior editor at