The idea of camping sounds magical, especially when you’re escaping the grind of corporate life, turning off email notifications, and finally being unreachable by your micromanaging boss. It’s the perfect excuse to trade Slack messages for s’mores, and last-minute meetings for mosquito bites. Instead of fighting traffic, you’re fighting with a tent that won’t stay up and smoke that somehow finds your face no matter where you sit around the campfire. Truly zen.

My friends and I seem to go camping once every five years. Not on purpose, it just happens that way. Our first trip was right out of high school. We packed eight girls into one tent and headed to the breathtaking natural beauty of… Ohio. To be fair, Hocking Hills is actually gorgeous, but we were 18, broke, and had absolutely no clue what we were doing. Still, those chaotic trips make for the best memories. Camping gives you a rare mix of peace, disaster, laughter, and frightening animal sightings you’ll never forget. And it always ends up being worth it — eventually.