How an Unplugged Camping Trip Rekindled My Routine

It started with a group chat, as these things often do.

We were all exhausted—not in a dramatic “I need a spa weekend” kind of way, but the quieter kind of burnout where you check your screen time, wince, and open Instagram anyway.

Someone floated the idea of a weekend camping trip. No service. No screens. Just trees, a few collapsible chairs, and the kind of meals you cook on a camping stove (or a good old-fashioned fire) with zero expectations.

I’m not usually one to jump at the chance to go sit in the woods (I like comfort, okay?), but I was in before I had time to overthink it.

The Setup: No Wi-Fi, No Timeline, No Problem

We arrived at the campsite Friday afternoon—one bar of service between all of us, which we used to send the classic “if I die out here, avenge me” text. And then… we unplugged.

And I mean actually unplugged.

No doomscrolling before bed. No endless voice memos. No falling asleep to someone telling me to “get ready” with them on TikTok. It was disorienting—like my brain kept reaching for a phantom phone.

But after a few hours of silence (and a slightly chaotic attempt at pitching a tent), something started to shift.

I Had Nothing to Do…So I Paid Attention

It’s amazing how much more you notice when your brain isn’t busy toggling tabs.

How good coffee tastes when you sip it slowly from a slightly dented camping mug.

How loud birds and crickets actually are.

How tired you actually are when there’s no screen playing a movie you’ve seen a million times to keep you up past midnight.

The first night, I fell asleep to the sound of crickets and actual darkness. No notification ding. No algorithm taunting me to keep scrolling. Just sleep—the kind that actually rests you.

Rest Looked Different Out Here

I thought I was going on a low-effort getaway. What I got was a full-body reset.

Without realizing it, I cycled through all the types of rest I’d been needing:

• Physical rest, after weeks of desk fatigue

• Mental rest, because silence is rare and golden

• Sensory rest, away from LED screens and Slack pings

• Creative rest, thanks to pine trees and a complete lack of pressure to “produce” anything

Even cooking became restorative…if you count pouring boiling water into a cup of Pasta Bolognese Hot & Savory as cooking (which I do). There’s something satisfying about eating a warm meal you didn’t overthink.

Coming Home, Something Was Different

I didn’t expect two nights of tent sleep and instant coffee to change much. But when I got back to my apartment, I wasn’t in a rush to re-download the chaos.

I moved slower. I scrolled less. I remembered I like writing in the mornings. I swapped my usual snoozed-alarm, rushed morning routine for something I could actually savor.

Most of all, I felt like I’d come back to myself. Not in a cliché way. Just… clearer. Calmer. More rooted in the kind of routine that feels chosen, not reactive.

TL;DR?

Unplugging doesn’t have to mean a full digital detox. But getting out of signal range—even for a weekend—can remind you that your body and mind weren’t built for 24/7 input.

Sometimes the best way to reset your routine is to get completely out of it.

Words by Erin Blake