{"id":2575,"date":"2026-04-16T20:17:54","date_gmt":"2026-04-16T18:17:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/packed-like-sardines-at-the-wassenaar-campsite-and-how-my-tent-became-my-home-again\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T11:28:45","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T09:28:45","slug":"packed-like-sardines-at-the-wassenaar-campsite-and-how-my-tent-became-my-home-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/packed-like-sardines-at-the-wassenaar-campsite-and-how-my-tent-became-my-home-again\/","title":{"rendered":"Packed like sardines at the Wassenaar campsite and how my tent became my home again"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The beehive of Duinhorst<\/h2>\n\n

After the grueling trek through the loose sand, I pitch my tent at Camping Duinhorst<\/a> in Wassenaar.<\/a> Everything is right here: neat fields, spotless sanitary buildings, friendly people at the reception. Really, that’s not the problem. But this\u2026 this just isn’t my way of being. <\/p>\n\n

I notice it immediately. My body doesn’t relax. It’s looking for space, silence, the rustle of leaves, the chirping of birds. Wild camping is in my system now. And when that’s not possible, I look for nature campsites<\/a>, places that come close to that feeling. Here, that’s impossible. <\/p>\n\n

Caravans and campers are packed like sardines, there’s hardly any privacy. It feels like a beehive, even now in the spring. I hate to think what this is like in the summer, a carnival of crowds and noise. And then the road next to it, the N14, constantly present in the background. <\/p>\n\n

As if that weren’t enough, I also pitch my tent right next to a lamppost. At nature campsites, such a thing doesn’t even exist, so I simply hadn’t thought about it. Luckily, I find my sleep mask in my sleeping bag. <\/p>\n\n

A one-pot dinner and a protesting back<\/h2>\n\n

After a simple one-pot dinner and a warm shower, I crawl into my tent early. My legs are heavy and my back is protesting after a winter in which I’ve hardly walked. I fall asleep quickly. <\/p>\n\n

The moment the tent became my home again<\/h2>\n\n

And then, somewhere between night and morning, it happens. It’s back. That feeling. My tent is no longer a tent, but my home. I sleep until half past eight, something that’s unthinkable at home. <\/p>\n\n

When I lift my sleep mask, I see to my surprise that the sun is shining.<\/p>\n\n

Lying in my sleeping bag, I make coffee. No rush, no plan. Just that moment. The silence in my head. The sun on my face. The birds singing. The wind is blowing in such a way that the road can’t be heard. Suddenly it feels right again. Here, like this, in my own way, this is why I walk. I stay lying there for hours. Because I can. <\/p>\n\n

Force 5 winds to the Pier<\/h2>\n\n

Later, I walk through the dunes and the beach towards Scheveningen<\/a>. Force 5 headwind, but it feels good: the wind in my hair, the sand under my feet, the wide beach ahead of me. In the distance, I can already see the pier, with the Ferris wheel getting closer, and at The Fat Mermaid<\/a>, I wait for my boyfriend, a meeting I’m really looking forward to. <\/p>\n\n

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The beehive of Duinhorst After the grueling trek through the loose sand, I pitch my tent at Camping Duinhorst in Wassenaar. Everything is right here: neat fields, spotless sanitary buildings, friendly people at the reception.… More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2581,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[236,246],"class_list":["post-2575","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogs-en","tag-long-distance-hike","tag-netherlands"],"yoast_head":"\nPacked like sardines at the Wassenaar campsite and how my tent became my home again - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Even among the lampposts and caravans of a crowded campsite, a nomad finds peace. 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Na een loopbaan in de commerci\u00eble wereld, coaching en training, en jarenlange inzet in de vluchtelingenopvang, koos ik op mijn zestigste voor een radicale wending: ik gaf mezelf een sabbatical en trok de wereld in \u2013 te voet. Wat begon als een plan om 10.000 kilometer door Europa te wandelen, groeide uit tot iets veel groters: een nieuwe manier van leven. In negen maanden legde ik meer dan 5.500 kilometer af, met alleen mijn tent, schrijfboek, wandelkar (die ik liefdevol \u2018Wheelie\u2019 noem) en mijn barefoot schoenen. Al lopend ontdekte ik dat dit mijn pad is: een nomadisch bestaan, schrijvend onderweg. Ik geloof in het ritme van de voeten, in eenvoud, traagheid en aanwezigheid. Reizen zonder haast, leven met weinig, en onderweg de verhalen vangen die zich aandienen. Mijn missie? De schoonheid van vertraging, vrijheid en verbondenheid tastbaar maken in woorden. Ik b\u00e9n onderweg. En daar voel ik me thuis.","sameAs":["https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/marnix_footsteps_of_freedom\/"],"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/author\/cheersmarnix\/"}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-04-16-at-20.10.02.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2563,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/hutje-mutje-op-de-camping-in-wassenaar-en-hoe-mijn-tent-weer-mijn-thuis-werd\/","url_meta":{"origin":2575,"position":0},"title":"Hutje mutje op de camping in Wassenaar en hoe mijn tent weer mijn thuis werd","author":"Marnix van der Lijn","date":"16 April 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"De bijenkorf van Duinhorst Na de moeizame tocht door het mulle zand zet ik mijn tent op Camping Duinhorst\u00a0in Wassenaar. Alles klopt hier: keurige velden, brandschone sanitairgebouwen, vriendelijke mensen bij de receptie. Echt, daar ligt het niet aan. Maar dit\u2026 dit is gewoon niet mijn manier van zijn. Ik merk\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blogs NL"","block_context":{"text":"Blogs NL","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/category\/blogs-nl\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-04-16-at-20.10.02.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-04-16-at-20.10.02.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-04-16-at-20.10.02.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-04-16-at-20.10.02.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":325,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/tent-at-the-shooting-range\/","url_meta":{"origin":2575,"position":1},"title":"Tent at the shooting range","author":"Marnix van der Lijn","date":"17 May 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"May 17, 2024 I get up to pee and now, in the daylight, I see where I pitched my tent last night in the dark. Not under a tourist information sign, as I had thought, but under a sign for a shooting range. What?? The sign explains how to hunt\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blogs ENG"","block_context":{"text":"Blogs ENG","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/category\/blogs-en\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-17-halelujah.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-17-halelujah.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-17-halelujah.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-17-halelujah.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-17-halelujah.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1893,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/miserable-in-my-hotel\/","url_meta":{"origin":2575,"position":2},"title":"Miserable in my hotel","author":"Marnix van der Lijn","date":"15 June 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"#throwback - June 5, 2024 Early in the morning I hear a barking deer again, but this time it doesn\u2019t startle me. Once warned, twice prepared\u2014but still, what a bloody racket those animals make. I take my time with a lazy, cozy morning, and then head toward Norrk\u00f6ping, a large\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blogs ENG"","block_context":{"text":"Blogs ENG","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/category\/blogs-en\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dag-36-even-zon.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dag-36-even-zon.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dag-36-even-zon.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dag-36-even-zon.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dag-36-even-zon.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/dag-36-even-zon.jpeg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":317,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/the-great-letting-go-has-begun\/","url_meta":{"origin":2575,"position":3},"title":"The great letting go has begun!","author":"Marnix van der Lijn","date":"16 May 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"May 16, 2024 In the morning, I fry some eggs on my beach. I have a big appetite, and it stays with me all day. I eat often. One of my decisions has been to eat when I\u2019m hungry, not at set times. During the first two weeks I ate\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blogs ENG"","block_context":{"text":"Blogs ENG","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/category\/blogs-en\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-16-kamperen-verboden-e1748094595533.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-16-kamperen-verboden-e1748094595533.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-16-kamperen-verboden-e1748094595533.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-16-kamperen-verboden-e1748094595533.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-16-kamperen-verboden-e1748094595533.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":254,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/throwing-all-the-rules-overboard\/","url_meta":{"origin":2575,"position":4},"title":"Throwing all the rules overboard","author":"Marnix van der Lijn","date":"7 May 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"#terugblik - May 7, 2024 The spot by the lake is so lovely and sunny that I don\u2019t start walking until 10:30. Sleeping in has become the norm by now\u2014it seems that\u2019s just my natural rhythm. I\u2019ve also decided to start eating only when I\u2019m actually hungry, not according to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blogs ENG"","block_context":{"text":"Blogs ENG","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/category\/blogs-en\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-7-boerderij.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-7-boerderij.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-7-boerderij.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-7-boerderij.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-7-boerderij.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/dag-7-boerderij.jpeg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1033,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/a-barking-deer-and-a-deep-conversation\/","url_meta":{"origin":2575,"position":5},"title":"A barking deer and a deep conversation","author":"Marnix van der Lijn","date":"25 May 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"#throwback - May 25, 2024 At half past one at night, I wake up in shock. Terrible, harsh sounds tear through the darkness. My God, what is that? Is someone being attacked? A wild animal? I quickly turn on my Garmin, ready to press the SOS button if needed. 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