Grandma Gatewood hiked the Appalachian Trail in canvas shoes and slept under a shower curtain, while Guardian Country Diarist Harry Griffin started rock climbing using his mum’s washing line. I cannot, from my privileged able-bodied position, advise recklessness – good boots on hazardous terrain, for example, can save your skin – but not all kit is essential. While quick-drying clothes are important, I often prefer old and threadbare to pricey technical textiles. And while some brands make kit that really lasts, others do not. Look for bargains on eBay and in charity shops.

Enjoy simple, free pleasures

Perhaps we all have memories of simpler golden days, or remember someone who would pedal off into the countryside for hours with just a sandwich. Now we are snarled up in traffic, conspicuous consumption and digital ambush, those experiences are difficult. But gone forever? Maybe not.

Rockpooling and birdwatching remain free, as is whiling away time beneath a tree. When I see kids absorbed in crabbing off a pier and people bivouacking under an old tarp it makes me smile – they’re creating the good old days to come.