Yuru Camp△ 3 – 01 – You Can Always Go Again – RABUJOI – An Anime Blog

Yuru Camp was a healing balm during Covid, but it’s no less welcome now that everything’s opened up. In a fun coincidence, I started watching this right after I got off the phone with a friend about planning a four-night camping trip in a part of the state where we’ll see a ton of stars if the skies are clear.

The episode is neatly split into two separate stories. First up is Rin, who is on a camping trip by herself to Lake Shojiko. Not only is it a splendid place to view Fujiyama, but there’s a much smaller mountain in front of it called Kodaki Fuji that looks like it’s being hugged by Fuji-san.

During her present-day trip, Rin reminisces about taking the train to Toei to spend the day with her grandfather. After visiting a dam, she expresses interest in his camping equipment, so he takes her to Tsugu Park for a little day camp.

She’s eager to see him make fire manually, and it isn’t until the present day when she decides to make the attempt herself that she realizes how difficult it is. But like her gramps, she doesn’t give up, and when she actually creates fire with her bare hands, well, it’s obviously hugely rewarding!

We trade the gorgeous scenery of Shojiko for school and the Outclub, where Nadeshiko, Aoi, and Chiaki make DIY alcohol stoves out of metal cans. It’s highly instructive and informative, while Toba-sensei also points out the dangers of such stoves, no doubt remembering a time she knocked one over when she was half in the bag.

I appreciated how the lighting suddenly got more dramatic and “camp-like” when Toba-sensei closed the curtains in the classroom so the girls could see the pretty blue flames burning from their little stoves. Ena then invites everyone to her house for a “day yard camp” to test out their stoves in a controlled environment, and also to show off the camping gear she bought for her adorable pup Chikuwa.

On the way there, Nadeshiko stops and snaps a photo of a budding branch glowing in the setting sun. Spring is about to spring, and she’s clearly pumped for it, just as I’m pumped for more beautiful Laid-Back Camp!