THE CAMPSITE

Your camp field

You dispose a campsite that you get from the camp office. If you have wishes on a specific spot, please write that on the form “Preliminary numbers of participants”. You get a notice on which spot you have been given as lastest 3 weeks before your arrival. In close conncection to all campsites are driking water, outhouses, recycling stations. Charging hubs exists on some of the outhouses and at the outside of the program office on the central parts of the island. We recommend you to carefully mark the gear you leave in the charging hubs with name and group. Vässarö takes no responsibility for the stuff put in the hubs. It is in no ay allowed to bring power from the lockers to your campsite.

Are you short on tents?

We have a small supply of tent that you can rent. The cost is 400SEK per tent and week (smallest amount 400SEK). The tents is collected at the Program office and when you deliver them back you help the program staff to hang the tents to dry.

Lighting of fires

Apart from camp stoves you are only allowed to light fires on arranged spots shown by the Program office. Exception can be made in connections to hikes. At great fire hazard it might happen that the rules on lighting fire is tightened or even that a total fire ban is put in. We ask about understanding about this. This is also a pedagogic matter – we can’t keep lighting fires when the authorities keep repeating a fire ban. At these events it might be so that we have to cook our meals on gas kitchen instead of open fires. In other words, it might be a good idea to bring a big gas stove. Gas is provided at Vässarö. If you have a stove inside a tent, there must always be a waken fireguard.

Camp stoves for cooking – Vässarös own “Ivarspis”, is available to borrow. You can’t book it – the groups on the island has to share the 30 stoves in solidarity.

Poles

Poles and timber you are allowed to fetch for yourself in the woods at Vässarö. When you arrive you get tips on how to take poles to keep the wood tidy. For example – it’s important to keep the stumps low to prevent people from getting hurt. A leader should always be present when fetching poles. We don’t want you to use axes so please bring a saw. Our staff is not able to help you bring poles.

Firewood

Firewood for cooking

Firewood for cooking is often available for purchase. We have big sacks of firewood for you to buy (ca 1 cubic meter). It contains self-produced firewood from Vässarös forests in mixed wood spicies. The sack will be placed at your campsite. You can order the wood on the Food Supply form that is to be sent to us 5 weeks before your arrival. Write in the “Extra order” field.

Firewood for campfires

If you don’t want to pick your own wood for campfires you can buy it from us. We offer boxes of wood for campfires at the cost of 60SEK. The empty box has to be returned to the Program office the day after the campfire.

Pick firewood in the forest

There are lots of dry branches and fallen trees. Sometimes there are also poles and firewood left from earlier groups, of course you can use this too!

Kerosene and gas

Kereosene you bring yourself. We sell gas in PC10-tubes and yu pay only for used amount. Handling of the gas is made at the camp office and we have both t-connection and adapters for you to rent if you need.

Water

Sea water is used for dish washing, washing and cooking potatoes and pasta. The fresh water is only to be used for drinking and cooking. The fresh water taps is marked with red and the sea water with blue. Big water can is good to bring to be able to store some water in your camp. It’s a good idea to fill the already the first day! We have to help each other with saving on the water. Be careful with closing the taps and let the camp office know immediately about any leaks.

Leftover food

You will find that food leftovers will be a daily problem. Please do not throw leftover food in the garbage can and do not dig holes in the ground, leaving food there. Birds and animals on Vässarö know how to open garbage can lids and they dig through the ground to find food scraps. It is not a pretty sight…Instead, you may borrow from Vässarö a bucket with a lid that you use for putting scraps of old or left-over food in. This bucket is then emptied in a bigger (black) bucket that is located by the toilets. We suggest that you make sure that your bucket is emptied – and washed out (salt water is fine) – between meals so that it does not begin to bad around the campsite.

Transport cart

You can hire transport cart for use during your stay. The cart is “yours” during your entire stay and can be used for all transport of stuff such as food, firewood etc. Max load is 100kg. Due to the safety risk it’s not allowed to play with or drive people in the carts. The price is 50SEK per day.

Toilets

On Vässarö we have outhouses. Out of eperience we know that some people, especially younger, find these disgusting. It’s good idea to prepare these people on that this is a natural, traditional and environmentally friendly toilet solution. Itäs not allowed to use the forest as a toilet. On the outhouses thers is toilet paper, a sink with running water and soap. The soap on the outhouses must stand there and can not be moved to the camp.

Cleaning of the campsite and inspection

The campsite is to be carefully claned before you leave: poles is stacked at the forest edge, stoned and dug up tufts are put back, the ditches are cleared. We count on that someone in your group make sure that the campsite is inspected once you are done. You can throw away all waste that has come up during your stay at Vässarö but we do not take care about expired tents broking stoves and other stuff that you have brought to the island. This you have to bring with you home and throw away on the right spot.

Waste disposal / recycling

In our recycling rooms there are marked up bins for all waste. We work together with the municipality to make sure we recycle in the right way. This means that the recycling at Vässarö might differ from the one at home – we do it according to the guidelines from Norrtälje municipality.

You find the recycling rooms in connection to your campsite, normally by the outhouses. If you can’t find the room, ask at the camp office and we will show you the way. At for example the sauna, in Fladan and along roads there are disposal bins to be used for smaller waste.

Since it’s not allowed to dig slush pits, it’s appropriate to strain the water from dish washing through a colander. Then pour the water out a bit into the forest. Use hot water for dish washing, than you can use very little dish soap – better for the nature.

Food waste – preferably in compost bags – to be put in our green plastic bins. We empty them into a compst where it becomes dirt. No plastic bags in the bins.
Batteries and small electronics – in the red box on the wall in the recycling rooms or at the program office and the dining hall.
Bottles and cans – in marked up special bins in the recycling rooms and at the kiosk.
Glass – dish wash them and put in bins in the recycling rooms.
Metall –dish wash them and put in bins in the recycling rooms.

Important information for all leaders

At arrival