A CALL has gone out to Leigh lovers of the outdoor life to join in a bid to break the UK camping record.

Organisers want to beat last year's total of campers and caravanners out for one night during National Camping Week (June 1-9).

The attempt will take place over June 8-9 and anyone can register --whether they choose their own back garden for a first experience or are seasoned campers.

One things is for sure, they can count me out.

I find no pleasure in sitting in a box in a muddy field or lying on damp groundsheets. Neither do I appreciate the communal sleeping of youth hostels. I've done all three and didn't enjoy them one bit.

Give me the comfort of my own home or an apartment in the sun anytime.

It must run in the family because my Atherton-born cousin and his wife left the beauty of their little Derbyshire cottage for a camping holiday in Wales.

After setting up the tent and sitting there for half an hour watching a farmer hammer in some stumps, he decided he'd had enough, packed up and headed for the more familiar surroundings and unbeatable views from his own home, leaving his wife to rough it with friends for the week. He's refused to budge ever since.

Any good camping tales to share?