WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Season 2, Episode 8 of Laid-Back Camp, now streaming on Crunchyroll.
Nadeshiko and her friends all rang in the new year in true style in Laid-Back Camp recently, and now in Episode 8, the girls are ready for the new challenges on the horizon. Nadeshiko has always been the most easygoing of the bunch, blending right into the background. But even she has become a solo camping star.
By now, Nadeshiko can afford any camping gear she needs thanks to the part-time job her sister Sakura found her. That, and the spirit of adventure, has led Nadeshiko to try her hand at solo camping in Fujinomiya, and she's off to a good start. Can she stick the landing, too?
Now that the girls are all taking the initiative and designing their own personalized camping trips, they can go camping with confidence. Already, Chiaki launched her own three-person camping trip at Lake Yamanaka, though she missed a few items on the pre-planning checklist. Nadeshiko was inspired when she heard that Chiaki, Ena and Aoi went camping without needing Rin's help, and she decided that solo camping would be a fine test of her abilities. Now that she has arrived at the campground, it's clearer than ever.
First, Nadeshiko sets up her tent and after a few minor fumbles, she gets to the meat of the matter: campground cooking. Nadeshiko can't make a campfire at her site, but can still use a small burner and an improvised grill to get cooking with the ingredients she brought along. With sweet potatoes, carrots, eggplants, tomatoes, leeks and more, Nadeshiko really gets into it and her neighboring campers soon take notice, hoping to try a bite for themselves.
Nadeshiko's campground cooking is trial and error, but she's having a great time. As the sun sets, Nadeshiko is still at it, and the two girls at the neighboring tent wander over to check it out. Nadeshiko welcomes the sisters and explains what she's doing, and she shares her cooked vegetables with them. The food turned out great, though the carrots were overcooked and ended up a bit charred, though Nadeshiko takes it in stride. When the sisters' father visits, the three of them agree that instead of bringing convenience store food, they'll practice cooking too and see what they can come up with. Already, Nadeshiko is inspiring others with her distinct style of solo camping. She has found her "voice" as an outdoors enthusiast.
Rin Shima is in the area, and since Nadeshiko's phone is out of its service area, Rin visits in person to check up on her solo camper friend and make sure nothing's going wrong. She bumps into Sakura, Nadeshiko's big sister, and the two of them covertly watch Nadeshiko take a twilight walk through the campground. Nadeshiko seems to be doing just fine, and she stops and adores the sight of a nighttime city sprawled out before her. Rin and Sakura agree that Nadeshiko can handle herself just fine, and this is promising for future camping trips. Nadeshiko has definitely outgrown her training wheels and she can now stride into Japan's wilds with confidence. That's what the outdoors club is all about.
