Folders 101

I created several folders for separate backpacks.  I dragged the several tracks, waypoints, and photos for a backpack into the folder.  Sometimes I would drag data from repeats of the same trip into the same folder.   

I thought I would see all those individual items in the folder, but when I click on a folder it opens a map view of – I'm guessing – the amalgam of all those data into one map view.

Q1. Am I fundamentally misunderstanding the use of folders?

Q2.  Where did all those underlying separate data objects go - if I want to get them back?

Thank you - lost and confused.