Camping is one of those activities that you either love or hate, there is little middle ground. Having camped from the Pacific to Atlantic and Gulf to Canada, the key to camping is learning what you and yours need to be comfortable. Don’t try to rough it. While some don’t mind to be hot, cold, hungry, dirty, or wet, most will tolerate very little before running for the nearest hotel. Here are few thoughts that our family have learned along the way:
- make lists (notice I said plural, lists, not singular), and make lists that have other lists as part of those lists, be organized
- check everything out before going, air in tires, batteries charged, lights working, stoves that cook, nothing worse that trying to fix something at a dark campsite
- set up the campsite when its light outside, make certain you get there in plenty of time before it gets dark
- no drinking until everything is set up, keep a lock on the liquor until you have somewhere to sleep
- read the campsite rules, we’ve had many visit from the ranger due to ignorance (known offender)
- get a campsite reservation, print it out, take the print out with you, reservations get lost, computer systems at camp sites are terrible, and there is often no cell phone service at camp sites
Below is a monster list of things you might want to bring camping, if you bring all of these items, you are just short of crazy, this list is all encompassing, things you might want to bring, remember, no roughing it, make it enjoyable.
| Camping List | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Area | Item | Amount | Size / Type | Notes |
| Kitchen | Stove | 2 | Duel Fuel | Coleman, duel fuel, use the same fuel system for lanterns as for stoves |
| Oven | 1 | Coleman sells an oven that sits on top of the stove, it works, you need to bring a cooking sheet that fits the oven, it does not come with one | ||
| Table | 4 | Folding | Coleman folding tables, four is overkill but you will end up using them, most camp sites have a picnic table, but you will need another table one which to do cooking or prep work | |
| Chairs | 4 | Folding, two per cook | folks sit around the fire and sit around the kitchen, have one for the cook and one for something that's talking to the cook, you can't have too many chairs | |
| Lantern | 1 | Duel Fuel | Coleman, two mantle, due fuel | |
| Lantern Stand | 1 | Coleman, don’t forget to stake it to the ground, most camp grounds come with one pole and hook on which you can hang a lantern, don't hang lanterns on trees, the ranger may come scold you | ||
| Lantern Case | 1 | per lantern | Coleman, get the one that fits your lantern, purchase the lantern and case together is best, a lantern without a case is asking for trouble, put your spare mantle in the bottom of the case, under the lantern | |
| Spare Mantel | 4 | Duel Fuel | Coleman, Walmart seems to always have them, put it in the case under the lantern | |
| Funnel | 1 | not for food, often comes with the lantern case or fuel gallon, some have filters which is nice, they are tiny funnels | ||
| Liquid Fuel | 1 | Gallon | Coleman, Walmart seems to always have them | |
| Skillet | 2 | Cast Iron | lodge, 10", 12", or 14", pick two, do not use stainless or non-stick, you will never get them clean, if the cast iron gets black, which it will, no one will know or care | |
| Skillet lid | 2 | Cast Iron | lodge, lids that fit your skillets, you can bring clear or steel but these will be a bear to get clean | |
| Food Turner | 2 | Metal | cheap ones that you don't care if they get messed up | |
| Tongs | 2 | Metal | cheap ones that you don't care if they get messed up | |
| Mixing Bowl | 1 | Metal | used to bring this but don't any more, too much to clean, if you want pancakes, pasta, salad, or such, necessary | |
| Cutting Board | 2 | Wood | plastic works, we bring wood boards | |
| Knife | 3 | Kitchen | paring, medium, and a large butcher type | |
| Scissors | 1 | Metal | ||
| Grater | 1 | Rectangular - Metal | ||
| Matches | 1 | Box | diamond, large box, long butane lighters work but I've had too many run out | |
| Paper Towels | 4 | rolls, two rolls per day | you will go through them fast, seems like quite a bit, it's not | |
| Plates | 1 | stack, paper, heavy | paper can be burned, absorbs grease | |
| Bowels | 1 | stack, paper, heavy | paper can be burned, absorbs grease | |
| Plastic Silverware | 1 | box each, fork, knife, spoon | don't buy the combo box, one of each, you go through forks faster and you will end up with a pile of spoons and knives with the combo box | |
| Water | 1 | gallon pitcher | fill this up from the hand washing area, sit it on the counter where you are cooking | |
| Kitchen Towels | 20 | cotton, old | paper towels don’t cut it for many cooking uses, these are the towels you used in your kitchen years ago, don't bring anything that's nice, many get thrown away after | |
| Red Solo Cups | 20 | 12 - 16oz | if you can do one per person per day, you are doing well | |
| Marker | 1 | Black | put this on a string next to the cups, everyone puts their name on their cup | |
| Measuring Cups | 1 | Metal | 1/8 to 1/2 cup, individual cups with handles, don't bring the glass Pyrex, like the mixing bowl, we don't bring these, but if you want to mix, you will need them | |
| Measuring Spoons | 1 | Metal | 1/4 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon, like the mixing bowl, we don't bring these, but if you want to mix, you will need them | |
| Tarp | 2 | Plastic, 4x6 or so | it will inevitably rain, spill, you name it, a muddy cooking area is no fun | |
| Garbage bags | 1 | roll, kitchen size with draw string | you hopefully won't use then all, but you won't want to not have enough, remember to hang your garbage or put it in a dumpster once or twice per day, these also come in handy for dirty laundry | |
| Charcoal | 0 | no, if you want to do charcoal, it's a whole different deal, people want to sit around the fire, modern campsites only have one place where you can make a fire, few have a separate grill away from the concrete camp fire location, you can bring a small grill, but to me, that's more of a pain than stoves and skillets, you can cook everything on a stove and skillet | ||
| Grill | 0 | read the charcoal write up | ||
| Pot | 0 | this is a pain, beans, pasta, been there, done that, lots of work, lots of clean up | ||
| Wash Area | ||||
| Water | 10 | gallons dispenser | gott five or ten gallon, no bigger, they are heavy when full, get the kind that they have to hold for the water to come out, not the kind that you can turn and the water will flow, put the dispenser on a table with other had washing items, this area will also be used for brushing teeth, put the table with the water away from the kitchen, tent, or camp fire area | |
| Liquid Soap | 1 | pump dispenser | put this next to the water on the same table for hand washing | |
| Hand Towels | 20 | cotton, old | sometimes these just work better than paper towels, these are years old towels, nothing new, same as for the kitchen | |
| Bug Spray | 1 | bottle per person | this keeps the bug spray away from the tent and fires, put it next to the water area, if someone gets it in their eyes, which they will, you have water to help them | |
| Paper Towels | 1 | roll per day | most will use these, same as the ones use for the kitchen | |
| Garbage bag | 1 | tape / hang it to the table somewhere, from the roll of garbage bags for the kitchen | ||
| Fire | ||||
| Lighter Fluid | 1 | Bottle | with fire starters, you probably won't need this, but it's fun, you are camping, and we all have a bit of pyro in us | |
| Fire Starters | 1 | Box | get the kind that are in a small cardboard box, thirty or so in there, wrapped in clear wrap, six or so in a group, you have to break them apart | |
| Hatchet | 1 | for the firewood, making kindling if you want, make hot dog or marsh mallow sticks, don't go collecting firewood, it’s a big no-no at camp sites | ||
| Matches | 1 | Box | diamond, large box, two boxes is better, one for fire area, other for kitchen | |
| Roasting Sticks | 2 | per person | can be purchased or easily made out of wire | |
| Chairs | 4 | folding | these are the typical cloth / nylon seating material folding chairs that last a few years and fall apart, we have bought more expensive ones and they still end up in the dumpster in a few years, or we forget them somewhere, recommend the cheap ones | |
| Firewood | 20 | pieces per day | good, hardwood, dry, seasoned, split, wood, you don't want to sit around trying to start the fire, plus, everyone wants a fire, always, when camping, you are supposed to leave it at the camp site, most prefer you buy the wood at the camp site due to tree diseases spread by firewood | |
| Food | For a weekend you won't need this much, but better to have to much than too little, the camping stores are expensive and have limited supplies, make a menu and create a list, or two, or three lists | |||
| Salt | 1 | with closing top | ||
| Pepper | 1 | with closing top | ||
| Lemon-peper | 1 | container | ||
| Flour | 2 | cups, in Tupperware | ||
| Sugar | 1 | cup, in Tupperware | ||
| Baking Powder | 1 | container | ||
| Butter | 1 | pound, four sticks | ||
| Milk | 1 | gallon | ||
| OJ | 1 | gallon | ||
| Olive Oil | 1 | container | ||
| Eggs | 1 | dozen, 2 eggs per person per day | ||
| Syrup | 1 | bottle | ||
| Burritos | 1 | package per 4 people per day, assuming 8 in package | ||
| Chicken | 1 | breasts 1/4 pound per person per day, frozen | ||
| Cheese | 1 | brick per person per day | ||
| Hamburger | 1 | 1/4 pound per person per meal, frozen | ||
| Hamburger Buns | 1 | package | ||
| Hot Dogs | 2 | packages, two dogs per person per day, frozen | ||
| Hot Dog Buns | 1 | package | ||
| Bacon | 2 | pounds, frozen | ||
| Ketchup | 1 | bottle | ||
| Mustard | 1 | bottle | ||
| Sour Cream | 2 | containers | ||
| Salsa | 1 | jar | ||
| Hot Sauce | 1 | bottle | ||
| Chips | 4 | bags | ||
| Pickles - Hamburger | 1 | jar | ||
| Pickles - Deli | 1 | jar | ||
| Saltines | 2 | sleeves | ||
| Cream Cheese | 1 | container | ||
| Capers | 1 | Tupperware, small | ||
| Bread | 1 | loaf | ||
| Peanut Butter | 1 | jar | ||
| Jelly | 1 | jar | ||
| Protein Bars | 2 | boxes | ||
| Cereal | 2 | boxes | ||
| Veges | 1 | vege for each day, no more | ||
| Sausage | 0 | ground is a pain, links if you want | ||
| Deli Meat | 0 | hard to store, then you get into lettuce, assorted cheese, mayo……. | ||
| Pasta | 0 | pots create a whole other deal, one to boil, another for sauces, pans have to be cleaned, you just wipe off a skillet and move on | ||
| Beans | 0 | same as pasta, lots of cleanup, notice there is no can opener on my list, no cans allowed, hard to open in dim light | ||
| Liquids | ||||
| Refillable Bottles | 8 | plastic or metal | ||
| Beer | 2 | times what you think you need | camp stores never have beer, they are often on state / fed property, and stores are far and expensive, could be a dry county, bring alcohol you want to drink | |
| Soda | 1 | soda per person per day | don't put soda for the kids in the coolers, keep the soda warm, make them put it in a cup with ice, you will go through 1/10 of what they will otherwise waste when everyone gets a soda and drinks 1/4 of it | |
| Bottled Water | 0 | these are frowned upon by campers, hunters, and most everyone that's an outdoors person, so leave them at home, we have not purchased them in years | ||
| Coolers | ||||
| Large | 2 | one for frozen food, one for cold food | keep everyone out of these, they should be opened only at meal time, ice goes on the bottom, food goes on the top, drain the water frequently, block ice is nice but not required | |
| Medium | 2 | one for ice, one for beer | the ice one is for drinks, keep it clean, make certain all get ice with their cup, not with their hands, the other is mostly for beer, (again) don't keep soda cold, kids will open one and then only drink half or less, make them get a cup, put ice in it, and then share the soda, you will be amazed at how much less you go through, bring ice with you, they might sell it at the campsite, but they might not | |
| Small | 1 | one to take drinks on a small walk or trip | fits six or eight beers, for trips to the beach and such, don't lug a huge cooler to the beach | |
| Medium | 1 | to take in a canoe | playmate coolers with the swivel top are a must in canoes, they float, the lids do not come off, and they can be easily attached to the canoe but still be opened even though attached | |
| Bathroom | ||||
| Container | 2 | open top with handle, plastic | same as used for summer camp or a dorm with one bathroom per floor | |
| Shampoo | 2 | one per container | ||
| Conditioner | 2 | one per container | ||
| Tooth Paste | 2 | one per container | ||
| Wipes | 2 | one per container | ||
| Towels | 1 | per person | ||
| Hair Brush | 2 | one per container | ||
| Tampons / Pads | 1 | box of each | ||
| Dental Floss | 2 | one per container | ||
| Lotion | 2 | one per container | ||
| Bed | ||||
| Bed Pad | 1 | per person, not inflatable | inflatable beds are freezing cold, they always pop with kids, bed rolls or pads take up a ton of room in the car, but it's worth it | |
| Cot | 1 | per person | adults this is a must, kids often prefer to be all together on the ground | |
| Night Stand | 1 | per person | if you have a cot these are awesome, if sleeping on the floor they have little use | |
| Sleeping Bag | 1 | per person | a real bag, Cabela's, north face, Patagonia, not Flintstones or Barbie, your kids will freeze in those | |
| Pillow | 2 | per person | one is fine but two is much better, good sleep is key to enjoying camping | |
| Comforter | 1 | per person | there will often be a night that is a bit warmer and too hot for the sleeping bag, plus each kid having a comforter for the car ride is nice, they often wear them around the camp fire, issue is washing them when you get home, but that's part of camping | |
| First Aid Kit | this should be in your car pretty much anyway | |||
| anti bacterial gel | ||||
| super glue | ||||
| band aids | ||||
| pre wrap | ||||
| ibuprofen | ||||
| surgical tools | ||||
| suture kit | ||||
| gauze | ||||
| rubber gloves | ||||
| alcohol | ||||
| sunscreen | ||||
| bug spray | ||||
| Bike | ||||
| multiple allen tool | 1 | |||
| tire removal tools | 1 | come in a set of two, plastic | ||
| replacement tubes | 2 | of each size needed | ||
| flat repair | 1 | kit | ||
| pump | 1 | manual with gauge | ||
| oil | 1 | can with pump | ||
| wax | 1 | bottle | ||
| tooth brush | 1 | old | ||
| headlight | 1 | per bike | ||
| backlight | 1 | per bike | ||
| battery | 6 | replacement for each light | ||
| Tent | ||||
| Tent | 1 | 2x of what they say the ten holds | spend your cash here, a lousy tent can make for a miserable trip, if the tent says for 10, 5 will sleep comfortably, cheap tens leak, nice ones don't | |
| Tarp | 2 | one for under, one for in front | just like a cheap tent, get a good tarp, the one out front is essential to keeping the inside of the tent clean | |
| Broom | 1 | yep, just like a home | ||
| Dust Pan | 1 | unless you want to pick it up by hand | ||
| Heater | 1 | per tent, propane | buddy heaters are the ticket if you are sleeping in the cold, be aware that you don't use them all night, they are for the evenings when you are in the tent getting ready for bed and in the morning when getting dressed, this is where propane is best, duel fuel heaters are a bit frightening as they can spill let alone the fumes, enough said. | |
| Lantern | 1 | for the area outside the tent | two or three lanterns around the camp area makes night time tolerable, duel fuel, Coleman | |
| Lantern Stand | 1 | don't forget to stake it in | ||
| Headlights | 1 | per person | essential for hiking and camping | |
| Power | ||||
| Generator | 1 | inversion is best | other than a tent, this is the biggest investment you will make for camping, not at all necessary, many camp sites have power, if you plan well with battery's, no need | |
| Gas | 5 | gallons | if you have the generator you will need gas, they never sell this at camp sites | |
| Battery | 1 | per person | we use Anker batteries, one of their smaller models keeps each person's electronics charged, | |
| Extension Cord | 3 | outdoor, grounded, one splitter | if you are going to bring the generator or have power at your camp site, you will need an extension cord and a splitter, and heavy duty cord and splitter, not one from 1950 without a group, the orange ones that are for outside | |
| Power Strip | 1 | for inside the tent | put this inside of the tent | |
| Compressor | 1 | small | we use a hand pump for our bikes, but these are nice if you use an air mattresses or want to use them to air up your bike tires | |
| Tools | ||||
| tool box | 1 | with removable top | we have a an old gray plastic toolbox that has all of this stuff in it, we never use it except when biking, camping, or such, just keep these items in there and you will never have to worry about it | |
| screwdriver straight | 1 | |||
| screwdriver Phillips | 1 | |||
| hammer | 2 | one regular, one 5 lb. | ||
| plyers | 1 | regular | ||
| plyers | 1 | needle nose | ||
| rubber gloves | 10 | pairs, disposable | ||
| wrench | 1 | set 1/8 to 3/4 in | ||
| rope | 1 | 10 ft. or so | ||
| twine | 1 | spool | ||
| duct tape | 1 | roll | ||
| bailing wire | 1 | spool | ||
| gloves | 1 | set of leather work glover per person | ||
| Hiking | ||||
| Hiking Boots | 1 | pair per person | ||
| Tall Socks | 1 | pair per person per day | ||
| Soft Shell | 1 | uninsulated, for rain or cool weather | ||
| Camelbak | 1 | |||
| Headlights | 1 | per person | ||
| Walkie Talkie | 1 | per person | ||
| Headlights | 1 | per person | ||
| Trailer | ||||
| tie down straps | 6 | |||
| Dog | ||||
| leash | 2 | per dog, non-retractable | ||
| choke | 1 | per dog | ||
| food | 2 | times what they normally eat | ||
| bowls | 2 | per dog | ||
| bed | 1 | per dog | ||
| rope | 1 | 10' long | ||
| Swim | ||||
| suit | 2 | per person | ||
| towel | 1 | per person | ||
| water shoes | 1 | per person | ||
| cooler | 1 | small | ||
| cooler | 1 | small with attached lid, if in canoe | ||
| bungee cord | 1 | if in canoe with cooler | ||
| dry bag / box | 1 | plastic, hard or soft | ||
| chair | 1 | per person, folding, cloth, metal | ||
| sunscreen | 1 | per two people, waterproof | ||
| Tech | ||||
| battery | 1 | per person | anker it the brand we use | |
| video camera | 1 | per family | ||
| cell phone | 1 | per person | ||
| speakers | 1 | per family | ||
| Smoke | ahhhhhh yes, having a smoke around the camp fire it time honored tradition | |||
| cigars | 1 | per person per day | ||
| lighter | 1 | per person | ||
| cutter | 1 | per person | ||
| bag | 1 | for all the stuff to stay dry | ||
| holder | 1 | per person | ||
| lighter fluid | 1 | bottle, not the same stuff for the fire | ||
| pot | 0 | illegal | ||
| cigarettes | 0 | blasphemy | ||
| chew | 0 | if you must |