Camping can be a lot of fun. But when you think about it, most of your enjoyment comes down to the quality of your equipment. If it’s below par, your experience sucks.
This post is here to help. In it, we run through some of the top most innovative camping accessories to make your next adventure a joyful one. Here’s what you should take with you:
12-Hour Insect Repellent
Getting constantly bitten by insects is not a lot of fun. It feels horrible and all you want to do is crawl inside your tent to get away from them.
Fortunately, though, insect repellent is available, and it’ll keep the insects off you for hours by making you smell terrible to them. It usually works quite well. You might get the odd bite here or there, but it shouldn’t be anything serious.
Solar Oven
The GoSun Sport® is our fastest and best selling solar oven. It can bake, roast, and steam a meal for two people in just 20 minutes under direct sun. It’s light and compact so you can take it anywhere. The Sport quickly reaches temperatures up to 550°F and is portable and lightweight for cooking on the move. It’s durability and collapsible design makes for easy setup and storage.
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Glow Lantern
Glow lanterns are another option. These illuminating devices can produce up to 250 lumens and help to light up the surrounding environment, providing more than 200 hours of runtime if you put them on eco settings.
Glow lanterns are great for any situation where you need artificial light. They’re particularly good inside tents. You just hang them from the center and they provide all the illumination you need to prepare your bedding and get changed. They’re ideal for when you arrive at the campsite after dark.
Kids Headlamp
Kids’ headlamps are a great way to help your little ones stay safe on the campsite. These lights fit around their foreheads like sweat bands but have a light at the front to guide the way. Lamps are usually LEDs so they don’t get hot. And they last for hours so you don’t need to worry about recharging them until you get home.
Look for companies that make certified water-resistant models. These will continue to provide illumination long-term, regardless of what the weather throws at you.
Short-Range Communications System
Cell phones don’t usually work on campsites. Or if they do, it’s only for certain networks. When you’re out in the wilderness, though, you still need means of communicating with your family and kids. And that’s where short-range radios come in handy.
Also called walkie-talkies, these let you speak with other members of your family, no matter where they are on the campsite. You’re not dependent on a mobile phone signal, so you’re always in touch.
Multifunctional Headwear
When you’re camping, carrying multifunctional headgear with you makes a lot of sense. You want something that’s going to serve you across multiple activities.
Multifunctional headgear is great for:
- Keeping you warm
- Protecting against the sun
- Serving as a neck gaiter
- Letting your skin breathe
- Repel insects
You can use it in whatever way you want.
Trowel
Having a trowel is another great accessory to have with you on a campsite. This way, you can easily move your fire around to suit your purposes.
Say, for instance, you’re camping in the snow and you want to make the ground below your sleeping area warm. Without a trowel, you have no way of doing this, but with one, you can simply make a fire, wait for the embers to die down, and then spread it all over your sleeping area to thaw the ground. You can then clear all of the embers away, put down your bedding, and settle in for the night.
Portable Power Station
Taking a portable power station with you is another option you should consider. With these, you can charge all your electronics indefinitely, even if you’re going to be away for weeks.
How do they work? Simple. Most come with solar collectors that you can leave outside for the entire duration of your trip. These then charge batteries which, in turn, top up your devices. They’re great for anyone who wants to take a lot of photos on their adventures but doesn’t want to carry lots of spare batteries around with them, wherever they go.
Hand Warmers
As any seasoned camper will tell you, the weather can get cold at times, particularly at night. All of a sudden, the temperature drops, and things start getting quite unpleasant. You wish you were wrapped up warm.
Hand warmers are one of the best ways to stay toasty around the campfire. They’re like little chemical pouches that react inside to generate heat. You can put them between your hands, in your pockets, or anywhere else on your body prone to the cold. Another option to stay warm while camping is a battery heated throw blanket.
Camping Planner
Trying to remember to bring everything with you for camp is a bit of an ordeal. There are just so many individual items you need. That’s where a camping gear planner with a sketchbook can come in handy. These are wonderful little tools that organize everything you need so you’re not without your favorite items when you travel.
Tool Roll
Toolboxes are probably a little heavy-duty for camping trips. However, tool rolls are just what the doctor ordered. These are great for storing all the implements you need for putting up tents or managing your fire, plus they roll up beautifully, out of the way, just like the rest of your camping kit.
Many rolls have enough space for up to 20 individual tools, so you shouldn’t be caught short.
Multitool
Speaking of tools, you might also want to bring a multi-tool with you to the campsite. These are generally quite heavy-duty and more practical than Swiss army knives, which tend to be quite prone to failure.
Most of these multitools are ambidextrous and designed to be used with gloves. This way, you can use them for practically any purpose, no matter what goes wrong or needs fixing on the campsite.
Personal Towel
Regular towels are a nightmare on camp. They take up a lot of space and when they get wet, they can hold up to ten times their weight. They literally never dry out.
That’s why many campers take personal towels with them. These are made of fibers that soak up water from your body but are easy to wring out and dry.