The Most Commonly Forgotten Camping Supplies

The Most Commonly Forgotten Camping Supplies

You’re in the middle of the wilderness, surrounded by towering trees and the soothing sounds of nature. You’ve got your tent, sleeping bag, and maybe even a cooler full of food. But wait, what about that one crucial thing you forgot?

Don’t let this happen to you! Familiarize yourself with the most commonly forgotten camping supplies; having their names fresh in your mind can help you remember to pack them.

Lighting the Way

As the sun sets and darkness envelops your campsite, you’ll be grateful for a reliable light source. Yet, many people overlook lanterns or headlamps. These handy tools provide a warm glow, which makes participating in evening activities and navigating around the campsite a breeze. Don’t let the shadows catch you off guard—pack those lights!

First-Aid Essentials

Accidents can happen anywhere, and that includes the great outdoors. It’s easy to focus on the fun and forget about first-aid supplies. An adequately stocked first-aid kit can be a lifesaver, as you can treat anything from minor cuts and scrapes to blisters and headaches. Bandages, antiseptic wipes, pain relievers, and tweezers should be on your checklist.

Cooking Utensils

Sure, you’ve packed the sizzling sausages and marshmallow-ready skewers, but what about the tools to cook them? Spatulas, tongs, and can openers are all commonly forgotten camping supplies. Remember, a tasty campfire meal is only as good as the utensils you have on hand. Pack your cooking essentials for culinary success in the wild!

Extra Layers

Nature’s thermostat can be unpredictable. If you’re expecting warm days, chilly nights can catch you by surprise. Extra layers, such as sweaters, jackets, or thermal underwear, can make all the difference in keeping you cozy during those unexpected temperature drops.

Camping is all about unplugging and enjoying nature, but a little preparation goes a long way. By crafting a camping supply checklist and diligently checking items off, you’re ensuring a memorable adventure filled with joy, not frustration. So before you head out into the wilderness, take a moment to go over your list—you’ll thank yourself later.

Tips for Cleaning Your Truck After a Camping Trip

Tips for Cleaning Your Truck After a Camping Trip

Your family loves outings into the woods to explore the outdoors. Camping trips are perfect for fishing, relaxing by the lake, and roasting marshmallows at night.

When the fun inevitably ends, you arrive home to a new set of chores. An important task is fixing up the truck after it braved the wilderness. Use these tips for cleaning your truck after a camping trip for a pristine finish.

Wash the Exterior and Undercarriage

Tree sap, mud, and unwanted insects linger on every exterior surface of the truck after sitting out in the woods. The first thing you should do when returning home is to clean the sides and undercarriage of the truck.

Use a pressure washer for both areas. The pressure washer will remove large pieces of debris with ease.

For the smaller stains that don’t come off so easily, there are two different methods. Use a damp microfiber cloth with detergent on the surface of the car. On the undercarriage, try using a brush with water and detergent to scrub stains away.

Apply a Wax Coating for Protection

Car wax is a great solution to safeguard the truck’s exterior while retaining a gorgeous shine. After thoroughly cleaning and drying the vehicle, apply the wax coating across each surface using an applicator pad. Work one panel at a time.

Finish coating the car with wax before using a towel to remove the wax. Follow the truck’s body lines for a smooth finish.

Remove the Floor Mats for a Deep Cleaning

Keep the pressure washer handy! Rubber floor mats become dreadfully dirty after a camping trip. One tip to clean your truck’s floor mats is to take them out of the vehicle first to give them a deep cleaning.

Start by using a vacuum or shaking any debris loose. Then, rinse the mats with the power washer to remove any debris left behind. Now you can finally remove the bacteria and stains stuck on the surfaces.

Apply a car wash solution or an all-purpose cleaner onto the mats. Allow it to sit for a moment before scrubbing it with a stiff brush. Once all the stains disappear, you can rinse the mats with the pressure washer and dry them.

Don’t Forget To Look Out for Ticks

Ticks are small parasitic pests that live in the woods. On occasion, they’ll find their way into your truck. Although ticks ultimately need to latch onto a host for survival, they can also survive without one.

Stay on the lookout for these pests while you’re cleaning your car. Vacuuming is a great method to dispose of any ticks on the surfaces. However, they might hide within the nooks and crannies of the interior.

Fix this issue by using an insecticide and parking the car in direct sunlight. Both will work to eliminate ticks from your car and protect your family.

If cleaning the interior becomes more challenging than you once thought, you can always schedule a detailing service. The benefits of interior car detailing will return your truck’s original luster so it’s ready for the next family camping trip.

Activities To Plan for Your Next Camping Trip

Activities To Plan for Your Next Camping Trip

With spring finally here, it makes sense that you want to plan your first big camping trip of the season and get back out in the woods. While camping trips are great for sleeping out in nature and enjoying the warmth and comfort of a campfire, there’s so much more to do. Here are some fun activities to plan for your next camping trip to try and mix it up a little bit.

Make It a Fishing Trip

Few things allow you to enjoy the peacefulness of nature more than fishing. Whether you prefer to sit on the shore or head out on a boat, the serenity of fishing turns any camping trip into a more memorable experience. Depending on where you’re camping, you can catch bass, trout, catfish, and other tasty fish that are perfect for roasting over the campfire come dinnertime.

Nature Trails

Exploring nature trails is always an excellent activity to plan for your next camping trip. Many established trails exist to take you through fantastic scenic views and take in everything the area has to offer. If you’re not one for hiking, one of the many benefits of owning your own golf cart is that you can take it through a wide enough trail. For more hardened outdoorsy types, you may opt to skip the trail altogether and explore the wilderness to your heart’s content.

Wildlife Scavenger Hunt

There’s a certain majesty to discovering animals in their natural habitat. Many campers turn their trip into a game by seeing what creatures they can find throughout the weekend. Plan ahead and learn what types of wildlife are in your region to turn the trip into a giant scavenger hunt. Some of the most common animals to watch out for are deer, foxes, wild hogs, and the many interesting and exciting species of birds you’re likely to encounter out in the woods. Whether you want to focus on larger animals or primarily explore birdwatching is up to you.

Things You Can Learn from Camping That Will Make You a Better Prepper

Their are many things you can learn from camping that will make you better prepares. Nothing can replace the sheer teaching power of the experience. While you can read books upon books about camping and listen to friends that wax poetic about the bond between man and nature, only once you get a chance to test your survival skills in the wild – without electricity, a solid roof over your head, a flushable toilet and running water – will you get a chance to test your survival skills.

Every experienced camper will tell you that preparation is 60% of survival in the wild, so if you want to face the hardships of the wild head on, here are things you can learn from camping that will make you a better prepper. 

The Mechanics of Using Water

If you think that a tent is the most important piece of equipment to bring along for your camping trip, think again. If push comes to shove, you can always crash in your car, and while this is not exactly a coveted camping experience, it is functional. 

At the end of the day, the most important element in your camping setup is water. Ideally, you can bring several big plastic jugs and keep them nice and covered so they are protected from the sun. In addition, you can bring a portable fridge with bottles of cooled water, but the most eco-friendly practice would be to take a reusable bottle with you and just top it off from the jugs. 

Above all else, you need to ration your water since you also have to use it for washing dishes, equipment and, well, yourself. A prolonged camping trip will inevitably illustrate you just how difficult it is to store and ration water and prep you for whatever challenges come your way. 

Preparing a Meal

Initially, the idea of preparing a hot meal on your first camping trip might sound daunting; impossible even. However, preparing creative camping meals doesn’t require you to be a culinary expert and a survivalist all wrapped into one.  (Try my spam boxcars)

First of all, you should keep the meals as simple as possible, but make sure that they are nutritious. Beans come to mind in that case, and they are a perfect exemplar of both plain and nourishing. Second, do most of the preparation at home. The more effort you make in your kitchen, the more time you’ll have to relish in the wonders of nature. 

Keep in mind that meat, while delicious and appropriate for camping trips, is a bit messy to prep. While utensils and disposable plates are a must, do not forget to bring some basic cleaning supplies along, as well as wet wipes. 

Balancing Weight and Usefulness

Initially, you will either underpack or overpack – it is unavoidable. Supplies are heavy and you will learn this the hard way if you decide to go backpacking for your camping trip. The experience might encourage you to pack light next time, but this is far from true. 

Remember – it’s always better to drag along too much than to have too little. However, this will also show you that you should venture out on camping trips more frequently and, through trial and error, learn how to achieve your own balance of weight when it comes to equipment. 

Wilderness Survival

A camping trip can be a perfect opportunity to learn how to live off the land. First of all, you need to learn as much as you can about the biome you are about to ‘brave’. Fishing, hunting, and gathering edible fruits can be an excellent way to ‘stretch’ your supplies. Your ability to discern an edible mushroom from a poisonous one can become an invaluable trait during the times of crisis. 

This is why, apart from camping, you should take extra time to learn how to fish, hunt and tend a makeshift garden. 

How to Keep Clean

It has already been mentioned that sanitation can present an issue, depending on the sheer amount of water you’ve managed to pack into the trunk of your car. 

However, this is not where those problems end. The question of sanitation should be addressed and taken care of from day one; the last thing you need is to wait for the battery of problems to emerge. Sanitation wipes and disinfection gels go a long way, and they usually don’t take too much space. 

Finally, if you find yourself in a situation that you need to take care of personal hygiene while you are in the midst of nature, you should find the nearest body of water. Running water is preferable to stale, and then you should go as far upstream as you possibly can before you find a spot to clean yourself up. 

Conclusion

Camping trips are primarily a wonderful way to savor the natural splendor and reconnect with the rhythm of nature. However, this is not the only wonderful revelation that such an outing can grant you. It can also prepare you for a variety of inconvenient situations, simply because camping requires you to be resourceful and self-reliant. All and all, it is an incredible experience that will transform the way you look at many conveniences which we typically take for granted in life.

What is Some Advice For Night Camping as A Solo Hiker?

Solo hiking is quite different when you compare it with group hiking. You are going to spend the whole night alone, face the fear and cook your own food etc. In the case of bad weather like snow and rain, you need to deal with the condition by yourself.

But at the same time, solo hiking is fun as you don’t have anyone around yourself who set rules. You can set your own rules and acquaint yourself to make your whole hiking experience memorable and fun.

Like group hiking and camping, you need to plan everything in advance. As a group hiking or camping, you need to be more careful when planning your journey to enjoy the solo hiking, especially; you need to think about the night camping scene which could be difficult if everything is not planned well.

If you are planning for the solo hiking, then you need to read this article till the end. Following I am sharing some advice for night camping as a solo hiker and what type of important things you should care about etc.

Know The Size Of The Camp:

You don’t need to take a big size camp along with you. When you are hiking alone, a single person camp is enough to low your luggage and travel easily around. Make sure that your camp should be weather friendly. If it is going to rain there, your camp should be rain and waterproof so you can enjoy the full night sleep.

Light, Light, And Light:

A night alone can be scary and a bit creepy. You probably don’t want to get scared in mid of forest or at the top of the mountain. To keep it safe, do have plenty of light options along with yourself. Do not just rely on torch but also learn how to firewood.

Keep A First Aid Kit:

When you are alone, you need to be your doctor. Injuries are very common is hiking. So, you must need to bring your first aid kit. It should not be just basic aid kit but a full wilderness first aid kit so you can get rid of pain instantly and take care of yourself in a better way.

Make A Checklist:

Ask help from the other solo hiker and ask for the essential gears you must have for night camping as a solo hiker? Once you have a list, write it down and create a checklist with all the important items. Include everything in the list from the camp to the soap, fuel can and food etc.

Keep it Simple:

Weight matters a lot when you are hiking alone. You need to carry all the weight on your own. So keep everything simple and try to remove those gears which are not necessary and you can go without them without facing any issue.

Other than above, keep all the gadget along with yourself which include the camera, mobile, books to read and coffee cup to enjoy the view and feel yourself in nature.