Camping tips for a novice
Discussion
Last year we bought an 8 person tent from Go Outdoors to replace our pre children little tent and camped for a long weekend in the Lake District. We enjoyed it so are going again this coming weekend. This time however we are going for a week, and have an electric hook up. We have added to our initial tent purchase in the past year a ground sheet, carpet and an entrance canopy which should hopefully make things a bit more comfortable inside.
As very inexperienced tenters I would be grateful for any advice from more experienced campers with regard to stuff we should consider taking.
We have air beds, sleeping bags, 2 ring gas burner with pots, pans and kettle, wind break, chairs, table, electric rcd hook up. What would you recommend that makes life better when away for a longer period in a potentially cold wet environment (other than buy a caravan or go to some where sunny which are suggestions we have had from friends).
I intend to take an electric light, a kettle and an electric fan heater. Would you take duvets / blankets in addition to the sleeping bags? Is it worth getting camp beds, if so do you use an air bed on top of the camp bed?
There will be my wife and I, and our boys who are 5 and 7. To entertain them we will take footballs, tennis rackets, fishing nets and a cricket set. What else keeps kids entertained other than electronic devices which we do not intend to take.
Any advice or tips would be gratefully received
As very inexperienced tenters I would be grateful for any advice from more experienced campers with regard to stuff we should consider taking.
We have air beds, sleeping bags, 2 ring gas burner with pots, pans and kettle, wind break, chairs, table, electric rcd hook up. What would you recommend that makes life better when away for a longer period in a potentially cold wet environment (other than buy a caravan or go to some where sunny which are suggestions we have had from friends).
I intend to take an electric light, a kettle and an electric fan heater. Would you take duvets / blankets in addition to the sleeping bags? Is it worth getting camp beds, if so do you use an air bed on top of the camp bed?
There will be my wife and I, and our boys who are 5 and 7. To entertain them we will take footballs, tennis rackets, fishing nets and a cricket set. What else keeps kids entertained other than electronic devices which we do not intend to take.
Any advice or tips would be gratefully received
We have all our camping gear in big plastic crates so they can easily be lifted in and out the car.
Take good cooking equipment as you will regret not having a decent frying pan or knife for chopping.
Dustpan and brush is an essential for cleaning out the tent.
Dishwashing stuff including a bowl and universal plug. Also toilet rolls as we forgot these the first time we went camping and cost us a fortune from the campsite shop.
Wellies and flip flops for walking round the campsite searching for the loo at 4am.
Take good cooking equipment as you will regret not having a decent frying pan or knife for chopping.
Dustpan and brush is an essential for cleaning out the tent.
Dishwashing stuff including a bowl and universal plug. Also toilet rolls as we forgot these the first time we went camping and cost us a fortune from the campsite shop.
Wellies and flip flops for walking round the campsite searching for the loo at 4am.
RosscoPCole said:
We have all our camping gear in big plastic crates so they can easily be lifted in and out the car.
This. We have all our camping stuff stored in the garage in such boxes - it means we can head out at short notice without having to hunt for stuff or end up forgetting anything. Throw the boxes in the car and we're good to go. We don't use anything from the house, all the plates, knives, torches, pots, etc are only used for camping and are stored together.Folding bar-be-que. I have no idea where we got it, but it takes no space and doubles up as a fire pit later in the evening.
"Avon Skin So Soft" for keeping the midges away.
If you can fit them in, full size pillows and duvets are great. We use a king size blow up mattress, camp beds don't look that comfy to me. If not using duvets we all use high quality sleeping bags, nothing worse than getting cold in the middle of the night.
A folding gazebo is a luxury we've recently invested in and it's been great - much nicer sitting outside in the rain than couped up inside the tent.
Generally - don't buy cheap. We've been through quite a few bits and pieces where we've tried to save some cash, but in the long run you're better off buying quality as the cheap stuff just ends up breaking.
As others have said, camp chairs and a gazebo will make time outdoors more pleasant if the weather is sub-optimal.
Wine/Beer - Camp shop prices are usually somewhere between "how much?!?" and daylight robbery.
Take a small swiss army type knife, ball of sisal/heavy duty string and a roll of duck tape - There's little on a campsite that can't be fixed with those items.
Insulated mugs - you stand a chance of finishing your tea while it's still hot (and can also be used to conceal the fact that you've started on the beers at 11am
)
Torches - One each and a couple of lanterns for inside the tent. Got ours from 7DayShop and were cheap as chips, seem pretty good too.
Gas - Make sure you have enough. Nothing worse than cooking dinner as the stove coughs and dies
Dressing gowns - saves having to get the kids dressed at 2am when they wake up needing to pee (applies more to girls I guess)
For amusement:
Pick a site with a kids playground, you can lose them for hours there. For bonus points, pick one with an onsite bar overlooking said playground
Stuff like swing ball, those velcro mitts with a tennis ball and kites take up little room but will entertain them for a decent amount of time.
Wine/Beer - Camp shop prices are usually somewhere between "how much?!?" and daylight robbery.
Take a small swiss army type knife, ball of sisal/heavy duty string and a roll of duck tape - There's little on a campsite that can't be fixed with those items.
Insulated mugs - you stand a chance of finishing your tea while it's still hot (and can also be used to conceal the fact that you've started on the beers at 11am
)Torches - One each and a couple of lanterns for inside the tent. Got ours from 7DayShop and were cheap as chips, seem pretty good too.
Gas - Make sure you have enough. Nothing worse than cooking dinner as the stove coughs and dies
Dressing gowns - saves having to get the kids dressed at 2am when they wake up needing to pee (applies more to girls I guess)
For amusement:
Pick a site with a kids playground, you can lose them for hours there. For bonus points, pick one with an onsite bar overlooking said playground
Stuff like swing ball, those velcro mitts with a tennis ball and kites take up little room but will entertain them for a decent amount of time.
Agree with mostof the others, the only one I'd add would be a flat screen TV or a tablet/laptop. I know you want to "get away from it all" but what are you going to do on an afternoon pouring with rain? There's only so many times you can play cards and it'll keep you up to date with important issues, such as the test match or Eastenders/Corrie
Spare bag of tent pegs
Spare guys/String
Some of that hand sanitizer stuff
Washing up pad thing and washing up liquid! Always seem to forget this!
We use the "box method" as well and take a couple of spare ones that fold flat in the car for putting bread and breakables in once we arrive
Couple of tables, a big one and a small one. We have been tempted many times by the crazy expensive flimsy camp kitchen things but have found a decent size table is more stable and more useful for cooking on
Couple of collapsible water carriers
A radio
A solid cool box which then doubles as a table
And +1 to having a tablet with you. Sitting in a tent in the rain is a bit boring after a while.
Spare guys/String
Some of that hand sanitizer stuff
Washing up pad thing and washing up liquid! Always seem to forget this!
We use the "box method" as well and take a couple of spare ones that fold flat in the car for putting bread and breakables in once we arrive
Couple of tables, a big one and a small one. We have been tempted many times by the crazy expensive flimsy camp kitchen things but have found a decent size table is more stable and more useful for cooking on
Couple of collapsible water carriers
A radio
A solid cool box which then doubles as a table
And +1 to having a tablet with you. Sitting in a tent in the rain is a bit boring after a while.
juliethotel said:
How did you get on with the airbeds last time?
I strongly detest them, a 15 quid camp bed makes all the difference. I think its important to get a decent nights sleep, it's no good being all groggy and tired when on your holidays.
What you actually want is a thermarest. £60 ish but with a lifetime bulletproof guarantee. They claim to self inflate, but need a bit of a blow to top them up properly.I strongly detest them, a 15 quid camp bed makes all the difference. I think its important to get a decent nights sleep, it's no good being all groggy and tired when on your holidays.
If it is cold a camp bed is no use as you need to insulate yourself from the ground. Particularly as sleeping bags insulate you by trapping air in the 'loft'. Not nuch good when you squish it underneath yourself.
madbadger said:
What you actually want is a thermarest. £60 ish but with a lifetime bulletproof guarantee. They claim to self inflate, but need a bit of a blow to top them up properly.
If it is cold a camp bed is no use as you need to insulate yourself from the ground. Particularly as sleeping bags insulate you by trapping air in the 'loft'. Not nuch good when you squish it underneath yourself.
While thermarests are very good, especially when hiking, you could alternatively just spend a fiver on a foam insulating mat and put it between your sleeping bag and whatever you're sleeping on and get the same effect.If it is cold a camp bed is no use as you need to insulate yourself from the ground. Particularly as sleeping bags insulate you by trapping air in the 'loft'. Not nuch good when you squish it underneath yourself.
They also do smaller versions for putting on camp chairs which can get a bit chilly at night, and they can also be used to rest your plate on when eating so you'e not resting hot plates on your knees.
SlidingSideways said:
kites take up little room but will entertain them for a decent amount of time.
I got my nephew a "pocket kite" its a kite with no poles so less complicated and less to go wrong/break, hours of fun. also sellotaping a glow stick to a ball and playing catch in the dark is entertaining too.As for tips it depends what type of camping you are doing I mainly do back to basic type stuff at quiet adult campsites.
I think most stuff has been mentioned, only other things I can think of are -
off cut of carpet to put shoes/boots on inside the tent but keep the tent clean,
baby wipes,
a hammer, proper metal claw hammer,
travel/metal cafetiere (who doesn't like a decent cup of coffee in the morning?)
A decent nights sleep is very important so take whatever you can to make that happen for you and your family, spare blankets/duvets etc are worth taking if you have the space, make sure (as has been said) that you have an insulation layer between you and the ground, cheap roll mats under your air beds will do the job, I prefer a camp bed personally but always use a roll mat or thermarest with it as the ground just sucks the heat from you.
Thanks for the replies so far.
I slept really poorly last time, but to be honest I sleep badly all of the time. After a week I will hopefully sleep due to exhaustion and beer.
The suggestion about the foam kip mat under the air bed to insulate from the cold sounds good. I am going to buy a folding bbq to use for heat when sat outside on an evening too.
I am going to a local camping shop at lunch time to see what looks useful too.
I slept really poorly last time, but to be honest I sleep badly all of the time. After a week I will hopefully sleep due to exhaustion and beer.
The suggestion about the foam kip mat under the air bed to insulate from the cold sounds good. I am going to buy a folding bbq to use for heat when sat outside on an evening too.
I am going to a local camping shop at lunch time to see what looks useful too.
Fitted carpet is probably the nicest thing we have purchased, makes the tent so much cosier. We also bought a camping kitchen from a mate this year, makes life so much easier.
We have a newly purchased Outwell self inflating camping mat to try out next week, it's a 7.5cm so we're hoping it'll be a lot nicer than the crappy air beds we've previously used.
We have a Weber Smokey Joe BBQ that gets used a lot, a Go Anywhere would be easier to pack though.
A decent lantern(s) is a must too, we have a rechargeable Coleman LED one that is just bright enough on its own, then we have various torches etc for personal use, reading etc. Headtorches are useful.
Not felt the need for an electric hook up but we only camp for 2-3 nights, we have friends that couldn't live without a heater etc!
Some people swear by ear plugs for getting a good nights sleep, not for me though.
We have a newly purchased Outwell self inflating camping mat to try out next week, it's a 7.5cm so we're hoping it'll be a lot nicer than the crappy air beds we've previously used.
We have a Weber Smokey Joe BBQ that gets used a lot, a Go Anywhere would be easier to pack though.
A decent lantern(s) is a must too, we have a rechargeable Coleman LED one that is just bright enough on its own, then we have various torches etc for personal use, reading etc. Headtorches are useful.
Not felt the need for an electric hook up but we only camp for 2-3 nights, we have friends that couldn't live without a heater etc!
Some people swear by ear plugs for getting a good nights sleep, not for me though.
Bikes. 25 of us rode some of the Tarka Trail during our extended-family camp this year.
Torches are useful but get a decent non-directional lamp for when you're all sitting down together after the evening BBQ, and a low power night light that you can either reach easily or leave switched on all night. Nothing worse than fumbling around in the dark when you need a piss (from so much beer intake).
Quiet fan heater, adjustable so it keeps the chill off without cooking you.
Axe. Men should always have one available when camping.
Inflatable canoe. Awesome fun. Remember float vests though.
Big flag on a tall flagpole. Be imaginative with the flag though. The Union Jack is very patriotic if you can ignore it being hijacked by the extreme right, but most campsites have dozens of them. I have a 5foot smiley "acid" face. No reason for having one. Just fun.
Table to sit and eat at. Make sure it's not too light that every knock sends it flying.
Powered coolbox. 12v peltor fan ones will only cool to a certain number of degrees below ambient. Compressor types will cool to freezing in any weather, if that's what you want.
Torches are useful but get a decent non-directional lamp for when you're all sitting down together after the evening BBQ, and a low power night light that you can either reach easily or leave switched on all night. Nothing worse than fumbling around in the dark when you need a piss (from so much beer intake).
Quiet fan heater, adjustable so it keeps the chill off without cooking you.
Axe. Men should always have one available when camping.
Inflatable canoe. Awesome fun. Remember float vests though.
Big flag on a tall flagpole. Be imaginative with the flag though. The Union Jack is very patriotic if you can ignore it being hijacked by the extreme right, but most campsites have dozens of them. I have a 5foot smiley "acid" face. No reason for having one. Just fun.
Table to sit and eat at. Make sure it's not too light that every knock sends it flying.
Powered coolbox. 12v peltor fan ones will only cool to a certain number of degrees below ambient. Compressor types will cool to freezing in any weather, if that's what you want.
PH5121 said:
....What else keeps kids entertained other than electronic devices which we do not intend to take.
I applaud this, nothing winds me up more than seeing kids on holiday with their noses stuck in an iPad, they're missing out on so much. They might as well be stuck in boarding kennels with their bloody tablets.If it's raining then go and find something you can do indoors or play board games together.
We have just got my 5 year old some i-spy books for her week away with her grandparents.
As for camping, a decent sturdy camping table makes preparing food much easier, and you can sit around it to play games etc. If you've got an electric hook up then obviously you need a beer fridge. You'll probably need a 7.5 tonne truck to take everything suggested so far.
HereBeMonsters said:
Some of those are ace but these beat the lot.
I want.
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