TheCampingGuy.com Blog | Camping Tips

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As spring is in the air and it starts to warm up, I start to think about camping.  How about you?  So, I went into the garage and opened the cabinets where I keep all my camping gear and started to go through it.  What do I need to replace?  What needs to be replenished?  Take out the sleeping bags and air them out.  You know….all that stuff you know you should do but never get around to it.  Well I had the “itch” so that’s what I do to scratch it.

I also start to think of where and when I’m going camping. In my mind, with the economy the way it is, camping is still the cheapest way to take your family on a vacation.  And with all the tips and tricks on TheCampingGuy website and blog to refer to, you will have a fun time without breaking the bank.

So I thought I would put together a small checklist of things you can do to prepare for the ’09 camping season!

1.    Check to make sure everything works - stove, lantern, fresh batteries in flashlights, refill propane tanks, buy more propane canisters, etc.

2.    Make sure you’ve got all your cooking gear in shape.  Is everything clean or did you forget to clean that pot of spaghetti before you put your cook kit into storage?  Check everything that’s in your cook kit or make one by going here.

3.    Check the tent for rips, check poles, pent pegs.  If you need to do some repairs, here’s a repair kit that I use.  If you’re ambitious, this is a good time to apply some seam sealer to the tent.  Check out how - right here.  This will also give you a chance to set up the tent, air it out, and sweep it out. Then you know you’re tent is ready.

4.    Replenish your basics like: matches, propane, soap, paper towels, aluminum foil, firewood, fire starters, water filters, paper cups, plates, etc.

After this you’ve got most of the preparation complete and you’re ready to start the season.  So go ahead, sit back and dream about the places you’re going to camping to this year.

Happy Camping!!

When I was a beginner camper I would try to remember to pack everything I needed, but I’d always show up late at a campsite and forget some thing like a frying pan for the scrambled eggs! Not to mention, my wife used to get upset when some of her kitchenware was missing for the weekend! So, I eventually got my own camping kitchenware, some checklists and “kits”to help me remember what to bring.

Over the years camping I’ve put together a couple of Camping Kits that make packing and camping a whole lot easier. I can load the truck quickly and know that I have everything I’m gonna need in those few kits - along with tent, stove, sleeping bag and food! There are many kits that you can make to simplify your campout. In fact, I’ve even run across some “Rainy Day Kits” that include games, books, puzzles, etc. But, you can decide what works best for you. Let me show you a couple that I use and see if they’re useful or maybe they’ll give you some ideas for something better.

My kits cover the essentials - Eating and Cleaning! First of all, I always bring my Cook Kit, which has all the pots, pans, cutting board, and all the cooking utensils I’ll need to whip up a tasty camp meal. Here’s a full list of what’s in my Cook Kit.

Next is my Cleanup Kit. Ya, you guessed it, all the stuff you need for cleaning up. A full description and pictures await you at Cleanup Kit.

If you are really ambitious you can create a Camp Box, like the ones we use on Scout campouts. This box has hinged sides that fold down to create two working/cooking surfaces with all cooking and cleaning items in one spot. We drilled four holes in the bottom for legs and got some 3 ft. sections of aluminum pipe for legs.

As you see there’s a couple of ways you can go with your Camping Kits - from small to large. Just get one or two and make your camping easier.