What to Bring Along? A Guide to Camping and Survival Gear
A camping trip can be an enjoyable experience if you pack the correct camping and survival gear. But with the wilderness offering next to nothing, some campers tend to bring either too much or too little, and don’t end up happy at all.
So what camping and survival gear should campers bring along?
Camping and survival gear should not be limited to sleeping and eating materials – and should not include the contents of one’s entire kitchen and bathroom either. Gear can be divided into 9 main categories: tents, tools, lighting, clothes, first aid, communication, toiletries, food, survival bow, and references and guides.
All camping and survival gear will be for nothing if the campers have nowhere to sleep in. Bring a tent, along with industrial strength stakes, ropes, and poles. Also, carry emergency tarp to go with the tent, as well as a tent carpet to keep the floor of your tent clean and comfortable.
Don’t forget to carry sleeping bags. Life in the wilderness can be cold and harsh, so choose sleeping bags lined with warm fleece, and blankets made of wool. Moreover, if luggage space fails you, you can always stow your camping and survival gear in your sleeping bags.
survival team
Tools are what will keep camping and survival gear intact through a trip. These include screwdrivers, a hammer, a camping knife, a Swiss Army knife or any other folding multi-purpose tool, a long handle pickaxe, a small shovel, a camping saw, scissors, batteries, car maintenance equipment, and a fire extinguisher.
Keep these in a handy toolbox out of reach of young children. If you must hike, keep the smaller camping and survival gear in a utility vest with a good number of small pockets. You will never know when you’ll need them.
If you will be camping for a week or more, pack the following with your camping and survival gear, and stow them in your tool box: knot tying card, nylon repair tape, spare lantern generator, extra rope, seam sealers, tent leak sealers, and emergency flares.
One of the most essential camping and survival gear is lighting. Keep a flashlight handy, along with extra batteries. Pack up matches and a lighter for the campfire, or for torches, if the flashlight fails. Bring along battery operated camping lighters. They are not as bright as gas lanterns, but they are safer, especially if you have to bring children with you.
If you must use gas lanterns, safely pack fuel and a funnel along with your camping and survival gear. Use the funnel to add gas to the lantern when you run out, in order to keep fuel from leaking – and fires from starting.
If mosquitoes abound in your campsite, don’t forget to bring citronella candles to light at night and keep the pests at bay.
Clothes might not sound like camping and survival gear, but with the weather playing tricks on campers, your only layer of protection may be the shirt on your back. That said, don’t forget to bring raincoats and thick waterproof jackets.
Nothing in camping and survival gear can substitute for a real first aid kid. Pack up a sewing kit, prescription medications, anti-allergy medicines, gauze, plaster, soap, wound ointment, and burn ointment in a small, easy to find box. Don’t forget to note the address and location of the nearest hospital, just in case you have to run there in emergencies a simple first aid kit will not be able to handle.
Complete camping and survival gear should include communication equipment. Although there might not be a signal where you’ll be camping, bring a fully charged cellular phone. You can also take along walkie-talkies, or a battery powered radio.
Although usually not necessary for most campers, camping and survival gear must include toiletries, or at least the basics. Pack along soap, shampoo, and a metal mirror for shaving.
What camping trip would be complete without food? Pack as much as you can carry, but nothing that will spoil. You can take muffins, hotdogs and marshmallows for roasting, a loaf of bread, and ham. Don’t forget to bring drinks and ice.
Store everything in aluminum lunchboxes or coolers, and don’t leave out serving spoons, pitch forks, tongs, a water canteen, and a good eating knife. For leftovers (or cooking popcorn on the fire) take along some aluminum foil. If you don’t want to cook over the bonfire, then bring along a propane grill or camp stove, along with spare propane and other fuel.
If your camping trip is a study tour as well, then don’t forget your maps and compass, as well as bird and plant books and catalogues. Bring binoculars – and if you want to see the sky better at night, pack along a telescope.
Leave nothing but footprints, and take nothing but pictures in the wild outdoors. And enjoy! You just packed the right camping and survival gear. It’s time to go camping!
