Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

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Cowsham
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Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Cowsham »

As a sister thread to " Handy stuff to have in your camping kit" -- except this is about the stuff you absolutely need in your kit from the obvious ( like "a tent" ) to being essential for a reason specific to you ( a certain type or size of tent ) but still may help someone else.

My main requirement would be a fairly big tent with good sized porch area. Not that I'm that big myself just that I like plenty of room to spread my kit out and even cook in if I have to. Our weather is wet and windy a lot of the time so it needs to be waterproof and robust.
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simonineaston
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by simonineaston »

Headtorch.
I remember having this conversation with my first camping buddy and being amazed at how different we were, for example he regarded a measuring jug as essential for getting the right amount of water into all the dehydrated food we consumed back then, whereas I thought some sort of pillow was de rigeur... he couldn't have cared less about a pillow and I was completely content to guestimate the water.
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Morzedec
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Morzedec »

Clean hanky and a dinner jacket.

Get invited everywhere, saves cooking.
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Cowsham
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Cowsham »

Morzedec wrote:Clean hanky and a dinner jacket.

Get invited everywhere, saves cooking.


Freeloader :D
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Cowsham
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Cowsham »

simonineaston wrote:Headtorch.
I remember having this conversation with my first camping buddy and being amazed at how different we were, for example he regarded a measuring jug as essential for getting the right amount of water into all the dehydrated food we consumed back then, whereas I thought some sort of pillow was de rigeur... he couldn't have cared less about a pillow and I was completely content to guestimate the water.


Headtorch for me too -- you don't need any other torch or lantern as you can see everywhere you look and hang it up from the lantern hook in the tent.
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Thehairs1970
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Thehairs1970 »

A proper glass for wine, not a wine glass but glass. A decent size cup for tea.
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Greystoke »

Toilet roll :shock:
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Cowsham
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Cowsham »

Greystoke wrote:Toilet roll :shock:


Yes -- a must for me although I have been known to go in the bushes and wipe with a dock leaf. :oops:
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matt2matt2002
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by matt2matt2002 »

Having just returned from a week bike/ camp/ touring north of Ullapool, a midge net is essential.
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Richard D
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Richard D »

A linen towel. Packs down smaller than microfibre, dries me better than microfibre, doesn’t whiff like microfibre, feels nicer than microfibre, and takes only marginally longer to dry in the open air than microfibre (I use a black one to better absorb the sun's heat).

The only use I have for microfibre is wiping the bottom of my tent as I pack up.
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Cowsham
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Cowsham »

matt2matt2002 wrote:Having just returned from a week bike/ camp/ touring north of Ullapool, a midge net is essential.


Midges a way up thauner ?
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Cowsham
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Cowsham »

Richard D wrote:A linen towel. Packs down smaller than microfibre, dries me better than microfibre, doesn’t whiff like microfibre, feels nicer than microfibre, and takes only marginally longer to dry in the open air than microfibre (I use a black one to better absorb the sun's heat).

The only use I have for microfibre is wiping the bottom of my tent as I pack up.


Agreed I wouldn't even carry a micro fibre anything. Hate the feel of it too.
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PDQ Mobile
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by PDQ Mobile »

Cowsham wrote:
Greystoke wrote:Toilet roll :shock:


Yes -- a must for me although I have been known to go in the bushes and wipe with a dock leaf. :oops:

A newspaper!
Insulation.
Dries wet shoes and groundsheets.
Lights fires.
Makes a dry seat.
And other stuff.

Local for the ads.
Or a broadsheet for crosswords etc, and political comment.
And the Daily Mail as a substitute for docks. :shock:
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Cowsham
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by Cowsham »

PDQ Mobile wrote:
Cowsham wrote:
Greystoke wrote:Toilet roll :shock:


Yes -- a must for me although I have been known to go in the bushes and wipe with a dock leaf. :oops:

A newspaper!
Insulation.
Dries wet shoes and groundsheets.
Lights fires.
Makes a dry seat.
And other stuff.

Local for the ads.
Or a broadsheet for crosswords etc, and political comment.
And the Daily Mail as a substitute for docks. :shock:


Newspaper is great stuff but I buy it at whatever base camp I'm at so I don't have to carry it. Also if you can get to a local shop and ask for an empty cardboard box for carrying groceries back to camp the flattened box makes a great liner for the porch area of the tent -- saves having to do to much cleaning of it before packing up. I spend a good few nights at each place. Don't think packing / setting up every day is for me.
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ossie
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Re: Essential stuff to have in your camping kit

Post by ossie »

Corkscrew
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