The ultimate car camping hack that I have learned over the years is to keep a clear, well-stocked box of camping gear that is ready to go at a moment’s notice.
Our camping box has just about everything we need for cooking at our campsite, some fun and games, and other camping essentials. Now that I have a full-time career and a young family, our camping box is essential for getting our family of four out the door for weekend camping adventures.
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As promised in my earlier blog about weekend camping with kids, here are the details of the amazing, time-saving camping box.
Our camping box lives in our garage–packed and (more or less) ready to go. Keeping everything together saves a TON of time gathering each item individually every time we go camping. Since everything stays in the box, it means there are fewer things to pack and less of a chance of forgetting the little things.
Sadly, our trailer camper was stolen last summer, along with our camping box which was stored inside the camper. Our original box had items curated over years and years of car camping, and, believe it or not, my first reaction to our camper being stolen was anger over my lost camping box. I’m still bitter over the loss of the box.
While the camper trailer was nice, especially when we were camping with babies, we decided to become tent campers once again. So, over the last year, I set out to stock a new family-style camping box. Here are my tips for building a camping box for your family.
The camping box itself is clearly important.
Literally, you’ll want a clear bin for your camping box. Whether you need a quick inventory of what is inside before you go or you’re looking for that ONE thing at the campground, a clear bin helps avoid digging blindly through a box jam-packed with camping gear. Also, make sure the box is waterproof and has a snapping-style lid so that the box can stand up to the elements at your campsite and in your garage.
Find camping gear secondhand or at outdoor specialty stores.
Having a fully stocked camping box is fantastic, but it can be expensive to fill. Some of the best camping box items that I’ve had over the years I found at garage sales and thrift stores. My trusty old coffee percolator was one of the deeper losses of my stolen camping box. Pans, knives, and mismatched utensils are abundant second-hand and much more affordable than buying new ones.
I’ve also been known to plunder my kitchen for items that might be handy in my camping box and use it as an excuse to treat myself to something nice and new for my everyday culinary needs.
Outdoor stores are nice for specialty camping items that you want to test out first-hand before you buy. My husband’s favorite contribution to the camping box is a hatchet, and he wanted to feel it in hand before purchasing it. I also shopped for mess kits in the store to be able to physically see what they looked like before ultimately buying online. In Albuquerque, we have a lot of options for outdoor specialty shopping including Sportsman’s Warehouse, Cabela’s, and REI. Even Walmart and Target have decent camping supplies available in-store.
Everything else is a click away online.
Make it a family-style camping box.
While I have replaced most of the items that were in my pre-mom-era stolen camping box with the same items, there are a couple of additions that I have made that are kid-specific.
The biggest addition is our hammock. It is one of the first things we open at camp because our kids LOVE to play in it while we set up. My boys are growing quickly, and we’ll be adding another hammock soon because they are quickly outgrowing a single hammock. I regret not investing in a hammock for myself during our pre-kid camping days. They are very relaxing!
We also expanded our mess kit. Pre-kids, we used very minimalistic mess kits at camp. Now that we primarily do weekend car camping and since space isn’t as much of an issue, I invested in a four-person kit that includes a plate, bowl, cup, and insulated cup for each of us.
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As sad as I am about losing my beloved garage sale percolator, it was small and required percolating multiple pots of coffee which is not ideal when chasing little kids around a campground. This time around, I invested in a much bigger 12-cup percolator.
So, what is in our Camping Box?
Cooking Essentials
- Cooking Utensils: spatula, wooden spoons, tongs, knife, scissors, strainer (I like the handy, clip-on style because it takes up much less room), measuring cups, steak knives, chef knife–to keep these times from getting lost in the bin, I put them into a small bag that I can hang on our camping kitchen stand once we’re at camp
- Cutting Board
- Pan with a Lid–I use a pan that can function as a frying pan but is also deep enough to hold liquids if needed
- Coffee Percolator
- Mixing Bowl
- Mess Kit
- Flask/Shot Glasses
- Salt/Pepper Shakers
- Clean-Up Items: collapsible dish bin, camping soap, dish sponge/cloth, towel
- Trash Bags
- Tin Foil
- Hard Egg Crate–I have also pre-cracked eggs into an empty creamer container instead of bringing whole eggs, and it worked VERY well!
- Tupperware Containers and Ziplock Bags for Leftovers–leftover fajitas in a breakfast burrito are THE BEST at camp!
Camping Fun
- Marshmallow Sticks/Pie Iron (If you’ve never camped with a pie iron, you’re missing out!)
- Hammock
- Cards/Dice/Notepad and Pen
- Speaker
Campsite Essentials
- Hatchet
- Camp Shovel
- Fire Starter
- Ponchos
- Chargeable Lanterns/Lights
- Camp Fuel
Pre-Camping Checklist
While the camping box makes camping exponentially easier, it’s not 100% grab-and-go. There are still a few things I check/restock when we return from camping and before we go:
- Charge lanterns/speaker.
- Check the levels of camping fuel.
- Refill salt/pepper if needed.
- Refill the camp soap.
- Stock trash bags and Ziplock bags.
Clean-up
After our camping trips, if needed, I give dishes that were heavily used during the trip a good wash at home. I replace the dish towels with a fresh clean set, and I try to restock the trash bags and Ziplock bags to make packing a little easier for the next trip. Often, at the end of a camping trip, things tend to get thrown in the bin, so I do a bit of rearranging and reorganizing before putting the camping bin back up on the shelf.
Does your family have a camping box? Are there things in your box that aren’t on my list?
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