The first time we went camping as a family it was for 10 days offgrid with no electricity. I did so much research, but the problem was also that it was a big chunk of money to get much of the things I needed for my comfort more than anything. So I am sharing with you a list of things that I learned and you can accumulate them over time.
Invest in a good tent. That is my #1 suggestion. One that is bigger than you think because if you’re doing long camping trips, you’re going to need something that your family might have to wait out rainstorms. Think about natural fabric that’s breathable. Are you going to potentially need a heat source like a wood stove? Could you set up your beds and have a space to move around to prepare food and eat if it’s yucky weather?
Setup:
Tent – stakes, mallet, ground tarp, poles for putting the tent up (trust me, people forget, it’s happened – ask my friend whose name shall remain anonymous)
Masking tape – sharpie – more for if you loan things out you can get it back at large gatherings
scissors – you never know
Generator + gas for off grid (get a quiet one if you want to run it at night)
String lights for tent and lights to put around strings – great so people don’t trip over your lines and break them (ask me how I know)
Wood stove must haves:
Wood tent stove – fire proof mat, ash bucket (extremely important, a friend didn’t get the right pipe to theirs and their pipe was glowing and tent in smoke in a few minutes), fireproof welding gloves also extremely important
Activated charcoal powder is a great one to keep on hand for any bug bites, rashes, food poisoning or tummy issues.
Essential oils we find important and work for our family (not medical advice) – Geranium to apply to the base of our neck and ankles because ticks are thick. I keep it diluted 50/50 in a roller. Owie which we use on all the bumps, cuts and falls to stop bleeds and such. We have ones with rollers and spray tops. Each person has their own personal care kit with owie, nail clippers, tweezers, and band aids.
The kitchen list can vary for me depending on what I’m cooking. This is very general and if you have the time, make as much food ahead and freeze already prepared. This cuts down on extra coolers and dishes you have to do.
a sample of some of the food we’ve brought in the past. Check out a full menu of what we’ve done so far.
again, our food list changes but here’s some ideas of the condiments and stuff that we bring
I decided to throw in some blank pages. You can download any of these and feel free to use them. I made all of them so please just refer the people back to this page so they can download them for themselves. If you have trouble or they’re blurry, please let me know and I can upload as a full pdf.
