Quick facts
- Top 3
- Water and purification
- the right clothing
- the right food
- Rest of the top 10
- Ferro rod
- sleeping bag and pad
- shelter
- knife
- toilet paper
- first aid kit
- headlamp
- Water to bring
- 2 gallons per person per day when you are not near a source
- Sleeping pad
- R-value 2 or more for summer, 4 or more for spring and fall, 5 or more on snow
- Cathole
- 6 to 8 inches deep
- 200 feet from water
- trails
- camp
Most camping lists are a pile of products. This one is in order of what matters. The first ten items keep you safe and warm; if you are building gear from nothing, buy them in that order and go camping with only those before you buy anything else. The rest of the page is the full campsite list by category, the lighter cut for backpacking, and the rules that keep a campsite out of trouble with fire, water and bears. I camp in the Colorado mountains, where a July night can hit the 30s, so the list leans warm. Cut back if your ground is milder.
Where I name a product it is one I use; the links go to that product. Where I do not, any decent version does the job.
The top 10, in order
Go camping with those ten and a cooler of food from your kitchen. You will come home knowing which of the comfort items below you actually want, instead of guessing at the store.
Shelter and camp
Tent, stakes, mallet, footprint
Campsite · essentialBuy a tent rated for one more person than will sleep in it; a two person tent is a tight fit for two people and their gear. A footprint or ground mat under the floor doubles the life of the tent and keeps ground water out. Practice pitching it in the yard once, so the first time is not in the dark and the wind. Bring a small repair kit; a torn fly at 2 a.m. in the rain is the moment you will want it.
Canopy with removable walls
Campsite · worth it for more than one nightA canopy over the kitchen and the chairs changes a trip. Rain, hail, wind and direct sun all stop mattering, and in mosquito country the mesh walls are the difference between eating dinner and being eaten. Anchor it: weights on pavement, stakes and guy lines on dirt. An unanchored canopy in a mountain gust is a kite with steel legs.
Tarp and paracord
Campsite and pack · essentialAn 8 by 10 foot poly tarp from any hardware store and 50 feet of paracord is the cheapest shelter you can own. It covers a hammock, a woodpile, a kitchen between two trees, or the wind side of the canopy. Two knots make it work: the taut-line hitch to tension a guy line and the trucker's hitch to pull a ridgeline tight. Both are in the knots guide. Bring it even when you have a canopy.
Chairs, a folding table, a hammock
Campsite · comfortA chair that holds you upright by the fire and a table to cook on when the site has no picnic table. Food prepared on the ground ends up with dirt in it, every time. The hammock is the one luxury I never leave behind; the nap after a long hike, in shade with a breeze, is the best sleep of the trip.
Fire and cooking
The full camp kitchen, down to the wash bins and the dutch oven, has its own page: the camp kitchen guide. These are the pieces that matter most.
Ferro rod, firewood and a safe fire
Campsite and pack · essentialA ferro rod and a lighter, plus dry tinder in a bag so the first fire is easy. Buy firewood where you camp or gather dead and down wood where it is allowed; moving firewood between regions spreads insects that kill forests. Keep the fire inside a ring, small enough to step over, and put it out with water until it is cold to the touch. I live on the containment line of the 2020 Cameron Peak fire, which came onto my property, so I treat every fire like it wants to leave.
Propane fire pit for restrictions
Campsite · for fire bansMost Colorado summers bring fire restrictions, and a propane fire pit is how you still have a fire. The Ignik FireCan is an ammo can with a burner: folding legs, a hose and regulator for a 20 pound tank, an adjustable flame, and it shuts off in one motion. Check the current restriction stage before you leave; a propane device with a shutoff valve is usually allowed under Stage 1, and often not under Stage 2. The ranger station has the answer.
Two burner stove and fuel
Campsite · essentialA two burner propane stove lights in any weather, simmers, and cooks two things at once. It is a one-time purchase that also feeds the house in a power outage. Cooking over a fire is a skill worth learning, but learn it with the stove as backup; most people burn their food the first few times. Bring one more 1 pound bottle than you think you need, or run it from a 20 pound tank with an adapter hose.
Cooler and water
Campsite · essentialA good rotomolded cooler keeps ice for days and lets you stay out longer; pack it two parts ice to one part food, and chill the food before it goes in. Water: a 5 to 7 gallon jug per two people per day when the site has no water, and a gravity filter when it has a creek. Everything from a creek gets filtered, however clear it looks. How water goes bad explains why.
Cast iron, a pot, a knife and a board
Campsite · essentialA cast iron skillet handles a fire or a stove, lasts a lifetime, and costs less than a nonstick pan you will throw away in two years. A pot for boiling water, a sharp kitchen knife (not the pocket knife), a folding cutting board, and a bowl with a thumb rest so you can eat standing up. Add a dutch oven when you want to bake at camp; it is the one piece of gear that makes people walk over from other sites.
Cleanup
Campsite · essentialA biodegradable soap, a sponge, a stainless scrubber for the cast iron, a collapsible wash bin, a quick-dry towel and heavy garbage bags. Wash 200 feet from any water, even with biodegradable soap, and scatter the strained gray water. Cheap garbage bags leak; buy the contractor grade. Keep everything in one water resistant bin so the kitchen loads in one trip.
Sleep
Sleeping bag
Campsite and pack · essentialBags carry two numbers, a comfort rating and a limit rating. Shop by the comfort rating and pick one 10 degrees below the coldest night you expect. In the high country that is a 20 degree bag in July. Too warm is easy to fix, unzip it; too cold is a long night. A light blanket on top for the evening by the fire, and a small pillow, because sleeping on a rolled jacket gets old on night two.
Sleeping pad or cot
Campsite and pack · essentialThe pad is insulation first and comfort second. Pads are rated by R-value: 2 or more for summer, 4 or more for spring and fall, 5 or more on frozen ground. A 20 degree bag on a summer pad is a 40 degree bag. A cot gets you off the ground and is worth the bulk if you camp often, but it needs a pad on top in cold weather because air moves under it.
Clothing
Pack for the coldest night, not the warmest afternoon. Layers you can add and remove beat one heavy coat.
Two pairs minimum, one always dry. Wool insulates wet and does not stink on day three. Why wool.
Long underwear, wool or synthetic, for sitting still after dark. Never cotton; wet cotton pulls heat out of you.
Warm on its own, warmer under a rain shell, and a pillow if you forgot one.
Lightweight, no insulation, big enough to go over the sweatshirt. Extended rain without one ends the trip.
A beanie that covers the ears for the early morning and for sleeping. Leather gloves if there is work to do, warm gloves if there is sitting to do.
Boots broken in before the trip, never bought the week before. Flip flops for around camp; cheap is fine. Water shoes if there is a creek to explore.
More socks and underwear than days. A long sleeve shirt for the day you get too much sun. A swimsuit if there is water and people.
Tools and light
Pocket knife, multi-tool, hatchet or axe
Campsite and pack · essentialA locking pocket knife for food, cord and tinder. A multi-tool for the pliers and the screwdrivers; keep it in the vehicle between trips. A hatchet for a pack, an axe for a campsite with a fire. Which one and why. Duct tape wrapped around a water bottle fixes tents, poles, blisters and fishing rods.
Headlamp, flashlight, lantern
Campsite and pack · essentialA headlamp for the early start and the trail home after dark, with spare batteries. A lantern for the kitchen. Then turn them off. Your eyes adjust to starlight in twenty minutes and every white light you switch on resets them; a red mode keeps night vision. Never talk to someone with a headlamp pointed at their face.
Extra cord
Campsite and pack · essentialBeyond the tarp cord: a clothesline, a bear hang, a broken guy line, a splint. A hundred feet of paracord weighs a few ounces. Which cord for which job.
A firearm belongs on the list only if you are trained, legal where you are camping, and carrying it in the backcountry for a reason. The odds you need it are close to zero. Games, a good book, a camp rug and a broom are the nice-to-haves; bring them when there is room and no plans.
Hygiene and health
Toilet paper, trowel, wipes, sanitizer
Campsite and pack · essentialToilet paper in a zip bag. A trowel for a cathole 6 to 8 inches deep and at least 200 feet, about 70 steps, from water, trails and camp, filled in afterward. Pack the paper out where the rules say so. Unscented wipes for a dry wash after a day of work; hand sanitizer after the cathole and before the cooking. A bucket toilet with a seat is the comfort option at a campsite; I skip it, but plenty of people do not.
First aid kit
Campsite and pack · essentialSized to the group and to how far you are from a road. At a campsite that means a full kit with a trauma pouch; in a pack it means blister care, tape, gauze, a pressure bandage, tweezers for ticks and the medications your group takes. Check the dates each spring. The medical preparedness guide covers what to know, and tick removal is worth reading before tick season.
Repellent, sunscreen, lip balm, towel
By seasonCover up first; spray second. Where mosquitoes or ticks carry disease, use an EPA-registered repellent: DEET, picaridin, IR3535 or oil of lemon eucalyptus. Treat clothing with permethrin before a trip in tick country. Sunscreen for the hours you cannot get in the shade, lip balm at altitude, and a quick-dry towel that packs small and does not mildew in the bin.
Campsite rules that keep you out of trouble
The backpacking cut
Backpacking is the campsite list with everything heavy removed. Weight is the enemy; a comfortable pack is under a quarter of your body weight with food and water. Pack it in the right order with the backpack packing guide.
Filter and bottles
Pack · essentialA hollow fiber squeeze filter removes bacteria and protozoa, which is what mountain water carries; it does not remove viruses, which are rare in North American backcountry water. Two one liter bottles or a bladder, and never pass a water source with empty ones.
Pocket stove, pot, spork
Pack · essentialA canister stove that boils water in a couple of minutes, one pot, one long spork for eating out of the pouch. Freeze dried meals plus about 2 pounds of food per person per day; the freeze dried foods page covers what keeps and what is worth eating.
Tent or hammock, bag, pad
Pack · essentialA two person backpacking tent or a hammock with a tarp and an underquilt; a hammock is lighter but needs trees and insulation underneath. The best bag and pad you can afford, because on a multi-day trip sleep is what decides whether you enjoy day three. Same ratings as above: comfort rating 10 degrees below the low, pad R-value 4 or more.
The pack itself and a dry bag
Pack · essentialGet fitted for torso length, not height, and carry weight on the hips, not the shoulders. A small dry bag for the sleeping bag and the spare clothes; a wet bag is a cold night. A 25 liter daypack for day hikes from a base camp.
The rest of the pack: a rain shell, hooded sweatshirt, beanie, one spare set of wool socks and base layers, hiking pants (no jeans), shorts, camp flip flops, sunglasses, a small headlamp with a spare battery, a ferro rod, a small pocket knife, a tiny first aid kit, a trowel and toilet paper in a zip bag, travel-size toiletries, a small bottle of repellent, and large zip bags for trash. Everything else stays in the truck.
The checklist
Print it, and check the boxes as the truck loads.
Sleep and shelter
- Tent, stakes, mallet, footprint, repair kit
- Canopy and anchors
- Tarp and paracord
- Sleeping bag, pad or cot, pillow, blanket
- Chairs, table, hammock
Kitchen
- Two burner stove and fuel
- Ferro rod, lighter, tinder
- Propane fire pit if restrictions
- Cooler, ice, food, snacks
- Water jugs, filter, bottles
- Cast iron, pot, dutch oven, knife, board, bowls, mugs, utensils, opener
- Soap, sponge, scrubber, wash bin, towel, garbage bags
Clothing
- Wool socks, base layers, hooded sweatshirt
- Rain shell and pants
- Beanie, gloves
- Boots, camp shoes, water shoes
- Extra socks and underwear, long sleeve shirt, swimsuit
Tools and light
- Pocket knife, multi-tool, hatchet or axe, duct tape
- Headlamp, flashlight, lantern, batteries
- Extra cord
- Map, compass, phone with downloaded maps, charger
- Binoculars, notebook, fishing gear
Hygiene and health
- Toilet paper, trowel, wipes, sanitizer
- First aid kit, personal medications
- Repellent, sunscreen, lip balm
- Toiletry kit, quick-dry towel
Questions this answers
Tap a question for the short answer.
What do I need to go camping?
Start with water and a way to purify it, the right clothing for the coldest night, and the food you will actually eat. After that come a ferro rod, a sleeping bag and pad rated for the ground you sleep on, a tent or tarp, a pocket knife, toilet paper and a trowel, a first aid kit, and a headlamp. Everything else on the list makes the trip more comfortable; those ten keep it safe.
What are the top 10 camping essentials?
In order of importance: a water bottle and a purification method, the right clothing, the right food, a ferro rod, a sleeping bag and pad, a tent or shelter, a pocket knife, toilet paper and a trowel, a first aid kit, and a headlamp. If you are new to this, buy in that order.
How much water should I bring camping?
Plan on 2 gallons per person per day when you are not camping next to a source. That covers drinking, cooking and washing with a margin for a hot day. Near a creek or lake, bring a filter and treat every drop; clear mountain water carries giardia and cryptosporidium you cannot see.
What is the best camp stove for car camping?
A two burner propane stove on a table. It is a one-time purchase that also feeds you in a power outage, it lights in any weather, and it beats cooking over a fire, where most people burn their food. For backpacking, a pocket canister stove that boils a cup of water in a couple of minutes replaces it.
What can I use instead of a campfire during fire restrictions?
A portable propane fire pit. I use the Ignik FireCan: an ammo can with a burner, folding legs, a hose and regulator for a 20 pound tank, and an adjustable flame you can shut off in one motion. Check the current restriction stage before you go; a propane device with a shutoff valve is often allowed under Stage 1 and not always under Stage 2.
Do I need a tarp if I have a canopy?
Yes. An 8 by 10 foot poly tarp and 50 feet of paracord weigh a few pounds and cover a hammock, a kitchen, a woodpile or the side of a canopy that the rain is blowing into. Learn the taut-line hitch and the trucker's hitch and a tarp goes up in five minutes.
What sleeping bag rating do I need?
Look at the comfort rating, not the limit rating, and pick a bag rated 10 degrees below the coldest night you expect. In the Colorado high country that means a 20 degree bag for summer. A pad with an R-value of 4 or more matters as much as the bag; the ground pulls more heat out of you than the air does.
What do I leave behind when backpacking?
Everything that does not keep you warm, dry, fed or found. The cooler, the chairs, the table, the cast iron and the two burner stove stay in the truck. The pack carries a filter, a pocket stove and one pot, a tent or hammock with a tarp, a bag and pad, one change of socks and base layers, a rain shell, a headlamp, a ferro rod, a small first aid kit, a trowel and toilet paper, and food at about 2 pounds per person per day.
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