Before I started camping with my kids, I believed the investment of camping supplies would be too expensive with our tight budget. I received my first tent as a Christmas present from my mom, a Eureka 10 man dome that was perfect for my family. I found shopping consignment shops and websites for camping gear to be extremely helpful. While the initial investment isn’t necessarily cheap, for the amount of use we have gotten out of it, the investment has been more than worth it. If you’re unsure about camping and buying supplies doesn’t seem logical, renting equipment or borrowing from someone temporarily can resolve that issue. Including the price of my tent, my initial investment was less than $500 for our first camping trip. I bought them over a five-month period from December to April; allowing me to spread the cost out over time.

My List of Necessary Items For Camping With Kiddos:

1. A tent can make or break a camping trip. Forgetting tent poles, as I have done (read my Land Between the Lakes post, https://www.kimberlyblanford.com/land-between-the-lakes-the-first-camping-trip-with-my-fab-five,) could be a disaster if a replacement is not available. The tent pegs included with most tents are not sturdy, so I have a set of heavy duty tent stakes. As mentioned, my first tent was a Eureka 10 man dome with plenty of room for my family of seven. We could easily fit three twin size air mattresses and one queen with room to move around. My youngest boys were small enough to share a mattress. We would keep our bags of clothing in the corner of the tent, and our shoes outside the tent under the small entryway awning. I will cover the quality of the tents I have owned in another section on my blog. I do, however, highly recommend the Eureka.

2. Sleeping bags come in a variety of sizes and materials; choosing the right sleeping bag for the weather conditions is extremely important. I did not splurge on these, I bought the kids’ sleeping bags at Walmart, and I found mine through a friend that wasn’t using it any longer. Prices on sleeping bags can vary widely, but I have found the cheaper bags are sufficient for the trips I have brought my kids along. I always bring an extra blanket or two to throw across them, just in case, but have only had to use them in the winter. For my boys’ birthdays, my mom bought them higher quality sleeping bags. They were more suitable for extended camping trips in the cold, but they are comparable to the cheaper ones they initially used.

3. Air mattresses or sleeping pads are a requirement, especially in the early spring and fall when the ground is still cold. Even the highest quality sleeping bag will not keep you warm through the night if there isn’t a barrier between you and the ground on chilly nights. Using an air mattress is more comfortable, but a pump is necessary if they are not self-inflatable. There is a battery powered pump and a hand pump, both work well, or an electric pump if you stay at a campsite with electricity. I have six $10-$20 air mattresses, four twins and two queens, and they have been sufficient for every camping trip we have taken.

4. Water is essential especially at backcountry campsites where potable water is not available. I take reusable gallon jugs of water for cooking and washing, how much depends on the length of the trip. I also take hydration packs for our backpacks to use during our hikes. To avoid cost, I fill these up at home.

5. Food, of course, is essential. I typically meal prep before we go, having each day and night’s meal ready to put over the fire. Learning to cook over an open fire is an art, but one that you will acquire through trial and error. I have burnt food, and I have had fires that weren’t hot enough. That talent comes with time but is easily attainable with practice. I don’t limit what we eat while camping, anything I can cook at home, I can cook over a fire. Some useful items help with that process; I will cover those in a moment. Realistically, tinfoil or cookware and cooking utensils are sufficient for cooking a meal outdoors. With five of us, groceries are my biggest expense for a camping trip.

6. Coolers with ice are necessary for storing food that needs to stay cold before cooking. I use small bag coolers; one for food and one for drinks. Typically, the food cooler is only opened two or three times a day, depending on how many times I cook, so the ice lasts longer. The drink cooler, packed with sports drinks and sodas, is opened more often, so we have to replace the ice at some point during our camping trip.

7. Bring matches or a couple of lighters for apparent reasons. Maintaining a fire is impossible without an ignition source. I bring both; the matches are waterproof, for wet nights camping. Firewood is also a necessity, and there is a general rule firewood should not be brought in from distances beyond 50 miles. Respecting this rule prevents the spread of pests, and should be followed at all times. I have bought firewood from convenient stores and campsites, but if it is allowed, we gather wood from the area surrounding our campsite. Check with the local regulations to see if this is an option. If it is, the money saved is more than worth it. In my experience, bought firewood tends to be greener and wetter. Unseasoned wood results in a fire with more smoke that is harder to regulate, but sometimes it is the only option. In these cases, kindling is as vital as the firewood itself.

8. A light source of some sort; a lantern, headlamp, flashlight, or spotlight is necessary for navigating around the campsite after dark. I typically bring one central light source for everyone to use, and I have small, cheap flashlights for my kids to use. For some reason, flashlights have been the source of some of the biggest arguments at our campsites. Each of them having their own has eliminated this drama, so while it isn’t necessary for a camping trip, it is needed to preserve my sanity.

9. A couple of changes of clothes per person is sufficient. Kids like to get dirty, and my kids are notorious for getting wet if there is any available water source nearby. Keeping them warm and dry is imperative to a successful camping trip. When they change clothes, I hang the wet ones to dry, just in case they need to reuse these later. The amount of dirt does not bother me, that is all part of camping, but being wet is miserable. Keeping their shoes dry has been a challenge in the past, so I encourage them to remove them before playing in the water.

10. A plastic tarp has many uses at the campsite, and I never leave home without one. If it rains, we use it to cover the wood to keep it dry. I have used it for shade when we haven’t had the canopy, and I have used one to waterproof a tent after a hailstorm left holes in the top of the tent.

11. Bring a roll of durable tape. Duct tape and gorilla tape can be your best friend when something fails. When I broke the tent poles on the dome tent, I used the gorilla tape to hold it together until we were done with the camping trip. In the wind, I have taped things to the table as I was cooking to keep them from blowing away. I also used the tape for repairing the tent after the above mentioned hailstorm.

12. Bring durable rope. I learned this lesson in Colorado when the wind gusting through the valley tried to crumple our tent every day at dusk. The guylines provided with the tent were not strong enough, and we had to reinforce with more durable tension lines anchored from the poles of the tent. We had some very friendly camping neighbors that helped me with this process; otherwise, I am quite certain we would have lost that tent.

Preparing for a camping trip does not have to be stressful; keeping the process simple is a fundamental rule of camping. While packing, consider necessity vs. nonessential, and don’t overdo it. When I started, I brought so many supplies along that we never used. When I leave, my checklist includes the above items first, and then I decide which of the luxury items are most suitable for the area we are visiting. I still tend to overpack, but I have decreased that impulse dramatically. Have fun, don’t stress, and remember if something is forgotten, improvising and compromising are crucial. Don’t let one small detail ruin what could be one of the best memories of all time.