We decided that this year is not the year we are going to move from tent camping to a trailer so I wanted to really get on top of things and get our gear organized once and for all. The goal: have a loaded tote bin full of everything we need so all we have to do is grab and go. I have been working on a box for a few years now with this in mind and every time we go out, I find something that we didn't really need, or something that was missing...like pen and paper.
Did I say that it's always going to be a work in progress? I made the box three years ago when we bought our tent and took off with a toddler for the mountains. It had oven mitts and a dishwashing basin thing in it, a huge lantern, and a new mess kit. The car was packed to over flowing and I had to borrow a roof carrier from a friend to get the sleeping bags in. After each trip, I have taken out the things we never used or found ways to use one item in many ways and cut the amount in the box down. Today I went OCD on the box by creating boxes in the big box. I'm hoping it cuts down on the digging around trying to find things, which causes everything to get jumbled up and a huge mess after the first day. Need a fork? Orange box. Washing up? Head to the sink with the blue box and it's all there. And with all the basic necessities sealed in one bin, we can just grab it off the garage shelf and go. Food, clothes, and book type items still have to get collected from the house and packed separately, but to me, finding and sorting all the basics is the hugest pain ever. It's all that stuff you'd have packed in the trailer but a tenter has to find every trip and cram into the car.
Here is a list of everything I have in the box, the supplies I used, and how it is grouped. I'm sure after camping this weekend, I will find a few things missing or that can be removed. Items with a * are ones I'm pretty sure we won't use but I'm still waiting to see. Disclaimer: I want my camping weekends to be relaxed, not filled with household chores like dishes and cooking that I might as well be doing in the comfort of my own home. Some of you probably love creating unique camping meals and all that, but I'm not at that point yet. I just want to survive two nights in the woods with a child without going nuts. So I do all the food prep I can at home (dice onions and tomatoes), buy food that is ready to go (like shredded cheese or salad kits) and drinks and foods that come in individual containers (juice boxes, oatmeal in a cup, single size yoghurts). It's not the most environmental friendly thing to do, but for me it means less time on clean up and more time on fun. And less to haul along in 'the box'. I also plan my meals to use a minimal amount of pots and pans. Hotdogs on a stick or tacos are super easy. One pot spaghetti or chili. I've even just stuck dirty pots in a plastic bag and brought them home for the dishwasher. Yep, I'm that person who went a whole weekend and didn't have a single thing to wash. I even made a cardboard oven and burned it the next morning as fire starter.
Supplies for Organizing
1 Large bin with lid (I bought mine in a 3 pack at Costco)
4 School supply boxes from Walmart - large
2 Ziplock food storage containers - large (or get 4 and skip school supply boxes)
Loose in the Box
Griddle that fits our 2 burner stove and spatula
Hot dog sticks
2 fuel canisters for stove and 1 for Jet Boil
Jet Boil with coffee press accessory*
Disposable wasp trap
Nylon cord
Bungee cords
Hammer
Lighter
Small LED lantern and a tea light emergency lantern*
Napkins
Color/Activity books
Table cloth (fabric so it folds smaller and can be washed when we get home)
Picnic food tent
Paper plates (not pictured)
Small cutting board (not pictured)
and then the 6 containers described below
The Jet Boil hasn't even been used in the last two years; I normally bum hot water off of another family member if we go with a group or boil a pot on the portable stove. Going to give this a try and see how it goes, all we usually need hot water for is drinks and dishes, both of which can be substituted with other alternatives. Leaving the pot at home will save space in the car.
Did you notice there are no cups or mugs? I'm lazy and buy everything drinkable out of a container. It's horrible, I know, but for the few weekends of the year I'm ok with it. Last trip we really only refilled our sports bottles at the fountain or from a gallon jug and had a few juice boxes, milk boxes, and canned/bottled beverages in the cooler. The jet boil is a french press and mug in one for my husband. I can go without coffee for a weekend, and if not, will get a few bottled ones or one of those squeeze bottles of flavor to add to a milk box. And if it doesn't work, we'll put back in the french press and paper cups or add a second tote and put in the mess kit and call it the 'nice to have' tote. Not a big deal.
Ziplock Container 1 - Supplies: Two led flash lights, half roll duct tape, utility scissors, fire starter blocks, fire starter kindling, 4 clothes pins*, tea lights*, Swiss Army knife*, water proof match case, box of matches, can covers to keep bees out*, and batteries. As you might notice, we have issues getting a fire started.
Ziplock Container 2 - Staying Comfortable: wet wipes for bathroom emergencies, bug spray (once the large bottle empties, I'll stick with the small travel size), sunscreen spray and cream (kids don't like spray in their faces), itch cream, emergency blankets (one per person), and a rain poncho*. You might be thinking some stuff is missing, like a first aid kit. We car camp and I have a good sized kit in the console of the car already and also carry small ones in my backpack and purse. There is still some room in this container I might as well throw in a handful of bandages and a tube of betadine for good measure. I keep Tylenol and Benadryl in our grab and go toiletries bag which gets packed with our clothes for any kind of trip.
School Box 1* - Keeping Clean: 3 oz travel bottle filled with dish soap, hand sanitizer, scrubber pad, dish towel, and micro fiber hand towel. Wait, what do you wash all the stuff in??? You have a big plastic bin remember, and small stuff like cutlery (if you don't go disposable) can be done in the school box. If you go disposable and cook everything on a stick (I've done it before), you don't even need this box, just put the hand sanitizer in the ziplock container. Dish soap can wash hands, it's why I don't carry a bottle of that around anymore.
School Box 2 - Food Prep: 3oz travel bottle of oil (test at home to make sure it doesn't leak!), spice stack*, pot holder, two bag clips, paring knives, wine and bottle opener*, toothpicks, trash bag, four sandwich bags for leftovers, tea bags*.
Most bottles open with a twist top these days so probably won't need the bottle opener and I do a lot of food prep at home or buy packaged items so rarely need to season food while cooking. This has basic salt, pepper, Italian spices, and chili pepper flakes. Sometimes I make a spice blend for a recipe I've planned so I don't have to measure it out at the campsite and put that in a ziplock to take along. I don't know why I have tea. I guess so I can sound fancy if we have a guest and I can offer it.
School Box 3 - Eating: All the forks, spoons, and knives. I have a mix of reusable and disposable just because I had both floating around and needed to contain them. Disposable is nice to reduce dish washing, but if you did reusable, you could fit napkins in the box as well. I love this box because you can open it up and set it on the table and you're done. Next time we are at a ribs place or KFC, I'm grabbing a few of those wet wipes too. I have a big container of baby wipes in the car as well so we can always grab those.
School Box 4 - Fun: Deck of cards, 8 pack of crayons, fold up cribbage board, two beer cozies (in case you have to disguise your drink), bottle mustaches, glow sticks. The color books shown obviously don't fit in the school box, sorry. I added a little notebook after I took the picture because last time we headed out we needed to leave a note for someone and didn't have anything to write with or on in the car. This box has not been tested and I'm not sure we are actually going to use anything from it. I bought a box for our son to fill with whatever he wants and we ended up putting stickers, crayons, a notepad, pencils, glue pen, and a ruler in his. It might get used more than the one I made and I know I'll take it along for eating out or visits where waiting is involved. Add a matchbox car and it could be a winner.
So there you have it. I pulled out a second tote bin for things that are fun to have but not necessary. Solar lamps, mess kit, monster trucks, you get the idea. It's the same bin so they should stack nicely in the trunk or back seats and in the tent they can be night stands. Look who's glamping now.
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