c/camping-and-outdoors

Almost lost my tent in a thunderstorm up near Mt. Rainier last June

I was camped at Cougar Rock and a gust ripped out one of my stakes (the cheap aluminum kind, you know) at 2 AM. Had to scramble in the rain to tie the whole thing to a log with my shoelaces - anyone else switched to those heavy-duty orange screw stakes after a close call?

Switched from a tent to a hammock for a week in the Smokies and never going back

I spent 5 nights at Elkmont Campground last month and my old tent got soaked through on day two from all the rain. Tried a cheap hammock with a rainfly a buddy loaned me and slept way better without waking up stiff. Anybody else made the switch and found it easier on your back?

I finally stopped cooking bacon over an open flame after a buddy called me out

Last summer my friend Dave watched me almost set my tent on fire trying to crisp up some bacon on a campfire grate. He just said 'dude, you're doing it all wrong' and handed me his little backpacking skillet. Turns out using a cheap thin pan over a controlled stove flame gives way better results and zero greasy ash blowing around. I switched to a little MSR stove and a nonstick pan for breakfasts and it cut my cleanup time in half. No more blackened bacon or burnt fingers from reaching too close to the coals. Dave also showed me you can pour the leftover grease into a metal bottle cap and toss it later instead of just spilling it everywhere. Has anyone else gotten flak for their camp cooking methods and found a simpler way?

Got a cheap camp stove that surprised me

I bought a $30 butane stove off Amazon last month just for car camping. Figured it would be junk but it boiled water in 3 minutes flat. Anyone else find a budget piece of gear that actually works?

Thought I packed the tent poles but actually left them on the driveway

Drove 3 hours to a site near Mount Rogers. Got there at dusk. Opened the trunk and the poles were sitting right where I had leaned them against the house. Had to sleep in the car with a sleeping bag. Took me 20 minutes to realize I wasn't getting the tent up no matter how many times I checked the bag.

Switched to a hammock for summer trips and my back actually thanked me

After years of tossing on a sleeping pad that always seemed to deflate by 3 AM, I grabbed a cheap Eno knockoff on clearance. Tried it out at Hocking Hills a couple weeks back and slept better than I have in a tent in years. No more wrestling with the pad in the middle of the night. Has anyone else made the switch and had issues with staying warm underneath?

Took me 2 hours to get my tent pegs out of frozen ground last weekend

I camped at Lake Tahoe and the temps dropped to 18F overnight - my cheap aluminum pegs were basically frozen into the soil and I had to boil water just to loosen them up. Anyone else switch to those screw-in pegs for cold weather trips?

Met a guy at Baker Lake who showed me how to cook trout on a flat rock

I was struggling to get a fire going last summer at Baker Lake when this older guy walked over and showed me how to heat a flat basalt rock to cook fish without a pan. He said the rock holds heat way longer than metal and you don't need to scrub anything. Has anyone else tried cooking directly on rocks like that?

Unpopular opinion: those cheap foam sleeping pads are fine for weekend trips

I spent years thinking I needed a $150 inflatable pad for any camping trip. Then last summer I did three nights in the Smokies on a $12 Walmart foam pad I bought on a whim. Honestly? I slept fine. My buddy was over there pumping air into his fancy pad every night while I just rolled mine out and crashed. I'm not saying it works for winter or rocky ground, but for car camping in mild weather, I think we overhype the expensive stuff. Has anyone else found gear that's way cheaper but works good enough for most situations?

Just found out my old sleeping bag was stuffed wrong for like 10 years

Was at a gear swap last weekend and this old timer saw my bag stuffed in its compression sack. He asked if I ever noticed cold spots and I said yeah all the time. He told me you're not supposed to cram it in there the same way every time because the down gets compressed in the same spots and loses loft. I've been doing it totally wrong since I bought it back in 2016. Has anyone else been storing their bags loose in a cotton sack instead?

Spent $35 on a cheap camp stove from Walmart. It died on day 2 of a 4 day trip.

I was in a rush before a trip to the Adirondacks last month and grabbed one of those little butane stoves for like $35. Worked fine the first night making coffee and heating soup. Second night the regulator just stopped letting gas through. No way to fix it in the woods. Ended up eating cold granola bars for two days. Anyone else had a bargain stove fail on them mid trip?

Don't buy those cheap microfiber camping towels off Amazon

Picked up a 3 pack for $12 last spring thinking I was being smart... first trip out they barely absorbed anything and left lint all over my skin. By the third use the seams started unraveling and one tore clean in half when I wrung it out. Lost about $12 but more importantly had to dry off with a t-shirt for two days. Anyone else had luck with a budget towel brand that actually holds up?

The guy who told me to skip the expensive tent and buy a tarp

Ran into this older guy at a campground in Shenandoah two summers ago. He watched me struggle with a broken pole on my $300 tent and just said "you paid too much for a nap sack." He had this beat up blue tarp strung between two trees with paracord, slept under it for 8 years straight. Made me rethink half the gear in my closet - has anyone else found that the cheap stuff outlasts the fancy brands?

This past weekend at Lake Tahoe finally clicked for me

I have been camping for about 5 years now, but last Saturday was the first time I set up my tent in under 10 minutes without any help. It was at the Fallen Leaf Lake campground near South Lake Tahoe. The weather was perfect, no wind at all, and I even got my campfire going with just one match. Has anyone else had a day where everything just goes right like that?

Spent 45 minutes trying to start a campfire in the rain before I figured out the trick

Last weekend I was out near Lake Lure and it started drizzling right as I pulled in. I spent way too long messing with wet logs and soggy kindling, maybe 45 minutes of frustration. Finally I ripped apart a pine cone I found under a dry rock and used the inner part as a fire starter - it lit up in seconds. Has anyone else got a weird trick for wet weather fire starting that actually works?

I finally tried that old timer's trick about sleeping with your head lower than your feet on a slope

Guy at a campground in the Smokies told me to do this to stop sliding down my tent at night, and I thought he was joking. After three nights of waking up in a ball at the bottom of my bag, I gave it a shot and it actually worked. Anybody else had weird camp setup advice that turned out to be right?

Finally ditched my air mattress for a hammock setup on a 4 day trip last weekend

I have been using a double high air mattress for years, even on car camping trips. Last weekend up at Lake Almanor I switched to a hammock with a bug net and underquilt. I slept way better not waking up every 3 hours to add air. Plus the whole rig packs down to about the size of a football. Has anyone else made the switch and found it worth the initial cost for the tarp and quilts?

Got stuck in a freak hailstorm up at Lost Lake last July and realized my tent was leaking through the seams the whole time

Had to sit in the car for two hours while everything inside my tent got soaked, and now I seam-seal every new tent before I even take it out which I never bothered with before, anyone else learned that lesson the hard way at a specific campsite?

My buddy convinced me to try a hammock instead of a tent and I was wrong about them

I always thought hammocks were just for lounging around camp, not for actual sleeping. My friend Dave has been bugging me for like 2 years to try his setup on our annual trip to the Smokies. Last month I finally gave in after he showed me how he stays dry with a proper tarp and bug net. He slept like a rock while I was tossing on the ground in my tent. I still like my tent for colder weather, but for summer trips under 70 degrees I'm totally sold on the hammock now. Has anyone else made the switch and regretted it once the temp dropped?

Brought a $12 tarp from Walmart to Yosemite, woke up in a puddle at 3 AM

The week where raccoons stole my entire campsite... twice

Last summer up near Lake Placid, I set up a nice little spot by the creek. First night, I wake up to crashing sounds. A raccoon made off with my entire bag of trail mix and a loaf of bread. I thought whatever, rookie mistake. So next day I lock everything in my car. Second night, same raccoon or its cousin somehow got into my cooler that I thought was latched tight. Dumped my eggs all over my tent floor. I had to eat granola bars for three days straight. Has anyone else dealt with a raccoon that just won't give up?

Conversation with a park ranger made me rethink my fire-starting kit

I was camping up near Lassen last month and a ranger named Dave saw me unpacking my usual lighters and fire starters. He said something like 'you've got 6 ways to make a spark but nothing to catch it with if it's wet.' That actually hit hard because I realized I spent $40 on fancy gadgets but never tested them in the rain. Now I carry a cheap candle stub and a few cotton balls with vaseline as a backup. Has anyone else found their go-to gear isn't the flashiest stuff?

The worst camping trip I ever had was last June in the Shenandoah Valley

I planned a 4 day solo trip to Shenandoah and it rained for 3 straight days. Not just a drizzle either, like dumping buckets from midnight till noon. My tent started leaking around 2 AM on day two and I spent the rest of the night with a towel shoved against the corner. The highlight was day three when I tried to cook dinner on my little camp stove and a gust of wind blew the whole thing over into a mud puddle. I ended up eating cold granola bars and instant coffee for 36 hours. Has anyone else had a trip go sideways because of weather you just couldn't predict?

Tried sleeping on a foam pad instead of an air mattress for a 3-night trip in the Smokies...

Woke up every morning feeling like I'd actually rested instead of rolling off a deflating raft. Anyone else ditch the inflatable gear for something simpler?

A stranger at a campsite told me to hang my food bag differently

Back in May at a spot near Mt. Hood, a guy saw me tying my bear bag to a tree branch and said I was doing it wrong. He showed me the PCT method with a stick and a rock, and I haven't had a single critter problem since. Anybody else get advice from a random camper that actually worked?