Camping Equipment recommendations

rob-nikon

rob-nikon

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Rob
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I'm toying with the idea of camping next year to extend photography trips as some trips with 2-3hr drive each way soon eat into the day, making only sunrise or sunset possible. Like photography gear it seems you could spend a fortune and I don't have any clue about the gear I actually need, and what is over the top.

I'm currently trying to get an idea of what equipment is really needed. I'm thinking a tent, sleeping mat and sleeping bag (I do have a sleeping bag I've previous used that seemed ok) would be the minimum kit I need.

For a tent I'm thinking of a 2 man, preferably lightweight as may be carrying it with everything else. I would prefer an outer fly pitch first so the inner tent doesn't get wet if it's raining. I've looked at several manufacturers, the wild country Trisar 2/3 looks good but it's pitched inner first, naturetrek look like they do some lightweight but again inner first. Is inner pitch first a big issue? I would prefer a tent with a large inner so I'm thinking a dome or semi geodesic design would be best, ive had a look at some tent tunnels and they seem to be quite small and confined inside (I've discounted the vango banshee because of this).

For a camp mat I previously tried a normal camping mat at festivals and found it uncomfortable so I'm thinking of an air mat. The problem is the range of different types and manufacturers is huge. What insulation r number do you really need in the UK? I gather thermarest are a good brand but their range/prices differ by quite a lot. Are there others that are worth buying?

Location wise its going to likely be the peaks, the lakes, Norfolk and may be snowdonia (basically any where in the England and Wales).

I'm happy to buy used, any recommendations would be very appreciated. Whilst I'm happy to purchase good kit that will last I'm don't want to spend over what I need to or too much.
 
I don't know that much about brands / ratings / models etc because I have not done it since the 1990`s.

However through experience we would take :

Good tent ( don't buy a cheap one, it will condensate like crazy, not be waterproof and possibly break in assembly - disassembly cycles )
Carinthia sleeping bags.
Plain sleeping mats ( we knew no better back then )
Several torches and batteries.
Lots of fire lighting gear.
Worm clothes / wooly hats.
Cooking gear, bottles.
Coins for public phones.
Tools like axe / hammer / knife.
First aid kits. Book also on first aid / emergency numbers.
Compass / maps.
Toilet rolls.
Lots of spare socks.
Spare pegs incase one gets lost.
 
Its all down to budget really as always. At the budget end I've been very happy with decathlons own brand gear. Its made very well.
 
Do you intend to hike with it and take pics or base camp from a site?
This will make a huge difference to what you need/spend.
Don't worry about outer first. If you know what you're doing it doesn't make much difference. For reasonably priced gear look at alpkit.com but it's possible to spend easily over a grand if you want to.
 
Go outdoors are also a good place to look for a broad selection of equipment at all prices. Cotswolds are expensive but are ok for a mooch around. They offer discounts to just about any organisation. More specialised hiking online stores are backpackinglight.co.uk and ultralightoutdoorequipment.co.uk they are worth a look.
 
I camp for weeks at a time at festivals every year.
I would suggest a tent that is 2 more than the people using it for space. i.e. 3 man for one person, 4 man for 2 people. It makes it far more comfortable should you get very bad weather and need to spend time in the tent.
If you can, take a single air mattress with the built in foot pumps (so you don't need to carry a pump too). And make sure you get a travel towel from the camping shop, they don't take up a lot of space but being able to dry yourself is invaluable.
 
Tent wise look at vango and outwell. Per above park and sleep vs hike will dictate the type you need.

Air beds are great unless you fidget in your sleep, then you tend to get a big farting noise around 3am and find yourself back at zero altitude.

Avoid the cheap canvas frame beds, they typically only last a season, army surplus can get you a substantial one for a reasonable price.

Cooking gear, you can get square metal burners for around a tenner, and use charity shop saucepan if you are camping next to the car, if you plan to hike at all then you will looking at the ones that screw into a gas cylinder and some cheap rectangular army style tins. Word of warning don't ever BBQ inside a tent, or take a BBQ inside a tent after use, they release co2 that will not disperse through the canvas and can be fatal. Or you look to build a fire if the terrain and location allows.
 
Also consider hammock camping if you plan to give the proper sites a swerve, all you need is a hammock and a tarpaulin and maybe some pitons if no trees are about and you are all set, also Lidle and Aldi do some really cheap pop up tents which are okay for a day or two camping.
 
I have been camping for the last 40-odd years (I sure many others on here have too) and usually several times a year, last year I succumbed to a VW Van conversion but still did two weeks in a tent this year. It's like cameras, bags, tripods and most other things, one tent never suits all circumstances. If you are carrying it it depends on how far and how fit you are. If you are just doing one night you can get a reasonable nights kip in a plastic bag, especially in summer if you stay up until 11:00 for sunset and then get up at 3:30 for sunrise.

One of the big issues in choosing a tent these days is the flippin' internet. There used to be a reasonable number of camping shops that had tents pitched and you could go and look at them but the interweb seems to have killed most of these shops off but if you can I really would try to see one pitched and also see it packed down. That said over the years I have had variety of tents from different manufacturers but currently have 4 Vangos of different sizes and ages so that probably tells you something. I find Vango are about the best in terms of price/performance and they last, the ones I have have stood up to some pretty tough conditions.

I agree with you about tents that pitch fly first, although with a lot of the small tents you can just leave the inner attached and pitch the whole thing in one go. All tents leak, it is just a case of how bad the weather has to get before they start leaking and how much they leak. In my experience the simpler the tent, the less likely it is to leak, that is why I think tunnels do better than more complex designs. A simple two-pole dome is is probably as good as a tunnel. Arguably a tent that pitches fly first is more waterproof because there is less stitching on the fly sheet but having pitched an inner first on a very wet day I would not choose one. If weight is not the overriding factor definitely get one with a small porch area where you can brew-up and leave your boots and wet outer gear overnight.

Mats depends on age and the state of your joins really. Teenagers can sleep anywhere it seems but as you get older you just need more padding at the your shoulders and hips. Personally, even for wild camping I would take a 3/4 air mat and a good quality foam mat to go underneath it. The foam mat is good for insulation and a bit of padding, the air mat is good for padding but you only need it from shoulder to hip. I wouldn't spend too much on an air mat because in my experience they just don't last more than about 5 years at most and finding and fixing leaks is a chore (this is another reasons to take a foam mat, they cannot fail).
 
Thanks for all of the suggestions.

Donnie said:
Really need to know if you are simply car camping ie drive, camp, hike and back to camp, or if you intend to do some hiking - camping- hiking to give some proper answers
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Wayne Els said:
Do you intend to hike with it and take pics or base camp from a site?
This will make a huge difference to what you need/spend.
Don't worry about outer first. If you know what you're doing it doesn't make much difference. For reasonably priced gear look at alpkit.com but it's possible to spend easily over a grand if you want to.
Click to expand...

At present Im thinking I will start in campsite and either hike out if possible or use the car for trips out, but hopefully move onto wild camping at the photography location. I would like to invest in a good tent that can be used for both campsites and wild camping.

GTG said:
I don't know that much about brands / ratings / models etc because I have not done it since the 1990`s.

However through experience we would take :

Good tent ( don't buy a cheap one, it will condensate like crazy, not be waterproof and possibly break in assembly - disassembly cycles )
Carinthia sleeping bags.
Plain sleeping mats ( we knew no better back then )
Several torches and batteries.
Lots of fire lighting gear.
Worm clothes / wooly hats.
Cooking gear, bottles.
Coins for public phones.
Tools like axe / hammer / knife.
First aid kits. Book also on first aid / emergency numbers.
Compass / maps.
Toilet rolls.
Lots of spare socks.
Spare pegs incase one gets lost.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the list. I have most of those items as I have done camping with the missus in the past (our current tent is a little too big for single nights for myself).
 
That lists all very well minus the firemaking etc as truly wild camping you should leave no trace, however, that aside, if you want gear that you can genuinely use for both wild and normal camping, you need to focus on spending your money on the wild camping side and with that comes weight.

If you are fit and strong and do lots of walking etc anyway with big packs thats ok, but if not you'll be well off to spend a little more on the right lighter gear, eg some rucksacks can vary in weight by over a kilo for the same size, and that's empty!
 
To carry on from what Donnie said you also need to consider how much camera kit you intend to carry.

If you want to edge towards the wild camping route I'd seriously suggest you look at some of the forums I mentioned earlier

Camping much like camera gear is the old quality/weight (and bulk)/price pick two conundrum. You can do it cheap but you will need to carry a considerable weight & bulk before you add your camera stuff.
 
sirch said:
That said over the years I have had variety of tents from different manufacturers but currently have 4 Vangos of different sizes and ages so that probably tells you something.

All tents leak, it is just a case of how bad the weather has to get before they start leaking and how much they leak. I
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All or just Vango's? ;)
 
Donnie said:
so thats just a gear store extension and its 1.9kg!! My tent alone is less than that.
Click to expand...

Congrats?

Yes its a gear store extension, but on my small tent means I can sit in it and cook out of the rain. Saved a lot of issues in Wales the other week in a storm.
 
Dont need to be snide richard, my point is if he wants to wild camp weight is going to be an issue, adding 2kg to your pack instead of finding a tent that suits but possibly at a higher price point would be a better starting point for him
 
Donnie said:
Dont need to be snide richard, my point is if he wants to wild camp weight is going to be an issue, adding 2kg to your pack instead of finding a tent that suits but possibly at a higher price point would be a better starting point for him
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Think I took your post in the wrong way, my apologies :).

I was thinking more for the campsite camping, if he wanted to add more space just in general.
 
sirch said:
[emoji38] ALL, or at least anything that has been out in heavy weather more than once ;)
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I'm not knocking Vango honest although I did get wet in a Force 10 (Vango tent, not the weather) in the Beacons a long time ago.
My experience with more recent tents has been generally a happy one.
The only one that leaked was a Six Moons Design one and that was my fault for inadequately seam sealing it. Other tents used in the last 15 years include Vaude, Terra Nova, Hilleberg, Golite and Tarptent, none of which have seen me get wet once inside them.

For photography this is less of an issue anyway. If the forecast is crap there's probably not much point in going on the trip anyway.
 
Orangecroc said:
I would suggest a tent that is 2 more than the people using it for space. i.e. 3 man for one person, 4 man for 2 people. It makes it far more comfortable should you get very bad weather and need to spend time in the tent.
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Thats a great suggestion for festivals etc, but if a tent is too big its cumbersome to carry, more importantly its cold.
 
Used to camp a lot. Had big tents for long stays and a small three man dome tent with a small porch for weekends. Preferred clip together camp beds to mats, heavier but not a problem if travelling by car. Disliked mats and/or airbeds.
 
As others have said... you need to define what kind of camping you are going to do?

If you are hiking and camping, then you will have to compromise comfort a lot more than if you are able to drive to camping location. Weather conditions also play a part, there’s no point buying a 4+ season capable equipment if you plan to only camp May - September.

Lightweight equipment will cost more and also provide less comfort, if you can drive then look at tents you can stand up in - you may want more than one tent for different situations. Cooking equipment similarly light weight = expensive, but with cooking you also have to consider the fuel and how much you will use it. Gas is relatively bulky... but the stove is light weight so ideal for shorter usage; liquid fuel (petroleum derivative) has higher “concentration”, but the stoves are more expensive, more complicated and weight more so liquid fuel is ideal for longer trips... again it’s all compromise. Almost everything has similar compromises and if you don’t have worry about weight then you can take that out of the equation.
Mozthecat said:
Cooking gear, you can get square metal burners for around a tenner, and use charity shop saucepan if you are camping next to the car, if you plan to hike at all then you will looking at the ones that screw into a gas cylinder and some cheap rectangular army style tins. Word of warning don't ever BBQ inside a tent, or take a BBQ inside a tent after use, they release co2 that will not disperse through the canvas and can be fatal. Or you look to build a fire if the terrain and location allows.
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Don’t take ANY cooking equipment inside a tent, you can use (with care) equipment in the outer part (porch) area, but never inside. In colder weather you need to be aware of condensation in that situation. And, if you do use cooking equipment even in the porch ensure you have a means of exit away from the equipment in case of emergency - a knife open ready to cut through the rear of the tent is ideal!
 
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Vango Banshee 200 tent, Klymit insulated static v mat, sleeping bag dependant on weather and a Jetboil stove :)
 
I had a look at the Vango Banshee at Go Outdoors earlier. It's looks like its a well build tent but it felt a little too confined on the inside for me. I did work out a 2 man rather than 3 man tent would be ok as its just going to be me and a backpack. I tried out some OEX tents that seem ok size wise (OEX Bandicoot II & Cougar II). They seem to similar sizes to the Terra Nova/Wild Country Trisar 2 and Terra Nova/Wild Country Helm 2 which I hope would be better built.

I also had a look air beds, the thermarest ones look like they are a good compromise of comfort, spec and weight. There is a neoair venture and neoair lite that seem to have good reviews. I'm not in a rush to purchase as its a plan for spring to autumn camping next year. I will hopefully get a better idea over winter what's about and what's really needed. If I'm still planning on some wild camping it seem like the best idea is get gear thats 3 season and suited to both wild camping (at low attitude) and campsites. Currently im thinking I only need a tent and air bed as I already have the other gear I can use in campsites.
 
Personally have the terra nova laser and exped hyperlite mat, bags are vango venom 2 for summer weather and a mountain equipment helium for colder.

Admittedly not used any in anger in higher climates yet, but soooooo glad I spent a little more and looked for bargains!
 
I have a Vango Tempest 200 that is simular to the Banshee, slightly larger and heavier but only just.

I did scoot over some of the replies so it may have been said already but if not, always let someone know where you are going and ideally with a map
 
I find Mountain Warehouse excellent for gear, in fact I usually look like a walking advert for them!
 
I've got the Vango Omega 350, it's kept me dry in some heavy overnight rains (it's Duke of Edinburgh Scheme approved) when weekend camping and it's got a living area that's large enough to sit in using a camping chair, and is handy for storing non-valuable stuff in overnight when you're sleeping, or for sitting watching the rain if it's too wet to go outside! It would seem to fit the bill if you're using a campsite, where a bigger tent comes in handy when staying a few days, and occasionally using it for short 'backpack' treks in the summer months (it's not too heavy but check the weight is OK for you).

My only criticism is that the groundsheet for the 'living area' is a bit fiddly to clip in (the sleeping area groundsheet is sewn-in, so no problems there), but if I were using it regularly I'm sure I could modify the clips (Vango may have changed the design by now anyway as I've had my tent about 5 years). I think it looks a bit bigger than it actually is in the video below. A quick internet search shows that Blacks and Millets are selling these for £160 at the moment.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZmnrBnR47c

I've moved on to a large 4 person Vango tunnel tent now (a Woburn), as I like to be able to stand up to get dressed and have a few creature comforts such as a double air bed, table and chairs now I'm getting older! I still keep the Omega 350 in case the weather gets bad though!

Otherwise you might be better thinking about getting two tents, a larger one for campsites so you can put a table, chair, etc. in it, stand up to get dressed, and have a bit of comfort when camping for a few days, plus a lightweight minimalist one for trekking off for a single night or so.

From what I've seen and read, lightweight tents tend to be a bit of a compromise to keep the weight down, and unless you're spending quite a bit for a specialist 'pro' trekking tent then you can probably expect a few glitches and design 'quirks' (drafty 'living areas' without a sewn-in groundsheet, zip flaps the lift in high winds and let a few drips of water in, etc.) so it might be best to weigh up your options and balance cost against your actual needs and expectations? I usually draw up a short list then read all the 'on-line' reviews I can find before making my final choice. Hope this is useful.
 
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I've just bought a Vango 450 4 man to go camping with the kids - first trip this weekend, i haven't camped for nearly 30 years so the first trip is bloody pricey !
Forecast ? Wet...naturally..
 
If you are a driver and depending on your budget, a trailer tent might be the way to go.
Sorry if this has already been mentioned but I skim read the post.
 
A quick update, I've picked up a thermarest neoair xlite air bed from go outdoors this evening. I price matched against gaynor sports current price of £99.99 for the regular size, go outdoors beat the price by 10% so down to £89. That should do me well for both campsite and wild camping and last me years too. it's three season so perfect for what I want it for, it's surprisingly light at 350g and packs down small so perfect for backpacking. Just need to pick up a pillow and a tent at some point, I can keep on looking for good prices as I'm not in a rush.
 
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