Introduction
One of the most exciting things about traveling is not always the destination but the journey itself. Off-riding, camping, Overlanding can be exciting adventures that everyone should have in their life.
Here we have some of the top tips for a cool camping trip, where you can enjoy yourself, the outdoors, and the hot sun without ruining the experience. Below we’ve gone through what you can do to make your next hot camping trip bearable.
We’re assuming you’re already kitted out but if you require some cool equipment then it’s not too late to get a cooler or a fan. You’ll want to take the best out there, so you should do your due diligence when selecting a brand, like comparing Orca vs Yeti coolers.
Wear Cooling Clothes
Before the camping trip even starts, look down. What are you wearing? The clothes we wear play a big part in how our bodies react to the temperatures around us. This may not be so important in our day-to-day, but when camping you should dress for the body temperature you expect.
This means you need to wear clothes that have light colors and reject moisture. A lot of purpose-made camping materials are moisture-wicking anyway but they tend to be dark-colored, so try to get light ones. Your head and your feet are most sensitive to warm temperatures, so wear a soaked bandana and open shoes, like sandals, if you want to stay cool.
Find Some Trees
Next, you need to set up your campsite. Where are you camping? There’s no need to point to a map, you probably already have a location in mind, a warm location. However, in local areas, some areas are cooler than others.
Most camping takes place near woodland, in which case you want to set up camp somewhere beneath tree cover. Shade is cooler than the open sun, this is something everybody learns from a young age. If there isn’t cover, create your own by investing in tarp covers that you can suspend over your camp area.
Set Up Camp Near Water
While we’re deciding where to camp, you should also camp near the water if that’s possible. Beach air has a reputation for being refreshing for several reasons, and one of those reasons is that waterfronts are cooler.
This is true for all bodies of water but finding a safe spot to camp near the sea is also a great way to get cold sea air barraging your campsite every so often. Otherwise, a lake or a river will help, though beware that certain pests like mosquitos may call bodies of water home, and there’s nothing worse than being hot and itchy.
Failing that, you can also use water to cool yourself by taking cold showers if you’re at an accommodating campground. You could also bring an inflatable pool to fill yourself, which is great for keeping kids and your dog cool!
Eat Cool
Most of the time, we don’t have to worry about the temperatures of the food we eat. This isn’t most of the time. If heat is an issue when camping, you’ll want to stay hydrated and eat primarily cold foods.
Fruit snacks and ice pops are your best friend for withstanding hot camping trips. Pasta is a great food if you want something savory and don’t mind eating it cold. At best, go for temperature-neutral foods like trail mix and other food that doesn’t require much preparation.
Foods that contain caffeine and alcohol dehydrate you too, so put those brews down unless you have water to make up for it! Of course, this is where packing a cooler pays off in a big way.
Choose Cooler Times For Activities
You’re probably not planning to sit around all day if you’re camping, so you need to plan any non-water activities to minimize your exposure to heat. Dawn and dusk are best for this, as this is where the sun is lowest in the sky. You can usually do your activity for longer at dusk, assuming you can do it safely into the night, so we’d recommend that over getting up super early.
Sleep In A Vented Area
Speaking of waking up, you also want to keep your sleeping area as vented as possible. We all know what it’s like to sleep in a bedroom that’s too hot and you don’t want to prepare for a camping trip just to experience that in a tiny tent.
It’s easier to sleep when you’re cool, so opt for a tent with plenty of ventilation space. This means a lot of meshing on the sides, maybe even the top, so air can enter the vent.
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