Frugal Camping

Camping should be fun but not expensive. I have gathered some tips over the years that can help you save on money and still have a fun camping trip. I can't claim that any of these ideas are of my originality.

On extended hiking trips, you don't want to carry a bulky pillow but you don't want to sleep with your head on a rock either. For a nice comfy pillow, carry an extra large sized freezer Ziplock bad. You can fill it with air and put a t-shirt over it.

When you get new shower curtains, don't throw the old one out. Save it for a ground cloth to put under your tent while camping.

Bring along a throw rug or piece of outdoor carpet to place in front of your tent. This will allow you to not track in as much debris into your tent when entering and exiting.

Instead of throwing away rubber gloves, cut them into fine strips to make rubber bands. These can be used to secure your camping or hiking equipment.

If you own a frisbee, take it with you on your next camping or picnic trip. Besides be used for a fun outdoor activity, it can also be used as a paper plate holder for those flimsy but cheap paper plates.

After finishing plastic two liter bottles, you can cut off the bottom portion, file or sandpaper the cut, and then clean. You now have a cheap camping bowl.

On extended camping trips, the few clothes that you bring can get dirty quick. Trying washing them in a five gallon bucket with a plunger and then letting them hang out to dry using a nylon rope attached to two trees. You can hang them up with the left over plastic tags that hold your loaf of bread bags together.

During the summertime, ice in coolers can melt down within a few hours. To prolong the ice in your ice chests, place some aluminum foil on top of the ice and other contents in your cooler.

Many camping spots, mostly where I live, are surrounded by evergreen trees. Carry some baking soda with you on your next camping trip. If you get the sticky sappy stuff from the trees or pine cones, wash it off with the baking soda instead of soap.

Baking soda can also be used to clean canteens and coolers that have started to get a musty smell.

Take some oranges with you on your camping trip. Beside being a delicious treat and a source of vitamin C, you can rub the peels on your exposed skin to act as a mosquito repellent.

Use canning rings to cook your eggs in. This will make a nice egg sandwich as long as you bring along some English muffins.

When the need arises, you don't want to wipe yourself with falling apart wet toliet paper. Save your coffee tins with lids so that you can use them to keep your toliet paper dry.