Road Trip!! Part Two: Gear Check

A solution to my storage problem may have been found! A very dear friend offered the use of her cargo platform, which is a nifty device that attaches to the hitch of your car, allowing you to store and haul things on it with tie-downs! I am excited to give this option a go! Now, on to the gear!

Over the years I have accumulated a healthy amount of camping equipment- I own a couple tents, multiple sleeping bags, and my lovingly curated Cook Kit. Like I said, my boys and I like to camp!

But, over the years and the course of many mishaps and learning experiences, I have learned I need to double check my gear and my equipment lists to be sure I have everything, and that it’s all in good working order. So, this weekend, I pulled it all out, took inventory, and this is what I found:

• A greasy camp stove that needed a good scrubbing

• A misplaced pitcher

• A ridiculous amount of knives to take camping

• Outdated spices that needed to be thrown away

• A tent with holes in it

• A missing tarp

My camp stove was easily cleaned, the pitcher was found, the knives were thinned out (from 12 to just 6), the spices are on the shopping list to be replaced along with the missing tarp (I think I threw it away!), and a new tent has already been purchased, and the old one patched so it can be handed down to Christopher to start his own collection of equipment.

It is important to check and double check your gear before leaving on a camping trip of any sort. It’s a pain to get to where you’re going, only to find that your equipment isn’t usable for any reason. It’s like unintentionally packing dirty clothes on a vacation- you have to stop enjoying your time and do your laundry before you can do anything else.

Now that I know where my equipment stands, and that it’s all in good, useable condition, I can move on to other aspects of planning this road trip! Next, we focus on tips, tricks, and tools for actually planning a road trip with kids!