While summer camping is one of the Great British institutions, no one says that you have to rough it the traditional way. James Bond certainly is a British institution, and he never seems to rough it, no matter where he is. You can do likewise, and kit your camping trip out with the highest tech possible. With a few minor exceptions, I’ve provided some brief reasoning for selecting each piece of hiking gear, that gives considerably more detail.
Related Read: Best Hiking Watches
Outdoor Living Modernized: The Camping and Hiking Gear
Start with that phone
You don’t want to take just any phone out on a camping trip: it has to be hardy. With the way the weather tends to be anywhere in Britain in the summer, water-resistance should be at the top of your list. You also need some high-tech battery management and blur-free high-speed photography. These days, the Sony Xperia is top of the heap when it comes to these features (find out more about outdoors phones).
Ensure power generation ability for Hiking Gear
No matter how great your phone and other gadgets are with battery management, you do still want a way to get a charge when you’re far from civilization. A backup battery and a portable solar battery charger are all completely essential. If you have power but no signal, you should get the goTenna, a battery-powered device that serves as a signal booster.
A high-tech tent is essential camping gear
James Bond probably wouldn’t hammer tent stakes into the ground. This is where high-tech tents come in. Products like the Heimplanet Cave weigh no more than 5kg, and inflate in minutes. They are designed intelligently, too. Should something puncture these tents, they continue to stay upright and in place. If you want something even cooler, the Cinch pop-up tent comes with solar panels on the roof.
What’s a tent without amenities?
High-tech tents may be great on the outside, but you want to be comfortable once you get in, as well. There is a world of nifty ideas available. The Matador Pocket Plunkett is a light, water-resistant nylon sheet that you can spread on the ground or on the floor of your tent. When it’s time to get up, it folds up no bigger than a box of matches. The LuminaAID Packlite Spectra offers solar-charged lighting outside your tent, and the Firefly sets up laser lighting inside.
Make sure you have clean clothes
If you don’t fancy the idea of carrying your clothes to a stream and beating them on a rock to clean them, you should get the Scrubba portable washing machine. It isn’t actually a machine — it’s a sealed, internally waterproofed bag that you put your clothes, water, and liquitabs into, and shake. Your clothes come out nice and clean.
Fire Pits as Hiking Gear
Most places we’ve been to have places for places to put an outdoor fire pit. If you have the chance to bring one along, it really makes camping much more enjoyable on so many levels.
Recommended Read: Hiking items checklist!
Choosing the Right Trekking Poles
This can make such a difference in your hiking experience. Not all trekking poles are made equal. This is a great guide to help you choose the right trekking sticks for you. Besides, trekking can bring huge health benefits.
Finally, if you want to be as clean as your clothes, NEMO’s Helio Pressure Shower is an excellent idea. All you need to do is to fill it with water, use the inbuilt pump to build pressure, and shower away. No matter how stark the surrounding wilderness, there are some things you don’t want to compromise on.
Joe Lawrence was never made for city living, happiest in nature far away from other people, Joe regularly takes himself out into the wilderness to do wild camping. His articles appear on travel and nature-related blogs.
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