Swank Camping Advice
 

Okay, it's not too early to plan.

I'm a camping novice, realistically, what do I need to be reasoably comfy and prepared for a swanking?

Tent
Sleeping Bag
Cooler
Food & drink

what else?

some kind of matress or pad to sleep on
cooking utensils (pot, pan etc)

I highly recommend a decently thick air mattress and electric pump of some sort. Ours is by Coleman and is wonderful. Also acts as an extra bed for guests.

Make sure your sleeping bag is suited to you - if you get hot easily, get a warmer weather one, if you get cold easily, get a colder one. I had to pull an extra blanket into mine this time, so I'm going shopping.

Some sort of lantern that you can set on a table or floor of your tent. I'm beginning to think that gas lamps are more trouble than they're worth, since there are many smaller electric options, and you can always go for rechargable batteries. Regardless, a light you don't have to hold is a nice thing to have.

The wiki has an excellent packing list that really helped us a lot.

If you plan on doing any sort of hiking/walking, I definitely recommend a camel back. We did the water bottle thing and even with convenient sport straps, they are just a nuisance. Infinitely more manageable to just distribute that weight and not hang it off one side of your body. Also, since a backpack is a good thing to have while hiking anyway, it efficiently combines items and keeps the number of straps you're wrangling down.

Some sort of chair to sit on for reading and around the campfire.

In addition to the additions below, I would suggest not investing heavily in a lot of different things. If you come on a Camp Swank trip (like we just did), you can probably borrow a lot - both from non-LoT friends and fellow LoT campers (we lent out both a tent and two sleeping bags and I know one could easily get away with not bringing any cooking stuff). That way, you can get a feel for what works for you.

Personally, I suggest bringing your own queen sized bed with full linens (sheets, feather mattress, down comforter, etc.) but that is just me GusGus.

While having the electric ones in the tent is much safer, I am a fan of the traditional fuel powered lamp as they can be MUCH brighter. Once you get the hang of them (dealing with the mantles, pump priming, etc.), they are fairly easy to work with.

Excellent point!

I am not a fan of traditional lanterns precicely because they can be much brighter.

Drowning out the firelight is not something I enjoy. Granted, we need light around the table(s) to attend to business at night (mostly bear-proofing in a drunken and sleepy state), but brightness rivaling the sun is not necessary.

Ah, but they can be dimmed quite a bit - which is how I had it most of the time (at the campfires).

Yes, you were very good about that .... when everyone screamed in unison "AH GOD, MY EYES!"


So, er, thanks. TeeHee.

Wow... two years in a row I got the same reaction :D