5 Camping Essentials for the Complete Novice

As with most things, the hardest part of going camping can be just starting. It can be intimidating! You’re going to be out in the wild — how will you know you have what you need? For camping novices, the best thing to do is to join people who already know what they’re doing. Then you can learn by example, rather than jumping into the deep end by yourself. But joining a group can also be intimidating! What if you bring the wrong things? Or what if you miss out on some of the essentials?

If you’re new to camping and don’t know exactly where to start when it comes to what to buy or bring, here are a few tips! For the complete novice, there are 5 primary things that you should definitely bring camping trip: 

1. Sleeping bag

This is the most essential part of your bed and is what keeps you nice and warm at night (which can be the difference between a fun and terrible trip!). For those of you in Nairobi, these can be found at Decathlon from as little as 2,000 KES to as much as 25,000 KES, but most are around 5,000 KES. 

2. Sleeping mat

Not only does this make your sleep more comfortable, it also keeps you warmer, creating space between yourself and the cold ground at night. These can be around 7,000 KES if you buy a nice one, but if you don’t want to buy something right now, even a thick blanket that you place on the ground as a mattress will do the trick! 

*Note – if you can’t purchase a sleeping bag or mat right now, remember that two warm blankets might be enough! A thick blanket for your sleeping mat and another to cover you. Just make sure they’re nice and warm!

3. Tent

While it’s possible that you can borrow a tent or join someone else in theirs, we recommend buying a tent as soon as you can afford it. Tents can be a stressful thing to borrow because there are lots of pieces to potentially lose or break. Also, sharing a tent with someone can mean being squeezed into a very tight sleeping area. That may be just fine with you, but some people like their space and having your own tent guarantees that you always have yours. Tent prices range from 4,000 KES to 30,000 KES, depending on what you need. 

Where you can DIY a lot of the other basic supplies, you can’t exactly do this with a tent. You can try, but as soon as the weather doesn’t cooperate, you might regret that choice!

4. Warm clothes

You may be noticing a theme here. One of the best ways to guarantee a miserable camping trip is to not prepare for the cold. Even places that are warm during the day can have temperatures that drop significantly at night. Ensure you stay warm by bringing enough warm clothes. This can include a jumper, scarf, hat, socks, and sweatpants – and even a blanket to wrap around yourself as an extra layer!

5. Torch

This is a very easy thing to purchase and most of us probably already have these at home. Although, again, it’s always possible to borrow from a friend, it’s nice to have your own so that when you wake up in the middle of the night and need to walk the dark path to the loo, you don’t have to wake up your friend to ask to borrow their torch! Of course, a torch you can buy at almost any store, but if you want to get a headlamp for ease of use, you can purchase those at Decathlon for anywhere between 500 KES to 2,000 KES. 

If an experience camper invites you to join their trip and you bring these five things, you’ll be a welcome return guest any time!