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MC Camping on the Cheap

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Never leave home without your woobie. Use on its own or use to increase sleeping bag effectiveness.

armysurpluswarehouse.com

GI Woodland Poncho Liner

Genuine Military Surplus and so much more
armysurpluswarehouse.com armysurpluswarehouse.com

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I set world records for camping on the cheap. However, cheap low quality gear is not part of the equation. I own two big bucks Hilleberg tents cause I go to cold, weathered, blowing locales with occasional sandstorms. Generally places mere mortals or wannabe ADV riders cannot survive. Best to get out of Texas ASAP and hit the free BLM or National Forest campgrounds in any other state. Lots of national forest campgrounds are still $6 and have outhouses and running water. Carry water and just pull ff on any dirt road in a nat. forest and enjoy for free. I have a handicapped national park pass due to my hearing disability, so I get in free and its half off on any federal campground prices...
 
I'm going to make 3 pillow case back packs with grandkids in a week or two. Then let them pick what they want to eat for an overnight camp. Should be interesting, all three under 8. Got the idea for the "cheap" pack here:

 
NWKLR said:
talking of Ideas, I had to give up my hammock sleeping system due to leg cramps distroying any thought of a good nights sleep. I did not want to go back to my little dome as its just a little heavy and bulky for the bike. Long search ended just last week and I broke down and ordered a "One Tigress Backwoods". first time in at least a decade I have had a single layer tent. Will report back as soon as it arrives and I get a weekend to check it out.
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Hey Guys sorry this has taken so long for me to report on. Life has really been getting in the way of my extra-curricular outdoor activities. But I finally got to get out on the bike and do a little overnight out here in the LBJ Grasslands. First time out in the new tent and I have to say I am extremely impressed with the performance of this thing. Set up was super easy less than 5 minutes and done. Those of you who live in the greater FTW area know what kind of storm we had roll in on Sunday morning. Got hammered with a full on spring storm. Lots of wind and rain and only one very minor spot with any moisture inside the tent at all, absolutely unheard of for a single layer tent. I have been a back woods camper all my life and this has to be the best designed tent I have ever owned. Well worth the $100. I spent.
 
gixxerjasen said:
This made a huge difference to my "New to me and I don't like it" sleeping bag I picked up from Walmart. Temps got down to 40F and this helped me stay nice and warm adding to the warmth of the sleeping bag. It's a bit big though, doesn't pack as small as I'd like.
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I've got one of those. It probably adds 10-15 degrees of sleeping comfort. I've also slept in just the liner in hot weather.
 
gixxerjasen said:
I might have posted it before, but when it's cold I've found those cheap fleece throw blankets you can usually find on the end cap at Walmart are a good option for bringing down the temperature rating of a sleeping bag. It can also help when you might find yourself in a variety of temperatures over a trip. The only problem with them is they are usually too small to keep 100% of you warm. I found that they sell fleece sleeping bag liners, which I'll be trying one out next week. Seems like a good solution to the issue and they aren't very expensive. Certainly cheaper than keeping/carrying multiple expensive sleeping bags. My only complaint going in is that the one I purchased does not pack as small as I'd like it to, but we'll see how it performs.
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Yeah they are warm I call them Coke bottle blankets. the one I have must be the size of a full size mattress and it's pretty big and yes I got it from Walmart for cheap
 
For something that packs down better than a fleece blanket and has more insulation than the average woobie check out the Snugpack Jungle Blanket (https://www.amazon.com/Snugpak-Jungle-Blanket/dp/B07BGY8WW2).

It's nice to have a synthetic layer to move the dew point out of a down bag and this is a pretty cheap and versatile option. I sewed some loops on it so I can wear the thing across my shoulders like a cloak in camp. Works good in the hunting fields too since I'm to cheap to buy the HPG version.
 
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NWKLR said:
Hey Guys sorry this has taken so long for me to report on. Life has really been getting in the way of my extra-curricular outdoor activities. But I finally got to get out on the bike and do a little overnight out here in the LBJ Grasslands.
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HEY.....did you forget to invite someone to the grasslands for camping.....cough cough ahem ahem
 
Always looking for ways to "cheap camp cooking". Has to be compact, lightweight and best if no need to chill. Bonus is a little history lesson in the video.

 
I revisited this thread today to find ideas for a couple of almost 9 year old twin boys to camp with. Their birthday is coming up soon.

Looking for $20 budget each pads for under their sleeping bags. Any ideas?
 
Wow, I haven't seen this thread in ages!

I don't know that there's a decent pad, in this day & age, in that price range. You'll find $20 pads, but they're purely to provide a bit of insulation; they won't offer much comfort. In that price range, if space isn't a big issue, I'd probably opt for a cheap air mattress. I have an old Stansport ($20) and a Coleman ($29) that I still occasionally use.

Or, here's an inflatable pad (thinner than an air mattress, thicker than a normal pad) for $25. I don't have any experience with it, but it's not a big investment. Plus, you could order it, try it out in the back yard, & return it if it's a fail.

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www.amazon.com
 
I did see an interesting previous post while searching this thread for cheap mattress pads.

Remember this?


It is kinda hard to read and I doubt Google's ability to translate 1916 American language. I might make a project of doing a translation. For example, what is "adhesive plaster" that repairs flat tires? Or "a primer gun in the tank"? The tough one so far is "Stuart "stove" (commonly known as a "cooking jack") is so cheap, light and convenient that it does not pay to be without one. THey cost $1.00 at sporting goods stores and are well worth it."
 
tshelfer said:
Or, here's an inflatable pad (thinner than an air mattress, thicker than a normal pad) for $25. I don't have any experience with it, but it's not a big investment. Plus, you could order it, try it out in the back yard, & return it if it's a fail.

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www.amazon.com
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That looks pretty good. I keep forgetting that $20 buys nothing...

When my kids were little we used pool floats. Kids being so lightweight, it would last a weekend and that was long enough given how rarely we camped. Same mattress for me and my bulk lasted until 2am before going flat. Great part was they used them in the lake too. Lake Whitney SP near Hillsboro and Lake Murray SP near Ardmore, OK.
 
There's a couple of air mattresses that fall into that range at Walmart. I've had two of them and they worked fine, for a while. If you are needing something cheap and quick to see if they enjoy camping, that's the way I'd go. We've since moved to cots, because that gives storage space under the cot which makes things a lot more comfortable inside the tent. Being able to stash our sleeping bag bags, spare clothes duffel bags and other assorted items under the cot leaves a lot more room to move around. We use cheap cots, but those cheap air mattresses got us through several camping trips.

Worst night ever. My mattress sprung a leak, I spent most of the night laying on the ground. When the sun came up I looked over at my son's perfectly inflated air mattress and cussed quietly to myself as my son had rolled off the mattress during the night and was sleeping soundly on the ground next to it.
 
SL350 said:
That looks pretty good. I keep forgetting that $20 buys nothing...
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Well, $20 will buy 3 cups of Starbucks..... Oh, you're right. Nothing! :D

I'm assuming this isn't either motocamping or backpacking, so extreme space/weight requirements probably aren't critical. With that in mind, test out any air mattress to find out just how hard it is to inflate. My Coleman isn't difficult, but it takes forever. You can buy a 12V pump at Walmart for maybe $14, that does quite a nice job. It's not a lot bigger than your fist. I carried it for years when I camped on my VStrom, and would plug it into the accessory plug. It did quite a nice job.
 
SL350 said:
I revisited this thread today to find ideas for a couple of almost 9 year old twin boys to camp with. Their birthday is coming up soon.

Looking for $20 budget each pads for under their sleeping bags. Any ideas?
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I budgeted about $10 more each and have been slowly picking up Thermarest "Trail Scout" pads for my kids off eBay. Sometimes they've been a little more than $30 and sometimes they've been a little less. They can be found very lightly used and are just small enough to pack in a backpack or motorcycle in a pinch.

I've paired them with some of the foam pads from the usual suspects for a little more padding and a lot more R-value so they stay nice and warm.
 
SL350 said:
I revisited this thread today to find ideas for a couple of almost 9 year old twin boys to camp with. Their birthday is coming up soon.

Looking for $20 budget each pads for under their sleeping bags. Any ideas?
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Need an inflatable good quality air bed with 12v pump? I'll get you going in style. Its a car camp set up though, not something you'd pack in anywhere. I have two basically new beds and different pumps I'd love to see go to a good home.
 
Thanks but we already have two pumps and I've ordered from Amazon what Tim posted. I do appreciate the offer.
 
SL350 said:
I revisited this thread today to find ideas for a couple of almost 9 year old twin boys to camp with. Their birthday is coming up soon.

Looking for $20 budget each pads for under their sleeping bags. Any ideas?
Click to expand...
REI Outlet has this for about $35.

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