DIY Camping Hacks for Outdoors-7

Camping Hacks for Outdoors-7

31. DIY Water Purifier

If you have forgotten your water filter at home or lost it, don’t panic. Grab a clean handkerchief and place it over a bottle or a container before you fill it with water. The cloth will filter out the big stuff like sticks, silt, or stand.

Then, you boil the water. Let it boil for longer at high elevations. This process will kill most bacteria, so the water will be safe to drink once it cools.

If you are not able to boil the water, grab a water bottle and the charcoal you brought for cooking. Cut out the bottom of the bottle and poke a hole in the cap to create a funnel. If you don’t have a bottle, you can craft a funnel using a strip of tree bark or a large leaf.

Crush your charcoal using a stone before placing it into the funnel. For even better results, pack grass or sand on top of the charcoal. Hold your DIY filter over a bucket and pour lake or ground water into the funnel.

Repeat this until the water becomes clear enough. It’s a slow process, but it can save your life. For the best results, you should combine the two methods.

32. Sharpener for Fishing Gear

You have a fishing tackle box full of pocketknives and hooks, but you forgot to bring the sharpening stone again. This is one of the very few times you’ll be glad that not everyone sticks to the “leave no trace” principle.

The world is filled with trash, including the woods, so you won’t have a hard time finding broken glass near your camp. Find a piece that has a flat edge to avoid getting cut. To sharpen your knife, rub the sharp side of the glass over the blade. Now you can relax outside your tent.

If you have more time on your hands, there’s another great way you can sharpen your knives. Grab a handful of sand. If you can’t find any, you can make some. Crush small stones into a pulp with a bigger one.

Then, snap a branch off a tree. It should be at least 3 inches in diameter. The moisture within the branch acts as a lubricant, so it’s important for the branch to be alive. If you’re feeling guilty, make it up to the tree by donating some money to a forest conservation organization.

Now, use your dull knife to angrily shave the bark off the branch. If you want to torment yourself even more, carve down the branch so that it’s flat. This will make everything much easier later on.

Rub the sand into the branch, but try not to overdo it. Just as you would with a whetstone, rub your knife over the branch.

Don’t let the branch go to waste when you’re done. What? It’s still a hard no on the awesome DIY tripod? Never mind.

33. Summer Sledging

Packing and unpacking at the campsite can be fun, but it’s always exhausting. Still, don’t let this stop you from bringing an extra-large cool box and a huge tent.

A plastic snow sledge can be of great use in the summer as well. You can use it to haul plants, bags, and debris around your garden. But, most importantly, you can use it to transport that big cooler of yours around the campsite.

It will slide over gravel, sand, and grass with ease. You may even use it to haul your camping gear from your car to the camp.

34. Create a Camping Boredom Box for the Kids

To make your camping trips enjoyable for the whole family, you need to carefully plan how you will entertain the little ones. If your kids run out of fun ideas of their own and your cries of “just go and play!” stop working, you’ll have a mutiny on your hands.

Make your next camping trip a guaranteed fun experience by putting together a bad weather/boredom buster box beforehand. Pack it full of craft items, board games, and books you know your kids will enjoy.

You can also pack the items and tools you need to create the aforementioned DIY camping gadgets. This will undoubtedly stop the kids from moping around inside the tent if the weather turns bad.

If the weather is boring you to death as well, you can pretend like you came up with these camping hacks and ideas right there on the spot. The younger, more gullible members of the family will be beyond impressed and you’ll get a good kick out of it.

35. Place Solar Stake Lights Around the Tent

Solar stake lights cost just one dollar a piece and they will help you find your way around the camp. You can place a bunch of them close to the bathroom, near tent entry, by the tent pole… wherever you’d like more light. Depending on the time of the year, you may be able to find holiday-themed or patriotic solar stake lights.

If you think these lights won’t be of any use on a camping trip outside the summer season, pack a bunch of brightly colored foam noodles. Cut a slit down each one, and wrap them around tent poles and lines. The pool noodles will keep the clumsier family members aware of them, so they’ll watch their step.