Hiking

Image by Jon Person via Flickr

. . . There’s a Surprising Amount to Choose From

Hiking furniture and camping furniture are very similar, but they are not the same. Oh, sure, there are a few pieces which are small, compact and light enough to stow in your backpack for a hiking adventure, but very often the stuff which hikers take to make them comfortable are not half as robust as the furniture and equipment which car campers can enjoy.

For many people a camping trip is a real home from home affair, I was going to say that they can take everything with them except the kitchen sink, but they can actually take the kitchen sink too if they so wish.

Hiking Furniture

Hiking furniture has the emphasis on weight, size and transportability . . . comfort is also important but it’s more of a trade off, after all, if you have to carry it around in your pack all day then size really does matter. Back packing and hiking chairs are designed to be legless (yes, that’s before you’ve started on the vino), but getting out of them does present a little challenge after your legs have seized from the latest climb. Hikers and backpackers spend the majority of their time at ground level, they sit on sit pads or on trekking chairs, they prepare their food at ground level, in fact, they spend an awful lot of time crawling about on the ground. 

Camping furniture

Camping furniture can offer that little bit more luxury and comfort, after all, if you’re transporting all of your camping equipment by car, setting up camp and then maybe setting off on day hikes from your base camp, you don’t have to worry too much about how much space they take up or how heavy they are, just so long as it all fits into the trunk . . . and you can always get a bigger car, or roof rack, or trailer . . .

Camping has got suspiciously more popular as camping furniture has grown to be more comfortable, now even the people who would never dream of spending a night in the great outdoors before plumbing and air mattresses are quite happy to set out with the family for a week-end “roughing it” . . . “roughing it” my butt! Still, it takes all sorts, and I’m not here to judge . . . just so long as plenty of children get to experience the wonders of nature and the great outdoors then I’m happy, (as long as they’re not parked next to my tent . . . noisy little devils – no, you can’t have your football back now beat it). I’m JOKING . . .

A Happy Camp

Camping is very relaxing, but in order to keep it very relaxing and stress free you do need to have an organized camp. Setting up your camp-site can seem like a daunting task on your first family camping trip, but it’s actually great fun once you get used to it. Make sure that the kids have plenty of jobs to do and feel involved, that way they won’t start looking for mischief too soon.

Hiking Furniture in a Nutshell

• Backpacking Chairs – yep, those legless ones we were talking about earlier, they are surprisingly comfortable and surprisingly lightweight and compact to carry in your backpack.
• Backpacking Stools – dig a hole behind a bush . . . oh sorry, wrong type of stool, find a nice flat rock.
• Backpacking Tables – you’ve guessed it, find a nice flat rock.

Camping Furniture in a Slightly Bigger Nutshell

• Camping Chairs – loads to choose from, surprisingly comfortable with extra padding if you so wish, reclining, leg up chairs with somewhere to put your beer bottle. Now that’s what I call roughing it!
• Camping Stools – once again there’s no shortage of camping stool designs to choose from
• Camping Tables – where do I start? Roll out tables, camp kitchen tables, little tables attached to camping chairs (even more space for your beer bottle), tables with storage sacks beneath them, tables with seats attached to them, high camping tables, low camping tables . . . yes, there are plenty of camping tables to choose from.
• Camping Hammocks – now don’t get me wrong, hammocks are great for hikers and backpackers too, but whereas they use them in the practical sense as somewhere to sleep and shelter from the bugs, campers can use hammocks just to relax and unwind in the afternoon sun, with a nice cool beer.

Cool beer seems to play a large part in this camping business . . . better remember to bring a big enough cooler.