Car Camping for Beginners - Old Ranger Days

Camping is generally thought as sleeping in a tent that you carry on your back, either as a wild camper right in the middle of nature or just in a simple campground where you can also find prearranged tents to stay. Actually, you don’t have to stay in a tent and carry gear to enjoy the great outdoors. No, no… The word ‘car’ doesn’t refer to and include Recreational Vehicles. This is about ‘car camping’ and ‘car camping tips’ with our daily-life vehicles.

What is ‘Car Camping’ ?

Car camping is like going to a drive-in movie theater. You want to watch a newly released movie, but never leaving your comfort zone or entangling with someone else. The convenience of the car and privacy it gives make everything easy. In the end, you get what you want. That is what a car camping trip is. Going camping with your stuff more than a backpack can carry and additional protection against wind, rain, and other elements sleeping inside of a car.

Or, in a tent constructed on top of the car or truck bed. Car camping mean camping out by car, not depending on as to whether you are inside of it or not. Most of SUVs ( Sport Utility Vehicle ) are suitable for this thanks to the roof rails that enable to put a tent on. Besides, some manufacturers designed tents that can be attached to the back part of the car.

An SUV tent for car camping. — An SUV tent.

Sleeping in a car

An easy start for car camping. Nothing more than laying the seats down to create your resting ground;

Staying inside of a car provide protection, but not against cold. As if staying in a tent, choose a decent sleeping bag and heater charged by a power-bank. Lest you run out of gas,
To keep your devices charged, a solar panel is recommended in case your power-bank is out of use,
Breathing all night causes moisture to form, condensing on closed windows. Cracking the windows or sunroof a bit, as much as an animal or person cannot break in, let enough oxygen circulate,
Four sides of cars are covered with windows and light streams in through those windows. Using sun shades and clothes to make your own curtain, block out light to get much sleep,
Speaking of sleep, reap the benefits of loading capacity of cars. Take a comfortable self-inflating bed, pillow and blanket along with you so as to feel at home. Including a novel or computer to watch a movie before shutting your eyes,
Water and food, backpackers’ nightmare. Not yours. You can stuff your car as long as it takes in. Moreover, you don’t have to eat canned or packed food thanks to cooler. Just make sure that the cooler and your clean water hidden from the sun’s rays.

Car camping 101

Another approach is ‘car camping 101’. Usually pitching a tent next to the car, larger groups and the ones who cannot think a camping experience without a tent even if a car are at their service prefer sleeping under a polyester dome tensioned by poles;

For roof tents; consider buying hard shell roof tents made from fiberglass and aluminum alloy shell that has more durable structure. Compared to non-hardshell and soft shell roof tents, they are reliable in all seasons,
For SUV tents; adjust vehicle sleeve so that there is no gap between car and tent. Turn off interior lights that could consume battery in vain because of constantly open trunk,
For truck bed tents; compatibility and shape. Not every truck bed tent fits yours and comes with a floor. Unlike SUV tents, truck bed tents are stabilized by straps that you wrap under car. So, the more tightness, the more security with no disturbance by wind.

Car camping, a roof tent camper in the middle of a canyon.

As a result, cars are our camping buddies offering a bunch of different opportunities to get more pleasure from recreation. Grills to cook delicious meals, hammocks to rest under the shade of trees, in fact, additional outdoor activities to have fun. Glide across a lake with a kayak and explore off-road trails with a mountain bike. Camping with a car gives us an unforgettable weekend.