Packing For Camping a Trip

When packing for any camping trip keep your garbage to a minimum by leaving unecessary packaging home. Cardboard boxes and glass jars have no place in the outdoors. The boxes don't protect your food from dampness, and glass jars are heavy and easily break.

When purchasing items like spaghetti sauce, jelly, peanut butter, etc. look for products in plastic jars. As long as you don't open the sauce it won't need refrigeration. Pouring something like sauce into zip lock bags is risky. The bag might pop open when packed and spill over everything. Freezing the sauce works for a while, but the plastic jar from the store works best.

When removing food from cardboard containers be sure to cut out the instructions from the box. Often you can measure out exactly what you need and write specific instructions on the bag.

The bags used to carry the food become your garbage bags on the way home. Get out of the habit of bringing a large garbage bag for all your trash. Nobody's going to want to carry it out of camp and it won't fit in your pack. If the food fit in your pack on the way to camp, the garbage will fit in your pack on the way out!

Reduce your use of paper towels. A soft rubber spatula must be part of each patrol's equipment. It is used to scrape food off of plates and pots to make them look clean before they are washed.

All utencils, bowls, and pots and pans should be wiped clean before putting them in the wash water. (you only have a small amount of hot water so keep it clean!). Each individual is responsible for pre-cleaning his own gear. Another method that works is to save a piece of bread for the end of your meal, and wipe out your plate with the bread.

Don't put too much soap in the wash water or you'll never get the items rinsed. A small amount of soap will do. Wash water should be warm. Rinse water should be near boiling. A second rinse is great if you have an extra large pot.

Wash your cleanest items first. If a pot is sooty from the campfire or very greasy, DO NOT put it in your wash water. It can be cleaned off to the side using a bowl of water. If your pot gets a layer of soap applied before it gets put over the fire most of the soot will wipe off easily.