The Traveler’s Guide for Efficiently Flying with Camping Gear
Flying with camping gear can be very daunting when it comes to traveling via airplane versus road-tripping in a vehicle. Space is limited. Your expensive equipment can get damaged. It could end up being a complete nightmare.
In this extensive guide, you’ll get all the information you need to fly with your camping gear confidently.
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Research Where You're Traveling To
If you haven’t researched the place you’re traveling to, open up a new tab in your browser and type in where you’re going. Rule #1 of Leave No Trace is to Plan and Prepare, and prepping for a camping trip is when this principle comes in handy the most!
Look up the following for your trip:
Campsite Details: Look up the campsite you’re staying at to get an idea of what you must bring. No showers? Pack body wipes if needed. No electricity to charge items? Bring some power banks for your phone. Campfire ring? Find a place to buy firewood.
Extracurricular Activities: Will you be bike riding, rafting, or doing a night hike tour? Check the pages of the activities you will be participating in and see if they will provide all the needed materials. For example, sometimes you’ll need a red light headlamp for night hikes, so that is when you’ll see if you need to bring your own or check if they’re providing it to participants.
Season/Weather: Check to see if you’ll need to bring anything to keep you safe from the elements. If it will be snowy and icy, you’ll probably need snow/ice spikes for your hiking boots. Very important to check the weather!
Social Media: Check forums like Reddit for any other tips you’ll need!
Avoid Packing Restricted Camping Items
Before we get into the meat of this, let’s discuss what not to pack. These are the items that are a no-go on a flight:
Camp Stove Fuel
Bear Spray
Lighters
Strike Anywhere Matches
If you are unsure if you can bring something on your flight, view the TSA "What Can I Bring?" page to see what is and isn’t allowed on a carry-on or checked bag.
You’ll likely need to fly with one checked bag to hold items that cannot be packed on a carry-on, like hiking poles, for example.
You can easily pick up some of these items at a grocery or drugstore when you reach your destination. Along with your fuel and lighters, don’t forget to grab sunscreen and bug spray when you go shopping for those remaining items.
What Type of Bag Should I Pack My Camping Gear in for Flying?
There are a variety of bags to choose from:
Backpacking pack
Hard shell suitcase
Duffel bag
If you’re going backpacking, then a backpacking pack is your best bet! If not, using a waterproof duffel bag or hard shell suitcase will allow you to pack everything you need.
Protecting Your Camping Gear While Flying
Protecting your camping gear for flying is so essential. While your checked bag is in transit, airline employees move and throw it from one location to the next. The last thing you want is for your gear to arrive at its final destination damaged *insert the sound of a woman screaming*. Here is what you can do to ensure your equipment gets back to you safely.
Use other items to protect your gear. Use clothing, microfiber towels, socks, etc., to wrap your more fragile items.
Don’t place gear outside of your checked bag. An example of this is storing hiking poles in the outside pockets. Although we will do this while hiking, it is not good to do it for a flight. These items will be at risk of getting damaged or stolen (unfortunately).
Adjust all the straps as tight as possible. This is especially true if you are checking a backpacking pack. Clip all your straps together and adjust them tight to protect them from getting caught on anything in transit. Taping them down is also an option.
Cover your backpacking pack in a plastic bag (or other protective cover). TSA may check it, so make sure your name is on the outside of whatever material you use to wrap it and the inside of the bag. A cover protects your bag from the elements and from getting damaged while others handle it.
Use packing cubes and compression sacks. This will allow you to fit as much as possible into your checked and carry-on bags. Plus, packing cubes will make sure you stay as organized as possible!
Attach Air Tags or other types of small GPS trackers to your bag. This is a best practice now among flyers. You can track your bags while you are traveling. No more “we lost your bag” from airlines. You can easily track it with these tags.
Create Your Camping Checklist for Flying
Packing camping gear for flying can be daunting. A packing list will help prevent your mind from going into overdrive. Use a Google Sheet or a program like Notion to develop an interactive checklist that you can use over and over for future trips. Take note of what you need for your sleep system, camp kitchen, toiletries, and activities like hiking.
I use Notion to plan all of my trips, camping or not. If you’re looking for a template to use, I’ve created one that can break down your camping trip by expenses, places to see, hiking trails, and a packing checklist with tags for each category (camp kitchen, toiletries, hiking, etc.) that you can customize to make your own. Download it here for $1!
Practice Packing Your Bag Before You Head Out
At least a week before your trip, practice packing your bags! You will not be a happy camper if you attempt to do this the night before. Packing early will help you identify what fits, what doesn’t, and what you may be missing from your packing list. Do I hear an REI trip?
Weigh Your Checked Baggage for Your Camping Trip
Make sure to weigh and measure your bags to ensure they will fit your airline's requirements for size and weight. 50 pounds is the limit.
Alternatives to Flying with Camping Gear
If you’re like, “Packing all this gear for flying is so freakin’ overwhelming! Is there anything I can do to make traveling for my camping trip easier?” The short answer is yes! Here are some alternatives to bring less camping gear:
Renting Camping Gear
Typically, there are gear stores/outfitters where you can camping gear rent from. You can rent items like bear spray, tents, bear canisters, camp stoves, fishing poles, paddleboards, and the list can go on and on. Find stores to rent from at your location with a quick Google search!
Off the bat, you can use REI Rental Gear to rent camping equipment. There’s also Outdoors Geek, which ships a variety of rental gear to destinations in the United States only.
Remember that this will be an added expense, but it can make traveling so much easier.
Shipping Your Gear
Yes! Shipping your gear to your destination is an option. You need to research to see where to send it and if the location can store it for you until you arrive.
Join an Organized Trip
Organized trips for camping or backpacking will typically provide you with all of the gear, supplies, and meals that you need to enjoy your trip. An example of this would be an REI Adventure.
Final Thoughts on Flying with Camping Gear
Although packing and flying with your gear can be stressful, it is worth it in the end when you have your favorite items with you at your campsite.
I hope this guide gave you some tips and advice that ease the stress of packing your camping gear for a flight. If you have any other tips that have helped you, please share them in the comments!
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