I’ve camped on every continent. This is the best gear (and what you can do without)

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I’ll never forget the first time I packed for a solo wild camp. My living room floor was covered in all the outdoor gear I owned. Every item seemed impossibly bulky yet absolutely vital. I was faced with the inevitable question: what do I really need to take with me?

Fast forward 16 years and my experience has grown while my kit questions diminished. Now, I can produce a packing list for every type of camping adventure in any conditions.

I’ve camped on all seven continents

I didn’t grow up camping. In fact, I didn’t stay on a campsite until I was an adult. Since discovering the joys of sleeping outside while on assignment in Australia, I have been a complete convert.

I’ve camped on every continent, in all four seasons and in all weathers. I’ve slept in hammocks, bivvies, tents and portaledges. In 2018 I undertook a 10-night Extreme Sleep Out for charity, suspending myself off 10 UK landmarks. I’ve slept on top of the British Three Peaks (the highest mountains in England, Scotland and Wales), bivvied at the extreme points of mainland Britain and walked its entire length camping for 40 nights in a row.

And not quite as extreme but definitely just as challenging, I’ve taken my young son camping since he was two, and even persuaded my 77-year-old dad to kayak to an island in the Thames and hammock camp with me.

Overseas, I’ve slept out on ledges in Wadi Rum with the Bedouin, wild camped in Saudi Arabia, completed a solo crossing in Greenland from ice cap to ocean with my trusty tent, bivouacked on the Great Barrier Reef, cliff camped in Colorado and even slept out with no tent in Antarctica.

All these adventures have taught me the importance of good kit – and the perils of bad gear.

Invest in a good night’s sleep (ready for adventuring the next day)

When it comes to tents, my all-time favourite is the Terra Nova Voyager. I use it for wild camping year-round and on campsites too. It weighs 1.5kg (the same as a laptop) and can be pitched in minutes. If I’m taking my son, I like something roomier, where I can sit up in a camping chair and read while he sleeps, or he can play with his toys if it’s raining outside. In this case I’ve been loving the Teton Mountain Ultra four-person model.

When it comes to comfort, camping is quite personal. The trick is to work out what you cannot have a good night’s sleep without, and what you can get away with leaving behind. Personally, I need a good sleeping bag and camping mat, because I want the best night’s sleep possible so I can have a full-on adventure the next day.

That’s why you’ll never see me with a roll-up piece of foam. Instead, I’ve loved the inflatable Exped Dura 6.5R for years. It’s warm (thanks to a microfibre filling and a layer of reflective foil), so can be used in all seasons, is made from robust fabric and quick to inflate with the included pump bag. It also packs down to the size of a water bottle.

For my sleeping bag, I always go for responsibly sourced natural filling (duck or goose down) and made as sustainable as possible. For big expeditions, my old faithful is my Rab Andes Windstopper 800, but for less hardcore adventures I love my Thermarest Parsec, which packs down tiny, is very warm (foot-warmer pocket included) and accommodates side sleepers like me.

There’s no need to buy a big camping stove

For camping stoves, I like them small and compact even if staying on a campsite. My go-to has been the Jetboil Flash as it’s foolproof and boils water in less than two mins, meaning coffee, porridge, dehydrated camping meals and boil-in-the-bag food is ready fast.

I recently tried the new (very similar) Primus Lite Ultra, and I am loving it so much that it may become my new backpacking go-to. It does all the above but weighs less.

A head torch is essential to avoid tripping over guylines

When wild camping, I often arrive when the sun sets, so a head torch is imperative. This is both for navigation (the OS app is the best system I’ve found), and to avoid tripping over guylines on the way to the toilet block.

The Petzl model I use is not available in 2026, but the nearest equivalent, the rechargeable Nao RL is just as good. It has 1500 lumens of power and a weight of just 145g, with a reactive light that dims as the light changes (saving battery power).

Camping chairs are a nice-to-have

When it comes to chairs, I will only bother with one if camping at a site or at festivals, and then I’m doing it for full-on comfort. Kelty’s Love Seat Low is the best for me as it’s perfect for snuggling under the stars with my five-year-old, or luxuriating on by the campfire.

There’s no need to buy a new backpack every year

I haven’t had to change my backpack in more than 12 years because I found my perfect fit: the Lowe Alpine Nanon ND 50:60 (women’s model). Sadly, as is the way with many outdoor items, this one is no longer made.

The Osprey Kyte is a decent substitute. It’s streamlined and simple with a good lid pocket and front-stash pouch, as well as having stretchy side pockets for water bottles and hip belt pockets that fit a phone.

If you pack well, you can afford a couple of small luxuries

No one really needs a camping pillow. A rolled up down jacket works just as well, but a good one can make a huge difference to your sleep. Even on my most extreme adventures I always take my Sea to Summit Aeros pillow which not only has a soft, flocked surface, but also a layer of synthetic down for added comfort. It weighs the same as an egg, and packs down very small.

Next, there’s nothing like a hot chocolate under the stars or a warm coffee while you listen to the dawn chorus, and for that you need a mug. It’s expensive, but I love the classic Kuksa, a hand-carved wooden mug made by the Sámi, an indigenous group who live nomadically in Scandinavia. I’d choose this every time over a metal cup, which I find leaves the liquid too hot and burns my tongue, whereas wood is perfect and water drunk from it tastes divine.

To keep my phone running, I always take a power bank. My cheap and cheerful Belkin model does the job and doesn’t weigh much.

Everyone should take a water bottle to camp, but I always take a Sigg Traveller, because it conducts heat rather than contains it. Before I go to bed I boil water, fill the bottle, wrap it in a fleece and use it as a hot water bottle. Then by morning, it’s cooled down so I can drink it.

The camping kit you can live without

As long as camping has been mainstream, there have been manufacturers trying to sell you “must-have” items. Ignore them. They will take up space in your bag, and eventually, in landfill.

Examples that spring to mind include lamps (a headtorch strung from the roof of your tent works just as well) and French presses. For me, cowboy coffee – boiling the ground up beans and letting them settle in the bottom – is where it’s at. 

Camping kettles are also redundant; your stove will do this job and nearly all have pouring lids now. Another bugbear of mine is portable radios with torches, they are unwieldy, unnecessary and will annoy your neighbours. 

And don’t get me started on tent heaters. Finally, I’d veto marshmallow toasting sticks (find a stick – they are free).

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