What’s better than camping in the fall? The crisp air, the changing leaves . . . it’s a great time of year to spend time outdoors, possibly by sipping some mushroom coffee while cuddling under the perfect camp blanket.
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If you’re looking for ways to upgrade your fall-camping gear and enhance your upcoming camping trips, check out these ideas that we’ve actually tested.
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What Do You Coffee? Mushroom Coffee Starter Kit
I started drinking mushroom “coffee” after testing several different brands for various Outdoors.com articles. Despite all the different brands I have in my cupboard, What Do You Coffee? has become a go-to for me, and it’d make a great addition to your fall camping trips.
The Starter Kit comes with two packs—instant mushroom coffee and instant mushroom latte. The latte version includes coconut milk and MCT oil, which makes the drink taste creamy right out of the box. Both varieties are great tasting, and I personally alternate between the two. If you forced me to choose a favorite, I’d choose the regular coffee (the blue package).
Compared to other mushroom drinks I’ve tried, this brand actually tastes like coffee, and, in fact, it contains arabica instant coffee. Each of the two blends also includes six functional mushrooms: lion’s mane, reishi, cordyceps, turkey tail, maitake, and chaga. For me, it’s a win because it’s easy to make, tasty to drink, and contains less caffeine than regular coffee, plus it offers the benefits of mushrooms.
Rumpl Original Puffy Blanket
You can’t go fall camping without a good camp blanket. The Original Puffy Blanket by Rumpl is an excellent choice. It’s lightweight, durable, warm, machine washable, weather resistant, and made from 100% recycled materials. The Original Puffy is 52″x75″ and weighs 2.2 pounds with a warmth rating of 6-7 out of 10 (aka, great for fall). I love that it even has a little clip to turn it into a cape.
I have this blanket in the color Cactus Flower, but it also comes in tons of solid colors and outdoorsy prints. It has become my family’s go-to blanket for any outdoor activity, even if it’s simply setting up a cozy space in the backyard for a picnic. If you’re in the market for the perfect all-around camping blanket, consider the Rumpl Puffy and you won’t regret it.
Klarus CL2 Pro Camping Lantern
When a camping lantern excites you, you know you love gear. The Klarus CL2 Pro 14000mAh camping lantern is particularly versatile, and when the sun goes down way before you’re ready to head into the tent this fall, the Klarus CL2 Pro will give you the light you need to continue the fun.
This unique lantern has 90-degree foldable light bulbs that produce 750 lumens of brightness, so you can hang it up or set it on the table and enjoy a wide radius of light. You can also use the foldable bulbs to direct the light where you want it most.
The rechargeable lantern has eight modes, including both cool and warm lights in different intensities. The CL2 Pro also offers a torch light, as well as an SOS light and a red light. You can even use it as a power bank to charge another device.
Buy the Klarus CL2 Pro on FlashlightGo.com or Amazon.
Laek Adventure Microfiber Towels
My family doesn’t historically love microfiber towels, but that’s probably because our first experience was with a pack of microfiber towels we got at Costco. We brought that first set camping and every single one of us hated the experience. They went into the donation bin.
Thankfully, Laek proved that the problem wasn’t us, it was the towels. Laek’s variety four pack of Adventure Towels is great not only for camping but also for the surfing, beach trips, kayaking, SUPing, pool parties, swim lessons, and the list goes on and on. We even use them at home sometimes just because.
These premium microfiber towels are big but fold up small, they’re absorbent and quick drying, and they’re soft—they almost feel like suede to the touch. I also love the unique, outdoorsy designs on these double-sided towels. They’ve become an essential part of our fall camping gear.
BougeRV CRPRO20 21-Quart 12V Portable Car Fridge Freezer
This summer, my family upgraded to the powered-cooler life, and we’re never going back to using regular coolers for camping. BougeRV’s CRPRO20 21-quart 12V portable car fridge/freezer is a solid option for car camping. As you’re driving, keep the cooler plugged into your car, but once you arrive at the campsite, use BougeRV’s external battery to power the CRPRO20. I especially love that this unit has a convenient compartment that the battery fits inside. It’s also lightweight and has a handy LED light inside the fridge compartment.
For weekend camping trips, road trips, SUP day trips, and just about any time you want to keep frozen foods frozen or cold foods cold, the BougeRV CRPRO20 will be your new best friend. If you’re upgrading your camping gear this fall, it might be time to splurge on a powered cooler and ditch the ice for good.
Get 25% off the BougeRV CRPRO20 using code AFF25.
Good To-Go Meal Kits
Make life a little easier this fall by taking Good To-Go meal kits with you on your camping trips. You’ll save yourself a ton of work, and your taste buds will thank you. I sampled a bunch of different entrées from Good To-Go, and I suggest trying out the Ridgeline Variety Kit for your first foray into this brand. The Cuban Rice Bowl, Pad Thai, and Mushroom Risotto are three of my favorites, and they’re all included in this pack of six single-serving meals.
Good To-Go meals are nutritious and ridiculously easy to make. Simply tear open the pouch, add the correct amount of boiling water, stir and reseal, and then wait as the meal rehydrates in about 10-20 minutes. The company offers some vegan and gluten-free options for those who have dietary restrictions, and each meal has a minimum two-year shelf life.
I recommend using water that is truly boiling when making Good To-Go meal kits. I’ve found that some meals require a couple minutes longer than the recommended time to rehydrate.
Kelly Kettle Trekker Kit
The Kelly Kettle Trekker Kit contains everything you need this fall to boil water and cook up a small meal—no matter where you are and what the weather is like. I just love how many options this efficient kit provides for cooking outdoors.
The Trekker Kit includes the well-loved Kelly Kettle, as well as a hobo stove, a 12-ounce cup with foldable handles, a two-piece grill set for grilling over your tiny fire, a little pot, and a little pan. Everything’s stainless steel and packs up into a handy storage bag for transport.
To use, start a fire in the hobo stove using things like sticks and pine cones or tree bark, then use the kettle to boil some water for your Good To-Go meal or mushroom coffee, or use that fire to cook up some eggs and sausage. It’s simple, it’s compact, and it’s honestly pretty genius.
If you’re camping solo or packing light this fall, the Kelly Kettle Trekker Kit would be an incredible upgrade to your gear.
Olight Perun 3 Headlamp
A versatile piece of gear is the best kind of gear, and the Olight Perun 3 is a very versatile light. It’s a rechargeable flashlight, but it’s also a headlamp, if you want it to be. In fact, you can use this light in so many different ways and for so many reasons that you’ll wonder what you ever did before you had it. The Perun 3 offers up to 3,000-lumen output and 160-meter throw. There are five white-light modes and two red-light modes.
I love that this flashlight comes with a headband, a clip and lanyard, and a magnetic base, allowing you to wear it as a headlamp, clip it to your clothes, or attach it magnetically to iron surfaces. When worn on the headband, it is a bit heavy compared to a regular headlamp, but I find it’s a great option for when you want to go hands-free.
Gerber Compleat Cutting Board Set
Is it time to upgrade your camp kitchen and you have the space for some “extras”? Gerber’s Compleat Cutting Board Set is for you. This set includes two cutting boards—one bamboo and one polypropylene, as well as a 3.25-inch paring knife, a 6-inch chef knife, an inner tray, and a base tray. Even though that sounds like a lot, it all nests together so nicely that it won’t take up a ton of space in your gear.
Before this set, I used to get by with whatever knives and cutting boards got booted from the home kitchen. No longer. The bar is so much higher now, thanks to Gerber’s cutting board set and its two-sided cutting boards (with juice grooves), its German stainless steel blades, and its corrosion-resistant knife handles.
Food prep at camp has definitely never been as organized, and I love that everything’s dishwasher safe. We can throw it all in the dishwasher when we get home from a camping trip so it’s ready for next time.
What’s your favorite piece of gear for fall camping?
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