It’s always been my contention that when it comes to camping gear, you have to pay a premium for the lightweight backpacking variety. That logic got stood on its head when Eureka!® sent me one of their Kotey 35-degree bags, which weighs just a shade over two pounds and retails for less than $100.

The Kotey comes in a 14-inch by 7-inch stuff sack, with integral compression straps that really help turn it into a small package. I had no problems fitting the Kotey into the bottom of my daypack, which is a huge advantage over strapping a bag to the outside of the pack.

I have always liked the idea of a synthetic bag, from a durability standpoint, but they have never really hit the size and weight requirements to fit my needs. The Kotey is not only a few ounces heavier than my down bag, but it’s less than half the price.

The Kotey is 82-inches long, which was just right for my 6’ 3” frame. The shell is a soft polyester material that was comfortable and quiet. The zipper has an effective draft tube that keeps cold air at bay, but the zipper is a bit stiff and seems small for this application. It might loosen-up with more use.

The Kotey is rated to 35-degrees, which I have not been able to tryout, yet. After several nights in the low to mid-40s though, I’m confident that the Kotey is going to be comfortable down to its specified temperature. This is exactly what I was looking for in a sleeping bag, one that was small enough to fit inside my daypack and warm enough to handle the summer Sierra high country.

See also…

• The Camping Gear List
• Merrell Intercept Gore-Tex Hiking Shoes
• Black Diamond Octane Pack

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East Harbor SP (basile12 on Flickr)

Every year, Steve Cheslock takes his family camping at East Harbor State Park, on Lake Erie in Ohio. Like most of us who camp, Steve had seen his share of people struggle with tent stake removal over the years, but last year he got to experience it for himself when it came time for him to tear down his tent. This got Steve to thinking about a better way to remove stubborn tent stakes from the ground and, in January of this year, the STAKE BUDDY™ was born.

I spent a few months mulling over design ideas and by October, I had filed the preliminary patent paperwork. We bought an industrial sewing machine and tested various fabrics for the handle and the straps, trying to find the right mix of how it looked, quality, and cost.

Just when you think every outdoor product that could ever be invented has already been invented, along comes Steve and his STAKE BUDDY to prove me wrong. The beauty is in the simplicity of the design, which gives the user the leverage needed to effectively remove a stake without damaging the tent (or turning the stake into a projectile!).

Possibly the best feature of the STAKE BUDDY is that it will easily fit in your tent bag or stake bag, so it’s always available when you need it. I have traditionally used a standard claw hammer when I run into stuck stakes, but sometimes the car can be a long ways away  –  which encourages tugging on the tent strap, instead.  $15 is a small price to pay for insurance against a ripped tent.

For more information about the STAKE BUDDY visit www.stakebuddy.com.

See also…

• Mechanic Invents Better Campfire Roasting Fork
• Best Waterproof Bag. Period.
• Stop Hydration Pack Mold in its Tracks

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Camping is no easy chore. For beginners, you can save a lot of headaches by learning from the camping mistakes of others. Consider avoiding the following common camping mistakes on your next trip to the woods for a better time!

1. Arriving at your campsite exhausted and near dusk. Setting up camp in the dark can be a complete nightmare. Be sure to arrive with a sufficient amount of daylight left so you can get everything situated.

2. Leaving the mattress pad at home. If there’s nothing but the bottom of the tent between your sleeping bag and the ground, be ready for a restless night!

3. Leaving food or trash out overnight. Do this and you can almost certainly expect to wake up and find that an animal of some sorts has ravaged through everything.

4. Thinking a tent for four people will comfortably fit four people. Unless you like sleeping on top of your friends and family, always buy a bigger tent than you think you’ll need. Believe me, you’ll be glad you did.

5. Bringing too much stuff. People, you’re camping! You don’t need to bring your kitchen sink with you. Unless it’s an essential item, leave it at home and rough it up a bit!

6. Letting the dog off leash. Even the most obedient dogs will find it hard to contain themselves in an area full of new smells. Unless you want to be walking through the woods calling out “Sparky!? Sparky?!” all night, consider keeping your best friend curbed.

7. Setting up camp near a cliff. Going to the bathroom in the middle of the night should not be a life or death matter.

8. Bringing insufficient drinking water. If there’s one thing you don’t want to skimp on, it’s drinking water. Think about how much you think you’ll need and bring double.

9. Not bringing enough blankets. Do you know how cold it gets at night when you’re sleeping outdoors? Oh, double up on the socks too!

10. Leaving the flashlight at home. Bring several flashlights and spare batteries for each of them.

11. Forgetting bug repellent and/or sunscreen. Both of these items are crucial to enjoyable camping.

12. Not cleaning up. Camp responsibly. Clean up after yourself before you leave. The only evidence of you having been there should be your fond memories.

13. Building a fire or using a stove inside a tent. This is incredibly stupid. A torrential downpour is still no reason to start a fire in a tent. Never start a fire in a tent.

14. Setting up a beach campsite below the high water mark. Usually high tide is around midnight. If you set up camp close to the water line during the day, you’re likely to wake up to a wet campsite. You should be able to detect evidence in the sand of the high tide point from the night before. Set up camp considerably behind that mark.

15. Cooking elaborate meals. Even if you have a stove or grill, cooking at a campsite is nowhere near as nice as cooking in your kitchen. Keep the meals simple and easy!

This is what camping geeks look for on the Internet: vintage stoves! Call it a sickness, call it a midlife crisis, but when I saw this early 60’s Coleman® 425C for sale I just couldn’t pass it up. The “C” model of the 425 series was made in 1961, 1963 and 1964. I do not think there is any way to tell exactly when this particular one was originally sold, but it’s fun to have a forty-something year-old camping stove.

Coleman 425 Camp Stove History

Model 425: 1948 to 1953
Model 425B: 1954 to 1960 & 1962
Model 425C: 1961 & 1963 to 1964
Model 425D: 1965 to 1966
Model 425E: 1967 & 1970 to present
Model 425G: 1968 to 1969

I’m looking forward to getting my “new” stove out and putting it through its paces. Will this replace my propane stove? I think it will, owing to the nostalgia factor and the fact that it should make for a nice campground conversation piece.

One of the reasons these liquid fuel stoves are not as popular as their propane brethren is that transporting the fuel can be a pain. It leaks, it smells and it’s just a big hassle compared to the disposable propane canisters. I plan to carry the fuel in a MSR® bottle, which will be a lot less prone to leaks than the 1-gallon can that the Coleman fuel comes in. The fuel tank on the Coleman stove is 40-ounces and the largest MSR bottle is 30-ounces, so two of the bottles should be sufficient for even weeklong camping trips.

See also…

• Coleman Liquid Fuel Camping Stoves
• 10 Outside-the-Box Camping Stoves
• Now You’re Cooking With(out) Gas

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This is what camping geeks look for on the Internet: vintage stoves! Call it a sickness, call it a midlife crisis, but when I saw this early 60’s Coleman® 425C for sale I just couldn’t pass it up. The “C” model of the 425 series was made in 1961, 1963 and 1964. I do not think there is any way to tell exactly when this particular one was originally sold, but it’s fun to have a forty-something year-old camping stove.

Coleman 425 Camp Stove History

Model 425: 1948 to 1953
Model 425B: 1954 to 1960 & 1962
Model 425C: 1961 & 1963 to 1964
Model 425D: 1965 to 1966
Model 425E: 1967 & 1970 to present
Model 425G: 1968 to 1969

I’m looking forward to getting my “new” stove out and putting it through its paces. Will this replace my propane stove? I think it will, owing to the nostalgia factor and the fact that it should make for a nice campground conversation piece.

One of the reasons these liquid fuel stoves are not as popular as their propane brethren is that transporting the fuel can be a pain. It leaks, it smells and it’s just a big hassle compared to the disposable propane canisters. I plan to carry the fuel in a MSR® bottle, which will be a lot less prone to leaks than the 1-gallon can that the Coleman fuel comes in. The fuel tank on the Coleman stove is 40-ounces and the largest MSR bottle is 30-ounces, so two of the bottles should be sufficient for even weeklong camping trips.

See also…

• Coleman Liquid Fuel Camping Stoves
• 10 Outside-the-Box Camping Stoves
• Now You’re Cooking With(out) Gas

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If you are planning a family camping trip this summer, one of the activities that you are probably looking forward to is roasting marshmallows over the campfire. We consider campfire time one of our favorite family camping experiences and while we don’t always roast marshmallows, it is a great family activity that the kids really enjoy. Here are five marshmallow sticks that will spare you from having to search for that perfect stick in the woods.

Rome Industries Marshmallow Tree

I think we all looked for these kinds of sticks when we were kids – the kind that you could load with half a dozen marshmallows, to maximize your melted sugary treat experience. The Marshmallow Tree harkens back to those multi-branched marshmallow sticks of our youth, but this version is made from steel that is bent to look like the branches of a tree.

Tube O’ Stix™

Worried about finding that perfect marshmallow stick, once you get to your favorite camping spot? The Marshmallow Stick Company has you covered, with their Tube O’ Stix which is a bundle of twenty birch marshmallow sticks that are 30-inches long, with semi-tapered ends that don’t require any whittling by mom or dad.

POPSTICKS®

I first stumbled onto POPSTICKS last year and was impressed with the attention to detail and quality that inventor Ray Westfall puts into the product. They are also one of the best marshmallow sticks I’ve seen for traveling, since the fork stores completely inside the tube-handle when not in use.

Marshmallow Chef Sticks

If machined aluminum isn’t quite your style, but you are still a stickler for quality, there’s the Marshmallow Chef Sticks. These quality roasting sticks are made of 3/4 inch hardwood maple and come in 16, 30 and 47-inch lengths.

Grill Thing

Filling the gap between a simple stick and a metal fork is the Grill Thing. These stainless steel forks attach to the end of any stick, allowing you to safely, and cleanly attach marshmallows or hotdogs. Best of all, when the Grill Thing is removed from the stick it is easy to store.

See also…

• Campfire S’mores
• Mechanic Invents Better Campfire Roasting Fork
• Campfire Popcorn

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Next week marks the traditional launch of the spring camping season for many across the country, but Nancy Heltman, with Virginia State Parks, is reporting that several of their parks are still snowed-in or flooded from recent rains.

Douthat State Park (photo by pcopros on Flickr)

While the park staff have done what they can to plow the roads in White Oak Campground, the turning radius will not accommodate large RVs. Top that off with the fact that the sites are snow covered, and there is just no way to accommodate campers.

The state is tentatively targeting an April 1 opening for Douthat State Park, dependant on how well the park drains as the snow melts. At First Landing State Park, only one of the campground loops will open on March 1, with the opening of other loops dependant on how quickly the floodwaters subside and how much repair the campsites on those loops will require.

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