Let's talk camping gear. We recently went to Yerranderie ghost town, and I had a little shift in how I was doing my motorcycle camping. Instead of using a Swag, I've gone with the hiking tent. Let's run through the gear I took because I managed to get all that gear for sleeping and cooking for a $500 budget.
The List - Updated for 2024
Equipment Tent: https://amzn.to/3NjLEqL
Sleep Pad: https://amzn.to/3MnI1P8
Sleeping bag: https://amzn.to/3xiXGuT
Camp Seat: https://amzn.to/39dw1SK
Cooking pot: https://amzn.to/3NlrKf0
Portable gas: https://amzn.to/3GUn2CG
and fuel (https://amzn.to/3Nn9Fxc) no longer ships from Amazon, but get this one at BCF.
The Video on all this stuff
Sleeping
Tent - Naturehike Cloud-Up 2 Person
First, let's start with the most expensive: the Naturehike Cloud-Up two-person backpacking hiking tent. This tent was the most expensive item at $209, but its key feature is its lightweight: 1.8 Kg. It's very, very light.
Of course, you can buy cheaper tents. I went to BCF and looked at what they had, and you could buy a tent for around 60 bucks; however, it was approximately another third in size and cumbersome. In motorcycle camping, weight is a major factor, and space is an even more significant factor, so this turns out to be a very comfortable tent in a small package.
Being two people means I can sleep on one side and bring all my gear inside, keeping it out of the rain and the weather. It's got an aluminium skeleton and is effortless to put up. It takes no time and is very simple—lots of room.
It also comes with a ground mat. That night at about 4 a.m., it rained a fair amount, too, and it held up perfectly, so I love this tent. I highly recommend it.
Sleeping Pad - Hikenture Sleeping Pad
While Hikenture is undoubtedly no household brand name, it is a great hiking sleeping mattress. It proves there's a lot of good quality gear on Amazon, and you don't have to spend an absolute fortune.
It lays out easily within the tent and only takes four or five big puffs to inflate fully via a nice big opening vent. It blows up quickly and is comfortable. I am about 97 kilos at the moment, but I didn't feel like at any stage I was hitting the ground, and it is very comfortable even for my weight. I'm 175 in height, so I am an average height and easily lengthwise, so it's perfectly fine. This one tips the scales at 700 grams, so it is very light, and it was $45, pretty cheap.
Sleeping Bag - Naturehike Compact Ultralight Goose Down
https://amzn.to/3xiXGuT (alternative if unavailable https://amzn.to/3MApcvV)
This sleeping bag was the second most expensive item, a Naturehike Compact Ultra-light goose-down mummy sleeping bag. Mummy means tapered down at the end, which makes it a bit warmer.
When I first tried this out at home, I was concerned that it wouldn't be warm enough before we went out into the wild. I was thinking this isn't that warm. I didn't feel like it was elevating my temperature in any way. However, it was outstanding when we were out in the elements; I was absolutely 100% warm in this. The temperature outside got down to around four or five degrees that night.
Comparing the options you can get at BCF is a massive sleeping bag that you won't fit on your bike. Then, at Kathmandu, you get a fantastic product, but its prices start at $500. This Naturehike is of excellent quality for $129.
Cooking and Camp Gear
Chair - TREKOLOGY YIZI GO Portable Camping Chair
You want to sit down when you get to where you're going, particularly around a campfire. The Trekology Yizi Go Portable camping chair is not a household brand but is brilliant. It comes with a frame and a Polyester material seat. The seat is assembled with a frame, like a tent, with elastically connected alloy poles. Then, you attach the seat to the frame.
This camping chair is very light, and the best thing about it is that it takes up very little space. It is rated to hold 300 pounds, which is 136 kilos. When you first sit in it, it feels a little brittle but perfectly takes my weight, and as long as you don't flop into it, it'll easily take a reasonable amount of weight.
It's of good quality, packs up nice and tight into the saddle bags, and is hard to beat at $50.
Cooking Combo
Cooking pot: https://amzn.to/3NlrKf0
Portable gas: https://amzn.to/3GUn2CG
and fuel (https://amzn.to/3Nn9Fxc) no longer ships from Amazon, but get this one at BCF.
Let's talk cooking. There are better-quality products like Jetboil, which costs around $200. I went with three different products instead; you end up with basically what a Jetboil is. Of those three, one is the fuel you must buy regardless of the Jetboil.
The Coleman Peak 1 stove cost $23, the fuel $19, and the Stanley Adventure All-in-one two-bowl cooking set $39, for a total of $81. When you compare $200 to $81, that's a fair difference.
Granted that the Jetboil compacts all together, it will save much room. This setup is easy enough to boil a meal whether you're doing two-minute noodles or something fancier, like Thai Green Curry. That works out as a pretty good package at $80.
Summary
That's my whole camping, cooking, and everything, so when we add all that together, all that easily fits into a saddle bag and is more than enough to go camping. However, I did tell a lie at the start; this package totals $514. So, look for the sales and get it for under $500, but still pretty close, right?! $500 worth gets all this brand-new gear, and if I had to go to Kathmandu, all I would get is the sleeping bag. I can buy all this gear for the same price.
At no point did I think any of these items were low quality. I'm sure all high-quality stuff will last long if I treat it nicely.
Stay safe and have fun.
