Review: Campground Comforts

Summer’s not complete without at least one good camping trip—and we’re not talking backpacks and freeze-dried food. We’re talking pack-the-Pathfinder, fill-up-four-coolers, drop-a-hundo-at-the-grocery-store kinda camping. You’ll roll out to Hyalite or the Madison and for a few days, the campground will be your home away from home. Fat steaks at night, bacon-heavy breakfasts, a hike or swim here and there, and a whole lot of sittin’ around. Think of it as your own little Yellowstone Club. You should relax and enjoy yourself, right?

Entertainment is essential, as you’ll get restless in that camp chair. Or, the kids will get bored. The Outside/Inside Table Tennis Set can be set up on a picnic table for some impromptu ping-pong action (or to settle a dispute from the alcohol-infused night before), while the Pocket Shot & Arrow Kit offers a new way to fling projectiles across camp. Just be sure to use a decent-sized target, like a cardboard box or a dirt embankment. Word of warning: keep the Therm-a-Rests—and small children, for that matter—at a safe distance.

 

A cuttin’ tool is equally important, for fire-starting, whittling, brandishing, and mainly just finding things to drive a metal edge into. Pair your hatchet with the manly All Cylinders+P from Ruger/CRKT. This baby’s way too big to keep in your pocket in town, unless you’re looking for trouble, but at camp it’s just right—especially come suppertime, when you’ll find all sorts of applications. It's as stout as it is oversized, so it can take all the heavy use, and occasional mistreatment, that camp life invariably entails.

 

Meat may be the primary foodstuff at camp, but for a little variety, the Vegetable Grill Basket (VGB) from Cave Tools makes cooking veggies a breeze. It's designed for the home grill, but it works just as well over a fire ring at camp. No longer do you need to wrap vegetables up in tinfoil or worry about them falling through the grate. Simply add a little oil and seasoning, drop them into the VGB, place the VGB on the hot grill, and, boom, you have roasted vegetables. The VGB also works with salmon and chicken, plus asparagus in the smoker. What's more, it's dishwasher-safe, so cleanup is almost as easy as the cooking.