A Few Things I Wish a Man From the Future Had Told Me

Campfire Guy Here. I’ve spent a lot of time in the outdoors over the past six years. Along the way, I’ve made a ton of mistakes. From packing too much or buying then returning an embarrassing amount of gear, I have done a lot of failing. Fortunately, I have managed to learn a few lessons along the way.

After popping out of a Delorean, here are five things I wish 2017 Campfire Guy would tell the 2011 version of me.

#1 – Always, Always, Always Bring Toilet Paper

Even if you are staying at a State Park or a Boy Scout facility with running water, never assume that toilet paper will be there when you need it most. I always keep a roll with hand sanitizer tucked inside the tube and stash it all in a one-gallon ziplock bag to keep it dry. Cut up one of your favorite Primus T-shirts to use in a pinch, and likely you won’t forget this tip.

#2 – Mark the “Door” Locations On Your Tent Footprint

I have two tents that appear to be square but are, in fact, a slight rectangle. Even with color coded ends, it would often take me a few tries to get the footprint oriented properly. This is especially annoying when the tent is already sitting on the footprint. We often set up camp in the dark and simply knowing where the door goes makes the setup much quicker.

#3 – Use a Rock or Heavy Stick for Hammering Tent Stakes

Hammers and mallets are perfectly fine if you are car camping, but when weight is a consideration, you can usually find something useful at the campsite to drive in those tent stakes.

#4 – Always Dry Out Your Gear

Tents, footprints, and sleeping bags can collect moisture even if they don’t get rained on or dropped into a creek. Moisture leads to mold and mildew which can shorten the life of your gear.

Weather permitting, I’ll hang out the tent, footprint, and unzipped sleeping bags outside as soon as I return from a trip. When it gets dark, I’ll hang up the tent and footprint in the garage and the bags inside the house to further air out. If I return on a Sunday, my gear generally won’t get stowed away until Thursday.

#5 – Tennis Shoes Are Fine for a Kid to Hike In

We had a couple of day hikes planned at Rocky Mountain National Park during a trip we made to Estes Park, CO in 2014. After getting our four kids properly fitted at REI and plunking down about $200, I figured we had done some solid planning.  After our first hike, I realized that one of my four had donned their new hikers.  The other three, all bounced gleefully along the trail in their tennis shoes, claiming they were far more comfortable than their new hikers.  Expensive lesson learned.

Do you have any other hacks, tips, or suggestions that have helped you in the outdoors? Maybe you have some insight from a Gray’s Sports Almanac, 2000-2050 Edition, that would be helpful. Either way, feel free to drop them in the comments section.

Special thanks To Melanie Charles for reminding me of the importance of item #5. Good luck on your trip!

Another special thanks to the talented Tony Gutierrez for taking the family photo above.  You can find his Instagram account here.


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