Hello sweet readers!
I am so excited this week to share some fun posts on organizing for camping, or ‘glamping’…which is a super cool name that makes a rustic experience sound all the more fun!
For us, camping is part of the ‘summer experience’ and we look forward to it all year.
You could say that we were ‘movin’ on up’ {cue George Jefferson signing here} from camping to ‘glamping’ when we purchased an inexpensive ‘camp kitchen’. I know that many of you seasoned campers could probably show me a thing or two, but I just wanted to share some tips on how I organize a camping kitchen for our family in hopes of making things as easy as possible for us while we are out in the wilderness.
We are campers who settle into a campsite with a tent, sleeping bags, coolers and good food. For many years, I organized our ‘camp kitchen’ around a picnic table…which honestly works just as well as anything. However, 3 years ago we took the plunge and invested in this little camp kitchen and we love it for many reasons. It is also important to note that we live in an area where campsites are in real danger of being visited by bears, so ALL food must be kept in a vehicle or camper at night and when not at the campsite. Leaving food out in the open for storage is not an option. {In fact, on our last camping trip just a few weeks ago, a bear was shot on our campsite while we were away. He had been roaming the campground for days and the park rangers had decided that this bear had turned into a real danger to campers.}
One of the reasons that I love this camping kitchen is that it comes with some really awesome, usable space that allows the picnic table to be used for other things…like, say, some crazy pre-dinner games of Crazy 8s. The middle of the camp kitchen are 2 sinks that can be connected to a water bag for water that will pump up to the sink! For a lot of camping seasons, we used a simple dish pan filled with water for washing dishes, so this is a step up for us! The design for the sinks is genius, because when not in use, they are covered with cutting boards and provides a generous space for food prep.
And when the sinks are needed, the cutting boards can easily be removed for dish-washing duties.
And here are how some other things are organized above the sink, which makes for a simple and functional kitchen.
We have the hand soap, dish soap and hand sanitizer ready for washing up all the dirties when needed. A few other camping items are hung here including a small portable radio for listening to tunes while cooking, easy-to-find scissors, and a solar light that charges during the day and gives a soft glow at night.
Here is a little food prep area, along with a container organized with cooking accouterments.
Pictured here are a number of the handy tools that I use to keep us organized.
Let me tell you how everything works together.
Let me tell you how everything works together.
On the left side of the kitchen is a gas burner which is great for making tea in the morning, or cooking bacon and eggs in a cast iron frying pan. And the shelf under the burner provides perfect storage for the cast iron cooking pans, and other pots.{I usually leave the pots and pans turned upside down so they don’t get tree bits or dirt in them.}
On the far right of the camp kitchen is a zippered storage compartment where lots of other non-food camping equipment is stored. {Before we had a camp kitchen, I stored all of these things in a rubber tote.} In here you will find:
- plastic bowls, plates and cups
- dish cloths and dish towels
- saran wrap, aluminum foil, plastic bags, garbage bags
- a box of baking soda in case of a grease fire
- kitchen utensils, hamburger press and a grill basket
- stainless steel travel cups
- stainless steel bowl for salads, etc.
- toaster for campfire, grill or gas burner
- paper towel, extra napkins, matches, BBQ lighter.
As mentioned, I used to pack everything into large rubber totes, but I found them to be so cumbersome to get in and out of the car, so I organized everything into smaller boxes, totes and bags….so much easier!
For instance, this little plastic box nicely holds cooking oil and spices.
For instance, this little plastic box nicely holds cooking oil and spices.
I am also smitten with this cute dish & cultery caddy which is easy to carry to the picnic table at mealtime and easy to put back into a vehicle.
And this condiment carousel is also a nifty thing to have. At mealtime, we just gather the condiments out of the cooler and place them in here for easy access by everyone.
And here is an organizing system that I love! Previously, I packed all of our food into big totes and we would get the totes out and search around for things.
The totes usually turned into a mess of squashed bread and other things, and after the first day it was frustrating. And also no one wants to make toast out of bread that is mushed like a dogs breakfast t to begin with.
Now I use a system where I pack things into small re-usable bags organized by meals or snacks.
And these bags are also easier to pack into the vehicle too because they fit into small spaces easily.
And the bags work perfectly for the kids to find things too….they love the bag system!
For example, here is the BREAKFAST BAG with cold cereal, hot cereal, bread, English muffins and peanut butter….everything required for breakfast…with the exception of the things stored in the cooler like eggs, bacon, butter, juice and milk.
Here is another bag we call the `CAMPFIRE SNACK BAG` where we store snacks and munchies for night time campfires….along with everything needed to make s`mores! This system works for us brilliantly! If you would like to learn more about how we organize food & snacks in our cooler, please read the post HERE.
When mealtime arrives, we pull out the dish & cutlery caddy and the condiment carousel and the table is set! Love that!
I love having small bags, boxes and simple caddies to help keep us organized! It also makes clean up fast too!
And in addition to our camp kitchen, we also do cooking on a grill-covered campfire, or a small gas BBQ that we always bring with us too!
And everything works together wonderfully for our own little `glamping kitchen`.
How about you?
Do you have any camping kitchen organizing ideas that you would like to share?
I would love for you to share them in the comments so we can all be super organized!
If you are looking for camping recipe ideas, please visit these meal ideas and more:
Happy Camping!
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I love it! I'll have to be on the look out for a camp kitchen.
I have never seen one of those "camping kitchens" before. Where did you find it? Looks like something Canadian Tire might make!!Awesome. We bought a travel caravan in the fall and had it completely renovated in July. We camped last week in it and I spent 2 days organizing and packing all the important things into it.I had collected camping gear for so long that the only things I have to pack and re-pack each time we camp are food and clothing (of course I'll wash the bedding, too!)It's wonderful to have nooks and crannies and pull out bins to store everything -hubby jokes that we cook gourmet food in the forest now because we have all the correct cooking gear!
That is a fancy kitchen. We're heading camping in the mountains tomorrow but no fancy kitchen for us. We typically only use a stove for breakfast and eat cold/campfire meals that are preprepped.
LL Bean has the best camp kitchen I've ever seen, and now I think I'm going to splurge and get one. I love your ideas! I camp with my horse, and these ideas are perfect – the less I pack, and multi-use, the better. Thanks!
Cabela's also has them!
Love your camp kitchen! We camp with a travel trailer, but I've still pined for a camp kitchen as well. I love things that encourage organization (which campsites often do not… instead they encourage chaos, I find!).
Angie,
This is just about the coolest camping kitchen that I have seen…and oh so organized! 🙂 We have that same condiment caddy from Target and I love it.
~Sarah
What a great camping kitchen! I pinned this so I can get my camper's kitchen organized!
I had no idea camp kitchens like these even existed. And now I'm in awe! I've been saying for like 3 years "gee, we need to go camping again this summer" but we haven't done it yet. I miss it!
awesome set up!
Where did you get that table? Love it!
I need that red caddy for plates etc….where did you get it?!
where did you get this camp kitchen?? its awesome!
Where did you get the camping kitchen? ? I want to purchase this one..
Thank you,
Lupe
Hi Lupe,
I got it from Canadian Tire in Canada. Hope this helps! Happy Camping!
Love the kitchen, could you let me know what brand it is? I couldn’t find it on Candian tire
Thanks
This is really neat. I’ve never seen anything like it. Also big props to you for tent camping! We do it every summer and it’s harder and harder to find places that don’t allow RV’s. I love seeing other people show how fun and easy it can be to tent camp!