Just wait until your 50's, everything is less comfortable.

However, camping is in my blood, car, backpack, or travel trailer in the woods is as good as it gets. Add a bottle of good bourbon and a hunt and it can't get any better than that!

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We've been talking about getting some camping gear. This will be a starter set for us. likely just looking for a 2 person tent. Something not ultra tiny. I'm curious what the price points are in quality, what the best brands are for tents/sleeping bags/etc, where you've purchased yours from, and any recommendations.

Thanks!

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And a 2 person tent is that ... for 2 people. You may want a 3 person.

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Or 4.

Marmot tents just had a super bowl commercial. So there's that.

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Marmot tents just had a super bowl commercial. So there's that.

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Marmot in general. I pointed that out to the wife. We have a 20 degree bag for her from them.

I just discovered dridown. Polymer coated water resistant down. Interesting.

Academy has 4 person Kelty tents on sale for 50% off at $75 which is a steal. Most of my backpacking gear is Kelty and i have no complaints. Backpacked with this same tent last weekend. Great quality!

Anyone ever used one of the Seek Outside Tipis?

https://store.seekoutside.com/4-person-tipi/

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Academy has 4 person Kelty tents on sale for 50% off at $75 which is a steal. Most of my backpacking gear is Kelty and i have no complaints. Backpacked with this same tent last weekend. Great quality!

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local thing? sale not shown on their website.

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Anyone ever used one of the Seek Outside Tipis?

https://store.seekoutside.com/4-person-tipi/

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I have a friend that used a different manufacturer but the same concept teepee, he loved it. I used it once and it was fine, just different to get use too but no big deal in the end.

Big Agnes is another excellent brand to check out. They have a new tent line called Mtnglo- lights integrated into the tent.
My general rule of thumb for tent size is to get one size up from the number of people using it ( 3-person tent for 2 people). This will afford you a little extra room.
2 vestibules for a couple.
Backpacking/car camping need their own tents. I would never use my car camping tent while backpacking- way too much weight.

I love Big Agnes sleeping bags and sleeping pads but I camp all the time and I will pay a little more for better quality.

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Academy has 4 person Kelty tents on sale for 50% off at $75 which is a steal. Most of my backpacking gear is Kelty and i have no complaints. Backpacked with this same tent last weekend. Great quality!

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local thing? sale not shown on their website.

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I saw them at both the Round Rock Academy and the Bastrop one in the last week. Where are you located? Ill keep a look out.

Everything I've read about them seems great. Especially how light they are and how much they compact. Not to mention the collapsible wood stove and smoke stack for warmth.

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Academy has 4 person Kelty tents on sale for 50% off at $75 which is a steal. Most of my backpacking gear is Kelty and i have no complaints. Backpacked with this same tent last weekend. Great quality!

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local thing? sale not shown on their website.

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I saw them at both the Round Rock Academy and the Bastrop one in the last week. Where are you located? Ill keep a look out.

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If it was last week the sale probably isn't running anymore. Academy does weekly sales Sunday-Saturday.

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Academy has 4 person Kelty tents on sale for 50% off at $75 which is a steal. Most of my backpacking gear is Kelty and i have no complaints. Backpacked with this same tent last weekend. Great quality!

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local thing? sale not shown on their website.

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I saw them at both the Round Rock Academy and the Bastrop one in the last week. Where are you located? Ill keep a look out.

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If it was last week the sale probably isn't running anymore. Academy does weekly sales Sunday-Saturday.

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It was on clearance (sorry didn't make that clear), so they may be sold out by now.

Similar to what somebody else wrote, for tents the hard and fast rule is that there are three factors:
1)Weight
2)Durability
3)Price
and you can only get two out of the three.

IMO, I would start with something that is very comfortable for car camping but not terrible for backpacking. The REI Half Dome 2+ comes to mind. It is definitely roomy enough for two but is light enough for getting into backpacking. As my first backpacking tent/car camping tent I got a $200 Kelty TN2 almost two years ago. It is in a similar vane to the Half Dome tents but not as roomy as the 2+.

5 pounds is on the heavy side of any two person tent you would want to carry, but when split between 2 people its not bad. Then later if you get heavily into backpacking you will more than likely want to shift to more specialized gear. Under $300 for specialized backpacking gear is very doable and will get you a tent for under 3 pounds. Look at both tarptent and Six Moons Designs for IMO the best bang for the buck backpacking tents.

Some people are able to be frugal when they get into backpacking but understand that for the vast majority of people there is a lot of time and money that will go into upgrading your kit. Once you can get a base weight(weight including all essentials without water and food) under 10 lbs you realize that backpacking is much more enjoyable, but can be very expensive.

As far as locations around Houston (or Texas for that matter) you can't go wrong with the state park system. While some sites are better than others they all will have what you need (water, electricity, cleanish RRs). If not sure what you're doing, get an experienced friend and go with them, lots of gadgets are out there and experience tells you what's good (Coleman stove with coffee pot) and what's not (toast maker that sits on stove). I'll also second the tent size, get a tent for 2X the number of people sleeping.

Ursus- Welcome to the Scout "I didn't say no" volunteer system. Best way to run things is to think of yourself as SPL, and the den leaders are your patrol leaders. Work hard to recruit your volunteers, (ask for a task vs generic asking for volunteers) I hope you have a replacement Tiger den leader so that you can focus on Cubmaster stuff.
Email me if you need more help/advice/cheering.

for car camping, are most camp areas set up where people bring a sleeping tent and a large screened tent for tables/gear/etc? I dont have any idea of the average size of lot that you get for set up when staying in a public park.

Im wondering if it might not be a bad idea to get a smaller sleeping tent and then a larger screened tent for gear/food/resting out of weather/etc? Something similar to a tailgating tent with screened sides.

I'm not sure if it has been mentioned yet, but once you know what you want, be sure to check Craigslist. A lot of folks think they want to camp, gear up, then decide after a few trips that camping isn't for them. Sometimes you can find some great deals there. When I lived in Austin, I bought a great tent and other camping supplies through CL from a guy that specializes in resale of camping gear.

I need OB's wisdom for beginners backpacking and survival gear.

Looking for suggestions on everything: 2 person tent, pack, sleeping bag, pad or mattress?, bedding, water purification (I have a life straw), cooking, cooking gear/utensils, tools, fire starter, first aid kits, insect repellant, emergency food, etc. I'm sure I'm missing a lot of necessities.

My plan is to start gathering gear now as my friends and I plan a trip for next spring. Also, know that I prefer quality gear that will last and don't mind shelling out a few extra bucks to obtain that gear. That said, I prefer to get the bargains possible. TIA.

Hike in camping or just camping sites you can drive right up to?

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Hike in camping or just camping sites you can drive right up to?

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Mainly hike in. My ultimate goal is to begin refining my skills so I can backpack in somewhere and hunt big game. We are going to begin with mild climates and good conditions before that, though.

Haven't read the whole thread... Tried your hand at making your own?

Tent, hammock, backpack, stuff sacks, etc. All very doable if you have a sewing machine & patience.

http://ripstopbytheroll.com has good pricing and a good selection. Might be able to find same material cheaper, I haven't looked real hard.

I use a 3-4 person Alps Mountaineeting Tent when backpacking and sharing a tent. If alone, and going untralight I use a Coleman (Cobra while the newer version is called Dakota). I use several different Coleman sleeping backs rated at 20 degrees and 0 degrees. I use both of my mummy bags together for really cold weather. I have six different cooking methods from Eabit folding cooker with tablets to canned fuel mini cookers and a single burner Coleman Exponent stoves. I've got half a dozen Chinese made pocket stoves that use isobutane and they work great (bought on Amazon for $5-8 each.

I hammock camp using a Warbonnet Blackbird 1.7 Double Layer along with the Warbonnet Superfly. Both work very well. I made my own alcohol stove for cooking. Sometimes I use a Volcano Lite stove with canned fuel...just depends on my mood. I use a standard anodized aluminum cooking set. Backpack varies on type of camping I'm doing.

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I need OB's wisdom for beginners backpacking and survival gear.

Looking for suggestions on everything: 2 person tent, pack, sleeping bag, pad or mattress?, bedding, water purification (I have a life straw), cooking, cooking gear/utensils, tools, fire starter, first aid kits, insect repellant, emergency food, etc. I'm sure I'm missing a lot of necessities.

My plan is to start gathering gear now as my friends and I plan a trip for next spring. Also, know that I prefer quality gear that will last and don't mind shelling out a few extra bucks to obtain that gear. That said, I prefer to get the bargains possible. TIA.

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That is a huge question. As pointed out, the answers vary GREATLY depending on where and what you are doing. You can go ultralight and have a tarp or 4 season tent or anywhere in between. There is no way I'd carry the pack you would need to pack out meat if you shoot an elk if I was just backpacking. I have 4 tents, 4 packs, 3 stoves, 4-5 methods of water purification.

I've given the same advice before - go as light as possible. I visit the gear swap forum on backpacking light to check out deals on used gear. Many people think they want to backpack and go all in and end up selling stuff after a few trips. Or they try out gear and decide they don't want it/ have a kid/ wife stops backpacking....

A good sleeping pad will help keep you warm. I use a quilt instead of a traditional bag since the down under you loses most of its insulation properties when compacted. The pack should be last since you need all your gear to know if it will fit.

Lately I have used a Katabatic Gear Helios Pack. I also have a gossamer gear gorilla, ULA Ohm, and Osprey Hornet Pack. Some day I'd love to have a McHale custom pack built.

I have sleeping quilt from Nunatak. Other good ones are enlightened equipment, katabatic, zpacks. Or for a full bag western mountaineering or feathered friends (both options).

My tent varies depending on going alone, with wife or kid, or all three. I have a zpacks soloplex and triplex, a tarptent double rainbow, and a lightheart gear solo.

For cooking I mainly either use a jetboil or a small alcohol stove setup with a caldera cone.

I haven't tried ultraviolet water purification yet or aquamira. I have used the Sawyer squeeze. For starting fires, a mini bic is great. I have a long handed titanium spoon. Don't need more than that. I tried a plastic spoon, but one break and then its hard to eat.