While it’s not necessary to light up your campground like it’s a sports stadium, you don’t want to be fumbling around in the dark because of inadequate lighting. Your devices should be adaptable enough to handle activities like reading, cooking, or playing board games, illuminate walkways, and provide general illumination at night. So, pack your gear, ready your senses, and let’s talk about the essential camping lights you’ll need for your adventure.
Headlamp
Anyone who’s been camping or hiking knows that it’s neither enjoyable nor simple to put up a tent or walk a path in the dark. So, if you’re planning a trip where you’ll be spending a night in the woods, you’ll need a bright and reliable head torch. These items are lightweight and compact, so you can easily mount them on your head and free up your hands to do other tasks around the campground. You can use this device while walking trails at night for more safety or wear it while reading and conveniently flip through the pages without fumbling with a bulky flashlight.
There are many different sizes and types of headtorch straps, so choose the one that best fits your needs and preferences. The classic style consists of a single, adjustable nylon strap that goes around your head. Some give a conventional fit, while others split in the back for extra stability.
Another head torch variation you’ll encounter is the two-strap variant, which has an extra strap that crosses your head and goes across from front to back. Two-strap systems are helpful for more strenuous activities like exploring or night bicycling, and you’ll frequently see them with rear battery packs. Lastly, to reduce weight and thickness, certain minimalist designs use only two thin elastic cords.
How Many Lumens Is a Good Headlamp?
The quantity of visible light that head torches produce is measured in lumens. This is a great starting point for comparing different models, but you should also consider the beam type, beam distance, brand, and other aspects. These devices are available at various lumen counts, ranging from around 40 to 4000 and some go even higher.
Most mid-level options are in the 200–350 range, which is more than enough for most applications. Although companies market them according to their maximum lumens, it’s crucial to remember that using lower brightness settings will often help you preserve battery life.
Flashlight
While older traditional flashlights were heavy and difficult to use, their modern counterparts are much lighter and more powerful, and they run on innovative technology. Modern conventional torches can last up to 10 days or more on low-battery settings. They’re helpful around the campsite and offer great directed light for certain tasks. They’re also ideal for nighttime explorations and short walks to the restroom.
Most models are charged by USB or solar-powered, so you don’t need to carry any batteries with you. Every campground needs one decent long-reaching torch with a longer beam that you can use for both wide-beam lighting and object pointing.
Lantern
Considering that any outdoor enthusiast already owns a quality headlamp and a flashlight, lanterns might seem like a luxury. But this versatile device is a camping must-have for many reasons:
- Once you reach your campground, the intense, piercing brightness of your flashlight can take away from the atmosphere. However, lanterns create a pleasant, and subtle illumination that’s much gentler on the eyes and creates a cosy outdoor atmosphere. Some lanterns offer a red-light option, so you can navigate the dark and find your stuff while enjoying the soothing lighting;
- A lantern’s distinct feature is its broader, more even glow as opposed to the flashlight’s strobe-like illumination. It will light up the area surrounding it for up to 6 metres in all directions, unlike a flashlight that’s slung from a branch, or pointed across your campsite;
- Cooking, setting up your tent, and even opening a can of your favourite post-hike beverage all require two hands. So, unless you have a third one lying around, you’ll need a good headlamp or a lantern;
- Although lanterns aren’t as long-lasting as flashlights, some models can light up your campsite for a decent 75 hours on one charge. Others use a wind-up charging mechanism or solar charging capabilities, which eliminates the need to fiddle with batteries entirely.
LED Strips
LED strips are a versatile lighting source for camping. They’re made of a flexible circuit board so they can take on almost any shape. You can install them inside your awning or bend them at a 90-degree angle. Because of their adaptability, you can use them to illuminate spaces that are too small for most conventional lighting fixtures, such as kitchen cabinets, stairs, and countertops.
LED strip lights are safer and less likely to cause a fire since they produce a lot less heat than other types of illumination. When you turn them on, you can handle and adjust them without fear of finger burns. When you’re camping or enjoying the great outdoors, this benefit can come in handy.
You can leave them on to keep your campground safe and well-lit throughout the night. They’re also more eco-friendly compared to other fixtures. They’re quite durable and long-lasting, so you’ll rarely need to replace them. This means that they produce almost no waste, and you contribute far less to landfills.