Camping Improvements Since the 70s


my tent

I just came back from a 4 day camping trip in the El Dorado Forest – great alternative to Yosemite, by the way! As I was comparing my gear to my sister & her husband’s, I started a mental list of vast improvements in camping technology since the stuff my parents had in the 70s.

– Tevas. I used to use old tennis shoes for creek walking/pebbly lake bottoms, but now, voila! Amazing invention.
– At some point fleece came about, and it’s great.Don’t get me wrong, down vests are great, but fleece is good too.
– Poles that are connected with that string inside for quick in-the-dark assembly
– Inflatable kayaks. Tough to steer with the wind hitting your bow, but small children have their uses as ballast, until they tip it over out of boredom.
– Neutrogena non-oily 50 proof sunscreen
– Thermarests

Intentionally left off the list:
– mining headlamps. Good for plumbing or finding stuff in a dark garage or working in the car, but in the camping environment you just end up pissing off fellow campers by blinding them in the face. I have yet to find someone using these properly, basically.

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