Last week I was incommunicado on a little motorcycle trip so I wasn’t able to file a Five Things This Week. I’m putting the finishing touches on my overdue trip report, but in the meantime I wanted to mention a few of the items I used and loved. I had intended to camp three nights but ended up spending just two at campgrounds (more on that soon), and I’ve been accumulating camping gear for a while now. Here are some of the things that made my camping trip fantastic. This is also an Amazon Affiliate linkapalooza, so if anyone happens to purchase anything Amazon kicks me back a few pennies. Just letting you know for the sake of full disclosure!

Therm-a-Rest NeoAir Camper – This thing amazes me. When I was young and camping with Boy Scouts I either didn’t use a pad at all or used your standard foam mat you probably have for Pilates now. A few years later I upgraded to my first Therm-o-Rest self-inflating pad, which was a nice upgrade. This NeoAir? It doesn’t seem like it should be possible. I’m both a) a side-sleeper and b) a large guy and the NeoAir Camper has me covered. It’s not self-inflating, so you’re going to expend some lung power (unless you spring for the pump, which I haven’t (yet)). But it provided phenomenal comfort for the size. The size – that’s the thing. If it were comfortable, that’d be enough. But it folds down and rolls into the size of a liter bottle of water. It’s amazing. And it works. I love this thing.

Sea to Summit straps – In my past motorcycling life, I was all about the bungee cord. My life upgraded when I discovered a bungee net, but I have heard too many stories over the years of bungee-related injuries. Besides, strapping down and tightening my over-packed gear sounded more secure. It was. I got two pairs of these to affix my tent and rain gear to the tops of my aluminum side cases and they worked flawlessly. Bungees have their place, mind you, but it wasn’t on this trip.

Jetboil single burner camp stove and Mountain House Biscuits and Gravy – I didn’t intend on setting a campfire because a) I wasn’t sure whether my secondary camp site options would have a fire ring, but mainly b) I didn’t want to haul wood. I’ve had the Jetboil for a number of years and found it to be a great little stove. Is it ultralight for hardcore backpacking? No, but it’s also not a multi-burner Coleman stove. For me, the Jetboil fits perfectly into the “sometimes camper” category that I reside. Everything (fuel, heating element, stand) fits neatly inside the cup itself. The cup locks onto the base for security while cooking. That does create one major drawback: you can only use the cup it comes with because nothing else fits. Which is why I recommend also getting the pot adapter ring that lets you use whatever small pot or pan you want to with the stove – bonus: with a little care while packing, the ring fits inside the cup with everything else. I didn’t plan on making anything elaborate this trip, and I started my Day 2 adventure with Mountain High’s biscuits and Gravy which was surprisingly good – I’ve been served more diner biscuits and gravy that were worse than this freeze-dried version. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it!

Aeropress and Hario Ceramic Coffee Mill “Skerton Plus” grinder – My particular Jetboil was their “Java Kit Coffee Press” version which comes with a plunger to use the whole vessel as a French press as well as a packet of Green Mountain Coffee to try it with. Yeah, I threw out the coffee and press part. The Java version was deeply discounted at REI when I bought it and that, and not the potential giant French press, attracted me. Let’s be clear here: I’m not ultra-light camping but neither am I full-on car camping. My large bike has rather large aluminum panniers which afford me more space than your average motorcycle, and one of my choices to use some of this space is to indulge in equipment required to make an exceptional cup of coffee. I’ve touted the coffee-making prowess of the Aeropress before, but one of the things I didn’t mention is it packs pretty tiny. I took the accouterments (funnel and stirrer) because, again, I could, but ultimately all you need are the two tubes that pack together. Sure, the wafer-thin filter and the cap, but that’s it. It’s pretty small. Know what’s not small? My beautiful wooden coffee mill at home. That’s why it’s at home. What’s smaller yet nearly as good is this Hario Ceramic Coffee Mill. The glass bowl that it comes with does make it a bit more ungainly, but it has threads that accommodate a small mason jar, so I left the rounded bowl at home, attached a small mason jar, removed the crank, and it packed down quite nicely! Waking up to a fairly quick and amazing cup of coffee was worth carrying this extra equipment.

Insulated growler – I picked this up on sale on Amazon years ago and it’s lived at work as a reminder for me to drink enough water through the day (it works!). I knew I would be going to a couple sites that didn’t have water (thank you, Campendium!) so I also brought along this 1.25 gallon collapsible cube which was great, but when you put a gallon of water in an aluminum box and subject said box to 115° for a few hours, that water gets pretty warm. While still wet and lifesaving, it’s not the most agreeable thing to drink. Wanting more water storage and having the room, I opted to bring my insulated growler and, boy, am I glad I did. It sat in the top box in the same heat, and yet it kept the water refreshingly cold. True story: though this is a growler, it’s never held beer – I bought it before California let brewers fill outside growlers. But at Indian Wells Brewing Company I found myself tempted to pour out the water I filled in Fresno in favor of 64 ounces of their Amnesniac IPA. In hindsight, the water certainly was better for me and my mild head exhaustion at my campsite in Death Valley. But I still wish I could have taken that IPA with me! The pictured (and linked-to) version comes with a lid that’s makes it more convenient to carry, though a lot taller than the version I bought which looked like this:

Well, mine is covered with stickers now (of course it is):