10 Ways to Beat the Rain While Camping and Make Your Camping Trip Better

When you look at the 10 day weather report and it says all sunny skies you can be assured one thing is actually coming: RAIN. And not the light, gentle pitter patter that is the stuff sound machine dreams are made of….we’re talking ground soaking, stuff floating full on downpours.

Don’t pack it in yet. While a little rain while camping might not be ideal, with creativity and athose rain days can turn into golden family memories, even if the marshmallows are a little soggy.

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Rain Jacket

A solid rain jacket. It’s number one on the list for a reason. Look, an umbrella seems great, but it’s hard to help stabilize and level out a trailer while also holding a windsail over your head. If you’ve ever set up a camper in the rain a good rain jacket is an absolute must. Pro-tip, keep it in your travel vechicle so you don’t have to go INTO the camper before set up.

This is the rain jacket I have, I love the color and it’s worked great for me the past two years and is the number one thing I need to deal with rain while camping.

pop up canopy tent

You’ve just pulled the burgers off the grill and BOOM here comes the rain. Enter the humble pop-up canopy tent. Easy to assemble, easy to stake into the ground as the wind gusts….just a simple outdoor shelter where you can pretend the rain is just “ambiance”. It’s not going to keep the entire site dry, but it’ll at least give you a place besides the RV to put things down out of the rain.

This one is easy to assemble, mostly easy to get back in it’s carrying bag and tall enough to fit over a picnic table.

Large Microfiber Towels

Wait, car drying towels? YEP! The rain will eventually stop and everything is going to be wet. Towels that specialize in soaking up water on surfaces are clutch. Wipe down those bikes, playground equimpent, chairs, tables and get back to camping.

Door Mats

The hardest part of rainy weather is keeping the water and muck outside of the camper. I suggest putting two mats down, one at the foot of the stairs and one inside the camper. This two pack makes that super easy and the rubber helps keep them in place. And make sure you take those shoes off when you come in!

Little Kid Rain Gear

If they made this for adults, I’d wear it. Rain coveralls complete with stirrups to keep water out of shoes. Go on, let the kids play in the rain! This rain coverall is PERFECT for your littlest camper.

Bike cover

A big old bike cover like this one can cover multiple bikes and still gives the ability to lock it up for safe keeping. This reduced the rust and maintenance we were having to do on our bikes and made them more accessible by keeping them ride ready through smaller storms. We bought a huge one and stick adult and kid bikes under one big cover.

Family Friendly Puzzles

Clear off the table and settle in for a family activity. There are dozens of camping themed puzzles and the 300-500 piece variety can usually be completed in a few hours. We love to keep our puzzles on theme where we can at least put together a puzzle of the ambiance the rain is keeping us from. On this note, there are lots of board games we think help beat the rain too!

Dry Bag

This is a must if your tent camping. Water WILL get in, and it’s crucial to have a spot to put a change of clothes you know won’t get wet. It is so nice to know when the rain stops you can get dry.

Water proof phone pouch

You know what’s easier than drying your phone out in a big bowl of rice? Not getting it wet in the first place. These bags will keep your phone dry even if you drop it in a puddle while leveling out the trailer. Ask me how I know.

Rain boots

Go for it. Splash. Play. Stomp. Run around in the mud. If you’re not doing it camping where are you going to do it? Let ’em be kids. I LOVE these rain boots with solid rubber gripping and easy to pull on tabs for my kids. If you’re like me and you never say yes to the puddle, take a picture of their faces when you do. Better yet get yourself a pair and join in on the fun.

Rain comes with the adventure when it comes to camping, but it’s easy to have a few supplies to make it better and dry-ish.

Hope your smores don’t get to soggy!

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