Guide 4 min
Wild camp checklist: what you're missing for night one
"Not a fixed list: your checklist builds from your trip and names what's missing, then what to do. Food, water and gas costed: 0.7 kg a day."
You're heading out to sleep in the wild for the first time, and your real fear isn't picking the wrong gear: it's forgetting something. A fixed checklist you found online fixes nothing, because it knows nothing about your season, your altitude, or how many of you there are. The right list isn't the same for a solo summer night as for three autumn nights with four people.
The answer comes down to one idea: your checklist builds itself from your trip, and its job isn't to list everything, it's to tell you what's missing, with the consequence, then what to do. Here are the items that aren't up for debate, the consumables that get costed, and what the weather adds.
Which items can't you leave out for a night?
You can't leave out the sleeping bag, mat, tent, stove, gas, cookpot and water, plus the backpack, footwear, light and safety. Without one of them the trip doesn't hold together, and a beginner can't spot that on their own. Here they are.
| To sleep | To eat | On you and around |
|---|---|---|
| Sleeping bag | Stove | Backpack |
| Sleeping mat | Gas | Footwear |
| Tent or shelter | Cookpot | Light |
| Water | Safety, sunglasses, sun cream |
Each one has a concrete consequence if it's missing. Without a mat, the cold comes up from the ground and the sleeping bag isn't enough. Without a gas canister, your stove is useless: you eat cold. That's why WildKit never says "you've got 2 items left to choose" without naming which ones and saying why.
The consumables, which get costed
These are the bulk of the weight, and the ones people underestimate most. They depend on the number of days (one night = two days of walking) and the number of people.
| Consumable | How much |
|---|---|
| Food | 0.7 kg per day per person (+10% in winter) |
| Water carried | 1.5 litres per person, 2 litres once it's 22 °C |
| Gas | 40 g per day per person (× 1.6 in winter) |
An example, to set the order of magnitude: a solo night is two days, so around 1.4 kg of food, 1.5 litres of water, and roughly 80 g of gas. A 100 g gas canister covers that with room to spare. Gas has a ceiling: past 500 g net per person, you don't load more, you plan to resupply.
These figures weigh heavily in the bag, but they don't count towards base weight: food and water sit on top of the gear. That's the distinction laid out in How much should your bag weigh.
What do the season and weather add to the list?
The season and the weather add three reflexes, each tied to a number. This is where a fixed list gets it wrong, and where a checklist that reads your trip takes the lead.
The night-time cold. The night drops to 0 °C in spring and autumn, 10 °C in summer, and −5 °C in winter, and you lose 6 °C per 1000 m of altitude. Below 0 °C, the mat moves up to R4 and the down jacket becomes essential; below −5 °C, take gloves, the hands are the first to give out. The sleeping bag is also the bulkiest item in the bag, as shown in Is a 40-litre bag enough for a wild camp.
Water to treat. On a day trip, the water you carry is enough. From your very first night out, you'll be filling up in the wild: filter, tablets or boiling. The rule is clear, and it doesn't depend on how the water looks.
Rain. As soon as the weather could turn, take a waterproof rather than a windbreaker, and a rain cover for the bag. A windbreaker is only justified when dry weather is forecast.
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What to remember
- The essentials first: sleeping bag, mat, tent, stove, gas, cookpot, water, plus the bag, footwear, light and safety.
- Cost your consumables: 0.7 kg of food and 40 g of gas per day per person, 1.5 to 2 litres of water.
- Let the season and the weather decide the rest: down jacket and R4 mat below 0 °C, gloves below −5 °C, water treatment from the first night, a waterproof as soon as the weather could turn.
Your trip isn't the typical trip: your season, your altitude, your weather and the number of people change the list. Describe your trip, and watch your checklist build itself, with what's missing, the consequence, and what to do next.
Written by Thanaël Fontaine. Published .