The Ultimate Guide to Car Camping Essentials

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Car camping is a great way to save money while traveling if the circumstances are right! I love a good hotel or Airbnb, but accommodation expenses can add up quickly.

I car camped my way across the United States from North Carolina to Washington state and back. Alternating car camping with hotels/Airbnb&#;s made the trip so much more affordable, which enabled me to travel for a longer period of time. I definitely didn&#;t start my car camping journey with a cross country excursion, though! I started with smaller, local trips and worked my way up until I felt comfortable with my planning process and setup.

If you look up &#;car camping,&#; you&#;ll probably find a mixture of A) sleeping in your car and B) sleeping in a tent beside your car at a drive up site. In this blog post, I&#;m referring to the former (sleeping in your car) and will be sharing all of my car camping essentials &#; from tips for finding campsites to must-have items!

Car Camping Essentials for Beginners

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Car

Canyon Campground in Yellowstone National Park

Duh, right? But I wanted to clarify that it doesn&#;t necessarily have to be a particular vehicle. There are tons of resources on car camping online &#; even for more compact vehicles. Check out this guide for more information on camping in a compact vehicle.

You can quickly run out of room, even in an SUV, if you&#;re not strategic. Packing your car when you&#;re going to be sleeping in it is like like Tetris. Covering all your bases without having too much extra stuff taking up valuable space is the name of the game!

I suggest having everything you need a few weeks before you start planning any trips so that you have time to make adjustments if needed. Even going on a practice trip for just one night before planning anything bigger can be super helpful.

Also Read: Road Trip Essentials for your Next Adventure

Campsite

You can&#;t just park anywhere and call it a night, which is why I always make plans in advance rather than scrambling to find a spot at the last minute. It&#;s important to be prepared and have somewhere that you can safely park your car. Luckily, there are great resources online that make this easy!

Here are a few of my favorite resources for finding campsites:

Hipcamp

Hipcamp is my favorite resource for finding places to car camp. It&#;s essentially Airbnb for campsites. I&#;ve found some of my all-time-favorite campsites (like the one shown above) using this app! You can see what amenities are available as well as communicate with hosts on the platform.

I&#;ve used Hipcamp on multiple occasions for car camping and have only had awesome experiences. Just like I look for super hosts on Airbnb, I look for Hipcamps with a substantial number of positive reviews. Pricing varies, but I&#;ve paid around $20/night in most instances.

Pros: Lots of affordable options, easy booking, can ask host questions before booking, community reviews with photos

Cons: It can be hard to find a spot in a specific area (not great if you&#;re trying to stick to a certain route)

FreeCampsites.net

FreeCampsites.net was an AWESOME resource for helping me plan my XC road trip from NC to WA state. The &#;Trip Planner&#; feature not only provides a detailed route, but also gives campsites along the way. It automatically generates its own route, but you can change that by adding up to ten stops.

Like the name suggests, this website makes it very easy to find free campsites ranging from Cracker Barrell parking lots to Bureau of Land Management (BLM) public lands.

Pros: Free resource, great database of free campsites, &#;Trip Planner&#; feature makes it easy to customize your route and find sites in a targeted area (you can enter a max # of miles and it won&#;t show you campsites outside your route beyond that), reviews/photos of most campsites

Cons: Lack of updates/outdated reviews, some campsites require additional research to determine whether they&#;re free or require payment, only ten stops can be added along a route (not a big deal for shorter road trips but not great for longer routes)

Roadtrippers

You can use the &#;Trip Planner&#; feature on Roadtrippers to do pretty much the same thing shown above with Free Campsites. However, the camping options listed on Roadtrippers are distinguished campgrounds and generally require reservations/payment.

I relied most heavily on Roadtrippers to plan my entire XC trip since it provides information beyond camping such as points of interest, attractions, restaurants, etc. I ended up purchasing the Plus membership (it&#;s $29/year) so that I could add more than five stops (you can add up to 150 stops with Plus). Now, I use it all the time &#; even to plan adventures around North Carolina.

Pros: Great database of distinguished campgrounds ranging from well-known to privately owned options, &#;Trip Planner&#; feature makes it easy to customize your route and find sites in a targeted area, reviews/photos of most campsites

Cons: Very limited in what you can do without a Plus membership

Sleeping pad or car mattress

A car mattress or sleeping pad is one of the most important car camping essentials. The trick here is to find something that&#;s comfortable but not too bulky or cumbersome to set up and put away.

Amazon has a variety of budget-friendly options! I have tried several different sleeping pad but decided to go with a foldable mattress for car camping. I use this tri-fold mattress. I have the single size as that&#;s what fits best in my Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Window covers

Covering my windows gives me so much peace of mind when sleeping in my car at night! I know I wouldn&#;t be able to sleep comfortably without them. Some people might not care, but they&#;re one of my top car camping essentials.

Whenever I share about my car camping setup on IG, I always get a lot of questions about my window covers. Most people want to know whether I purchased them. I have a custom sun shade for my front windshield, which I purchased off Amazon. I cover the rest of my windows with the homemade window covers.

To make your own window covers, you&#;ll need Reflectix, spray adhesive, scissors, a sharpie, and black fabric. The hardest step is holding the Refletix up to your window and tracing with sharpie so that you can get an outline of your window. After that, you&#;ll just cut your outline, spray with fabric adhesive, and attach your fabric! I cut them slightly oversized so that I could stuff them into my windows without needing to use any sort of adhesive, but I always take duct tape in case any of them start to fall. If you have any questions about the process, feel free to DM me on IG.

Cooler

The Igloo 25 Quart Cooler is my go-to for car camping. It&#;s small enough that it fits in my passenger seat, but large enough to fit a 10lb bag of ice along with what I usually pack for a few days of camping (deli meat, almond milk, overnight oats in mason jars, water, and snacks).

Sleeping bag & pillow

I usually just bring my pillow from home when I&#;m sleeping in my car. As for a sleeping bag, you&#;ll want to check the weather and ensure you have the right bag to keep you comfortable! This Oaskys 3-season sleeping bag is lightweight, affordable and great for camping in mild weather. Alternatively, you could use a camping blanket in the warmer months if you&#;d prefer that to a sleeping bag.

I highly recommend investing in a down sleeping bag to keep you warm if you&#;re going to be doing a lot of cold weather camping.

P.S. &#; If your sleeping bag comes in a stuff sack, don&#;t leave it in there when you aren&#;t camping. A storage bag is fine (as long as the sleeping bag has room to breathe). This will help prevent damage to your bag&#;s insulation.

Camp chairs

Even if you have a picnic table at your site, it&#;s not the most comfortable place to sit. I always bring a camp chair along! These Coleman camping chairs are durable and affordable. The built-in cooler is great for holding extra drinks or whatever else you might have on you that you don&#;t want falling on the ground.

Flashlight and/or headlamp

There&#;s nothing worse than trying to do something or find something in the dark and not having enough light. Make sure you have a flashlight or headlamp AND batteries! I purchased this GearLight headlamp set since it&#;s affordable and you get two! I keep one in my car and the other in my hiking pack.

Portable charger

Whenever I go car camping, I always make sure to pack a portable charger! This particular charger holds charge extremely well and will charge a several times over. I also keep a solar charger on me as well as a backup! I usually leave it on my dash while driving to build up its charge.

Camping stove

If you&#;re just going somewhere for a night, a camping stove might not be necessary. You can probably get away with packing anything you might need in a cooler and using your campfire. However, if you&#;re planning on a camping for a few days or longer, I highly recommend investing in a camping stove. I use this compact Coleman camping stove.

I suggest bringing a portable table (remember to use a heat resistant mat if you have a plastic table) if you unsure as to whether you&#;ll have access to a picnic table or something to set your stove on.

Don&#;t forget your mugs, pots & pans, plates, utensils, and trash bags! Here&#;s some great inspo for camping recipes.

Another thing: No matter what stove you choose, you&#;re going to need fuel (whether that&#;s butane, propane, etc.), so make sure you&#;re prepared!

First aid kit

I highly suggest taking a first aid kit with you anytime you go camping. It&#;s one of those better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it car camping essentials. Amazon has tons of compact first aid kits that are super cheap! I keep this first aid kit in my car.

Bug spray & sunscreen

Sunscreen is important year-round and bug spray is a necessity in the warmer months in many destinations!

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Toiletries

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Depending on where you&#;re camping, you might have access to facilities to use the restroom. If not, you need to plan accordingly.

I always pack a little bag of toiletries with the following items:

• Wipes
• Hand sanitizer
• Toothbrush & toothpaste
• Microfiber towel
• A small shovel for cat-holes or WAG bags (per Leave No Trace, you must dispose of waste properly, so you can&#;t go just anywhere)

Additional reading:
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Weather-appropriate clothing

I&#;ve car camped in really hot temps and really cold temps. Having the right gear and clothing to keep you comfortable is so important! Moisture-wicking and quick-drying items are great to have! And as always, pack layers!! I like to have a rain jacket handy as well.

Entertainment

Chances are you won&#;t have great cell service. Bring a board game, cards, a journal, or a book! Something you can enjoy around a campfire with your pals.

If you&#;ve ever been car camping, I&#;d love to hear some of your car camping essentials or your favorite resource for finding campsites! Let me know in the comments!

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The Current National Picture

EPA began collecting and reporting data on the generation and disposition of waste in the United States more than 35 years ago. The Agency uses this information to measure the success of materials management programs across the country and to characterize the national waste stream. These Facts and Figures are current through calendar year .

The total generation of municipal solid waste (MSW) in was 292.4 million tons (U.S. short tons, unless specified) or 4.9 pounds per person per day. Of the MSW generated, approximately 69 million tons were recycled and 25 million tons were composted. Together,  almost 94 million tons of MSW were recycled and composted, equivalent to a 32.1 percent recycling and composting rate. An additional 17.7 million tons of food were managed by other methods. Other food management includes the following management pathways: animal feed, bio-based materials/biochemical processing, co-digestion/anaerobic digestion, donation, land application and sewer/wastewater treatment. For more information on food management, check out Food: Material-Specific Data. In addition, nearly 35 million tons of MSW (11.8 percent) were combusted with energy recovery and more than 146 million tons of MSW (50 percent) were landfilled.

EPA refers to trash, or MSW, as various items consumers throw away after they are used. These items include bottles and corrugated boxes, food, grass clippings, sofas, computers, tires and refrigerators. However, MSW does not include everything that may be landfilled at the local level,  such as construction and demolition (C&D) debris, municipal wastewater sludge, and other non-hazardous industrial wastes. While the analysis in Facts and Figures focuses primarily on MSW, EPA has been including estimates of C&D generation and management as a separate non-hazardous waste stream in recent years.

EPA is now in the process of reviewing the waste hierarchy to determine if potential changes should be made based on the latest available data and information.

 

*MSW generation rose considerably from to mainly because EPA enhanced its food measurement methodology to more fully account for all the ways wasted food is managed throughout the food system.

Management of MSW continues to be a high priority for state and local governments. This includes the source reduction of wastes before they enter the waste stream and the recovery of generated waste for recycling, composting or other methods. It also includes environmentally sound waste management through combustion with energy recovery and conversion, as well as landfilling practices that meet current standards or newly emerging waste conversion technologies.

EPA developed the non-hazardous materials and waste management hierarchy in recognition that no single waste management approach is suitable for managing all materials and waste streams in all circumstances. The hierarchy ranks the various management strategies from most to least environmentally preferred. The hierarchy places emphasis on reducing, reusing, and recycling as key to sustainable materials management.

Generation

The total generation of MSW in was 292.4 million tons, which was approximately 23.7 million tons more than the amount generated in .  This is an increase from the 268.7 million tons generated in and the 208.3 million tons in .

 

 

 

*MSW generation rose considerably from to mainly because EPA enhanced its food measurement methodology to more fully account for all the ways wasted food is managed throughout the food system.

Municipal Solid Waste Management: -

Per capita MSW generation increased from 4.5 pounds per person per day in to 4.9 pounds per person per day in . The increase from to is mainly the result of EPA&#;s inclusion of additional wasted food management pathways. Check out Food: Material-Specific Data.

Paper and paperboard products made up the largest percentage of all the materials in MSW, at 23.1 percent of total generation. Generation of paper and paperboard products declined from 87.7 million tons in to 67.4 million tons in . Generation of newspapers has been declining since , and this trend is expected to continue, partly due to decreased page size, but mainly due to the increased digitization of news. The generation of office-type (high grade) papers also has been in decline, due at least partially to activities such as the increased use of the electronic transmission of reports. Paper and paperboard products have ranged between 28.4 and 23.1 percent of generation since .

Food waste comprised the fourth largest material category, estimated at 63.1 million tons or 21.6 percent of total generation in . Yard trimmings comprised the next largest material category, estimated at 35.4 million tons, or 12.1 percent of total generation, in . This compares to 35 million tons (16.8 percent of total generation) in . The decline in yard trimmings generation since is largely due to state legislation discouraging yard trimmings disposal in landfills, including source reduction measures such as backyard composting and leaving grass trimmings on the yard.

In , plastic products generation was 35.7 million tons, or 12.2 percent of generation. This was an increase of 4.3 million tons from to , and it came from durable goods and the containers and packaging categories. Plastics generation has grown from 8.2 percent of generation in to 12.2 percent in . Plastics generation as a percent of total generation has varied from 12.2 to 13.2 percent over the past eight years.

In , 2.7 million tons of selected consumer electronics were generated, representing less than 1 percent of MSW generation. Selected consumer electronics include products such as TVs, VCRs, DVD players, video cameras, stereo systems, telephones and computer equipment.

Recycling

The total MSW recycled was more than 69 million tons, with paper and paperboard accounting for approximately 67 percent of that amount. Metals comprised about 13 percent, while glass, plastic and wood made up between 4 and 5 percent.

 

 

 

Measured by tonnage, the most-recycled products and materials in were corrugated boxes (32.1 million tons), mixed nondurable paper products (8.8 million tons), newspapers/mechanical papers (3.3 million tons), lead-acid batteries (2.9 million tons), major appliances (3.1 million tons), wood packaging (3.1 million tons), glass containers (3 million tons), tires (2.6 million tons), mixed paper containers and packaging (1.8 million tons) and selected consumer electronics (1 million tons). Collectively, these products accounted for 90 percent of total MSW recycling in .

Check out our Reduce, Reuse, Recycle web area for more information on recycling.

Composting/Other Food Management

The total MSW composted was 25 million tons. This included approximately 22.3 million tons of yard trimmings (more than a five-fold increase since ) and 2.6 million tons of food waste (4.1 percent of generation of wasted food).

Other methods of food management were estimated for the first time in . In , 17.7 million tons of food (28.1 percent of generation of wasted food) was managed through animal feed, co-digestion/anaerobic digestion, bio-based materials/biochemical processing, donation, land application and sewer/wastewater treatment.

 

 

 

Combustion with Energy Recovery

Check out our Energy Recovery from the Combustion of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) page for more information.

In , 34.6 million tons of MSW were combusted with energy recovery. Food made up the largest component of MSW combusted at approximately 22 percent. Rubber, leather and textiles accounted for over 16 percent of MSW combustion. Plastics comprised about 16 percent, and paper and paperboard made up about 12 percent. The other materials accounted for less than 10 percent each.

 

 

 

Landfilling

Check out our Municipal Solid Waste Landfills page for more information, and visit our Landfills web area for information on other landfills.

In , about 146.1 million tons of MSW were landfilled. Food was the largest component at about 24 percent. Plastics accounted for over 18 percent, paper and paperboard made up about 12 percent, and rubber, leather and textiles comprised over 11 percent. Other materials accounted for less than 10 percent each.

 

 

 

Trends &#; to Today

In , the amount of MSW generated was 292.4 million tons. The amount of MSW recycled was 69.0 million tons and the amount composted was 24.9 million tons. About 17.7 million tons of food were managed by other methods. The amount of MSW combusted with energy recovery was 34.6 million tons, while the amount of MSW sent to landfills was 146.2 million tons. Presented below are details of these trends:

• Over the last few decades, the generation and management of MSW has changed substantially. Generation of MSW increased (except in recession years) from 88.1 million tons in to 292.4 million tons in . Generation decreased 1 percent between and , followed by a rise in generation of 7 percent from to . Generation rose from 268.7 million tons to 292.4 million tons in , mainly as a result of EPA's inclusion of additional food management pathways.
• The generation rate in was just 2.68 pounds per person per day. It increased to 3.66 pounds per person per day in . In , it reached 4.74 pounds per person per day and then decreased to 4.69 pounds per person per day in . The generation rate was 4.9 pounds per person per day in , an 8 percent increase from . The increase from to is mainly the result of  EPA's inclusion of additional wasted food management pathways.
• Over time, recycling and composting rates have increased from just over 6 percent of MSW generated in to about 10 percent in , to 16 percent in , to about 29 percent in , and to about 35 percent in . It decreased to 32.1 percent in .
• The amount of MSW combusted with energy recovery increased from zero in to 14 percent in . In , it was about 12 percent.
• Landfilling of waste has decreased from 94 percent of the amount generated in to 50 percent of the amount generated in .

 

*MSW generation rose considerably from to mainly because EPA enhanced its food measurement methodology to more fully account for all the ways wasted food is managed throughout the food system.

 

 

Generation Trends

The generation of paper and paperboard, the largest material component of MSW, fluctuates from year to year, but has decreased from 87.7 million tons in to 67.4 million tons in . Generation of yard trimmings and food waste has increased since . Generation of other material categories fluctuates from year to year, but overall MSW generation increased from to , with the trend reversing from to , and rising again from through .

Recycling and Composting Trends

In percentage of total MSW generation, recycling (including composting) did not exceed 15 percent until . Growth in the recycling rate was significant over the next 15 years, spanning until . The recycling rate grew more slowly over the last few years. The recycling rate was 32.1 percent.

The recycling and composting rates (as a percentage of generation) of the below materials in MSW has mostly increased over the last 58 years. Read over the table below for examples.

Recycling and composting as a percentage of generation   Paper and Paperboard 17% 15% 21% 28% 43% 50% 63% 67% 66% 68% Glass 2% 1% 5% 20% 23% 21% 27% 28% 25% 25% Plastics Neg. Neg. <1% 2% 6% 6% 8% 9% 9% 9% Yard Trimmings Neg. Neg. Neg. 12% 52% 62% 58% 61% 69% 63% Lead-acid Batteries Neg. 76% 70% 97% 93% 96% 99% 99% 99% 99%

"Neg." means less than 5,000 tons or 0.05 percent.

The rate of yard trimmings composting was negligible in , rose to 12 percent in and 52 percent in . In it was 62 percent, in it was 69 percent, and in it was 63 percent.

Food composting was negligible in , rose to 2.2 percent (680,000 tons) in , 5.3 percent (2.1 million tons) in and 6.3 percent (2.6 million tons) in . In the food composting rate was 4.1 percent (2.6 million tons). Due to a change in methodology, there was an increase in the wasted food generation estimate between and , which resulted in a lower composting rate even though the tons composted remained the same from to .

Other Food Management Trends

Other food management pathways, estimated for the first time in , was 17.7 million tons (28.1 percent of wasted food generation). These management pathways include animal feed, codigestion/anaerobic digestion, bio-based materials/biochemical processing, donation, land application and sewer/wastewater treatment. Check out the Food: Material-Specific Data web page.

Recycling, Composting and Other Food Management Trends Specific to -

Included in the generation number are the almost 94 million tons of MSW recycled and composted and an additional 17.7 million tons of other food management in . The following provides a detailed breakdown of the numbers:

• 69 million tons of MSW were recycled in , a 2.2 percent increase from the 67.6 million tons recycled in .
• There was an increase from 23.4 million to 24.9 million tons of food and yard trimmings composted between and .
• The recycling rate (including composting) was 32.1 percent in , down from 34.7 percent in .
• The per capita rates in were:
  • 1.16 pounds per person per day for recycling.
  • 0.42 pounds per person per day for composting.
  • 0.30 pounds per person per day for other food management.

Listed here are the recycling or composting rates for three categories of materials, including paper and paperboard, yard trimmings, and food:

• In , the rate of paper and paperboard recycling was 68.2 percent (46.0 million tons), up from 65.9 percent in (44.2 million tons), and up from 42.8 percent in .
• The rate of yard trimmings composted in was 63 percent (22.3 million tons), down from 69.4 percent (24.4 million tons) in . The rate of yard trimmings composted in was 51.7 percent .
• In , the rate of food and other MSW organics composting was 4.1 percent (2.6 million tons). Although this is down from 6.3 percent in , the tons composted remained the same between and (2.6 million tons). Due to a change in methodology, there was an increase in the wasted food generation estimate between and , which results in a lower composting rate even though the tons composted remained the same from to . The rate of food composting was 2.2 percent in the year (.7 million tons).

Greenhouse Gas Benefits

EPA&#;s report Sustainable Materials Management: The Road Ahead serves as the foundation for the EPA SMM Program. The recommendations and analytical framework under the Road Ahead encourage the consideration of multiple environmental benefits when developing materials management strategies. Currently, EPA has a tool for estimating greenhouse gas reductions resulting from sustainable materials management &#; the Waste Reduction Model (WARM). This section shows those GHG reduction environmental benefits. The Agency is developing additional tools to provide information on other environmental benefits and will include these tools and data as they become available.

In , the recycling, composting, combustion with energy recovery and landfilling of MSW saved over 193 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MMTCO2E). This is comparable to the emissions that could be reduced from taking almost 42 million cars off the road in a year.

Paper and paperboard recycling, at about 46 million tons, resulted in the largest portion of the total MSW reduction over 155 MMTCO2E in . This reduction is equivalent to removing over 33 million cars from the road for one year.

The energy and GHG benefits of recycling, composting, combustion with energy recovery and landfilling shown in the table below are calculated using the WARM methodology. The estimates of MMTCO2E are calculated using WARM, and identify not only the environmental benefits of recycling, composting and combustion for energy recovery, but also the benefit of not landfilling materials. Numbers in parentheses indicate a reduction in either greenhouse gases or vehicles, and therefore represent environmental benefits. 

Greenhouse Gas Benefits Table

(The numbers in the Recycled, Composted, Combustion with Energy Recovery and Landfilled columns are listed by weight of material* in millions of tons)

Material Recycled Composted Combustion with Energy Recovery Landfilled GHG Benefits (MMTCO2E) Passenger Vehicle Emissions/Year (millions of cars) Paper and Paperboard 45.97 - 4.20 17.22 (155.17) (33.52) Glass 3.06 - 1.64 7.55 (0.90) (0.19) Steel 6.36 - 2.31 10.53 (15.50) (3.35) Aluminum 0.67 - 0.56 2.66 (6.12) (1.32) Other Nonferrous Metals** 1.69 - 0.08 0.74 (7.54) (1.63) Total Metals 8.72 - 2.95 13.93 (29.16) (6.30) Plastics 3.09 - 5.62 26.97 4.13 0.89 Rubber and Leather&#; 1.67 - 1.73 0.78 0.17 0.04 Textiles 2.51 - 3.22 11.30 (2.56) (0.55) Wood 3.10 - 2.84 12.15 (3.30) (0.71) Food, Other&#; - 2.59 7.55 35.28 (6.97) (1.51) Yard Trimmings - 22.30 2.57 10.53 0.78 0.17 Miscellaneous Inorganic Wastes - - 0.80 3.27 (0.28) (0.06) Totals 68.12 24.89 33.12 138.98 (193.26) (41.74)

*Includes material from residential, commercial and institutional sources (except not industrial process waste).
**Includes lead-acid batteries. Other nonferrous metals are calculated in WARM as mixed metals.
&#;Only includes rubber from tires.
&#;Includes collection of other MSW organics for composting.

These calculations do not include an additional 24.9 million tons of MSW that could not be addressed in the WARM model (including 17.7 million tons from food waste managed by means outside of the scope of the WARM model). MMTCO2E is million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent. Details might not add to totals due to rounding.

Source: WARM model Version 15. Number of cars taken off the road/year was calculated using the Greenhouse Gas Equivalency Calculator, updated March .

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