Flying with camping gear

Recently, I flew into Las Vegas and then spent four days car camping around Utah. It’s a common trip to take, but trying to figure out the whole flying with camping gear or backpacking gear on an airplane thing can be really weird. What can you take? Can you even take a stove? What gets checked and what can you take as a carry on? I share my packing list below as well as the tips I learned along the way.

Before you fly

Before you pack your bags and hit the airport, there’s a couple of things you need to know in regards to backpacking and camping gear.

• Trekking poles are usually not allowed as carry-ons. Instead, they must go into checked luggage.
• Stoves are not allowed unless they have no residue of fuel on them. I have not yet tried to take one on a plane with me yet, but from other people who have, it seems very hit or miss if they’re going to confiscate your stove or not even in checked baggage.

It’s important that you verify any gear you’re concerned about before reaching the airport. Rules and regulations are always subject to change, so please back things up with the latest information from the TSA.

I flew cheap and didn’t want to pay for anything extra. With that, I fit all my gear into my 40L backpack for my carry-on and my small Ultimate daypack. My gear list below is split into which gear went into which pack.

Airplane backpack gear list

In my backpack, I had the main bulk of my gear and items I didn’t need to immediately access while flying. With camping gear, clothing, and my sleep system, it weighed under 25 lbs and my 40L backpack fit easily in the overhead bins.

• Backpack: High Sierra Summit 40L. It’s not my favorite pack when I’m actually backpacking, but it’s very affordable and fits well in the carry-on for an airplane. For car camping, it works out well. (See some of my favorite backpacks here.)
• Tent: UL Granite Backpacking tent. I love this tent for car camping!
• Sleeping bag: Mountain Hardwear Bishop Pass 15 degree bag. We were headed to Zion National Park in the winter, so I took my warmer sleeping bag.
• Sleeping mat: Exped Ultra 3R
• Kahtoola MICROspikes. Because we weren’t sure what the weather would look like, I took my microspikes in case of any ice on the trails. The TSA allowed it on my carry-on without asking any questions.
• Packed clothing:
  • Leggings to sleep in
  • A clean pair of leggings to fly home in
  • Bra
  • Undies
  • Wool layer: Kari Traa Rose Half Zip. (Re: the desert is cold in the winter.)
  • Darn Tough socks
• Water bladder
• Journal
• Toothbrush / tooth paste
• Hair brush / ponytails
• Spoon
• Bathroom kit
  • Kula Cloth
• Rain jacket. I use an Eddie Bauer rain jacket I found at a hiker yard sale. I haven’t been able to find the same coat online yet but it’s served me well both on weekend adventures and when I was thru hiking the Appalachian Trail.
• Camp shoes. These are just random sandals I found in a hiker box when I was thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail. I don’t know what brand they are or what they are but they’ve yet to let me down.
• Inflatable pillow
• First aid kit
• Buff

Daypack

In my daypack, I made sure to pack things that I’d want easy access to on the plane as well as left room for things I might want to ditch once I got on the plane (for instance, gloves and my warm hat).

• Daypack: Ultimate Direction Mountain Vesta 5.0. This is my running hydration vest/5L day pack, and I love it. It has just enough room for my coat and any snacks, a space for my water bladder, and fits snugly on my back in case I decide to do any scrambling through small spaces.
• Collapsible water bottle. Perfect for flying, it collapses into a small square when not full and then can expand when you’re in the airport and want to fill it up with water.
• Snacks
• Gloves
• Hat
• Book (to read on the plane or at the campsite)
• Headlamp (for when we got to our campsite after landing and so I wouldn’t have to track it down in my big backpack)
• Phone charger

What I wore

We all know that when you’re flying (and especially when you’re trying to save room in your bags), you wear as much as you can, right?

• Puffy: Marmot Women’s Echo Featherless Jacket. This was the jacket I took on my Appalachian Trail thru hike, and it’s still my go-to coat!
• Pants: Athleta Headlands Hybrid Cargo II Tights. These are one of my favorite pairs of pants to hike or travel in. Highly recommend!
• Tank top
• Thrift-store flannel
• Trail runners: Hoka One One Torrent 3

Packing food

For our food, I didn’t take anything on the airplane besides some snacks to eat along the way. Instead, one of our first stops on day one of our trip was a grocery store, where we bought just enough food to last us the four days we’d be there. Since we didn’t bring a stove, most of our food was bagels, yogurt, peanut butter, Cheese-Its, etc.

Flying with camping gear

Flying with camping gear might feel overwhelming the first time you do it. However, just like with camping, it’s a process of deciding what you actually need versus what you don’t.

Your backpack works well as a carry-on, so start there. Out of the gear that you want to take, how much fits in your backpack? If there’s gear that doesn’t fit, take a step back. Is there gear you don’t need? Set it to the side. Is there gear that would be easier to rent when you land or food you can buy when you get there? Don’t pack that either. Now see where you are. Continue the process until everything you need fits.

And then? Well, then the sky’s the limit. Go forth, and adventure.