Every time I go camping I forget...

[TiggyD]

...to make a camping checklist for the next time. I always mean to do one and keep it folded up in my tent bag's pocket.

Anybody else got something they always forget/do wrong?

That I really hate camping and had vowed to never do it again .

We don't usually forget anything apart from tea towels, every trip, tea towels.

Everything is stored on purpose built shelves in the barn and/or the trailer and in one cupboard in the house. Small camping has one shelf and big tent camping another - all very easy.

A couple of weekends ago it was my first solo (small camping kit) trip of the year, I really excelled myself - just before bed I got the trangia out to make hot chocolate and I had forgotten the meths burner. So, I had all the kit, spare fuel bottle, and no burner.

It wasn't the end of the world as we ate in the pub and went out for breakfast but that is probably the most important thing I have ever forgotten!

We once forgot all cooking and eating utensils; no wooden spoon, no spatula, no tongs, and more importantly, no knives, forks, or spoons. We didn't realise till we'd lit the camping stove and opened the tin of baked beans. The first night we had toast, sausages, and baked beans; the beans were eaten by scooping them up with the toast, held in fingers burnt by cooking sausages and toast without anything to turn them with.

We were a bit more careful with the packing list after that...

Pillows is something I always forgot - so I bought so more cheap ones from Lidl and I've vacuum packed them with the sleeping bags.

Have forgotten the tent poles before

You mean you don't have a laminated camping checklist, clipboard and hi-vis vest? That's my favourite part...

Went camping once, and forgot the tent. Managed to remember the ground sheet, the pegs, everything else- just not the tent. Fortunately it was only an hour and a half away from home, so wasted a good bit of petrol driving back and forth again.

Classic bellybuttonfluffy, that is amazing!!

Currently camping in the new Forrest. Forgotten teaspoons. Only have one spoon so will have to lick wash it between every use. Will look for cheap ones on brock hurst.

We went camping last year and forgot all our clothes! We only stayed one night, luckily we weren't far from home.

The best bit of forgetting we ever did was when dp forgot the centre pole for the bell tent . This was a our big, 'lets drive for 7 hours' camping trip instead of our usual just down the road camping camping trip. All under the nose of the worlds most unhelpful campsite owner who seemed only capable of smirking and saying, unlucky. What will you do now?

This is not a mistake a family makes twice by the way, although since then we have forgot, at various points: Pillows, cafetiere, knives... Buying a camping set of most things and keeping it ready packed in the basement has revolutionized our packing/ forgetting ratio!

This weekend we forgot the children's toothbrushes. Ended up sharing mine with them as DH claimed his was too old

We normally forget kitchen knives which is annoying but not the end of the world. We forgot nappies for DC1 once and couldn't find any big enough in the one shop in the back of beyond where we were camping. that was annoying.

All the cutlery on one trip - managed to get some plastic ones from a festival goer, and on another to a festival forgot hairbrushes. Looked more mank than usual by the time I returned home

Always pillows for us. I was thinking earlier that our pillows look a bit tired so I might buy new ones for the bed and downgrade the old ones for camping then they can live in the garage with all the other camping stuff and we might not forget them!

Last year I went camping and the family next to me had packed the wrong tent.

They had brought a 2 man pop up tent for a family of 5 plus their dog.

I have also forgot the tent... A case of I thought dp had packed it, he thought I did (which is funny as its heavy and I'm so weak I cant lift it).
On another trip I left the cutlery, I had taken them out to wash before we went... We ate with crisps that day and managed to get plastic for the next day.
On another trip I forgot the sleeping bags.. So we slept under coats.

I always forget something very important.

Yup tea towels for me too.
Never forgotten anything major yet

Went away for a long weekend, 4 family groups in total, did any one of us bring a pump for the air mattresses?

Thank goodness for the generosity of fellow campers that we actually got the very many mattresses up.

I've forgotten all of the bbq food as well. Left in a crate in the porch. The family of the boy feeding my cat did very well out of my forgetful ways.

I've never ever forgotten the though

Yeah took everything except the tent once... Not anymore. I have everything packed, tent stuff, sleeping stuff, cooking and eating stuff plus salt and pepper, tea and coffee, booze, tea towels and washing up liquid, a bag of complete toiletries and another of first aid stuff!oh and bag of dog stuff.
Just need to add kids and food:)

No more packing chaos here and I love it

So what do you DO if you forget the tent / vital centre pole for tent, and are not a short drive from home?

Heh heh Blu

Friends of mine (lets call them A and B and their two very young children) arranged to go camping with other mutual friends (lets call them C and D and their two primary school aged children) in deepest Dorset, nearly Devon.

They arrived at their destination only to discover that B had forgotten their tent!! It was 5 hours drive from home. Needless to say A was a little bit cross with B, and has dined out on this story for years.

Luckily C and D are the nicest, most accommodating and lovliest people in the world and so they all bunked up together in C and D's 3 berth 6 person tent. It was cosy by all accounts!

Tongs. I have a pair permanently packed now.