camping with a baby

Camping With A Baby: Lessons From The Field

I know it’s been barren here as of late, but something happened. We made a freakin’ baby! He was born in the middle of February and has consumed our lives during this COVID-19 pandemic. It’s been pretty insane. This past Memorial day weekend, however, restrictions were lifted. We ambitiously decided to go camping with a baby. We hightailed it out of our homes and into the sticks ill-prepared. From a new parent of a 3-month old, I bring to you my notes from the field. 

changing baby while car camping

Can you Camp with a Baby?

The short answer is yes. Our little one is 3-months old and has just exited his newborn stage and into infancy. At this stage, he’s a little more sturdy and is on somewhat of a sleeping schedule.

I’m not your pediatrician and my advice should be followed as such, thus, practice good judgement or consult with a professional. For us, we chose to camp at a lower elevation between spring and summer where it wouldn’t get too cold at night.

It did get chilly, however, and our baby did get a bit of chapped cheeks from the cold, but that cleared up pretty quickly with some Aquaphor. The signs of being chapped show up in red cheeks that don’t go away after a day. Our baby’s skin was too sensitive for that level of cold and dryness, but he didn’t show much discomfort outside of rosey cheeks.

mom and baby outdoor camping

What to Bring when Camping with a Baby

Aside from the normal things you’d bring when car camping, I did learn what the most critical thing was: washing water. Make sure to bring a multi-gallon water container to wash various things – hands, bottles, faces, etc. I use the Aquatainer 7-gallon container since its rigid and comes with a spout to dispense washing water easily.

Now, I’m not an expert on your baby, so I won’t be listing out the items in your baby bag. However, there are things that we did end up purchasing or bringing that was specific to car camping with a baby.

Hopefully this list helps and inspires you create your own list:

The car inverter power supply for the breast pump is a game changer. This allows mom to be way more mobile, not only when camping, but when out and about. The washing water is something we didn’t bring and wish we did. I ended up using jugs of drinking water to clean things, which isn’t ideal. Everything else is baby specific, but makes lives easier by being convenient.

I want to say these things were critical to camping with a baby. Again, make sure you pack your own special needs or preferences, and for regular car camping, you can reference the camping checklist.

dad and baby outdoor camping

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