No matter what, don't go in the winter.

As someone who hates the cold with a passion, there's nothing worse than waking up cold in the morning because you either didn't have on enough to keep you warm during a cold winter night in a sleeping bag or had on too much and wake up cold from sweating throughout the night.

Winter campouts are the only camps I absolutely do not miss at all from my time at scouts. The cold mornings are enough for me to not suggest it, despite it not actually being that bad after you've warmed up.

Though, on a more serious note, one of the things I do remember being taught but never followed through with for various reasons is to put your clothes for the next day under your sleeping bag so that way the next day they should be warm or at least warmer so you aren't putting on freezing cold clothes. Especially good for things like jeans because there's nothing worse than putting on jeans with frigid cold metal buttons if your hands are already trembling a little from the cold winter morning in general.

Never piss on your camp fire if it's upwind of your tent. - source, was in the scouts, we did this to another patrol. Man, their tent stank.

Headtorch.

Be prepared

Put on some John Waters movies and load the karaoke machine with lots of Cher and Elton John.

If it's really rainy protect your fire by having two people hold a plane up.

Hammocks are the best tents, especially for solo camping. Some pack up so small I can fit the hammock, tarp and bug net into the pockets of cargo pants.

Thermo-rest is your best friend, even in a hammock. Having a wind pass under your body will make you real cold.

Scout campsites thoroughly for poison ivy, poison oak, anthills, wasp nests, etc.

Pay attention to sleeping bag ratings and remember that a 0°C rating just means you won't die at that temp, not that you'll be comfortable. Sleeping bags are one of the few things with a strong cost/quality correlation.

Always have rope. Bring lots of rope. Know what makes a good rope.

Best time of the year to camp is spring and fall. The nights are cool while the days are warm. You are either too early or too late for mosquitos. It can be less busy as well.

Summer camping gets too hot both during the day and at night.

If you're car camping or RVing, I started bringing my tree limb shears with me camping to cut up kindling from dead branches. So much faster and easier on the shoulder than a hatchet. If they're small enough, breaking them over my knee is fine, but I sometimes find good thick ones and I can't break that sucker down without a sharp tool.

Bring a bucket. Buckets are useful. I have 2 different collapsible kinds, but I also keep a good ol 5 gal paint bucket from the hardware store. It carries wood, water, is a trashcan, can be a seat, used to wash clothes or dishes, can be used as a toilet in an emergency (ideally with a trash bag liner and some kitty litter)...I love buckets.

Use a pill organizer to bring a variety of cooking spices in a tidy lightweight caddy.

Have a good first aid kit always.

Pool Noodles - Place them like this in your canopy so they add tension to the roof. This will prevent rain water from collecting near the edge and weighing down the roof.

I always place the entrance to my tent under a canopy. This allows me to to stay dry when entering the tent. It also protects me from the sun. And I can put a rug down in front of my tent to wipe my feet.

If you are using multiple canopies, considering some canopy gutters. They are basically 1 foot by 10 feet strips of tent material that you attach between two canopies. This way you don't have to avoid the drip-strip under two canopies.

Outdoor rugs can help to prevent the ground from becoming a muddy mess. They sell large, lightweight plastic rugs that work very well for this. They can be folded down to a portable size and are very light. They allow water to pass through, so they don't soak it up and become heavy.

I've learned to not put a tarp under my tent, that just traps water between the tent and the tarp. Put a tarp down inside your tent and then put a rug (or towels) on top of that. Nice dry comfy rug in your tent.

Apparently it rains every time I go camping...

Birch bark torn into strips and layers makes good kindling. Sticks with little strips cut out and frayed to the side makes good tinder. Cotton balls covered in vaseline are my firestarters of choice. Drier lint is also good. If you're using charcoal, the bag is great for that as well.

Wool socks. And for the love of all that is holy bring some seasonings. Salt and Pepper are great, but they even sell little seasoning bottles for backpacking that screw together. Trust me.

Coffee. If you are a coffee drinker, get a way to make half-decent coffee.

Or tea, or hot chocolate if you hate caffeine. Nothing beats the feeling of a hot cup of something after a short, noisy, miserable night.

I know some swear by the travel bidet (not for everyone), but for the masses, a pack of biodegradable “flushable” wipes are a great addition to your toiletry kit. Just one or 2 after you’re done with all of your other business leaves you nice and fresh for the day and can bury them if you’re backpacking.

For most outdoors-people the terms camping and binge drinking are interchangeable so a couple of luxuries are needed for the next morning.

First up to take care of is the morning AGB (After Grog Bog) so a camping dunny and a toilet/shower tent is a must. Don't fool yourself into thinking a shovel and hole in the ground is good enough, you are not a cat.

Second is some wet bum wipes for cleaning the dags off your turd cutter after dropping off your AGB.

Third is an Aeropress (and a set of scales!) for making yourself a good coffee. This easy to use hardware is well known and the internet is full of peoples favourite recipe for creating the perfect coffee:

• 18g of coffee
• 90g of water
• 90 second brew time
• flip over and press into mug (should take about 10 seconds to press down)
• add more hot water and/or a little bit of milk to your personal preference

A lb on your feet is the same as 5 lbs on your back. And bring light shoes for when you've set up camp.

And the chair kit for your thermorest is the best investment you will ever make.

If you are on a budget, camp in whatever vehicle you already own. I lived in a small car with my wife and cat for several months as we were moving. Learned a ton from “Cheap RV Living” on YouTube.

We had a solar generator with some panels, we cooked using electric skillet, had a twin bed, fairy lights use almost no power, and we had a 12v fridge. It wasn’t that bad but we eventually found a super cheap RV and live in that now.