Whether you’re with your buddies or on a family trip, camping by a lake is a fun and rewarding experience everyone can enjoy. But before you start packing thing for that lake camping trip, there’s a few things you should do to prepare for the best possible experience.

Camp Site Selection

There are a few important things to keep in mind when selecting a camp site by the lake. Make sure that wherever you setup at, you will be protected from wind and the elements. In the evening, especially, wind can really pickup. You’ll also want to be mindful of your neighbors, as even a large lake can have quite a few campers. Make sure to stay at least normal voice distance from the closest campers, and turn off any loud music and don’t run any generators around bed time for most people.

Items To Bring With You

You don’t want to realize there was something you really needed after it’s too late, so we’ve put together a rough little list of things you’ll want to bring with you to the lake. This is our top 10 list, although it’s certainly not all-encompassing.

1. Garbage bags to keep your campsite clean of trash.
2. Matches to start a fire.
3. Map of the area and/or a compass. You don’t want to get lost.
4. Whistle or some sort of help signaling advice. NOT just a cell phone.
5. Knife or some sort of multi-use cutting tool.
6. First aid kit, you can never be too careful.
7. Rope. Just because.
8. Large sack. You can hang your food up in a tree, for example, so bears or raccoons don’t get it.
9. Bug spray. Really good idea if you’re in the South.
10. Food and eating utensils like forks and cookware.

Camp Cleanliness

Nobody likes a slob, and I’m sure you wouldn’t like camping around a bunch of trash. Hopefully you took our second bit of advice and brought trash bags with you. Make sure to cleanup everything, including trash and anything that may have left a “footprint” that you were there. Nature at it’s finest is natural, make sure it looks the same when you leave as when you arrived.