Summer camping is best when you are enjoying nature and fresh air in comfort. The most important point in the list of comfort conditions is cold food and beverages. Can you imagine any standard 48 quart cooler with wheels that can keep frozen foods for one week? Usually, after two or three days, we are already struggling with the heat and warm cooler. However, you can use these very simple tips to reach the maximum efficiency of your cool friend.
Prepare Food for a Camping Trip
Before you put the food in your camping ice chest, freeze it. Put your food containers in the fridge for a few hours. Think carefully about the packing: in some cases, it is sufficient to use rectangular boxes. In others, you may have to use zip lock bags. If there is store packaging with a paper label, remove it.
Prepare Dual Purpose Drinks
When you are camping, your beverages are not only for drinking. Use them also as ice blocks. You may freeze some drinks in plastic soda bottles. Such bottles are better than the water ones because they are thicker. Water bottles may break when frozen. It will also be more comfortable to place square bottles in the cooler. Later you can also transfer your beverages to soda bottles to chill it. Profit!
Prepare Cooler
If you are going somewhere deep in the woods for several days, you will have no chance of finding the additional ice for your cooler. For this reason, choose the correct type of filler.
- Ice cubes. They will melt after a couple of days, not more. Take some if you need it for cocktails recipes.
- Ice blocks. It takes more time to melt it. Make it at home and enjoy cold drinks for several days.
- Bottle Water Ice (or other drinks). The cooling capacity is similar to the ice blocks. The advantage is that melted liquid will stay in the bottle; nothing will float inside the cooler. Moreover, you save more space for food when using frozen drinks instead of ice.
- Dry Ice. Food stays fresh for much longer, with no leaking water. However, be aware that in some camping areas such ice is forbidden. CO2 gas can cause suffocation if the cooler is kept inside of the tent during the night.
Choose the Correct Environment
Best places to keep coolers are:
- Somewhere with less sun and more shade. Keep your cooler in the tree shade, or under the car.
- Running water is salvation. If a river is near you, and your cooler is leaktight, put it there.
- The wind is our friend. Evaporating cooling is effective if there is a bit of breeze. Cover the cooler with a wet towel or fabric and keep it in a shady, breezy place. Do not forget to wet the cloth regularly. Otherwise, it will dry quickly.
Now you are prepared for a comfortable week camping trip! Using all the tricks will help you to surprise your friends with fresh food and drinks under the scorching sun.
