Green Tech to Improve Your Camping Trip

Camping is the ultimate vacation experience for environmentalists. It allows both city dwellers and suburban folks to reconnect with nature. Plus, it's relatively low impact-most sites are totally off the grid, so as long as campers make sure to clean up after themselves, it's one of the most eco-friendly trips out there. Luckily, there are a number of techie goods to make the adventure even more enjoyable. Before you hit the great outdoors, check out our list of green gadgets and services for campers.


Getting There
When driving to your destination, try getting directions from free, online services like Google Maps or MapQuest. These sites provide step-by-step, easily navigable driving directions. To be even greener, try carpooling or taking public transportation. The Carticipate app locates other folks in your area who want to arrange a ride share to a particular location. TheNextTrain app looks up train schedules for 18 different agencies, while the iTrans app calculates the fastest route between public transit stations.

Exploring the Area
Once you get to the camp site, make sure you download some handy apps to help you navigate the nearby hiking trails. Trails and EveryTrail are GPS apps that let users track their hike, or import tracks from other hikers and follow their routes. The iLocate Hiking app lets users search a database to find nearby hiking trails. The app then provides contact info and directions to get to the area.


Green Gear
Don't forget to pack the latest eco-friendly camping gear to ensure your journey goes smoothly. Portable GPS units like those from DeLorme and Garmin will ensure you'll never get lost while exploring the woods. Hand-crank flashlights are another great device to bring along. With no outlets in sight, these handy lights only require some winding to produce a steady stream of light. For cooking that's greener than a campfire, try using a solar oven. These hot boxes use the power of the sun to cook camp-time vittles, ensuring no pollutants from burning wood enter the air.
 


Off-the-Grid Chargers
True tech fans need their mp3 players and cell phones even while amongst the tranquility of nature. To ensure portable devices stay juiced, try using off-the-grid chargers like those from YoGen, Hymini and Voltaic. Users can charge small electronics with a YoGen by pulling a cord over and over. The Hymini harnesses wind and solar power to juice gadgets. And the Voltaic Solar Backpack has solar panels on the outside of a portable pack that charge a battery held inside, providing power for several portable electronics.

So now that you've gotten the scoop on camping tech, where will you be setting up tent?
 

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By Sarah Parsons of Inhabitat, an online magazine devoted to the future of design, tracking the innovations in technology, practices and materials that are pushing architecture and design towards a smarter and more sustainable future. Written by a young tech-savvy team designers and design journalists, Inhabitat delivers fresh content daily, showcasing emerging work from the cutting-edge of the global design community.