Today Big Q - What Do When You Are Camping With Friends And Bored
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Sometimes, on long camping trips, camping just isn’t entertaining enough.
You have packed up your stuff, headed to your site and unloaded the car. Once you set up your tena and get everything else set up then you’re ready for some fun.
But what fun is there to be had? Hiking in itself is already an activity, but what if you want to do more than that? What if the hike is becoming monotonous? Swimming is another great one, but sometimes you just want to sit around the fire and still be entertained.
If you’re camping at a campsite there’s so much you can do during the day!
This list is to provide you with options of things to do while you’re camping in the great outdoors.
1. Sports
There are lots of sports you can enjoy while camping. It’s quite easy!
If you’re feeling bored you can always start playing a game just bring a football, volleyball or soccer ball, badminton, or tennis rackets.
The above games are easy enough to pack and don’t take up a lot of space. Especially if you deflate the balls and bring a small air pump to fill them up.
You could start a tournament, make it a drinking game or just toss a football back and forth. It’s all fun and games when you bring a ball along.
If you are camping somewhere with your car you could bring more games like a net for badminton and volleyball, corn hole, horseshoes, bocci balls, or any other game that has more heavy duty equipment that you won’t want to lug around.
If you’re looking to play games at night you could make your own glow in the dark bowling by putting glow sticks in bottles of water. Use that same soccer or volleyball to knock the pins down!
You could also set up beer bottles and knock them over with a frisbee (if it’s nighttime all you have to do is put glow sticks in the bottles and buy a little glow in the dark paint for the frisbee)!
No matter what type of sport you choose and how you choose to play it active sports are a great way to waste away an afternoon.
Plus if you are by a body of water you can dive in to cool off afterwards.
2. Less Active Games
Bring a deck of cards or some board games. It’s a good way to stay occupied while sitting around the fire or while you’re eating lunch or dinner.
Make it like a game night, and it’s something everyone can join in on!
Catchphrase, Phase 10, Pictionary or Taboo are other great games you can bring! Cards Against Humanity are easy too since it’s just a box of cards, plus the amount of laughter and fun you’ll have is unmatched (with the right minded people of course…or wrong minded. However you need to look at it).
Another good one is Jumbo Jenga! Or regular sized, but this is ‘Merica and we like to do everything bigger.
If you’re looking to have a few drinks then Kings Cup is a good game, all you need is a deck of cards and some alcohol. Plus, you can make any of the above games a drinking game! For lots of folks, drinking and camping go hand in hand. Just sayin’.
There are more games and more descriptions on how to play games here!
3. Games Without Props
The other day I was hanging out with my niece in the kitchen and we were bored so we played 20 questions! There’s also charades and password.
After our brains stopped functioning we started to play iSpy and hot and cold. You can always do that with adults, however 20 questions is much harder.
One of my favorites, especially with drinks, is Who Am I? When you stick a card to your forehead with a name and they have to ask questions to figure out who they are.
Another good head game is Heads Up! As long as your phone is still alive. Download Head’s Up here!
The last game I’m going to list only a few people are going to get, but anyone can play it! The game is True American and it’s 10% candyland and 90% drinking game…well it’s more like a drinking game with a candyland like structure. Click here to see the (and I say this very loosely) rules. Once your done the night will be over, and probably most of the next morning too.
4. Instruments
Do you have someone in your group who is musically inclined? Have them bring their guitar, drum, flute, washing board, triangle, cowbell or whatever! There could always be more cowbell.
You could all sing together, enjoy the music or make requests. Nothing beats live music out in the woods. It’s peaceful and relaxing.
If no one plays an instrument then bring that bluetooth speaker and a good playlist of your awesome taste in music that you know everyone loves.
5. Exploring
You can always go hiking and exploring. It’s also great to stargaze! If you’re like me and you’re from the city you miss out on the stars. They’re so beautiful and magical and you miss them when you’re gone!
If you’ve always been from the city and have never been able to enjoy stargazing now is your chance. In certain areas you can even see the path of the milky way.
Don’t forget you’re in a new space and exploring is the best way to spend the day. You could take pictures or draw (if you’re artistically inclined) or just walk and enjoy the fresh air without technology.
Bring a picnic and hike to a scenic overlook or by a river, hike and go bird watching. Make a scavenger hunt out of it.
Just bring water and bug spray and you’ll enjoy a day in the wilderness!
6. Waterworks
Canoes, kayaks, paddle boards, or just plain swimming are always super fun if it’s warm enough. If you can find one, rope swings are great too!
All of it gives you a nice workout while you’re enjoying cool, refreshing water. Once you get back to shore you’ll be hungry and tired and won’t want to do anything. That way you only need to think of one activity.
And that’s the beauty of camping–you don’t have to do anything. You can just hang out and socialize. You don’t even have to socialize. You could just sketch or read a book. If you’re like me you could even write a book.
If you’re not near a body of water bring some balloons or water guns and have a water war. It’s fun and will make you feel like a little kid again. Just make sure you clean up the broken balloons after since small animals could eat them or they could wash into a river.
8. Bikes
Bring your bikes and go up and down the trails. Have a water war on bikes!
Instead of hiking take your bike up! Just make sure you don’t go somewhere you can’t handle and wear the right protective gear.
You could hop on your bikes in teams and do a scavenger hunt. The losers can chug a beer once they get back to camp.
No matter how you choose to use your bikes just make sure you enjoy the day.
9. Campfire
Lighting a campfire is not only useful (make sure you do your research and pay attention to any fire bans or restrictions) but it is full of nostalgia and fun. Not only is lighting the fire a project in itself but you can play a lot of the above games, instruments, or you could sing and tell ghost stories.
You can make s’mores, grill hot dogs or corn over the fire, and just enjoy looking into the blaze. You can even buy special crystals to make your fire changes colors!
If you’re feeling competitive you could split into teams and race to see who could light a fire the caveman way.
10. Fishing
If you’re looking for something fun to do together fishing is a good activity. As long as you know the rules and regulations in the area you’re in then by all means go fishing.
You can either keep it and eat it (rules and regulations apply of course) or you can just catch and release it back into the wild!
It’s a great way to chill out yet be doing something. Sometimes you just want to sit and enjoy the sun, or shade or wind or whatever it happens to be outside in that moment, and relax!
Whatever you choose to do! Camping has plenty of great activities for adults (as well as kids and entire families). Obviously not everyone likes the same things and sometimes getting a bunch of people together is like herding cats but you can always find something to please everyone with a little trial and error.
The most important part is you’re out in nature, having fun and there’s something to be said about entertaining yourself without technology.
Happy camping!
