I like to keep my camp as I keep my house and my desk… clean, tidy and organised. When car camping that normally means that anything relating to sleeping goes in my large The North Face Basecamp duffel bag, and anything else goes in a big plastic box. And while this generally works without an issue, what it normally means is I end up taking all my camping gear every time I go car camping. Which is wholly unnecessary.
Helinox has recently launched a set of storage boxes designed to help you keep camp organised. Like all their other gear, Helinox has made these compact and lightweight, so they don’t take up all the space in your car boot – leaving room for more firewood, more outdoor games, or that extra blanket you really don’t want to leave behind.
And if you like to be organised like I do, or you are looking for a way to help you keep things a bit more ordered than a series of carrier bags, then these will be right up your street.
Helinox were kind enough to send me one to try out for myself. Naturally I’ve not had opportunity to take it camping just yet (soon…), but I had a bit of a clear out of my camp kitchen gear recently and took the chance to see how my kit would fit inside one sunny afternoon in the garden.
The new storage boxes come in three sizes, which are oddly labelled extra small, small, and medium. I assume this is because if they are popular Helinox will bring out some larger ones, or because they are making a point about keeping gear compact. But still, very strange.
I’ve got the medium size, which comes in at 44cm wide, 17cm deep and 19cm tall. I wondered if it would be big enough to carry all my camp kitchen paraphernalia, which is what I wanted it for, but these things are surprisingly roomy.
I mean, everything you see in the photograph goes in the box, with some room to spare for things I didn’t think to grab. That’s everything I need for my weekend-camp kitchen, plus a lamp so I can see what I’m doing, a small picnic blanket to sit on (my small Pacmat, a superb bit of kit), and a first aid kit (from Ordnance Survey) should things go a bit wrong.
There’s even some food items in there (in my trusty green SIGG tin), and I’d easily fit in a small bottle of oil, some teabags and hot chocolate, maybe even a bag of sweets. Not bad for something that is nice and small.
Add to this a small cool bag with ingredients to make dinner and breakfast and I’m all set; that big plastic box can stay at home and I can grab this and my tent and be ready for a weekend adventure. Soon, I hope very soon!
The Helinox storage boxes can be easily attached to the Chair One or Table One which keeps them off the floor. It would easily hang on the Helinox Daisy Chain (have I told you about that super handy simple little strap yet?!) in my large tent, and fits in the vestibule of my much smaller Vango Banshee.
It’s a sturdy, strong and very handy box, which is easy to carry and keep organised. I’ve actually not unpacked my camp kitchen from it; it’s now hung up in the garage next to my tent just waiting to be called-upon.
In comparison, the small storage box is 35cm wide, 11cm deep and 14cm tall, while the extra small storage box is 11cm wide, 11cm deep and 14cm tall. Based on mine, that small one would be plenty big enough to house a complete coffee making kit including a small stove, which would make it ideal for a night away. Or, it would be ideal for all the things you want right next to you when you sleep, but normally end up spread around your tent.
As you can tell, I think these are great. I mean, you don’t need a special storage box, this is an added extra for sure. But I do think mine will be a super versatile and incredibly useful addition to my camp kitchen setup. Of course when I actually manage to get out camping I’ll be sure to let you know how it faired in a real life test.
The Helinox Storage Boxes are priced at £25, £40 and £50, and are available from Helinox and Wildbounds (a fabulous outdoorsy company based here in the UK that’ll have you spending a fortune…).
The Helinox Storage Box (medium) was a gift from Helinox to help keep my camp kitchen organised, but I’ve been a fan of the company for many years thanks to their super portable Chair One that is a motorcycle and car camping staple.