by Douglas Black

Created on: May 08, 2010

Camping can be the perfect opportunity to getaway and spend some real quality time with the family, while enjoying the natural splendour of the great outdoors. Who could resist the chance to leave the city and find a nice quiet spot, away from traffic, ringing telephones, smog, and just about everything else?

At least, that’s the plan until something goes awry, like discovering all your food has spoiled, because you didn’t plan far enough ahead.

However, the challenge of keeping your food and drinks cold for the entire duration of a camping trip is not as difficult as you might think; at least if you know all the tricks of the trade. 

THE BEST WAYS TO KEEP FOOD COLD WHILE CAMPING

One of the most important rules of camping is to know your equipment and how to get the most out of it. For any extended camping trip, it’s always best to use one cooler for drinks/beverages and a separate cooler for food.

The reason should be simple, since beverages are accessed more often than food, allowing cold air to escape with each use. Food on the other hand, might only get exposed once to three times per-day, maintaining its core temperature.

I strongly recommend considering the Coleman Xtreme series of coolers; mainly due to their reputation and my own personal experience using them. They come in various sizes and designs, and will keep things chilled between 6-9 days. I prefer the 62-quart-wheeled, which holds over eighty cans and plenty of ice, and comes equipped with a handle and wheels for easy toting.

http://www.colemancanada.ca/Catalog/COOLERS.XTREME.e n.products

TIPS ON PACKING A COOLER

The most important function of a cooler when camping is to keep perishable food from spoiling. Lower temperatures prevent growth of harmful bacteria, which extends the duration food keeps before it spoils. To do this your food should always remain 0-degrees centigrade or below (40-degrees Fahrenheit), which a simple appliance thermometer can be taped inside to monitor. However, beverages cold or not are still usable; but who really wants warm beer…yuck!

 ♦ For an extended trip you should always pre-chill the cooler by lining the bottom of your cooler with frozen ice packs or ice, at least 30 minutes before packing any food.

♦ Ensure to drop your refrigerator to its coldest settings the night before leaving on a camping trip, which will drastically help keep things cooler. Meat, poultry and seafood should be packed in separate

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