Coffee is a necessity for many people. The caffeine can make you crave coffee, and it can give you that burst of energy that we all desire in our day-to-day lives.
When camping, you want to be as comfortable as you can. There is nothing more refreshing than sipping on a hot coffee whilst indulging in a beautiful view, with the crispness of the air.
You may miss your daily coffee, and wonder how to make coffee outside in an environment that you are in. Well, look no further.
The purpose of this article is to teach you how to make coffee while camping without a lot of equipment.
How to make coffee whilst camping:
There are so many creative ways to make coffee whilst camping, but sometimes simple is better.
We will give you some of the best ways to make coffee, factoring in the amount of equipment that is needed, as well as the ease of actually making the coffee. Ideally, you do not want to be lugging around large pots, and jars, as you are camping outside.
You will be aware that your coffee quality at home will be better.
Instant freeze-dried coffee
First on our list is your typical instant coffee. Although instant coffee is not as great as filter coffee or espresso, it will still give you what you are looking for.
However, instant coffee is probably one of the tidiest, quickest and compact ways to make coffee, and it is perfect for camping. Instant coffee has never been better, and there have been a lot of improvements to the taste and quality of a lot of instant coffees.
To make instant coffee whilst camping, you will only need a small jar of instant coffee granules, however many mugs you need, and a way to boil water.
You may have a great flask that keeps water hot, a small boiler, or even a fire to boil your water.
Simply get some instant coffee grounds, and put a teaspoon in the bottom of your mug, add hot water, and stir. If you want milk or sugar, you can pack that too.
Pour-over filter coffee
This option is for those of you who enjoy the quality and taste of filtered coffee, but whilst camping. Pour-over coffee is simple, and you will only need a few things to make this coffee.
With pour-over coffee, you have a portable fold-out stand, as well as pre-ground coffee inside a small paper filter.

You will have to set up the coffee stand, but the quality of this coffee may taste a lot better than instant coffee. Simply grab a mug, set up your coffee filter, and pour hot water over the coffee grounds.
You will get a cup of coffee that tastes much like the one you may have at home, and this method will reduce the weight of carrying around a jar of instant coffee.
Coffee bags
These may sound unappealing to a coffee connoisseur, but coffee bags are excellent for taking camping.
We all know that when you are camping, you may not be eating and drinking the best quality things, as it is difficult to be luxurious whilst out in the wilderness.
If you drink tea, then coffee in a bag is just as easy and simple. There are many exciting brands of coffee bags on the market, and they are surprisingly tasty.
With a coffee in a bag, you will not have to deal with lugging any coffee brewing apparatus around, and your bag will feel considerably lighter!
To make a coffee bag into a mug of coffee, simply place the bag of coffee grounds into a mug, and top with hot water.
You can steep (leave the bag in) for as long as you desire, and add milk and sugar if necessary. You can steep a cup of tea for the same amount of time that you can make a coffee in a bag!
A coffee in a bag will taste better than an instant coffee, mostly due to the fact that the grounds do not need to dissolve into the water, so it will taste much like a filter coffee than an instant coffee.
Also, you can make your own coffee bags before you go camping! Simply place some ground coffee into regular filter paper and tie around the top with a piece of string.
Aeropress
The aeropress coffee maker is fast becoming one of the most popular ways to make coffee, and it is rather portable. By using the aeropress, you will not have to sacrifice great coffee whilst you’re out in the wilderness.
The aeropress works by pressing your coffee in an airtight vacuum. It is much like a French press, but in a hard plastic airtight tube.
This makes the coffee excellent quality, and it is highly concentrated and delicious. The aeropress will deliver incredibly smooth, and deliciously rich coffee.
To use the aeropress coffee maker, simply bring some mugs, ground coffee and the aeropress. Use the inverted method of making coffee with the aeropress, as it is the least complicated way to use a coffee maker whilst camping.
Put the plunger on a flat surface and insert the back of the base onto the plunger.
Add coffee grounds to the base, and fill with hot water. Fill this compartment and wait. Attach the filter on top of the aeropress and place your mug on top of the filter.
When it is finished brewing, flip the aeropress, and push the plunger down. With the aeropress, you will be able to enjoy coffee made in the same way you would make it at home.
Stove percolator
This is another simple way to make coffee whilst camping, but it does require a source of heat, usually a portable stove top. You can also use a campfire if you are careful. A percolator works in a fascinating and fun way.
Firstly, you put coffee grounds in the basket part of the kettle-looking device, and then water into the other chamber. You put this directly onto heat, and the water boils.
As the water boils, it percolates up into the metal tube, into the coffee grounds.
The grounds and water come together to make an excellent strong brew. Do not worry, the grounds are kept in with a metal filter, so your coffee will not be full of loose grounds!
The stove-top percolator is a great way to make coffee whilst camping, and it is especially good for larger groups of people.
There are also Moka pots that produce coffee in the same way, but they produce a strong Italian-style espresso coffee.
Cowboy coffee
Cowboy coffee is one of the oldest ways of making coffee, but it may not be for everyone. It is made by heating the rough coffee grounds with water, and pouring straight into a mug.
To make cowboy coffee, grab a large pot and fill it with hot water.
You can heat up the water on the campfire. Remove the pot from the heat once it has boiled, and add the coffee rounds directly to the hot water.
Return the pot to the heat, preferably a low heat. You can drizzle some cold water on top to force the coffee rounds to sink to the bottom and brew.
Pour the coffee into cups gently. Although there are coffee grounds in your mug, they will remain at the bottom.
This is because their volume has changed, and they have become a lot denser. You can also make cowboy coffee by boiling the grounds with the water, and simmering.
You can then skim the coffee grounds from the surface. Cowboy coffee is not a great method for making coffee, and it is often used as the last resort. Coffee’s still coffee though, right?
Helpful additions to make coffee better whilst camping:
Drinking coffee whilst camping does not have to be bad, and there are several things you can get to make your coffee experience a lot better.
Investing in a proper insulated mug may be a great option for you. This will mean that your coffee will stay hot for hours, and even a whole day.
This means that you can save some delicious coffee that you made, and drink it the next morning. Additionally, if you are used to espresso-style coffee, a portable coffee grinder may be a good investment for you.
To use a portable coffee grinder, place some fresh coffee beans in the grinder chamber.
Manually grind the coffee with the spinning hand grinder. Trust us, you will be able to tell a difference with freshly ground coffee.
Final thoughts
Having a hot cup of coffee makes everything better, and you should be able to have a hot mug of coffee, even when you are out in the wilderness.
There are so many ways to make coffee nowadays, and lots of unique devices, too. We believe that you should not have to drink bad coffee whilst camping, as there are so many intelligent ways to make coffee.
We hope you’ve learned about the best ways to make coffee whilst camping!
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