{"id":993,"date":"2019-06-13T14:00:13","date_gmt":"2019-06-13T20:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carcampingtips.com\/?p=993"},"modified":"2022-03-14T06:40:32","modified_gmt":"2022-03-14T11:40:32","slug":"camping-vs-backpacking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/decideoutside.com\/camping-vs-backpacking\/","title":{"rendered":"Camping vs. Backpacking: The Showdown"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Camping of any sort is fun. But if you are deciding between a backpacking trip and a camping trip, sometimes it’s tough to know what to put your energy into. Should you go on a week-long camping trip? Or a week-long backpacking trip? Which one is better? Or rather, which one is better for you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before we begin, let’s quickly define the two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s Camping? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Camping in Texas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The most common meaning when people say “camping” means “car camping” which means camping within close proximity (often within sight) of your car. You drive up to your campground, either at a city, state, or federal park, and then you park, make a few trips carrying your stuff to your camping pad, and spend a night or two there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Car Camping” can also mean to literally sleep within your vehicle. I’ll be referring to the first definition of camping (meaning you are still sleeping in a tent), but to be fair, the experience of camping in your car isn’t wildly different from sleeping in a tent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many camping locations are nearby to cities and civilization in general.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s Backpacking? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Backpacking in New Zealand<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The term backpacking means you are carrying all of your camping gear on your back (or perhaps shared among a few others), to wherever you mean to go. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking often has a destination in mind, but not always. Sometimes a backpacking trip is a thru-hike, or a loop with no end point, where the entire purpose of the trip is to enjoy the scenery and to enjoy the physical challenge of carrying your house on your back. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of breaking camp at a very well-established campsite with a fire-pit and a picnic table, you are breaking camp at some random point near the trail, and your goal is to leave no evidence at all that you were ever there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are many backpacking trips where you are aiming to reach a specific feature, such as a mountain, a lake, or a river. You create a base camp where you leave the tents and gear up, leaving you able to explore and enjoy your time in the wilderness without your heavy pack. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many backpacking locations are remote and secluded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Showdown<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To compare camping vs. backpacking, we’ll discuss both in these categories:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Category<\/strong><\/td>Camping Score<\/strong> 1-10<\/td>Backpacking<\/strong> 1-10<\/td><\/tr>
Calories Burned<\/a> <\/strong><\/td>6<\/td>10<\/td><\/tr>
Health<\/a> <\/strong><\/td>7<\/td>7<\/td><\/tr>
Peace<\/a> <\/strong><\/td>7<\/td>8<\/td><\/tr>
Danger<\/a> <\/strong><\/td>8<\/td>5<\/td><\/tr>
Preparation Needed<\/a><\/strong> <\/td>7<\/td>4<\/td><\/tr>
Total Costs<\/a> <\/strong><\/td>6<\/td>4<\/td><\/tr>
B<\/a><\/strong>eauty<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong><\/td>7<\/td>10<\/td><\/tr>
Coolness Factor<\/a> <\/strong><\/td>7<\/td>10<\/td><\/tr>
Comfort<\/a> <\/strong><\/td>6<\/td>3<\/td><\/tr>
<\/strong>Foo<\/strong><\/a>d<\/a> <\/strong><\/td>9<\/td>4<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Calories Burned<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking burns an incredible amount of calories because it is extremely strenuous. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Generally, backpackers strive for a base weight (pack weight without food and water) between 15 to 25 lbs (7-11 kg). A rule of thumb is that your pack weight should not exceed 1\/5th your body weight. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, let’s say a backpacker weighing 185 lbs (83 kg) with a pack weighing 35 lbs (15 kg) is traveling 12 miles (20 km) in a day (not an unreasonable amount for a full day of hiking), walking around 2 mph on moderate terrain with a moderate slope (which will come out to 6 hours of hiking, not including breaks). According to the calories burned calculator on GreenBelly.co<\/a>, that backpacker will burn around 560 calories an hour<\/strong> and be burning around 3360 calories for one day.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This doesn’t count the calories burned pitching camp that a backpacker will inevitably burn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In contrast, for just camping, which involves a lot of sitting, standing, and carrying things from place to place, I used the calorie calculator on FitWatch.com<\/a> for the activities “cooking, light housekeeping” and “light to moderate packing\/unpacking” to estimate that someone weighing 185 lbs (83 kg) might burn between 220 and 308 calories per hour<\/strong> while camping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The only way for camping to really compete with backpacking, in calories burned, is if a car camper bundles another activity in the trip, such as hiking, mountain biking, kayaking, etc. Backpacking has the exercise built in. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Score<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking: 10\/10<\/p>\n\n\n\n

camping: 6\/10<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Health<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Physical<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There’s so much to do in the outdoors! It’s difficult to laze about if you’re camping and especially difficult to when you’re backpacking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

As mentioned in the calories burned section<\/a>, backpacking burns a lot of calories. But is it healthy for you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although backpacking is tremendously good exercise, anyone who has gone knows that it can be quite painful. Your body experiences intense repetitive stress over long periods of time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you haven’t trained in your current pair of shoes, or if your feet get wet, then your feet will likely blister, which can be very painful. If your shoes don’t support you well, then backpacking with a heavy weight can put a lot of stress on your arches and cause pain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your ankles will receive a lot of stress from constant flexion and extension as well as pronation and supination from the uneven ground. Even though there are hiking boots that try to help, some argue that strong ankle supported shoes can exacerbate this problem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have knee problems, you will feel them. On my last backpacking trip, I felt intense knee pain for the first day… amazingly my body was able to either get over it, or I had damaged some nerves because it felt better the next day. It’s clear that the constant bending and unbending will cause discomfort if you already have knee problems. If you have knee problems, you need<\/strong> trekking poles, they are relatively inexpensive and they make a huge, huge difference on your knees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your hips will hurt. Trekking packs are designed to put the weight on your hips, which is much better than on your shoulders. however, even if your pack is only 25-30 lbs, your hips will still be tender, and sometimes even bruised from the constant pressure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’ve never seen a pack, expensive, or cheap, that didn’t end up hurting the wearer after 10-12 miles. This is something your body can and does adjust to, but unless you are going backpacking multiple times per year (many people only get to go once a year), you are going to experience these same pains. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because of that, backpacking loses a couple of points in the health category. Even though backpacking is a great exercise, it is hard on your body, especially if you go backpacking infrequently and if you don’t do enough training (don’t feel bad, many people don’t because it’s not fun to walk around your neighborhood with canned food in a backpack). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That being said, I’ll share briefly that I’ve been pushed to my physical limits more times while backpacking than any other activity. Backpacking is exhausting<\/strong>, hence why it’s such good exercise. It’s very satisfying to overcome the tiredness, though. If you like a challenge, it’s completely worth the sacrifice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Camping<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

As mentioned, just the act of camping doesn’t burn a lot of calories, but it does<\/em> give you immediate access to amazing exercise opportunities. After you eat breakfast at camp, you usually have access to trails, rivers, lakes, and other natural features that campgrounds tend to be close to. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you’re backpacking, you have to keep moving forward if you want to get out of the woods. If you’re camping and going for a day hike or mountain biking you can always turn around and pace yourself to your personal physical level. You can more safely push yourself without stranding yourself in the middle of the wilderness. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because of that, camping gains a couple health points. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mental<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Nature helps us to be mentally healthier. I wrote an article about several scientific studies showing evidence<\/a> that being around nature can help our emotional health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The difference between camping and backpacking here is a lot more difficult to quantify since it’s very difficult to study huge groups of participants who get to travel in the wilderness. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, one of the studies mentioned in my article talks about how the emotional lift from being around nature is more intense when the scenery is more dramatic or spectacular. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Camping can definitely bring you to some amazing views, but you are likely to be around some more mundane features, such as roads, other campers, RVs, etc. To summarize, you are much more likely to see spectacular views when you are backpacking in more remote locations<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In the middle of the Uinta mountain range<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Score<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking: 7\/10<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Camping: 7\/10<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peace<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Some of the most peaceful experiences I’ve ever had have been outside experiencing this beautiful planet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Truly nothing can beat the peace of being out in the middle of nowhere, with only the wind to keep you company. This kind of experience doesn’t resonate with everyone, but for me and for many others, being out in the wilderness dozens of miles from any civilization is a peaceful experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remember one time where we camped in sight of a lake high up in a basin nestled in the mountains where very few people go in a year. I woke up first and put my head out of the tent and saw the water vapor coming off of the lake (it was pretty cold out), and I remember feeling a powerful calm as I enjoyed the scene. I’ll never forget that moment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s not perfectly peaceful in the wilderness, though. You are relying on your own navigation skills and on your own capabilities, and sometimes it can be nerve-wracking if you lose your bearings or can’t get a fire started when it’s raining in the wilderness. Furthermore, your tent is the only protection you have to the elements, and that can be a little hard mentally, especially if you hear critters moving around outside. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want to see the likelihood of getting attacked by a wild animal while in a tent, see my article here.<\/a> (spoiler alert: you have little to fear, the chances of having issues like that are extremely low.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Camping<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When we go camping, we often bring our hammock. After the bustle of pitching our tent and preparing dinner, laying in a hammock and enjoying the trees, and the wind settles my mind and calms me down.<\/strong> I don’t know if hammock therapy is a thing yet, but it should be. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since camping brings you out to nature, you can experience the peace that comes from the quiet of the outdoors. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

People are great… sometimes. Unfortunately while camping you are more likely to be in close quarters with other people. This generally is wonderful and brings a sense of security. However, it can cause issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We’ve had a couple of times where a scout group was in the same campground. One story, in particular, we were getting ready for bed at around 10 PM when we saw 5-6 carloads of scouts roll in and pitch their tents in complete darkness immediately next to our campsite. They did a fairly good job considering the circumstances, but there’s only so much 10-12-year-old kids can do without making a sound. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s inevitable while camping you’ll have an experience like this on occasion. Bring earplugs. ?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Score<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking: 8\/10<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Camping: 7\/10<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Danger<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Experiencing life the right way means taking risks. Travelling, the outdoors, and driving to work all have risk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The question becomes, which is more dangerous, camping or backpacking?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Backpacking is more dangerous than camping for several reasons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n