Useful Things to Bring While Spending Time Outdoors
When I go outdoors, I like to prepare ahead for what I might encounter. The most important things I bring are my phone, camera, binoculars, and water bottle. There are other things I like to bring, including hand sanitizer, bug spray, sunscreen, and extra clothes.
A phone is helpful if you have an emergency, but there are also some cool apps that can help you. Seek is an app where you take a picture of a plant or animal, and it will identify it for you. Merlin is an app that lets you record bird sounds, and it will tell you what bird is making those sounds. You should always charge your phone before you leave your house.
Using the Seek app on my phone, I learned that this was a red-flowering currant.
Water is important when you are active so you can stay hydrated.
If you like birding, binoculars are one of the most helpful tools to use. They help you see more details and are also helpful for finding things that are far away in the distance.
A camera is one of my favorite things to use when I go birding. I can take pictures and videos of things that I see.
Image by Melissa Freels
A snack is important because your body burns up calories when you are active. A snack will give you a boost of energy. I like to bring fruit or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
Bug spray is helpful because there is always a chance that there will be mosquitos and other bugs. I once went to a wildlife refuge where a couple of areas were infested with mosquitoes.
Sunscreen is also important because there might be trails that have no protection from the sun. You should put some on before you go to prevent sunburn.
Wearing layers of clothes helps you prepare for all types of weather. You can take a layer off if you get too hot. Just tie it around your waist or put it in your backpack until you need it again.
Hand sanitizer can come in handy before you eat a snack or after you use the restroom. Many park restrooms don’t have soap.
Image by Melissa Freels
This list is for a short trip, but if you have a longer trip planned, your list will probably include more things. I hope this list will be helpful as you plan your next adventure.