Earth Conscious Camping
Trekking in the wondrous outdoors fosters greater love for the planet earth. The more time I spend in nature solidifies my sense that we are not separate, but one with nature. We are caretakers, responsible for ensuring the well-being of the earth for our children. I have found it even more difficult to be eco-conscious when camping. Finding zero waste and eco-friendly products however, can seem overwhelming. I am sharing with you some of my favorite tried and true eco-friendly products to help get you started toward green living!
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Stasher Reusable Silicone Storage Bag
I love Stasher bags! They are invaluable when on the go! Stasher bags offer an eco-friendly alternative to ziploc bags. If you have camped with children, you know how may baggies you can go through. These reuseable bags are nontoxic, food-grade silicone. They are versatile and can be used in the freezer, microwave, dishwasher, and oven. I love them to store bricks of cheese, cut up fruits, and boiled eggs in when we are camping. They make perfect trail mix bags for hiking too!
I have tried several different brands of silicone storage bags and Stasher are my favorite. Bags with separate slides to close them are hard to open and close. I like that Stasher zip close like a traditional ziploc bag does. There is no extra parts to lose. I also love that they come in multiple sizes.
Reusable Beeswax Food Wraps and Silicone Lids
Beeswax food wraps are a sustainable and natural alternative to plastic wrap to help you be zero waste. These wraps are washable, reusable, and compostable. Using the warmth of your hands, these wraps mold around your food item or dish to create a seal to keep food fresh naturally. I like this package from Amazon as it comes with 6 beeswax sheets and with 6 Silicone lids included!
Silicone lids are awesome! If you are interested in purchasing just the lids, check out this find on Amazon below.
Silicone Stretch Lids
Silicone stretch lids are so useful for your RV storage. Nothing is worse than spillage in an RV fridge! These cool lids stretch to cover various items, such as bowls, melons, and drinks. I like to use the smallest to cover my smoothie drink so I can make a double batch to save one for later. This pack comes in various sizes and stretch to cover varied sizes. They stay on really well and are tight enough that you can stck on top of them in the fridge.
Disposable Cutlery
Although I wish I could say that I always use reusable items, when camping sometimes it is not as easy to do. Besides, who really wants to do dishes when on vacation in that tiny camper sink! These disposable silverware make me feel a bit less guilty as they are completely biodegradable. They work well, although my kids do not love them for cereal as they taste a little woody with the milk!
Compostable Paper Plates
Similarly, we use disposable plates at times when camping. I like these plates as they are 100% compostable and tree free. They are made from sugercane fiber, which offers a plastic and tree free alternative to other disposable plate options.
Reusable Camping Themed Dinnerware
Reusable is best. These melamine dishes are unbreakable, stack well and are super cute. The camping theme is perfect and there are a few options to choose from! The set is durable and lightweight. While they are dishwasher safe, they are not recommended for the microwave.
Eco-friendly Dish Soap
If you are opting for reusable dishes while camping, good for you! Don’t undo all of the good that does by washing your dishes with soap that is bad for the environment. I really like Mrs. Meyers products. They smell great and work well, but are also biodegradable and made from plant derived ingredients. I get mine with a subscribe and save shipping option with my Prime Membership and get a 15% discount on all the items in my shipment. Plus, it just arrives at my doorstep at the selected frequency. So I never run out of my necessities!
Reusable Silicone Straws
Single use plastic is one of the greatest threats to our planet in my opinion. I have been so heartened by recent movements world-wide to eliminate single use plastics from our everyday life. Although it can seem daunting when you really examine how many things we use everyday that involve single use plastics, it can be easy to make small changes with huge impact. Plastic drinking straws is one easily replaced option to move toward zero waste. A plastic straw has a lifespan of about 200 years and even then the plastics don’t actually disappear, rather become smaller pieces. Although there are disputed statistics, it is believed that Americans use between 200-500 million straws per day! If everyone stopped using plastic straws, imagine the impact.
These reusable silicone drinking straws are a great alternative. They come with a brush to clean them, will not stick to your mouth when drinking something cold, like a metal straw can. The best feature is that you can trim them with scissors to meet the size cup you plan to use it with. Keep them in your camper, car, purse. Turn down the offer of a straw wherever you go and use these instead!
Bamboo Toothbrushes
Plastic toothbrushes are another plastic item that there are great alternatives for. These are made of bamboo and I really like them. The bristles are soft and they come in a package with different colors, making it easy for each family member to identify their brush. A plastic toothbrush can take 400 years to decompose. This is terrifying compared to the 5 to 10 years a bamboo brush takes to decompose. This is a super easy step to move toward plastic free living!
Zero-waste Solid Shampoo Bars
Shampoo bottles are another opportunity to reduce our dependency on plastic. There are so many different options for shampoo bars. Bar shampoo can be better for the health and look of your hair as they are typically free of the chemicals and detergents that traditional liquid shampoo can contain. Hair is healthier and there is no waste. Most do not cause a buildup in your hair and you may no longer need to use conditioner when using a bar (cha-ching think of the savings). Some options with many natural oils in the recipe may require an occasional apple cider vinegar rinse. Try out different options to see which offers the best Ph balance for your hair!
Green Motivated
I hope this inspires you to incorporate more sustainable practices and products into your camping adventures or every day life. While I am far from zero waste, I am proud of each step I take that promotes companies to create eco-friendly products. I feel each choice I make to choose a more sustainable option is a small victory for Mother Earth. I definitely recommend using Amazon to help you explore the earth friendly products available. There are so many to choose from and I set a goal to try new products every month.
Wander well….