7 essential pieces of camping gear

Boulder, Colorado-based Sierra Designs is getting lots of buzz this year for their new sleeping bags, including the Mobile Mummy. It unzips at feet and has holes for your arm, so you can wear it like a garment and walk around in it—handy for cold nights around the fire or when you need to get out of the tent in the middle of the night to use the bathroom. From $329.95; sierradesigns.com. 

Sierra Designs’ other novel entry into the sleeping-bag market is the Backcountry Bed, a zipper-free model with a wide, easy-access oval opening and integrated comforter down the middle. From $249.95; sierradesigns.com. 

For those averse to sleeping on the ground at all: In February of this year, Steamboat Springs, Colorado-based Big Agnes debuted a packable camping cot. It weighs just a smidge over 4 pounds, so it's practical for carry-in, as well as car camping, but it's also super sturdy. It comfortably supports users up to 320 pounds. It’s a cinch to assemble, too. It's made of aluminum tent poles and is pieced together pretty much like a tent. Big Agnes calls it the Helinox Cot One. From $300; bigagnes.com.

This year, Boulder, Colorado-based Kelty is introducing a smaller, stripped- down version of its classic Redwing day-hiking pack. It's lighter and more affordable than the original, and you can load it from the top or side panels, making it easy for your kids or companions to get stuff in and out while you still have it on. It's called the Redwing 32. From $99.95; kelty.com.

Bluffdale, Utah-based Goal Zero donates products to humanitarian efforts and employee-volunteer time to creating sustainable power systems in rural communities around the world. This year, the company introduced a brand new mobile, solar-powered charger that's light enough (less than two pounds) to cart out on camping trips. The Sherpa 100 has a lot of output options (2 USB, an AC, 12V, and more), too, so a family doesn't have to bicker over whose iPhone gets charged first. From $350; goalzero.com.

Ventura, California’s Ticla has an ideal starter pack for camping newbies. Its G.O.O.D. Kit, which includes a sleeping bag, sleeping pad, and roomy carrying bag, has room enough for a change of clothes, headlamp, and other items. That means you can use it as your bag, for car camping, and you don't have to struggle to cram everything into the tiny packing cases that usually come with sleeping bags and pads. From $180; ticla.com.

Liberty Bottleworks, out of Union Gap, Washington, produces very attractive, very lightweight water bottles—100% made in America, with recycled American materials. Our favorite find: Liberty has a particularly cool line of bottles with maps of National Parks on them. From $18 for a 16-ounce bottle; libertybottles.com.