If you believe in Murphy’s Law (“anything that can possibly go wrong, will”), then you definitely want to look into camping first aid kits before going on a camping trip.  If you have camping first aid kits available, then you are ready for emergencies and they won’t happen because then Murphy’s Law would not work.  Take a deep breath and think about it.  Think how often it doesn’t rain when you remember to carry your umbrella, and how often it DOES rain when you leave your umbrella at home.  Same principle applies.

The Bare Bones Basics

You can make your own camping first aid kits or choose from already put together camping first aid kits from sporting goods, boating and camping supply stores.  You might even want to check out first aid kits sold in department stores and pharmacies to see if they might have all that you would most likely need.  Make sure everything is in compact, easy portable waterproof containers.  Use Ziploc bags for homemade camping first aid kits.

 

All camping first aid kits should have:

Band Aids (duh)
Surgical Tape
scissors
tweezers
Sterile roll of bandages
Sterile pads
an antibiotic ointment
a place to put emergency phone numbers
tea tree oil OR an anti-itch lotion

Those are the basics.  Feel free to add what you think your family may need, depending on their medical histories or tendency to get into mischief.

Other Tips

Keep in mind where you are going for your camping trip when choosing or making up your camping first aid kits.   If you are camping on grounds or out of an RV, you can splurge on a bigger kit, or extras like pill boxes and knee braces.  If you are all going to hike out far from civilization, make small camping first aid kits for everybody.  That way, not only is the load shared out, but if one kit is lost, it’s not such a problem.  

Although not included in most camping first aid kits, get and put minutes on a mobile phone.  Even homeless people invest in them.  Use them only for emergencies.  They can be real time and life savers.  You will need to have some sort of phone charger with you as well.  You can charge your mobile phone up in your vehicle or you can get solar powered battery chargers.  Many of them now are small and lightweight and are definitely environmentally friendly.