Storing camping gear through the UAE summer

In the UAE the camping season runs roughly from November to April; the Al Ruwayyah winter camps, for example, are open from 1 November to 30 April this season. That leaves about six months when the gear sits unused, through the hottest part of the year. How you store it in those months has a lot to do with whether it works on the first trip in November.

Where to store: cool, dry, out of the sun

Heat and sun are the main enemies of stored gear. A closed car in a UAE summer gets far hotter than the air outside, and a store room on the roof or an outside cupboard in the sun can be almost as bad. In strong heat, seam tape and glue soften, coatings can turn sticky, and foam and plastic age faster.

• Best: the coolest, driest place indoors that you have, on a shelf or in a cupboard, out of direct sun.
• Acceptable: an indoor store room that stays shaded and does not get direct sun on its walls.
• Avoid: the car, the roof, a balcony, a shed in the sun.

Tents and shelters

• Clean and dry first. Shake out the sand, wipe the poles, and let every part dry completely in the shade. Damp fabric packed for months can grow mould.
• Pack it loosely, and fold it along different lines each time, so it does not sit compressed in the same creases all summer.
• Keep the bag where nothing heavy sits on it.
• Keep stakes and guylines in a separate small bag inside the tent bag, so nothing goes missing.
• Put a note in the bag about anything that needs repair. In November you will not remember.

Sleeping bags and blankets: store them loose

A sleeping bag keeps you warm because its filling is fluffy and traps air. Months compressed in a small stuff sack can flatten it. Before storage, air it in the shade until it is completely dry; Kelty warns that a bag stored damp risks mould and mildew. Then store it loose: in a large cotton or mesh sack, on a shelf, or hanging in a wardrobe. Use the small stuff sack only for the trip.

Blankets are the same. The Biggie Blanket and the down Galactic Down Blanket both come with a stuff sack for travel; at home, keep them unfolded or loosely folded on a shelf.

Pads: dry, loose, valve open

Self-inflating pads have foam inside, and the foam needs room to expand. Kelty’s advice is to store a fully dried pad flat or loosely rolled in a cool, dry place, with the valve open. Under a bed or behind a wardrobe works well. Check the instructions for your model, too. Before the season, inflate each pad and leave it overnight to check for leaks.

If a pad does not survive the summer, the Mistral SI is a light replacement that inflates easily. For camping next to the car, the Waypoint SI is the thickest pad in the range, and its stuff sack doubles as an inflation tool.

The kitchen and small things

Most of what goes missing between seasons is small: the tent repair kit, the pot lid, the spare guyline. Storing small items in the same organised boxes you use in the car means they are packed and ready in November. The Car-Go-Box has three colour-coded storage pods in a structured folding case: one for the kitchen, one for tools and repairs, one for cables and torches. The Camp Galley keeps spices, tools, utensils, boards and plates in separate pockets, and it can be stored packed.

Clean and dry everything in the kitchen kit before storage, and throw away open food. Take batteries out of torches and lanterns, so they do not leak.

Before you put it all away

• Clean and dry every item.
• Write a list of what broke, wore out or was missing during the season.
• Store bags and blankets loose, pads with the valve open, tents dry and loosely packed.
• Keep gas, batteries and power banks out of the car and within their makers’ temperature limits.
• Set a reminder for mid-October to take everything out and check it.