If the weather outside is frightful, then you’ll find it delightful to have a weather radio with you.

Remember, when you’re camping you usually aren’t sitting in front of a TV so you may not know if severe weather is imminent (or if it is, how severe) or if the clouds are merely bluffing.

That’s why I highly recommend you add a weather radio to your list of essential camping gear. Several GPS devices and handheld radios now include weather radio so you don’t have to get a dedicated unit for the task.

If you get yourself a dedicated pocket weather radio, you’ll be able to keep track of temperature and wind changes throughout the day.

Remember that severe weather can sneak up on the best of us and to remind us of that we only need look at the tragic death of four boyscouts in June of 2008 when a tornado hit their camp.

You can get a weather radio for less than $50, but I’ve picked out a bunch of cool ones below so feel free to browse and decide which one is best for you, but just remember to get one and if the camper in your family doesn’t have one yet, then put this at the top of your list.

The best part about camping, at least to me, is relaxing around the campfire with friends and family. It’s even more fun with a cold frosty drink, like a freshly made strawberry margarita!

And thanks to the invention of portable rechargeable and propane powered blenders, delicious cold drinks can be made just about anywhere without any electricity.

They make a great gift for the camper on your gift list, even if that camper is you!

And because it’s no fun to have to keep making trips to buy ice, make sure to have a good quality cooler to keep the ice cold so that the only time a trip to buy ice is needed is when the ice is gone - not when it’s melted.

Most hobbies cost money. Golfing, camping, fishing, bowling, hunting, snowmobiling, etc.

However, getting a metal detector to search for buried treasure is one such hobby that can actually pay you back.

Getting yourself a metal detector will allow you to go out and search for more than loose change buried in the sand. Of course you can search for coins, but you can also search for jewelry, gold, and even war memorabilia.

Some people have even done well enough to take their metal detecting hobby and turn it into a full time profession.

Gold fields have been revived due to metal detecting technology – it’s a heck of a lot easier to strike gold when you know where to dig.

Some of the best metal detectors are offered by Minelab. Their Excalibur line even offers waterproof models that you take into and even up to depths of 200 ft when scuba diving to take your search for buried treasure to new depths (pun intended).