03 Jul Remote Beachside Camping Tips
Remote beachside camping is an absolute blast when you get to an amazing spot. Waking up oceanside is an experience to be had. However, camping out in nature comes with its hurdles. Here are some tips to make your next beachside camping experience a breeze. You need to consider the tides, weather conditions and dealing with the salt and sand. Don’t let that deter you from booking a beach campsite because we have some tips to help you enjoy your next beachside camping adventure.
The basics.
If you are remote beach camping, you most likely won’t have access to fresh or drinking water or easy access to supplies like food and fuel. Be prepared with enough supplies for the amount of days you plan to be beachside. The ocean, while relaxing, can also be very loud at night and crashing waves is a noise you are not used to sleeping with in the background. It can get very loud if you are sleeping waterside so take some ear plugs if you are a light sleeper.
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Entertainment
Generally if you are searching for remote beachside campgrounds assuming you will have love for the ocean and ocean activities like fishing, snorkeling, swimming or kayaking. Making sure you have some form of entertainment is paramount because you need to either bring or create your own enjoyment and entertainment at these remote beach camping locations. Always make sure you have activities for outdoors and indoors if the weather turns leaving unexpectedly.
Weather
Weather on the coastline can differ from inland. Always check the forecast a few days ahead. Here in Western Australia we get a South Westerly wind gracing our coastline in the summer months this is almost guaranteed. This means in summer it can get very windy in the afternoons and evenings along the coast. It can get cool in the evening and mornings so always be prepared with warm clothes, even in summer. You can always get extreme weather conditions on the coast so always be prepared for the weather to change from the forecast.
Read more about WA weather here.
Tides
You should never camp too close to the water’s edge. Most of the beachside camping spots you will find in WA will be set back in either the dunes or far enough away from the rising tides. Use your common sense here, if you are remote camping try and check incoming and outgoing tide heights by looking and assessing the beach. Is there seaweed marking high tide or wet vs dry sand? Always play it safe with the tides, you don’t want to risk expensive gear to the unforgiving ocean. Tides can also rise higher than usual on the full moon so always play it safe and camp away from the shoreline or tide line, and then some.
Morning Dew
When you are camping at the beach you will get some mornings where the air is thick with moisture and everything will be covered in dew. Sometimes, salty dew.
Before you go to bed try and pack away as much as you can so it’s not sopping wet in the morning. Don’t leave things out on an exposed table that might get salty and damaged, especially anything electrical. I know this can be hard if you are playing drinking games well into the night but trust me, you will only do this once. Most camping equipment is built to be in rugged environments however not all items will be salt proof. Especially when choosing camping lights make sure they are weatherproof.
Sand
It’s inevitable, there will be sand at the beach. It’s only a matter of time before you get sand in the tent, car and most likely… your bed.
Have a brush or a mat at your tent entrance to wipe sandy feet to help reduce the amount of sand. Hot tip… we use a square of shadecloth. Just regular shade cloth it allows the sand to fall through the cloth and coarse enough to get sand off your feet with one or two wipes.
Sand in the bed is annoying. If you are camping in warm weather you might not need a sleeping bag. Instead bring sheets and a blanket so you can easily brush sand out of the bed.
Showering
You might only be camping overnight or over a weekend and in that case a shower may not be necessary. However, like many people the salty water can itch and dry out skin.
If you don’t have access to a shower all you need is a kettle (or warm water), bucket and face cloth/washcloth as a bare minimum to wipe the salt or sunscreen off after a day in the ocean. You can use soap on your face to clean the sunscreen off too.
Personally we have upgraded to a cheap rechargeable “shower hose” which works as a super handy shower. All you have to do is chuck the motor end in a bucket (or a jerry can) and viola… shower.
Hot tip: Always have an allocated towel for showering or bathing so you can have a salt and sand free towel to dry yourself after you freshen up.
Drying bathers / towels.
This can be difficult if things get damp and dewey overnight. Unfortunately there is no easy way out of this. Try drying bathers and towels during the day and put them away at night. If you need to leave them out overnight make sure they are at least undercover for some protection.
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Salt
Protecting your car and equipment from the salty air is going to be near impossible. The best advice I can give is to wash everything down when you leave the salty environment. If you can. As mentioned previously, most camping equipment is going to be waterproof but not all. Know your gear. Know what needs to be washed down before it’s packed away. Things like wetsuits, water sports (sup boards, kayaks, surfboards etc) electrical items like lights or lanterns that might get left out overnight.
Remote Beachside Campsites in WA
- Sandy Cape
- Francois Person National Park, Shark Bay
- Ningaloo Station
- Worrora Station
Final thoughts
Its great fun camping at the beach. There are, however, a few little things to know to make your camping experience more enjoyable. Personally my top tip is to have a bathing towel dedicated for a wash and only use this for bathing. There is nothing worse than a soggy, salty, sandy towel that is days old. Otherwise enjoy. If there are any of your favourite camping spots along the WA coastline please pop a comment below.
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