Where to Buy Cheap Camping Gear for Thrifty Campers

Camping is an outdoor recreation that has gotten quite complicated and therefore expensive over the years. To me, camping is a simple pleasure more in line with Hemingway's Nick Adams throwing cans of food into a frying pan over an open fire than today's high tech camper with all the conveniences of home. But regardless of whether you like to rough it or like to use all the nifty gadgets on the market today, here are some places to look for cheap camping gear.

The larger camping suppliers are great for having everything that a camper needs and they can also provide a source for great deals on cheap camping gear. The retailer REI is a one stop source for camping and outdoor gear. Their catalogs are a great resource to browse for campers. Their website is rei.com where you can see the products online or request a catalog. But the cheap stuff is found at rei-outlet.com. A similar company is Campmor. Campmor.com is filled with great items and careful shopping can uncover great deals. Campmor has a print catalog that can be requested as well.

The large retailers (Wal-Mart, Target, etc.) carry a lot of camping supplies as well both in store and online. The large retailers often have store branded products that are quite cheap when compared against the similar name brand products. From tents to camping gear the large retailers offer just about everything that a camper might need though customer service will be hit and miss. If you know what you need these big stores can be a great source of cheap camping gear.

The discount tool store Harbor Freight (harborfreight.com) is a place that has a number of super cheap camping items. While they do not carry a large line of camping equipment the prices are always very cheap. Harbor Freight also sells dirt cheap cast iron frying pans and dutch ovens.

Of course, eBay is another place that campers should check out for cheap camping supplies. The camping gear available will be hit or miss and may new or used, but if you know what you want to buy eBay can provide a great deal. Amazon.com is another great site for looking for cheap camping gear. Overstock.com is another site that has a pretty fair number of camping items for sale. Numerous websites can be found offering cheap camping gear.

Use these suggestions to browse for cheap camping supplies and don't forget to run your choices through a shopping site such as froogle.com to make certain you are getting the best deals.