Lighting & Power

The moment the sun drops, this category decides how long the evening lasts. Most people bring one light and discover that one light means everyone shares it. You want three kinds: a headlamp each so people can do separate things, a lantern for the table so the group has a centre, and something low along the guy lines so the tent is findable and nobody trips.

Every lumen count, runtime and battery capacity below is the figure supplied by the manufacturer, labelled as such. Real-world runtime is usually shorter at maximum brightness and considerably longer at the 20–50 lumens you will actually use. Read the lighting and power guide before you buy.