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Horse Camping Checklist

Does anyone have a horse camping checklist or spreadsheet that they can share? Thank you!

Are you car camping or using a pack horse?

For car camping, my check list is everything for a trail ride, plus your horse’s feed like going to a show, plus everything for car camping, plus a good first aid kit in my trailer. Plus any non horse recreation gear especially water fun if there is a lake.

I have been sleeping in the horse trailer so using extra shavings and canvas tarp under my mattress and sleeping bag. If you have an RV or LQ or tent, your set up will differ. I have a two burner propane camp stove but obviously not needed if you have an RV.

So it’s hard to have a universal checklist.

I’ve been going to a forestry services campsite with no potable water, so we need to bring in human drinking water and tote horse water from the lake. So always check that. Obviously many sites have potable water.

Pack horse multi day trips are way out of my skill set :slight_smile:

Check regulations on hay for where you are going - federal lands require certified weed free, state is dependent upon your state.

Are you high lining or is there corrals? Bring a blanket, nights can get chilly.

I’ll see if I can find a list; I belong to OET - Oregon Equestrian Trails, I know we have one somewhere…

https://www.tri-cotrails.com/horse-camping-checklist

https://www.trailmeister.com/trail-rider-check-list/

http://www.highcountrysupply.com/Packers_List.html

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@Scribbler Car camping. I haven’t decided if I’ll sleep in the back of my car or the trailer.
@Obsidian Fire I’ll be using the HiTie. It should be here in a few days, so I’ll have time ahead of the trip to practice with my horse. And thank you for the list!

Those are good lists!

Sleeping in the trailer is great, I prefer it to a tent (too chilly on the ground) or back of truck (not quite enough room).

I have a two horse straight haul. I leave the divider up, close the ramp end, drop the chest bars, take out the hay nets, and use the escape doors to enter. Putting down canvas drop cloths keeps the shavings out of your socks. My personal genius idea :slight_smile: was to get a fleece back vinyl table cloth from the dollar store and use it to cover the ramp before I close the ramp. That means you aren’t sleeping next to a poopy dirty ramp carpet. I’m also collecting things to hang on the inside of the trailer, like little mirrors with magnet backs and little storage baskets that hang off the window bars, and flashlights with magnet handles.

For feed, figure out what your horse is eating at home, probably 20 lbs of hay a day, and bring a bit more. We have access to compressed hay bales right now and they are fantastic for camping.

I don’t think it hurts to be generous with the hay when you are doing much more work than usual in new terrain. I also like to make up my grain in meals in big ziplock baggies. I also bring some extra salt and alfalfa cubes in case we need an extra mash for someone.

I’m packing Bute, Banamine, and Dormosedan in my first aid kit but have never needed them.

I like to bring multiple saddle pads to switch out for sweat.

As always for camping, bring clothes at both ends of the expected temperature range. Fall weather is tricky especially in the mountains. You might be swimming in the lake in the afternoon, or huddling in a parka during a frosty morning, or in a downpour.

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My favorite place to horse camp has limited water available (depending upon campsite, may have to drive miles to a water supply, which is not potable for human consumption), so I bring my own horse water, and separate water for myself to drink. I carry a hose, too.

I also bring very lightweight interlocking mats for my horse’s rest area, whether it’s a pen or next to the trailer (assuming he’s tied there), although I didn’t bother with this when I set up a portable electric pen on grass.

Manure must be picked up and carried out at this place, so I bring large, fairly heavy duty (but they don’t need to be contractor weight) garbage bags, line a manure bucket with one, and pick the poop into the bag-lined bucket. A partially filled bag (completely filled would be too heavy) can be tied closed and thrown in the back of my pickup.

The extra-large, very heavy-duty contractor bags can fit a small square bale of hay - convenient for the back of a truck (or even inside an SUV) and protective if it rains.

I agree with the hoof pick carried along on rides mentioned on one of the lists above, and also have your phone on your person (not attached to your saddle), and consider having ID on your horse – it’s never happened to me, but I’ve camped places where horses have gotten loose, in one instance, two were gone for a couple days(!).

I, too, bring extra saddle pads, and change them out on each ride. My horses are barefoot but, if your horse is shod, you might want to bring a tool to pull a sprung shoe, and a hoof boot for a lost shoe. Take an extra halter, lead rope, bridle, girth, etc.

I carry a whistle on my person – it’s better for emergencies than trying to yell for attention.

DEET- containing insect repellent works on both people and horses, IME. I also bring pultice to pack the horse’s hooves at the end of the day, and I like Sore No More liniment to rub on their legs, with something like a refreshing Vetrolin wash for their body.

I also agree to take more hay (especially) and feed than you think you’ll need – trail riding is hungry work, and it’s normal IME for horses to eat quite a bit more forage when camping.

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@Jarpur There are some great suggestions in here and will add to the exhaustive list that I’m building.

Here’s my list so far. This only includes horse or trailer related items.

AC adapter
ankle gels
Anti-acid tablets
Baby wipes
Bailing wire
Banamine / bute
Barefoot boot
bear deterrant
beer!
bell boots
biodegrade toilet paper
bits
bridle (2)
Bug spray
Camera
canteen
cash
cell phone
chair
Chap Stick
Citronella candle
Collapsible water bucket
Compass
contact for local vet
container to haul out manure
cooler
Corkscrew
Duct tape
electrolytes
face mask
Fan
feed bucket
First aid book
First Aid Kit - humans
First-Aid Kit - horse
Flashlight / extra batteries
Flat tire ramp/ proper lug nut 4 way tool
fly mask
Fly spray
GIRTH (2)
gloves
Grain bags filled with grain rations
grooming kit
hair ties
halter (2)
hand sanitizer
Hand towels
hat
Hay Bags (2)
headlamp
Health Certificate/Coggins
heavy duty garbage bags
Hi-Tie
hoof pack
hoof pick
horse blanket/cooler
horse books
horse water from home
Hose adapters/ washers
ice
ID tag for mane
knife / leatherman
lead rope (2)
Leather cleaner
Leather punch
light windbreaker
liniment
Manure Fork
Map
Mirror
Moleskin for blisters
muck tub
old cell phone for saddle bag: GPS turned on
paper
paper towels/ shop towels
pastern reflectors w/ phone # written on
phone charger
Protective Boots
Radio
Rain gear
rasp
ribbon for tail
riding boots / chaps
Rubber gloves
saddle
Saddle bag
saddle pads
sharpie
shavings
small spraybottle flyspray
solar lantern
solar Party Lights
solar phone charger
Sponges
Spurs
Sun glasses (2)
Sunscreen
sunvisor for helmet
Thermos with ice
Tie-Line Hooks
Tow Rope
trail bells
trail snacks
Trailer Mat for outside under awning
Treats for horse
Triple-A or US Rider Card
Two sets keys
Watch
Water bottles
weed free hay
whistle
wire cutters
Wisk broom/dustpan
zip ties