As a car/tent camper I have only a certain amount of space for storing my supplies. Especially if I am using my sedan instead of my hatchback. I currently grab a handful of coffee/tea bags, sugar packets, and coffee mate packets, and toss them in a side pocket of my wheeled cooler. If I am staying more than one night I bring a pop-top canister of sugar that I can refill. I don’t really like the coffee mate packets, but I tried them out when I wasn’t bringing any milk with me last trip. I’m thinking of trying out those little half & half creamer individual cups, but I don’t know where to buy them. I don’t need 100+ little creamer cups! If I don’t bring my cooler I could just keep the coffee, sugar, and creamer in a little box or bag… but I haven’t found a good way to store stuff yet.
How do other people store their coffee/tea supplies?
I have been seeing a lot of camping organization and storage solutions on Pinterest lately, but most of it is permanent for van life, which is not my situation. I did see some interesting ideas for bins and drawer systems that you store in a closet and tuck into your car when you want to go camping. I might try the drawer stuff so I can dedicate a section to coffee. Possibly it will share space with just-add-water breakfast options.
(Sorry, saw this was a question for car/tent campers. Oh, well, enjoy my ramble anyway.)
For me, I store the coffee in the freezer in our RV. Full-timer here. Started with a Moka pot (still have it for when I only want one cup), but “upgraded” to a cheapo regular drip coffee maker. I also started out grinding, but didn’t like the noise I was making in the morning since I get up before the wife. I always keep the last coffee can (Bustelo, in this case), because it fits and sometimes buying pre-ground, it comes in those bags. (I like Community, Bustelo, other dark coffees.) I hate the weird bendy twist tie on the bags, so I dump it into the can. (Never expect true contents!) Pile o’ filters sit in the cabinet with the coffee cups.
Oh, I will have to check that out! I hadn’t thought of flavored creamers at all! These might be the perfect size for a weekend. If I use it all up in a couple mornings, then I won’t have to worry about refrigerating it, maybe?!
@Dwight I am not sure if this is too relevant, but I use an 06 Chevy Malibu as my camper mobile for now… But I am only taking the wife and I… And I use a roof top cargo bag to extend the carrying capacity of the car…
My dry goods go into a 5 gallon bucket with a gamma seal lid that I use as my camp pantry. Hot beverages are done thusly…
Zipper bags like Ziplock with the pull tabs get stuffed with sufficient coffee for the trip plus some emergency coffee just in case. I use a GSI Ultralight Java Drip and pour over brew into a 30oz stainless steel insulated tumbler. Tea bags same. Hot chocolate, same.
I don’t use powdered creamer, so milk goes into my cooler.
I use one of those high performance coolers, a Lifteime 55 quart, so no pockets on the sides of my cooler. A soft cooler like what you have wouldn’t keep anything cold for more than a day camping where I do…
Almost all modern cars have door pockets. Maybe you can use them to stow the small stuff that adds up?
I use 5 hour energy bottles. One bottle gets two decent cups (not truck driver strong as I prefer but its definitely tolerable). One bottle per person per day and plan my spices accordingly as well. This way when we leave camp everything is empty and used so there’s less weight to haul back.
Stop for coffee on the way, and take some extra creamers? Or plan ahead, and take a couple extra with you anytime they’re offered. Is that stealing? Not sure. On my first cross country camping trip, we’d do that regularly, and pick up extra condiments too, when we stopped for a burger. Being 17 was our excuse.
My coffee “cans”. Used a Brother labeler for the labels and most every has a label. If not, eventually they will. Use a funnel and pack them tight, not just when they look full.
If I don’t bring my cooler I could just keep the coffee, sugar, and creamer in a little box or bag… but I haven’t found a good way to store stuff yet.
