Rainy Camping Trip Checklist: What to Pack, How to Pitch, and When to Leave

A rainy camping trip goes well when three things stay dry: you while you walk, your sleeping bag, and the clothes you sleep in. This checklist covers the gear for each, how to set up a wet camp, and the two weather hazards that decide whether you stay: floods and lightning. Each line links to the guide with the detail.

How we chose: we did not test this gear; the picks come from our own guides, which compare makers' listings and spec sheets, and each was sold by Amazon.com or the brand's store and in stock on September 29, 2026.

Before you go

• Read the forecast for the campsite, not your town. The NWS says the forecast for the area you are visiting "may be very different from the one near your home," per its outdoor lightning page.
• Refresh the DWR on your shell if water stopped beading on it last trip. Our DWR spray guide and technical wash guide cover how.
• Seal the tent seams if the fly is new or leaked last time: see tent seam sealer and tent waterproofing.
• Waterproof your boots before, not during: waterproofing hiking boots.
• Pack a repair kit: tape and patches for a torn fly or jacket. See gear repair tape and patches.

What to wear

• A seam-taped rain jacket with a hood that adjusts and, if you will climb, pit zips. Our rain jacket guide compares ten.
• Rain pants with side zips so they go on over boots: rain pants for hiking.
• Or a poncho for warm, calm rain with a big pack: ponchos vs rain jackets.
• A synthetic or merino base layer, not cotton: merino vs synthetic base layers.
• A warm layer for camp. Our down vs synthetic insulated jackets guide makes synthetic the pick when a jacket will get wet.

Our layering guide for cold-weather hiking explains how the base, mid and shell layers work together.

Keeping the pack and the sleeping bag dry

• A pack liner inside the backpack, rolled shut: our dry bags and pack liners guide explains why a pack cover alone still lets water in at the back.
• A dry sack for the sleeping bag, inside the liner.
• A second dry sack for sleep clothes: a base layer, socks and a hat that never leave the tent.
• A small bag for phone, battery and map where you can reach it without opening the liner.
• A trash bag or stuff sack for wet gear, so the rain jacket and fly do not soak the dry things.

Shelter and camp

• A tent with a full fly, pitched taut so the fly does not touch the inner tent.
• A footprint cut slightly smaller than the tent floor, so it does not catch rain and channel it under you. Our tent footprint guide explains why smaller is better.
• Stakes and guylines for soft, wet ground: tent stakes and guylines for wind.
• A tarp for cooking and sitting out of the rain: camping tarps for rain and sun.
• A sleeping pad with enough R-value for cold, wet ground: sleeping pad R-values.
• A sleeping bag rated for the night's low, read by its ISO comfort figure: sleeping bag temperature ratings.
• Hand warmers for cold, wet hands: disposable vs rechargeable hand warmers.
• For car camping, a sealed box for food and the stove: camp kitchen storage boxes.

If you are car camping

A car changes the list. You can carry more, and you have the one shelter the NWS counts as safe in a thunderstorm: a hard-topped vehicle.

• A vehicle awning or a canopy gives you a big dry area beside the car. Our vehicle awnings and awning walls guide and canopy sidewalls and wind walls guide cover what each maker says about wind; take any awning down before a storm arrives.
• Window screens or shades let you open the windows for air if you sleep in the car: see car camping window screens and shades.
• A towel and a full change of clothes that stay in the car, not the tent, for the drive home.
• Spare dry socks and shoes in the car, so wet boots come off at the trailhead.
• A plastic tub or bin for wet tent, fly and tarp, so they do not soak the car on the way home.

Park where you can drive out if the road floods. The NWS Turn Around Don't Drown page says 12 inches of rushing water can carry away most cars, and that it is never safe to drive or walk into flood water.

Choosing a site in the rain

Water and lightning pull in opposite directions, so pick a site that avoids both.

Stay out of the flood path. The NWS flood safety page says that if you are camping in a low-lying area when flooding threatens, "get to higher ground immediately," and that "it only takes 6 inches of moving water to knock you off your feet." Do not pitch in a dry wash, on a gravel bar, or right beside a stream that could rise overnight.

Stay off exposed high ground in thunderstorms. The NWS outdoor lightning guidance says to avoid open fields, hilltops and ridge tops, and if camping in the open, to set up in a valley or other low area. It also says a tent offers no protection from lightning.

The middle ground is a sheltered site above the high-water line: off the ridge, out of the wash, on ground that drains.

Check what is overhead. Look up for dead branches before you pitch; wind and rain bring them down.

In camp

• Pitch the fly first if your tent allows it, so the inner stays dry.
• Take wet layers off under the tarp or in the vestibule, never inside the inner tent.
• Change into sleep clothes right away, and put the wet ones in their own bag.
• Hang wet gear under the tarp overnight; it will not dry, but it will not get wetter.
• Cook under the tarp, not in the tent. A stove makes carbon monoxide, which the CDC describes as a colorless, odorless gas.

When to leave

The NWS lightning safety page is blunt: "There is no safe place outside when thunderstorms are in the area," and "When Thunder Roars, Go Indoors." In its camping example, it says to go to your vehicle rather than the tent or a picnic shelter, and to wait 30 minutes after the last thunder before going back.

If the campsite starts to flood, move to higher ground and do not cross moving water. If someone is shivering hard, stumbling or confused, they may be hypothermic: the CDC notes it can happen above 40°F when a person is wet. Get them into dry clothes and a sleeping bag, and get medical help.

After the trip

Unpack the tent, fly, footprint and tarp as soon as you get home and hang them to dry, even if the forecast at home is clear. Open the dry bags and turn them inside out. Wash and dry the rain jacket and pants by their care labels; our technical wash guide covers what the makers allow in the wash. Note anything that leaked, so you can seal or replace it before the next wet trip.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I bring a separate pack cover?

Only if you do not use a liner or a poncho that covers the pack. A cover sheds rain from the top and sides, but the back panel against your body still gets wet, which is why we put a liner inside.

How do I dry gear on a rainy trip?

Mostly you do not. Keep dry things sealed, keep wet things together and away from them, and dry everything at home before storing it, so tents and jackets do not stay damp in storage.

Is a tarp worth carrying on a backpacking trip?

On a trip with rain in the forecast, a small tarp or a tarp poncho gives you a dry place to cook and sit. The Sea to Summit Nylon Tarp Poncho doubles as both; our camping tarps guide covers dedicated tarps.

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