Camp lighting, portable power, and solar charging for overlanding and car camping.

Camp Lighting

The Candlelier is the right starting point for most car campers. It runs three candles behind a windproof shield and puts out real ambient light without needing batteries, charging, or anyone pointing a headlamp across the table. The UCO Aluminum Candle Lantern does the same job in a more compact, classic form if you want something that fits in a jacket pocket. For task lighting, the Black Diamond Beta Headlamp covers camp chores and night hiking, and the Sprout LED Lantern is a cheap, packable backup that earns its weight. The ReadyLight Camp Lantern is a collapsible LED option that works well as a tent interior light or table lantern.

Portable Power Stations

The key number when choosing a power station is watt-hours (Wh), not the model name. A 200 to 500Wh station handles phone charging, a camera battery, a 12V cooler fan, and basic lighting across a long weekend. That puts you in Anker PowerHouse 521 (256Wh) and Jackery Explorer 500 (518Wh) territory. Step up to the Anker 535, 555, or 757 if you are running a larger cooler, a CPAP, or anything drawing sustained power over multiple nights. The Dometic PLB15 is a compact LiFePO4 option that pairs directly with Dometic coolers and takes up less real estate in a packed rig.

Solar Charging

The Anker 625 (100W) and Jackery SolarSaga 100W are solid weekend companions for the smaller stations — leave them out during the day and you recover enough to keep things running. The Anker 531 (200W) makes more sense paired with a larger station on multi-day trips. Solar output depends on conditions, so treat panel wattage as a ceiling, not a target.

Emergency and Safety

The Emergency LED Road Flare belongs in every vehicle kit. It runs for hours on a charge and is substantially more visible than reflective triangles in rain or low light. Small item, easy to forget, worth having before you need it.