Must-Have For Your Next Trip Outdoors
By Mara Leighton, originally published by Business Insider here
If you’ve ever camped in the wilderness at night or killed a fire without realizing the porch light wasn’t on, you’ll be able to recall the kind of darkness that exists far away from street and city lights.
For many campers, it’s exactly what they seek when they head outdoors — a removal from civilization and a closer integration with nature.
But every camper also understands the importance of having a light source, to prevent injury, make sure you can always see what’s happening around you, and even help you correctly set up your tent if the sun goes down before you reach your destination.
Even if you’re not planning an overnight trip, outdoorsmen understand the common sense and importance of preparing for variables out of their control. If you’re biking, camping, hiking, or rock climbing, it pays to have a reliable light source that isn’t just your phone, especially since that might not work at certain altitudes or temperatures.
The one camping tool every person should have is the Luci Outdoor Inflatable Solar Light by MPOWERD. It's inflatable, solar-powered, lightweight, waterproof, and extremely inexpensive.
Plus, it packs a punch with 10 powerful LED lights that shine in four modes: low, medium, high, and 1-second flashing.
At only 4.4 ounces, it's much lighter than a flashlight and entirely solar-powered, which means no batteries and therefore a much more environmentally friendly footprint. And just in case something terrible were to happen, it’s much nicer to know you won’t be counting down batteries. Just set the light in direct sunlight for seven hours, and a single charge will last you up to 12 hours.
It’s perfectly engineered to accommodate life outdoors: inflatable, collapsible, and lightweight to easily fit in your pack without weighing you down and fully waterproof and submersible with an IP67 rating in case you take them out on the water with you.
If you’re trekking in with a pack or want to be able to hang the light like a lantern in your tent or off of a branch, there are easy top and bottom straps to clip onto.
You'll have to inflate the light out of its compressed state, but if you squeeze the sides of the plug where it says "squeeze here" while you pull the top and bottom apart, it will inflate to about 85%, so you won't even have to expend much energy there.
One reviewer commented on the difference in weight from other lighting options, saying "I originally purchased this light for backpacking trips, and let me say that it is fantastic. It has replaced the led lantern that I had been using, and I have saved about 14 oz on pack weight" — which doesn’t seem like an exaggeration at only 4.4 ounces itself.
With this in your pack, you'll save room and ensure that no matter how far off the grid you go, you'll always be kept out of the dark.
