How To Have Great Hair While Hiking, Camping, Or Backpacking
Summer is here, woo hoo! Some of my favorite activities during the warmer months are hiking, camping, and backpacking. During my own recent experience, I realized that it can often be a challenge to maintain your hair while out in the wilderness. So in this post I’m going to cover several different scenarios on how to maintain your hair while you’re hiking, camping, and/or backpacking.
You can watch my Youtube video on this topic below:
How do you keep your hair clean while camping?
Now, the solution to washing your hair while camping will be dependent on if you’re doing a weekend camping trip or a several month long backpacking trip. But fear not, because I’m going to cover what to do with each situation.
If you’re camping, you’re likely only going to be gone for the weekend. My best recommendation is to start the trip with clean hair, and try not to wash it the entire weekend. If you can avoid getting it wet in the lake, I’d recommend it. If not, see below where I talk about washing your hair while camping.
And if your hair isn’t trained to go several days without washing, you may want to prepare and begin skipping days in the few weeks leading up to the trip. The more you wash your hair the more oil you produce, and if you slow down on frequent shampooing your body will begin to produce less oil. See my post here on how to train your hair to go 2 full weeks without shampooing it.
If you’re on a long backpacking trip, you’ll still want to train your hair to go as long as possible without shampooing it.
***Since I’m sharing the products that I love to use with you guys, this page includes affiliate links to these products. If you take action and purchase a product through clicking one of my links, I’ll make some commission money from it at no extra cost to you. This enables me to be able to continue giving you awesome hair tips, so thanks! ***
Dry shampoo and conditioner
One of my best secrets in general to skipping extra days between washes is to use dry shampoo and conditioner. You can find travel size dry shampoo that you can fit in your backpack easily.
If you have coarse or frizzy prone hair, you may want to also grab a dry conditioner. This is similar to dry shampoo but instead of absorbing oil, it tames frizz and makes the hair feel softer.
Some people don’t like the gritty feel that dry shampoo gives hair, and this is where dry conditioner comes in. You can find my favorites below:
- Travel Dry Shampoo (Amika)
- Travel Dry Conditioner (Kevin Murphy)
Sample size hair products instead of travel size
When it comes to bringing shampoo and conditioner with you while camping or backpacking, my best recommendation is to use sample sized products rather than travel size. I’ve found these take up less space and are also less likely to leak or explode in your bag.
You can get creative when looking for sample size products, but I recommend starting at Sally’s. They will likely give you some for free with a purchase especially if you ask, but you can also buy samples on Amazon.
- Purple shampoo & conditioner samples (for blondes)
- Samples for curly hair
- Shampoo & conditioner samples for all hair types
If you can’t find any samples or don’t want to pay for one-use, you can also purchase some sample size containers and put your regular products in those to take with you.
Use a portable shower
Something that’s come in way more use than I’ve ever thought would is a portable shower! This is great to have in general when camping for both men and women. I’ve even used this for washing dishes!
There are a number of different options to choose from when it comes to portable showers depending on how much you want to spend. I didn’t get one with a heater because they were a lot more expensive and over the top. Most of them say to let it sit in the sun for a while and it’ll heat up, but honestly the cool water was super refreshing!
You can also choose between a foot pump water pump or an electric water pump. I have the mid-range option and it comes with both options.
How to style your hair while camping
When it comes to styling your hair, you’ll likely want to opt for your lowest maintenance options. If you can get away with wearing your natural wave pattern, that is likely your best option.
I’ve found that even if I blow out my hair and iron it before my camping trip that with the humidity and outdoor activities, my blowout typically gets trashed.
If you can air dry your hair and have it last you a few days, this is going to be your best bet. Remember that no one expects you to be red carpet ready when you’re camping or backpacking!
Keep your hair covered
As I’ve mentioned in other posts, you’ll want to keep your hair covered from the sun. The sun can fade your color, dry it out, and actually cause breakage.
Hats are a great option to keep your hair covered from the outdoor elements, and they can also be a great accessory that takes away the need for styling.
Check out my post here on summer hair tips to learn more about caring for your hair in the sun.
Braids
Another option for styling your hair while camping is to wear it in braids. Braids are a cute way to keep your hair pulled back and controlled. If you have curly hair and are struggling with how to deal with it while camping, keeping it in braids is a great option.
I like to wear my hair in braids for a day or two, then take the braids out and wear it wavy for the following few days.
I recommend practicing beforehand what braids you can do easily and that won’t leave you looking like you were electrocuted when you take them out. For some, one loose braid is the best option while others can do two tighter braids.
How do you straighten your hair while camping?
As I mentioned earlier, wearing your hair natural is going to be your best bet. But if you must, you can always get a portable power box for your flat iron or even blow dryer.
The power box will come in handy for some other things as well! You may want to purchase travel size tools or find some that use the least amount of wattage beforehand.
I have the same brand power box that I’ve linked below, but I have a much bigger and more expensive one because we have a conversion van and we use it for lots of things. That being said, I still opt to wear my hair natural as much as possible so I don’t use all of our power on my hair.
See some options below:
Backpacking hair tips conclusion
In this post we talked about the best ways to have good hair while hiking, camping, and backpacking.
How to keep your hair clean:
- Train your hair to skip days
- Wash your hair the day-of
- Use dry shampoo and conditioner
- Bring sample/travel sized products
- Use a portable shower
How to style your hair while camping:
- Wear a hat
- Wear braids
- Use a power box for your hair tools
If you have any other questions on maintaining your hair while hiking, camping, or backpacking, leave them for me in the comments. Be make sure to subscribe to make everyday a good hair day!
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