In my last article,, I talked about some super comfortable camping chairs that are perfect for car camping. But as I mentioned, each of those chairs weighs about 10 pounds or more, so what sort of camping chairs should you look for when you are planning on hiking in to your campsite and don’t want to lug around a heavy chair?
The first lightweight camping chair we’re gonna take a look at is a traditional camping stool from REI. It’s currently priced around $20 US and weighs just over one pound – perfect for taking on long hikes.
As you can see, this sort of camping chair is a long way from the super comfortable chairs with canopies and footrests we looked at last time, but it is well made, durable and reasonably comfortable. It also works well if you have limited space in your campsite – it’s footprint is only about 10 inches.
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The next chair is also a great option for carrying in to a campsite. It’s a stadium-seat-type camping chair, and is super light – it weighs under one pound! This chair is made by Crazy Creek, priced at $40 US and is also available at REI.
These sorts of camping chairs are great for long hikes, as they are so lightweight, and they also fold down to almost nothing, making it very easy to fit into your backpack. The only problem with them is that they are pretty much the bottom of the barrel in terms of comfort. You’re sitting directly on the ground, with only a thin pad between you and any rocks, roots, or mud, and I’ve never been able to really relax in one. But if the weight of your camping chair is a big concern for you, then this is definitely an option to consider.
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The third camping chair is a variation of the camping stool we saw earlier. Instead of a tripod, this one has two U-shaped legs and folds in the middle for transport. This chair is made by Coleman and is available at Amazon for under $20 US.
In my experience, these sorts of stools are generally not as comfortable as the tripod version, but your mileage may vary. This chair weighs in at 2.6 pounds, so it’s definitely an option for someone looking for a lightweight camping chair.
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The last camping chair is another version of the camp stool, but this time it comes with a back rest. This chair is available at Amazon for around $20 US.
The back rest would go a long way to making the camp stool more comfortable, but it does come at a weight cost – the stool weighs in at 4 pounds. Still better than the 10 pound behemoths we’re taking car camping, but a factor to be considered for someone going on a significant hike.
