This Lightweight And Surprisingly Affordable Outdoor Gadget Could Transform Your Next Camping Trip

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DIY hacks and nifty gadgets are now part of every dedicated camper's toolkit. There are portable coffee-making gadgets to keep you caffeinated each morning and clever pool noodle hacks that can save your tent. Some people swear by drying out their boots with newspaper, greasing up jammed zippers with candle wax, or transporting cracked eggs in a bottle or canister. Even using acorns as whistles and empty cans and sticks as makeshift alarms are hacks that can improve (and safeguard) your outdoor adventure.

Often, these tricks of the trade focus on the campfire, something you'll likely need, whether it's for warmth, food preparation, warding off bugs, or as a nightly gathering point for sharing stories from the day. But if you're looking for an invaluable gadget, then a smokeless, wood-burning steel fire pit is a great campfire substitute. Fire pit specialist HGD has a handful of options, some of them costing less than $100. 

HGD's smokeless fire pits come in various sizes, from the $28 tabletop version, perfect for solo campers looking for a bargain, to the $230 HGD 28-inch Smokeless Firepit with a stainless-steel grill that's more suited to families planning to cook dinner in the wild. Each comes with a storage and transport bag, and the 28-inch version, in particular, is well-reviewed on Amazon, with nearly three-quarters of its 400-plus ratings earning five stars.

HGD's fire pits might not carry the primal romanticism of dancing embers and the smell of drifting woodsmoke, but they still look pretty sleek and are more than capable of fulfilling the role of stove and heat source. While each model has slightly different specifications, the HGD 20-inch Smokeless Firepit with Grill is versatile — and quite affordable — at only $110. 

Airflow in the stainless-steel walls of the circular pit eliminates (most) smoke and enables users to cook over the clean flame. This will be great news to people who hate waking up the day after camping to find the smell of smoke clinging to every thread of clothing and lock of hair.

The fire pit is also lightweight and durable, and features a removable ash pan to expedite the cleaning process. And it uses wood as its fuel source, so you don't need to bring any special equipment to get it up and running; just some firelighters and whatever twigs and sticks you find lying on the forest floor. While HGD's fire pits are great for campers, some customers also use them as permanent backyard fireplaces and barbecue areas.