Every camper needs a camp chair. Many folks just go with the default chair that can be skooshed together to “fold up” and has a strap to put over your shoulder and is just fine because though it may not last, it wasn’t very expensive and it is easy to replace.

We had those when we first started camping, but we felt bad every time one self-combusted and had to be thrown away. We never loved the way they folded or the fact that they were impossible to get back in their bags. By the time we started teardrop camping, we wanted to maybe spend a little bit more and find something that was comfortable and folded up well and would last for more than a season or two.

We kept thinking we had found just the right chairs and then something would happen to prove they weren’t the right chairs at all. A cord would break or we would find that it tipped too easily or it would collapse at some point and dump you on the ground. So we kept researching and looking and buying more chairs. Some were too low to the ground and too hard on your knees to get out of. Others were too squirrelly and caused risk of falls on the kind of uneven ground you likely will find camping in the woods. Another were weirdly narrow or supported your back in a weird way.

Last year we got out all the various chairs we had bought over the years and had put aside to have a chair testing festival. Still nothing seemed just right. We researched again and sat in every chair we could find at various outfitters. Eventually we happened on the Helinox Sunset Chair and thought maybe we had found our answer.

It has a high back and 4 nice stable legs. It is simple to put together and folds up more easily and smaller than anything else we’d ever tried. The carry sack can convert to a neck pillow by just putting a towel into it. It’s easy to get up from and comfortable to sit in for long periods. It definitely is a bit spendy, but sometimes you can find them onsale and they have a 5-year warranty, which made me feel a bit better about what we spent. You can get add-on rockers and drink holders and chair canopies if those are things that go along with your camp style.

We got one and then another and used them for most of last year while we camped to make sure they wore well and didn’t come apart. They are just as nice a year later as the day we got them despite a lot of use. We found they worked as well for picnics or sitting at the river as they do for camping and they are seriously easy to carry (18.5 inches long packed, 3lb. 4oz.) They wash up easily. We think we finally found the perfect camp chairs!

Of course, the perfect camp chair for an adult human person is not the same as the perfect chair for a small furperson (aka the dog). Ketu likes his own chair at camp and likes it to be low to the ground and easy for him to jump in and out of and lounge in. The LL Bean Low Rider Camp Chair is perfect for him. It keeps him off the ground and away from the creepy crawly bugs, which makes him a happy camper too!