This post originally appeared on The Upland Soul on 2/24/26.
I hate clutter, and even more than that, I hate wasting my time. A big source of inefficiencies come from packing and unpacking from a trip, as well as cleaning off things that got dusty, wet, or (on a good day) bloody.
Everyone has different ideas about how they like to run their gear, and mine are dictated by a limited amount of storage space, “car camping” vs. “backpacking” setups and the different ways that I prepare food around those various situations, and a desire to have the whole system be as “set and forget” as possible. In other words, I’ll spend a little more time getting things set up on the front end so I can save time whenever I then go to pack the truck up.
There are a lot of good storage options on the market, and everyone has their favorites. I have gravitated towards the Plano ecosystem because of the variety of size and use-cases for their storage containers, as well as the affordable price point. These products are also Made in the USA, which is important. Finally, they offer high quality and extreme durability.
Here’s how I keep (almost) everything organized and ready for my next hunting, fishing, or camping trip.
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Plano Sportsman’s Trunks
I have three sizes of Sportsman’s Trunks that I use.
The largest size, with wheels, lives in the truck, and contains all my tools, jumper cables, emergency food, and other assorted emergency gear. If everything goes well, I’ll never have to open this, which is great because these hinged Trunks suck. This one is at the end of its life and will be replaced by a standard, non-hinged bin of a similar size (which are indestructible).
I have two other 64qt Trunks, one with all of my “Camp Cook” stuff, and the other with the rest of my general-purpose camping equipment. The tent and sleeping bag go in here, and it’s easy to just slide out the two bins and get to work when you’re hungry or ready to make or break camp. These are both well over five years old and aren’t even beginning to show their age.
A final, 56qt baby-Trunk is relegated for extra, clean clothes. It seals out the moon dust just fine.
A significant advantage of the Planos over something like the Rubbermaid Action Packers is that the walls of the Planos are more perpendicular, meaning there’s less wasted space and items pack a little bit neater. I go into a little more detail in my article specifically about Plano Sportsman’s Trunks. The best place to pick these up is going to be your local Bass Pro/Sportsmans/whatever.
Waterproof Stowaways
These things are awesome, and come in a variety of sizes. The “Waterproof” stowaways all have a thick, blue gasket aroud the edge and are truly waterproof. I keep all my disposable cutlery in a large one, which also work to contain salt and pepper spills from poorly-secured containers… They are also odorproof, so I use these for my tobacco-related doodads. as well. These also work well for dental care items, wet wipes, and anything else that you don’t want to keep clean and locked down. I use the 3400 series and the larger 3700 Deep series for cutlery.
Ed. Note – see how we use the Waterproof Stowaways of our own here!
Conclusion
I guess that’s actually it, then. Most of life is just knowing what that thing you’ve been needing in your head is called things are called in order to be able to Google them, so I think you’ll be able to take the concepts in this quick article, apply them to your own storage needs, and figure out what works for you.
