Four next-level camping utensils

Get your forkful. (Nathan Shipps via Unsplash/)

We’ll forgo many luxuries in the backcountry—toilets, showers, a soft place to sleep. One luxury that’s in no way worth skimping on: an eating utensil. We’ve compiled four top-rated camping utensils that are lightweight, multi-purpose, and totally worth a place in your pack. Leave eating with hands to monkeys and raccoons.

A durable, titanium option that’s sure to hold up under harsh conditions. (Amazon/)

You’ve probably seen the plastic Light My Fire Sporks at your local outdoors store. They’re good (and super-cheap) but a bit flimsy if you’re eating moderately firm food, not to mention prone to breaking after repeated use. This titanium variant is the same length as the original (6.75 inches) but, since it’s made of lightweight metal, it’s heat-resistant and extra durable. And it weighs only an extra .4 ounces. One user loves her titanium spork so much she wrote, “I’m bringing the spork home for the holidays so my mom stops trying to set me up with people.”

A super-compact foldable spork. (Amazon/)

If space is a serious concern, GSI Outdoors manufactures a handy foldable spork that collapses down to a mere 3.7 inches. 3.7 inches! At that super-tiny size, this affordable spork can fit beneath a camping fuel canister or in a coffee mug for easy packing. And, at .6 ounces, it weighs basically nothing. It’s hard to imagine a smaller camping utensils.

A tricked-out, ten-tool utensil. (Amazon/)

The Muncher takes the everyday camping utensil to the extreme. It’s the total camp-cooking with built-in ten tools, including a spork, serrated butter knife, can opener, fruit and vegetable peeler, beer opener, fire flint, screwdriver, and a box cutter. And somehow the whole package weighs just 0.8 ounces. The Muncher ain’t exactly cheap, and there’s some debate whether it warrants its not-insignificant price tag, but the design is certainly clever all the same.

A combo utensil perfect for venison steaks. (Amazon/)

Do you really need a tactical spork? Probably not. That’s not the point. The point is that Ka-Bar basically turned a normal camping utensil into a sheath for a 2.5-inch separated blade. If you plan on grilling venison steaks on your camping trip, this 6.8-inch combo tool warrants consideration. One minor hiccup several users have pointed out: “My biggest complaint is that I can’t clean food out of a little hole right near the head, unless I use a dishwasher.”