Building a Hangout in the Woods | Califf Life Creations

Living in the woods is so nice. I love having access to such a natural area that my kids can grow up in and observe. The one thing we have been missing in the woods by our house was a true hangout spot. That’s what inspired me to start building a fort in the words. The question arose as I started envisioning dance parties in the woods, how do I plan to power the outdoors so we can create a spot for both adventure and relaxation?

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How to Power the Outdoors

Having a portable power station was the perfect solution. Honestly, this hangout spot just wouldn’t be the same without some power. While we like to rough it in nature, modern comforts are just oh so nice! Am I right? In building a spot that was not just for adventure but also relaxation, I knew that we would want to power the outdoors.

Our Jackery Explorer 500 is perfect to power our outdoor spot in the woods. It is lightweight (only about 13 lbs) and has an easy carry handle so bringing it out into the woods takes little effort. Even my 4-year-old can carry it out there and we can power everything we could dream of for an amazing day in the woods (more on this later).

Without this portable station to power the outdoors we would have been more limited in what we could do out there. I’m honestly not even sure we would have gotten it built!

We had to Power the Outdoors Just to Get the Work Done

The first major challenge we faced was how to build this in the woods when all we owned were electrical power tools. There were going to be long days of using a chainsaw and a leaf blower and we needed to be able to charge batteries outdoors so we didn’t have to haul everything back and forth so much from the house.

Using the Jackery Explorer 500, we could have one battery plugged in and charging while the other was in the chainsaw being used to clear some trees from the area. The portable power station has enough power to run a speaker off it too so we were listening to music while getting work done. That always helps the day move faster.

Building the Best Hangout Spot in the Woods

We have the basics done. The area was cleared and then we build this giant stick fort. My kids immediately wanted to start playing so the first thing we did was have a dance party in the woods. I didn’t have to worry that the speaker or my phone had low batteries since I had my Jackery Explorer 500 ready to power the outdoors.

So far we have dance partied, relaxed, and played in the fort. I’m still working on building it up and creating more modern comforts that can be powered by our portable power station. I have big plans for this spot and can’t wait to have Jackery make them all possible.

Activities to do When you can Power the Outdoors

Here are some of the activities I want to do in our outdoor fort, powered by the Jackery Explorer 500.

Dance parties, we can never have enough of them!
Movie night outside (can use the laptop plugged into the Jackery or possibly even a small tv. If I owned a projector, you can power that using this station outside too!)
Margaritas in the woods. There is something so satisfying about having a blended beverage somewhere remote like the woods. Bringing the blender outside is a fun way to hang outdoors all day and have a good time with other adults.
Cook and have dinner in the woods. It might sound like a strange idea but I think it would be so much fun to bring the crockpot out into the woods and use our Jackery Explorer 500 to power it and cook up a big batch of pulled pork to eat outside! This would also be fun to do for a party.
Hike with the Jackery to have a dance party on a mountain top.

Check out my tips for hiking with babies and with toddlers (plus tips on tick protection).

Power the chainsaw and leaf blower to clear the ground and build more areas for the fort. I’m thinking next might be a makeshift bench and table, maybe a desk for me to work at. We’ll see where my imagination takes us.

Mini-fridge in the woods. I’ll admit I haven’t fully figured this one out. Carrying the Jackery Explorer 500 from the house when we want to power the outdoors is easy, a mini-fridge is not. That means that I will have to figure out a way to build something in the woods that would be able to be closed and protect the mini-fridge from the elements when it isn’t being used. While I will dream of this and know that I can power it, the question is if it is practical in other ways. Feel free to comment any suggestions to make this happen below!
Charge phones and tablets so I don’t have to walk back to the house (yes, sometimes even active nature moms want to be a little lazy).
Spend a day working and writing in the woods. This will have to wait until I have somewhere more comfortable to sit but I want to take my laptop into the woods, plug it into the Jackery and spend a day surrounded in nature writing and working. There is nothing more inspiring than being outside and I know that I would be so productive using the fort as a type of office. Plus, if I build a little “desk” for myself, I can make it a habit to work out there while the kids play in the woods. That’s a win-win.

More Details about the Jackery Explorer 500

What Can I Power with it?

When I say that this power station can power the outdoors, I am serious! It has ports that accommodate most mainstream electronics and small appliances including phones, tablets, laptops, cameras, drones, and even mini-fridges! If you want to power the outdoors, whether it is camping, hiking, or your backyard, the Jackery Explorer 500 has your covered.

More about the Jackery Explorer 500 for the Technical Minded

This portable power station uses a 518wh lithium battery with a 400mAh battery capacity. It is an all-in-one station to power the outdoors including 3 USB ports, an AC outlet, and a 12V car output. You can also recharge it in three different ways (AC outlet, DC carport, or using an optional solar panel) that increases the Jackery’s versatility. The Battery Management System (BMS) protects devices from overcharging so you don’t have to worry about forgetting your phone plugged in. It also comes with a 2-year warranty and life-long technical support.