The cool part about the Summit Sleepover is that you don’t need to haul a lot of gear up the mountain. Helly Hansen has got you covered. But you still need to come prepared for alpine conditions. Here’s what we brought and what we’d recommend for a similar overnight camping trip:

Clothing:

• Waterproof jacket and puffy jacket
• Hiking pants
• Midlayers and base layers
• Hiking boots and camp shoes
• Beanie hat and light gloves

Accessories:

• Water bottle
• Sunglasses and sunscreen
• Headlamp (essential for late-night trips to the washroom)
• Bio-degradable personal toiletries

Camping essentials:

• 2- or 3-person tent
• Warm sleeping bag (-9C is recommended – trust us, it gets cold at night
• Insulated sleeping pad + camp pillow
• Backpack (35–65L)

Optional luxuries:

• Camera or a journal

Helly Hansen also provided thoughtful extras like mosquito repellents, first aid kits, power banks, ponchos, and blankets for the evening activities.

We didn’t need to bring any food, cooking equipment, or fuel either – seriously, there was PLENTY to go around!

One more tip – because Whistler is known for having a healthy population of black bears, you also need to be bear aware to protect yourself and the bears. That’s another thing that was handled perfectly by the organizers – they provided dry bags and secure storage for food, cosmetics, and anything else that may have had a fragrance.

Looking back, here are a few tips we’d pass along to those doing a similar trip, or who are lucky enough to join the next Helly Hansen Summit Sleepover in Whistler:
 

• Arrive early at the meeting location. Give yourself time to pick up your new Helly Hansen gear, swap colors or sizes, grab your lunch (provided by Helly Hansen), and meet the others joining the adventure with you.
  
  
• Bring a warm sleeping bag (-9C) and extra layers! Even though it was July and we had nice weather overall, the night was a lot colder than we all expected and only when we put on our puffy jackets were we warm enough to sleep comfortably.
  
  
• Test all your gear ahead of time, especially if you’re new to camping or haven’t used your gear in a while. We actually pitched our first ever tent in the living room before coming, which saved us a lot of stress once we were up on the mountain.
  
  
• Pack some luxury items. There’s very little hiking with your backpack, so bring your camera, a book or a journal, or anything else you would normally consider leaving behind when camping in the mountains.
  
  
• Leave no trace – Helly Hansen put a lot of effort into making this experience as amazing as possible, while minimizing the impact on the environment, so make sure you also do your part.

As the sun rose in the morning, we rolled out of our tent to find the coffee bar already waiting for us. We spent a few moments chatting with others and swapping stories from the previous day. Soon it was time for the last activity, a yoga session with a view of the mountains – a perfect activity after an intense day and a night in a tent.

For people like us who had never camped in the mountains before, the HH Summit Sleepover was more than just a night under the stars. It was a chance to push past hesitation, try something new, and kick off our tent camping era. We couldn’t have wished for a better first experience!

If you ever get the chance to enter the contest, do it. And if you win, know this – the real prize isn’t the free gear or gondola rides – it’s the way this unique experience stays with you long after you’ve returned home.

The Helly Hansen Summit Sleepover is part of Open Mountain Month, an activation that kicks off in June each year, with a goal to inspire, enable, and empower people to enjoy the outdoors.

You’ll find guides, tips, stories, and outdoor events and hikes throughout the month and beyond – delivered by Helly Hansen and their community of outdoor professionals and mountain guides.

To have a chance to win an experience like this one, follow Helly Hansen and Whistler Blackcomb on Instagram and in June next year, keep an eye on the post about entering the contest.