3. Portable charger
I also carry a portable charger in my park bag. I purchased mine at Best Buy for around $50, which sounds a little high for a portable charger, but you really get what you pay for when it comes to these chargers. Remember when I was a rookie—when I didn’t bring a bag into the parks? That’s the same time in my life when I bought a portable charger for around $5 to $10. And it charged my smartphone for about 10 minutes before it ran out of battery power too. So when my phone battery ran out that day, so did my ability to take the pictures I wanted to take in the parks. I promised myself I wouldn’t pull a rookie move like that again. Enter the $50 charger—it has 2 USB ports and can fully charge my smartphone without running out of battery power itself. And an unlimited picture-taking Mom is a happy Mom.
