Camp? Anyone use a tent?

[ZionsWrath]

Looking for some insight on buying a tent. Many tracks allow camping I wanted to try it in an actual tent.

Haven't seen it too much but when I went to CMP in South Carolina I seen a lot of people doing it in tents.

Looking for recommendations for a tent. Also looking for input on a pad for the tent floor inside. Seen a bunch of people with pads they rolled up for the floor in their tents. Probably need some decent stakes as well?

Please teach me.

[Mr.ac]

Depends what kind of camping and what size tent.

If all you want is a tent for track side, any one would do really. Add an inflatable air mattress and your good to go. Forget sleeping on the ground. Some yoga matts or a rug will do fine.

[Tcoat]

Can probably buy one of these for the price of a good tent!

[ZionsWrath]

Originally Posted by Mr.ac

Depends what kind of camping and what size tent.

If all you want is a tent for track side, any one would do really. Add an inflatable air mattress and your good to go. Forget sleeping on the ground. Some yoga matts or a rug will do fine.

Well my car is full.

A tent, blanket/pillow, pad to line the floor with would be in the passenger seat. Not sure I could fit an inflatable mattress? Want a durable setup if I end up going through with it.

[ZionsWrath]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Can probably buy one of these for the price of a good tent!

I don't sell meth wtf m8!?!?!

[BRZHarley]

If you know someone who can sew (a dieing art I know) get some silnylon off of eBay. Have it cut and sewn into a 8 x 10 foot sheet and you can create any of a number of tents or leanto's.... Bring along about 50ft of paracord for tie offs and guy lines. Add a small camp hatched for making your own stakes and too hammer them in and you are good to go!

Cheap, light and small package! A 9 x 12 sheet wil fit in a 1 gallon ziploc bag with room for your paracord ..

Good luck,

Ed

[Tectoniic]

Originally Posted by ZionsWrath

Haven't seen it too much but when I went to CMP in South Carolina I seen a lot of people doing it in tents.

Please teach me.

Give em some privacy, it's not polite to watch unless they're into that kind of thing.

[Leonardo]

Kelty. Has air beam tents. Sonic 6. Check em out. No poles. Super sweet. My friends use one in campgrounds after a drunk guy fell into the pole of their old tent and it broke.

I have thermarest Dreamsleep matresses. An investment, but I have been using mine since 2008. Plus the have a lifetime warranty.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Tectoniic

Give em some privacy, it's not polite to watch unless they're into that kind of thing.

Years ago we had two newlyweds set up a tent next to us. They apparently did not understand the effects that leaving a lantern on in a tent has once it gets dark out.
Most interesting shadow puppet show ever!

[JD001]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Years ago we had two newlyweds set up a tent next to us. They apparently did not understand the effects that leaving a lantern on in a tent has once it gets dark out.
Most interesting shadow puppet show ever!

We??? Tell us more??

[gramicci101]

Identify your needs from a tent. A 1 person backpacking shelter is vastly different from a 4 person tent, and both are different from an 8 person tent.

2 to 4 person tents are pretty much standard; most everything else is designed to fit a specific requirement. Check the REI outlet, Backcountry outlet, MooseJaw outlet, Steep and Cheap, and Gear Trade for decent prices; you don't need the latest and the greatest, just something that works. Set it up and break it down a few times in your living room, so you're familiar with how it goes together before you try to set it up in the dark in the woods.

Most tents don't come with a ground cloth, so you might want to make one. It isn't strictly necessary, but it helps to protect the expensive tent from rocks, sticks, and things that can tear the fabric. Go to Home Depot, get some thick plastic sheeting (2-3 mil), and cut it to be an inch shorter than the footprint of the tent in all directions. You don't want it sticking out past the tent because it'll collect water and that's bad. If you cut it larger than the tent's footprint, just roll the edges up under the tent when you set it up. If you want, you can cut another sheet to go on the floor inside the tent, so you don't have to worry about dropping something sharp on the tent material and ripping it. Get a nylon patch kit just in case. The tent will come with stakes, for both the tent and the rain fly. Bring a small plastic mallet or use a rock to drive the stakes completely into the ground, angled back towards the tent. That way they won't pull out unexpectedly. Because pulling out unexpectedly is never good.

For a sleeping pad, you can go with a closed cell foam pad, a self inflating air pad, or a straight up air mattress. From experience, if two people are sleeping on an air mattress, the heavier person will end up on the bottom of the pile after a little bit of air escapes. Also from experience, a twin size air mattress fits neatly between the shock towers of a Subaru Forester. Good times. If you bring an air mattress, make sure you bring the inflator as well. You can get a manual one, but a 12v or battery one is much quicker. For myself, a self inflating air pad is fine. Bedding also depends on how amorous you might get. Two people in two separate sleeping bags on separate pads is not nearly as fun as two people on an air mattress with sheets and blankets. And two people together in a one person sleeping bag just looks like a stuffed sausage of failure, especially if it's a mummy bag.

When you get to the site, identify where the tent will go and police the shit out of that spot. Anything that can poke you while you're sleeping, will poke you while you're sleeping, so move any rocks, sticks, pinecones, and small woodland creatures away from where you want to set up your tent. Try to find a spot on a very slight angle, so any water will run off instead of pool under the tent. Make sure you attach the rain fly, even if the weather is supposed to be clear. Waking up soaked in the middle of the night because no one gave the weather forecast to the sky is uncomfortable and upsetting.

Keep your area clean. Put things away when you're done using them, clean up after yourself, keep everything orderly. It's so much easier to function when what little space you have is organized appropriately.

An alternative to tents is a camping hammock. They have bug netting, rain flies, and all the typical tent things, just hanging from trees instead of sitting on the ground. This is kind of an advanced option, because you need to know how to identify appropriate trees from which to hang your hammock and how to hang it properly. Hennessey makes good camping hammocks.

Bring a good flashlight. The woods gets DARK at night. Tactical lights such as Surefire or Streamlight are small, lightweight, and bright as fuck, but they require special batteries. Bring plenty of water. Bring some food. If you bring canned food, bring a can opener. Seems obvious; isn't. If you're in bear country, bring a food sack and some rope so you can hoist your food into the air above the bear's reach. Bring a good knife. A decently sturdy, sharp knife is probably the single most useful tool to have while you're camping. Bring toilet paper. Even if you're only out for a night or two. It's better to have it and not need it, etc...

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by gramicci101

Identify your needs from a tent. A 1 person backpacking shelter is vastly different from a 4 person tent, and both are different from an 8 person tent.

2 to 4 person tents are pretty much standard; most everything else is designed to fit a specific requirement. Check the REI outlet, Backcountry outlet, MooseJaw outlet, Steep and Cheap, and Gear Trade for decent prices; you don't need the latest and the greatest, just something that works. Set it up and break it down a few times in your living room, so you're familiar with how it goes together before you try to set it up in the dark in the woods.

Most tents don't come with a ground cloth, so you might want to make one. It isn't strictly necessary, but it helps to protect the expensive tent from rocks, sticks, and things that can tear the fabric. Go to Home Depot, get some thick plastic sheeting (2-3 mil), and cut it to be an inch shorter than the footprint of the tent in all directions. You don't want it sticking out past the tent because it'll collect water and that's bad. If you cut it larger than the tent's footprint, just roll the edges up under the tent when you set it up. If you want, you can cut another sheet to go on the floor inside the tent, so you don't have to worry about dropping something sharp on the tent material and ripping it. Get a nylon patch kit just in case. The tent will come with stakes, for both the tent and the rain fly. Bring a small plastic mallet or use a rock to drive the stakes completely into the ground, angled back towards the tent. That way they won't pull out unexpectedly. Because pulling out unexpectedly is never good.

For a sleeping pad, you can go with a closed cell foam pad, a self inflating air pad, or a straight up air mattress. From experience, if two people are sleeping on an air mattress, the heavier person will end up on the bottom of the pile after a little bit of air escapes. Also from experience, a twin size air mattress fits neatly between the shock towers of a Subaru Forester. Good times. If you bring an air mattress, make sure you bring the inflator as well. You can get a manual one, but a 12v or battery one is much quicker. For myself, a self inflating air pad is fine. Bedding also depends on how amorous you might get. Two people in two separate sleeping bags on separate pads is not nearly as fun as two people on an air mattress with sheets and blankets. And two people together in a one person sleeping bag just looks like a stuffed sausage of failure, especially if it's a mummy bag.

When you get to the site, identify where the tent will go and police the shit out of that spot. Anything that can poke you while you're sleeping, will poke you while you're sleeping, so move any rocks, sticks, pinecones, and small woodland creatures away from where you want to set up your tent. Try to find a spot on a very slight angle, so any water will run off instead of pool under the tent. Make sure you attach the rain fly, even if the weather is supposed to be clear. Waking up soaked in the middle of the night because no one gave the weather forecast to the sky is uncomfortable and upsetting.

Keep your area clean. Put things away when you're done using them, clean up after yourself, keep everything orderly. It's so much easier to function when what little space you have is organized appropriately.

An alternative to tents is a camping hammock. They have bug netting, rain flies, and all the typical tent things, just hanging from trees instead of sitting on the ground. This is kind of an advanced option, because you need to know how to identify appropriate trees from which to hang your hammock and how to hang it properly. Hennessey makes good camping hammocks.

Bring a good flashlight. The woods gets DARK at night. Tactical lights such as Surefire or Streamlight are small, lightweight, and bright as fuck, but they require special batteries. Bring plenty of water. Bring some food. If you bring canned food, bring a can opener. Seems obvious; isn't. If you're in bear country, bring a food sack and some rope so you can hoist your food into the air above the bear's reach. Bring a good knife. A decently sturdy, sharp knife is probably the single most useful tool to have while you're camping. Bring toilet paper. Even if you're only out for a night or two. It's better to have it and not need it, etc...

WOW Gram is passionate about his tents!

[gramicci101]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

WOW Gram is passionate about his tents!

I spent most of my youth and a good portion of my adulthood camping, and there's no telling where the military will drop you or with what equipment. Although to be fair, most of my best equipment is military issue. As long as I don't mind being "that guy" whose gear is all various shades of camo, olive drab, and desert tan.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by gramicci101

I spent most of my youth and a good portion of my adulthood camping, and there's no telling where the military will drop you or with what equipment. Although to be fair, most of my best equipment is military issue. As long as I don't mind being "that guy" whose gear is all various shades of camo, olive drab, and desert tan.

That was why I switched to Navy. If you were in a tent then that meant something went dreadfully wrong someplace.


My idea of roughing it now means a rainy day and only 100 stations come in on the satellite.