thoughts on Ray Jardine Net Tent

[happyhunter]

I am thinking about the Jardine tarp and bug net tent. His site states the 2 person net tent has a height of 30 inches. This seems low to me. If you have one please share your thoughts on the height. What is the height of the net tent at the sides? The area of the floor seems quite large.

Does the net tent have a bathtub floor?

Thanks!!

[Tha Wookie]

I have used most of ray's system for thousands of miles.

To me every inch of everything is genius. Except the bug net.

But it only has one problem (which might be fixed in his kit; i have the old go-lite made-in-china one): The entry way requires the agility of a gymnyst. Still, it's better than just about everything else out there, but when you set it up you lose a deal of room under the tarp. Yet still, because you can take it or leave it (depending on bugs) and keep your system tuned into what you need, there's not a whole lot of room for improvement (and I would not be surprised if he already improved it much from the version I have).

The BEST thing about the net in my opinion, besides the joy of flicking mosquitos and hearing them splat on the tarp, is when the sky is clear and you can set it up without the tarp, but stand-alone (with two sticks from the woods). Here's why: 1) you can see the stars and still be protected from bugs 2) my favorite - it will protect you from a morning dew well. So you can sleep in it and watch the sky, but not have to worry about having a wet bag in the morning that you would have to dry before the next night. I used this all the time on my west coast hike and it would always keep off the condensation from the dense coastal fog.

When you combine it with the tarp, I don't think there's a more versatile lightweight system out there. I've hiked over 7000 miles using the same tarp and net. My favorite part of the day is often seeing how my configuration will flow with the conditions and landscape.

[jesse]

I have both. The deminsions are what he states on his site. You do have to crawl in and out, My son and I have slept in it several times, with enough room for us our pads and all our gear. This past weekend I carried an extra silnylon ground cloth and laid it at the entrance, otherwise you are crawling on the ground to get in.

[Tha Wookie]

I have both. The deminsions are what he states on his site. You do have to crawl in and out, My son and I have slept in it several times, with enough room for us our pads and all our gear. This past weekend I carried an extra silnylon ground cloth and laid it at the entrance, otherwise you are crawling on the ground to get in.

hmmm I never thought of that.

[Tinker]

Take a look at the bug bivy on the Mountain Laurel Designs website. It is tall enough to sit up in at the head and tapers toward the feet both in height and width to save weight. It also has a full silnylon door to minimize windblown spray at the high end of your tarp (if it's tapered).
Golite has a couple of bug tents, as does Integral designs.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

While the Jardine bug-tent has it devotees among the very experienced hikers (like Tha' Wookie), you have be a really committed ultralighter and have the sort of love for being open to the stars Wook describes to use it happily IMO. Just as with tents, backpacks and footwear, bug tents are not one-size-fits-all.

I've tried the shelter Wook mentions (the old Go-lite from when Jardine and Go-Llite had an agreement for Go-Lite to produce and sell Jardine's designs). I was a skinny, agile creature back then and still found getting into and out of the structure to be difficult.

The combo of a bug-tent plus tarp is hard to beat for the amount of flexibility and keeping weight down. IMO, there are better opinions for completing this combo than the Jardine bug-tent that will allow you sit up, camp under the stars without being a skeeter-feeder and will not require you to be a gymnast to enter and exit the structure.

[jesse]

It is a bit inconvienient to crawl in and out of, but I only do it twice a day, once when I set up, and when I go to bed (or should I say go to pad). I'm not in and out of my bug tent all day. Another inconvenience is getting dressed, but there again its once a day, so Im ok with it.

[Tha Wookie]

While the Jardine bug-tent has it devotees among the very experienced hikers (like Tha' Wookie), you have be a really committed ultralighter and have the sort of love for being open to the stars Wook describes to use it happily IMO. Just as with tents, backpacks and footwear, bug tents are not one-size-fits-all.


Just a note: I starting using this system during my first thru-hike, with no thru-hiking experience. I do consider it to be "skill gear" verses "dummy gear," but it's really hardly more complicated than hanging a clothesline.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

Just a note: I starting using this system during my first thru-hike, with no thru-hiking experience. I do consider it to be "skill gear" verses "dummy gear," but it's really hardly more complicated than hanging a clothesline.It is pretty easy to set up, just really hard to enter and exit - especially with a full badder at 3 AM! That and the lack of headroom are the things that lead me not be a great fan of this piece of gear.

I've considered making a larger version of the Jardine net-tent with the Jardine doorway (truly ingenious design and would likely be easier to use in a larger version) and more headroom, but worry that I couldn't enter / exit at all with the mobility issue I now have (bum right leg)

[brit4jesus]

im thinking of tarp camping for a 09 thru hike ive no exsperience with tarps ect so what are the options for bug protection ? and is there a forum for tarp campers/hikers ?

[amigo]

Tinker, I'm not sure what bug bivy you are referring to. I bought a MLD bug bivy about 6 wks ago (paid $115, it's now on sale for $100). I haven't tried it yet, but it looks well made and just what I was looking for, especially since it weights only 5.8 ounces. HOWEVER it's only 30 inches high, not high enough to sit up in and there is no door panel on it. I was thinking of making a splash panel of silnylon, basically a triangle, and rigging it to protect the end of the bivy facing the door.

[Tinker]

Tinker, I'm not sure what bug bivy you are referring to. I bought a MLD bug bivy about 6 wks ago (paid $115, it's now on sale for $100). I haven't tried it yet, but it looks well made and just what I was looking for, especially since it weights only 5.8 ounces. HOWEVER it's only 30 inches high, not high enough to sit up in and there is no door panel on it. I was thinking of making a splash panel of silnylon, basically a triangle, and rigging it to protect the end of the bivy facing the door.

You're right, of course. MLD used to make the door panel of silnylon. I guess they got complaints that it was too warm in the dead of summer. I just looked at the website the other day to see if things had changed. They have. MLD no longer seems to offer the bug bivy in a two person model, as well as the door fabric change.

[budforester]

I can't answer about Ray's, but I've been wondering about one of these bug nets (http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=7899&memberId=12500226&storeId=226&catalogId=40000000226&langId=-1). It looks roomy,simple to pitch, cheap and weighs 5 ounces. A tarp should work with it, I think.

[Frolicking Dinosaurs]

I can't answer about Ray's, but I've been wondering about one of these bug nets (http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=7899&memberId=12500226&storeId=226&catalogId=40000000226&langId=-1). It looks roomy,simple to pitch, cheap and weighs 5 ounces. A tarp should work with it, I think.The net on this particular model is mosquito net -- it won't keep out no-u-see-ums, but similar models are made with no-u-see-um mesh

[amigo]

I second what Dino said. I have one of the Coghlan's nets and it works fine for mosquitos, but the mesh openings are way too big to keep out no-see-ums.