View Full Version : Quandry about tent for pre-thru-hike use
I'm stuck on something I'm probably over-thinking, but if anyone can help me sort it out, that would be just lovely.
I'm going to be hiking nobo 2016 with my service dog. Which means I will be travelling a bit heavy just because I'll be carrying some of my dog's food/gear. So I really want to do my best to go as UL as possible elsewhere. One thing I really really want, after having sorted through many configurations and many reviews, is a ZPacks duplex tent which, because of the six+ weeks they take, is in conflict with my desire to start doing some short section hikes ASAP. Actually, the tent is the one item that I don't have for which I can't make do with something I either already have or something very cheap just to get out there. I expect to spend most nights in my tent having read so many times about how some hikers really have problems with dogs. And anyway, wanting the relative solitude it will provide as I will be in the bubble and am not someone into spring-break party atmosphere, even if I were 35 years younger. So it makes sense to me that my tent should be the place I will splurge.
Any hiking I will do in the next couple of months doesn't have to be shakedown of my gear, rather a shakedown of myself and my dog. There are issues we need to work out that we just can't do in the city. And it'll be relatively short hikes - 3-4 days at a time, so if I need to carry some heavier items, that's fine as I won't need the volume/weight of food for both of us that I will be carrying next year.
All that is to say, I'm conflicted about what to do right now and looking for ideas. Mainly, how to deal with a tent today that isn't what I really want, just to get out there. Or even if someone has a tent of any sort they could "rent" me- for a relatively low cost? or is that impracticle, as people are protective of gear they are still planning to use again? Or does it make sense to buy a tent I can get more quickly that has good resale value? Is there a really popular 2-person tent that I can buy more quickly that will be easy enough to re-sell, or which I may end up being happy enough with to just keep? The Big Agnes Fly Creek UL 2? Something else? Or is there a cheap 1-person tent that makes sense to buy -for a few nights, we could make due with a 1-person tent as I'm only 5'4" and my dog can curl up if she has to. I just don't want to waste too much money now that could be better spent. I've seen cheap 6-pound tents but that is a bit more than I want to carry, even for a short trip.
Thanks for any help I can get sorting this out.
OK, my first error, I see I added this to a SOBO forum. Well, the question could go anywhere, but I am sorry it didn't go where I wanted it to. I'm finding this system a bit confusing.
ZenRabbit
09-12-2015, 21:23
I think you're on the right track if you buy something like the fly creek ul2. I have owned and sold one which wasn't getting used and my net cost of ownership was zero. My golden retriever and I had plenty of room in there, and it is a great tent for high winds and heavy rain as well. Campsaver has them for 279.96 right now.
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Plug-it In
09-12-2015, 23:16
If you really want a ZPacks Deluxe. Give Joe at ZPacks an email and let him know you need it sooner. I get mine next week and I ordered it little over 2 weeks ago.
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If that doesnt work you could always rent a hammock from this place http://www.undergroundquilts.com/rentals/default.html I know its not a tent style but my dog and I do hammocks just fine. Just a thought for your issue. Good luck!
gregpphoto
09-13-2015, 03:34
Got a freebie for you if you want it, you can mail it back to me when youre done, I either cowboy camp or tarp now, but maybe I'll use it again one day. In the mean time I'd love to help someone out if I can. Big Agnes Jack Rabbig SL2, very much waterproof, but inner mesh ripped up enough that its not bugproof. But that shouldnt matter this time of year. PM me if you want it!
nsherry61
09-13-2015, 10:00
. . . the tent is the one item that I don't have for which I can't make do with something I either already have or something very cheap just to get out there.
I'm at a bit of a loss here. Is a tarp really not a viable option for people? Tarps are cheap, readily available and fun to learn to pitch (at least for some of us). As a youth I spend years backpacking with a tarp until I could afford a tent. Now I backpack with a tarp in preference to a tent.
The one thing that I appreciate, that most tarp pitches don't offer is a zipper enclosed, dog resistant cage. Although, with a pyramid pitch and something across the entrance, you can even pitch a tarp in a way to significantly discourage dog exit. As a service dog, I would expect your dog is well behaved and trained. My dog is not well behaved or trained, but still settles down and sleeps well on a short lead that can keep her under the tarp (or next to me while cowboy camping), or I can have her roam free under a pyramid pitch with a little something in the doorway and a firm "no" if she starts to try and exit.
Good luck on your adventure!
Slo-go'en
09-13-2015, 10:20
Tarps really aren't that viable on the AT. They don't provide bug protection which is important, you still need a ground cloth and unless it's a very large tarp you get splash under the edges or wind blown rain in the ends.
For the OP, just get a cheap Chinese tent from ebay or Amazon. It won't be the lightest or most durable tent, but for weekend practice hikes it will be fine. But you need to do something soon, it won't be too long before more seasonable winter like weather kicks in.
gregpphoto
09-13-2015, 10:59
Tarps really aren't that viable on the AT. They don't provide bug protection which is important, you still need a ground cloth and unless it's a very large tarp you get splash under the edges or wind blown rain in the ends.
I dont know how big is big enough or how small is too small, but I used a 6x10 cuben tarp all throughout my time doing trail work and never got splashed. Youre right about the bugs, but whatever, its not like we have malaria to worry about in the U.S. Bugs are just a bother, not much more.
Walmart sells a 2 man 7ftx7ft tent for 29.99. Not the lightest thing in the world but not ultra heavy either. If you use it a lot you'll have to buy a new one every year or two, but for your purposes it would work. That or buy a $10 tarp and camp under that. We're getting to the time of year when bugs won't really be an issue.
nsherry61
09-13-2015, 18:43
Tarps really aren't that viable on the AT. They don't provide bug protection which is important, you still need a ground cloth and unless it's a very large tarp you get splash under the edges or wind blown rain in the ends.
For the OP, just get a cheap Chinese tent from ebay or Amazon. It won't be the lightest or most durable tent, but for weekend practice hikes it will be fine. But you need to do something soon, it won't be too long before more seasonable winter like weather kicks in.
We are from two very different worlds.
1) Bugs are a complete non-issue in most places this time of year.
2) Of course you need a ground cloth. I'm not sure what that has to do with anything. Add another $5 to your budget and another 4 oz to your pack weight.
3) Sure, splash can be a problem with a tarp if it is inappropriately pitched for the weather. Make sure to use some kind of a storm pitch if the weather is bad. Conversely, pitch it high and dry and wide open when the weather is good.
4) Pitched well, an 8'x10' tarp will handle some really nasty wet weather and wind with grace (and elbowroom), something that cannot be said for cheap tents.
5) Cheap tents are horrible in wet, and especially windy, weather because the material is not typically very water proof and the design does not shed wind or hold up to gusting wind well. I've never been more wet an miserable than in cheap tents in storms.
6) Tarps rock in miserable weather because you can pitch them with enough room to move around and cook inside while keeping your gear dry.
Obviously, tarping takes a bit more practice than tenting. The practice can actually be a lot of fun. Most of us usually only use one or two pitches that we happen to like best depending on the weather and the site.
I bought a Marmot Tungsten 2 tend online for about $159, from Backcountry Edge, via Amazon. It is well built, has a great fly, and comes with a footprint. All tipping the scales at just under 5lbs. I'm very satisfied. You should check it out.
Feral Bill
09-13-2015, 22:41
I mostly use an 8X10 tarp. For bug season I add some netting. 8oz? The tarp has worked well for dog, daughter, and me. It's worth a try. From New York, you can easily get to Harriman SP, and retreat to a shelter if need be. Best of luck to you and your dog.
Thanks for the range offeedback. Just hashing it out in public was helpful and there are good ideas - not sure what I'll work out but it will happen in a week or so.
I did spend a lot of time on the tarp/hammock options. I love hammocks. Without my dog that's what I would do. But I don't like the options for where my dog will sleep. I have problems with insomnia, but when I sleep I am completely out.My dog may be well behaved, but with dogs, you have to think "reasoning ability of a 3-year-old child." Meaning if the door is open of course she will run out. She isn't going to tear herself a hole in a tent. She isn't going to chew through her leash, but if we are enclosed, *I* will be able to sleep because I and my subconscious will know she isn't going off on her own adventure. Of course, if she is tied properly to something, it is as secure as being contained in a tent. But that's logic. I already know that the tie-down option, on it's own, is just going to mess with whatever illogical mechanism keeps me from sleeping in a bad way, and I'm going to need that sleep. The other problem with a hammock is that my dog likes to curl up next to me when it's cold and that's like having a space heater - a win-win for both of us that it would be sstupid not to take advantage of. So, that rules out a hammock but not a tarp - I just need more enclosure than one gets with a tarp.
Tie your dog to yourself when you go to bed.
Got a freebie for you if you want it, you can mail it back to me when youre done, I either cowboy camp or tarp now, but maybe I'll use it again one day. In the mean time I'd love to help someone out if I can. Big Agnes Jack Rabbig SL2, very much waterproof, but inner mesh ripped up enough that its not bugproof. But that shouldnt matter this time of year. PM me if you want it! Hey, I don't know if you will read this here, but your pm is full. I just sent back your tent, immensely grateful for thhe loan.I just wanted to ask for a note back to make sure you get it.