Any tarp stake presence?

[saltysack]

With most of my ground shelters...mainly cuben duomid I’ve used longer Easton nails at the four corners and ti shepherd hooks on pull outs as dont have as much force on them. I’m assuming a 12’ hg tarp would probably do better with the stouter stakes at corners and maybe Shep hooks for panel pulls? Main terrain would be on southern trails....


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[saltysack]

Uggg...preference..


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[Slo-go'en]

I have an assortment of stakes since most of them were found along the trail. I always look around tent sites for stray spikes. I've contributed more then a few of my own too. I find shepherd hooks to be too difficult to put into hard ground. I kind of like the V shaped spikes as I can pound them with a rock if needed, are less likely to bend and they hold pretty well.

[Rain Man]

I take a variety, as even at a single site, each stake may have different soil, etc. Shepherds, V's, Groundhogs, snowstake.

I paint mine bright orange, so as not to lose. ;)

[Shrewd]

I used groundhogs the whole way

Two bent on me and were replaced with mini groundhogs


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[cmoulder]

I use Lawson Ti shepherd hooks almost all the time. But depending upon snow depth this time of the year I'll use Groundhogs (cheep knock-offs from China) 'cause they're better for pounding into ice, or found sticks because they're perfect for burying sideways in the snow, deadman-style.

Three-season, non-snow/ice, there's lotsa hard, rocky ground here in the NE and it's usually easier to probe around and find a crack to exploit with a skinny stake vs a fat one. After a bit of use, I developed a feel for how hard I can tap them with a rock without bending them, and even if bent they're fairly easy to bend back with little loss of strength in the stake.

[Tipi Walter]

I used to use shepherd stakes on my guyline pullouts and learned the hard way in a tremendous wind at an exposed spot that they will spin in the ground and release their line---not good. So now all I use are Easton type nail stakes as below.

41933
I keep a couple shepherd pegs in my kit to secure my tent's perimeter around the four corners.

Here's a good review source---
http://www.trailspace.com/gear/tent-stakes/

[Brutalguyracing]

I love my titanium spikes from warbonnet outdoors
They are much more stout then say dutchwares titanium spikes
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[MikekiM]

I always have at least two different style stake. For three season, it's five or six MSR Mini Ground hogs and two Ti Shepard Hooks. I find the mini's very reliable here in the NE. The few times I have had issue were when the ground was extremely wet and/or heavy leaves over deep duff, or frozen. Then a rock replaces the min hog. The Ti hooks are primarily for when deploying doors. If the weather has been extremely wet I will add two full size Ground Hogs to the mix, leaving everything else the same.

Once temps drop I switch to gutter nails as neither the Ti's or the mini's will survive being driven into frozen soil.

All of my stakes have a reflective micro cord tether. Makes them easier to find (though sadly not fool proof), makes them easier to pull, so I am not pullin' on the guy line and also gives me an alternate connection point for doors and such.

[Dogwood]

With most of my ground shelters...mainly cuben duomid I’ve used longer Easton nails at the four corners and ti shepherd hooks on pull outs as dont have as much force on them. I’m assuming a 12’ hg tarp would probably do better with the stouter stakes at corners and maybe Shep hooks for panel pulls? Main terrain would be on southern trails....

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That's generally what I do when using the Duomid, better holding stakes at the corners and lighter less holding power stakes at panel pulls. Sometimes at the pulls I might just use found stuff rocks, branch, small logs and tie off. If snow loads or wind are involved I go to a slightly longer and thicker diam TI shep hook stakes for greater holding power. When shep hooks have greater holding power they are less prone to spinning and some shep Ti hook designs still will not release the guy outs even if they do spin. Spinning shep hook stakes have always been a sign to me I used the wrong stake for the conditions. With snow depths on the ground greater than 2-3" I don't take shep stakes. Things are rarely uniform though so as Rainman said taking 2-3 types of different stakes might be a good idea.

[OCDave]

With most of my ground shelters...mainly cuben duomid I’ve used longer Easton nails at the four corners and ti shepherd hooks on pull outs as dont have as much force on them. I’m assuming a 12’ hg tarp would probably do better with the stouter stakes at corners and maybe Shep hooks for panel pulls? Main terrain would be on southern trails....
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For hammock tarps, I like my titanium staples from Dream Hammocks when I can use them. https://www.dreamhammock.com/shop.html#!/Tent-Stakes/p/52670790/category=4019214

I akso carry 2 REI Snow stakes, and a few MSR Groundhogs.

[Studlintsean]

Groundhogs here. I think they have a benefit with tarps as the tarps seem more likely to catch wind and the groundhogs hold really well (in my experience).

[Deadeye]

I take a variety, as even at a single site, each stake may have different soil, etc. Shepherds, V's, Groundhogs, snowstake.

I paint mine bright orange, so as not to lose. ;)

Exactly this, but I paint mine camo. Just because.

[scrabbler]

Exactly this, but I paint mine camo. Just because.

Im with you. Losing them is more of an excuse to upgrade. ;-)

[Onsen]

Titanium or aluminium alloy 'v's with no cut outs along its length(easy to clean & stack) for me...they cover most soil situations.

[MuddyWaters]

Carbon pegs on ridgeline
Lawsons ti shepherd on others
Add rocks and logs as needed

A stake you can get in ground is better than one you cant
Then add the rocks

Often hard enough to just get ti shepherd stake in past underground rocks


Pitching on solid rock slab using only rocks ......teaches that stake really dont matter as long as rocks available. Shove stick thru guyout, put big rock on top. I. Usually add rocks in exposed sites whether need it or not. Even a small rocks weight on top of line can change angle of pull to basically horizontal on stake, increasing holding power, Same reason we use chain on an anchor rode.

Worst is loose sand......fortunately not encountered much and can plan for.

Loose forest duff can be challenging too.....dig down a foot to find reasonably compacted material. Such areas generally have lots of rotten logs though.

[scrabbler]

Mini-groundhog clones. The worse have been my most expensive, which were V-shaped titanium - bent very easily.