View Full Version : Fun with tarps
With a hammock on the way I guess it's time to start thinking about a tarp.
I have a 10' x 12' rectangular silnylon tarp (19 oz) - too big? This tarp has grommets....
The Speer winter tarp is 10' x 11' but has a different cut.
bigcranky
01-20-2010, 08:38
10x12 is big, sure, but I don't think it's too big. Plenty of room underneath for hammock, kitchen, etc. Because it's so large, you can pitch it much higher over the hammock than a smaller tarp. So you get more views, more ventilation, etc.
I would just pitch a standard A-frame between two trees, leaving plenty of headroom, then hang my hammock underneath.
If at some point you want a lighter tarp, the Maccat tarps are awesome.
srestrepo
01-20-2010, 14:32
nope not that big. i've seen 11x14...
also if its a rectangle you have many options in terms of how to pitch, close the ends, leave the ends open. pitch as an asym diamond. you can go to ground...
my tarp is the 10x11 maccat deluxe. it gives me plenty of coverage but due to the caternary cuts in the sides not many pitching options...
medestar
01-25-2010, 13:14
I also have a 10x12 tarp. I thought long and hard about what size tarp to get, as the original one that came with my hammock was not large enough. I think, as mentioned by others here, that this size allows some versatility. You have go with a standard A frame style, or even raise one side for more of a porch on one side. It is nice to be able to have room under cover to cook, or sit with others. My tarp is also silnylon (Cooke Custom Sewing), and does not weigh much, or take up much room. That being said, if you need to save space/weight you can go with other sizes or styles. It all depends on what you need the tarp to do, and how much room you need.
I'll let ya'll know how it turns out - the hammock came yesterday. In the interest of making everything as simple and idiot proof as possible I ordered a tarp tidge and tie-out lines from a guy on hammockforums.net that should make it a lot easier to pitch the tarp than it otherwise might be.
i don't think you can have a tarp that's too big for a hammock. on the flip side, i enjoy my 8x10 very much.
10x12 is nearly perfect for a hammock tarp. Here's mine (probably the exact tarp you have - Equinox?) over my hammock in the winter.
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=38474&catid=member&imageuser=2502
In warmer weather you can set it up like a dining fly in non-windy rain and make lots of friends.
Just Jeff
01-26-2010, 20:22
Haha - man, you guys like some massive tarps! It all depends on what you want. For me, the JRB 11x10 is a winter only tarp and even then I don't take it on all winter trips. It's cavernous and gives great protection, but big tarps also block views, weigh more, are bulkier, more cumbersome to set up, etc. Sometimes the trip calls for it and sometimes it doesn't.
I'm a fan of smaller tarps...I usually take the MacCat Standard or the JRB 8x8 (pitched diagonally). They give good protection and I'm not cut off from the nature that I'm out there to see in the first place.
So that's what works for me...everyone has to figure out where their priorities are and take the gear that fits their style. Size matters, but bigger isn't always better! :D
I like the jrb 8x8, too. I have a sportsman's tarp 9x9 camo (no longer available), which I also liked,l but it weighs a lot more than the jrb.
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01-28-2010, 07:00
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Now that's funny!
When tarp camping, I stow it in snake skins. In camp I find two trees, much as I would with a hammock, tie-off the tarp still in the skins. Then I get in my sleeping bag directly underneath, tarp still in the skins. If it starts to rain in the night, I just reach up pull off the skins and I am automatically under the tarp. I then reach out and stake the corners. Most nights the tarp never leaves the skins.
One advantage to the JRB tarp is that is only needs two tie-out points.
Over my hammock the tarp is hung by opposite corners, NOT the ridge-line.
Now, however, my shelter of choice is the Six Moon Designs Wild Oasis.