Tarp Size for NOBO?

[hainstock]

Thinking about going with either a 7x9 or 8x10 silpoly tarp (from either Borah or Simply Light Designs). Anyone have any input on what their preferred size is/was? I'm leaning 8x10 because I know it'll be raining like, all the time and the added peace of mind will be worth the nominal "weight". I'm a few weeks away yet from a shakedown hike and I don't have a yard to throw up a cheapo blue tarp to see for myself, so figured I'd ask the community.

Also as a bonus question if anyone feels like chiming in, I'm thinking about not setting this tarp up with trekking poles, but rather using mini carabiners and lineloc's to wrap around trees and branches in an A-frame, and stake down the 4 corners (while also carrying some extra cordage and a few stakes just in case I need to bolster the stability). Anyone see anything wrong with this set up?

Thanks

[pettas]

If it were me, I'd go with a 10'x10' tarp as I feel a square gives you more options when pitching the tarp. The "excess" weight isn't an issue for me and the extra room is nice to have when you're storm bound. As for pitching in an A-frame, in bad weather an A-frame pitch leaves a lot of open space for weather to enter. Even if you don't pitch one side completely down to the ground, I'd pitch the tarp so it's got an incline to it with the higher end away from the prevailing wind. I've spent many nights under a tarp pitched that way and have been able to stay dry and comfortable.

That's all for now. Take care and good luck working out what is best for you. Until next time...be well.

snapper

[4eyedbuzzard]

8x10 minimum. You'll be very happy that you carried the extra few ounces when the rain comes down hard - and sideways. Learn as many pitches as possible. And learn to do them quickly.
Here are a couple pics of my 8x10 sil tarp. It has a two way zippered door so that when pitched as a teepee you can close it in. Requires paying attention to venting, but it's dryer than a flat pitch in a storm.
Fair weather pitch
SANY0997sm.JPG

And one for bad
SANY1001sm.JPG

[hikermiker]

Get cheapo tarps in both sizes. If you don't have a yard go to a local park and set them up however you prefer. People will look at yo like you are weird but so what?

[RockDoc]

I bought a good quality tarp with 17 strong webbing loops, and that was smart because it stood overnight blocking ocean winds at my camps on the Wilderness Coast, Olympic NP, WA. Tarps today are really great; light strong ripstop, and come in a handy bag. I bought an Aqua Quest Guide tarp 13x10, olive drab. Not the most expensive option, but suites my needs.

Never go cheap with something so important for your safety and comfort!

[Alligator]

Doesn't have to be one or the other, I carry an extra piece of line to set it up without poles of I want. Are you just not going to bring trekking poles? Trees aren't always 100% where you want them. Not hard to find a stick if you need one. That second configuration that 4eyebuzzard posted is also my go to for foul weather. Which when it is foul, I don't want to be looking for a stick. The 9' side is okay, but you might get a little rain splash depending on how tall you are and how you are setup. When you shorten up to around the 7x9 size, or smaller like 6x9, you may end up having to pitch lower. Then repeatedly having to crawl in and out all the time when for just a couple of extra ounces depending on the material you could be more spacious, why bother really?

[nsherry61]

I'm opinionated as heck about tarps. But frankly, everyone in this thread has already done a good enough job, I don't have much to add!

The only point I'd add is on pitch preferences. The A-frame is great for ventilation sometimes even for views. But, the A-frame is a lot of work compared to some of the lean-to type pitches or "flying diamond". If it's the end of the day and I'm tired, I'll often pitch a simple diamond with three stakes and one guy-line (30 seconds or so) or more of a modified a-frame with one side staked to the ground so there's just less fiddling with guy lines. I probably use only one of three different pitches 90% of the time. Okay, that's not entirely true, because I just sleep under the sky without pitching a shelter most of the time.

[Deadeye]

8x10 for sure. The tarp I use for hammocking is 7.5 x 11. It's very effective, but going smaller wouldn't be worth any weight saving IMO. Good advice to learn multiple pitches, but going between trees works every time. That's a good place to hang a hammock, too ��

[Slo-go'en]

If you haven't used a tarp before, you need to do a lot of practice before you hit the trail. Trying to figure out how to set it up in a rain storm your first day on the trail is not a good idea. You will not be able to rely on trees for support. The ground will be wet or at least damp or muddy. Bugs are numerous not only the flying kind, but the creepy crawling kind too, so in addition to the tarp, you need a ground cloth and some kind of netting insert. A bug bivy is one way to deal with that.

So, by the time your done with all that, you might as well just get a tent and be done with it. A tent is a lot easier to deal with. Other wise you will end up being a shelter dweller and fighting for shelter space all the time.

[nsherry61]

. . . So, by the time your done with all that, you might as well just get a tent and be done with it. A tent is a lot easier to deal with. Other wise you will end up being a shelter dweller and fighting for shelter space all the time.

Slo-go'en I think you are just having fun trolling for a good fight. Tent's are for people that are scared of sleeping in the outdoors (except in extreme cases) and too lazy to spend an afternoon experimenting with pitching a tarp. Tarps are much faster and easier to pitch than tents in most cases with a little practice. Tarps give you significantly more living space in foul weather. AND, they let you hang out under your shelter and still enjoy the outdoors. There isn't much I love more than sleeping under a tarp in a good storm, truly and honestly. As for bugs . . . having spend the majority of my life outdoors sleeping under the starts, I have yet to have ANY issues with "crawling creatures" except mice chewing a hole in my tent once . . . okay, and wipe some slugs off my gear a few times also. As for flying & biting bugs, you've spent all day surviving them. In most cases just throwing some mesh over your head is all you need for night protection. That being said, I have been in a very few truly exceptional mosquito hatchings that were absolute horror and having a tent to zip inside of was truly a blessing, but not enough of a blessing to use a tent by default the other 98% of the time.

Plus, tarps a lighter, less expensive, and generally more versatile than tents.

I think of tents as gear purchased by people with money that don't have the knowledge or experience to be truly skilled outdoors people.

[Alligator]

Slo-go'en I think you are just having fun trolling for a good fight. Tent's are for people that are scared of sleeping in the outdoors (except in extreme cases) and too lazy to spend an afternoon experimenting with pitching a tarp. Tarps are much faster and easier to pitch than tents in most cases with a little practice. Tarps give you significantly more living space in foul weather. AND, they let you hang out under your shelter and still enjoy the outdoors. There isn't much I love more than sleeping under a tarp in a good storm, truly and honestly. As for bugs . . . having spend the majority of my life outdoors sleeping under the starts, I have yet to have ANY issues with "crawling creatures" except mice chewing a hole in my tent once . . . okay, and wipe some slugs off my gear a few times also. As for flying & biting bugs, you've spent all day surviving them. In most cases just throwing some mesh over your head is all you need for night protection. That being said, I have been in a very few truly exceptional mosquito hatchings that were absolute horror and having a tent to zip inside of was truly a blessing, but not enough of a blessing to use a tent by default the other 98% of the time.

Plus, tarps a lighter, less expensive, and generally more versatile than tents.

I think of tents as gear purchased by people with money that don't have the knowledge or experience to be truly skilled outdoors people.

Slo-go'en really can't help himself, somebody mentions tarp and his answer is really just use a tent. Which is not the way the question was framed. And no matter how times people provide perfectly good evidence otherwise he'll just give that answer. This is not a tarp vs tent thread, the OP wanted to know a good size for a tarp.

[nsherry61]

Slo-go'en really can't help himself . . . no matter how times people provide perfectly good evidence otherwise he'll just give that answer. . .

I love Slo-go'en. He's always been a great contributor to this community.

As to the OP, go for either the 8x10 or a 9x9. Both great working sizes!

As to going Slo, I had an epiphany while cooking dinner tonight. Not appreciating tarps is like not appreciating motorcycles. Some of us love the wind in our hair and accept the bugs in our teeth. Others want the extra safety and comfort of that steel box isolating us from the world we are passing through. My wife likes chocolate ice cream. I prefer vanilla. She also likes tents and cars and I still love her dearly in spite of her short comings.

[Slo-go'en]

How big a tarp? The bigger the better. 8x10 for sure. For fun try making a scale model and playing with the different configurations.

The OP sounds like he's new to tarps, so just mentioning some of the things to think about when considering going that route.

I've tried the tarp thing, I've tried the hammock thing. Not a fan of either. It boils down to I'm lazy. The tent is quick and easy and mostly fool proof. Don't have to worry about ground splash around the edges, or which way the wind is blowing (and hope it stays that way) or having stuff sacks get pushed out from under the tarp.

Back when tents were bulky and heavy, a tarp was an attractive alternative. But with modern tents, that is much less of an issue when you consider function vs weight. When I'm really lazy, I've spent many a night in a bivy sack with no tarp, just the wind blowing in my face - but only on nights I was 100% sure of no rain

[Alligator]

How big a tarp? The bigger the better. 8x10 for sure. For fun try making a scale model and playing with the different configurations.

The OP sounds like he's new to tarps, so just mentioning some of the things to think about when considering going that route.

I've tried the tarp thing, I've tried the hammock thing. Not a fan of either. It boils down to I'm lazy. The tent is quick and easy and mostly fool proof. Don't have to worry about ground splash around the edges, or which way the wind is blowing (and hope it stays that way) or having stuff sacks get pushed out from under the tarp.

Back when tents were bulky and heavy, a tarp was an attractive alternative. But with modern tents, that is much less of an issue when you consider function vs weight. When I'm really lazy, I've spent many a night in a bivy sack with no tarp, just the wind blowing in my face - but only on nights I was 100% sure of no rain

Right, you are really never going to just answer the question directly without tacking on all the negatives you can think of and making it seem like you are providing an honest answer. You really aren't interested in helping pick a size, you are interested in convincing the person to choose something else, a tent. You haven't had the epiphany. You don't recognize the other choice is valid and of equal measure. In doing so, you hijack threads and it borders on arrogance really. It becomes a problem when people do this repeatedly.

[Kittyslayer]

Also as a bonus question if anyone feels like chiming in, I'm thinking about not setting this tarp up with trekking poles, but rather using mini carabiners and lineloc's to wrap around trees and branches in an A-frame, and stake down the 4 corners (while also carrying some extra cordage and a few stakes just in case I need to bolster the stability). Anyone see anything wrong with this set up?

If you are thinking an A-Frame tent consider this Warbonnet Ground Tarp at 9'0" by 9'6". Easily pitched as you desire in an A-Frame format with the bonus of doors to help deal with wind/weather. I often tie off between two trees but you can easily pitch it with two hiking poles. Enough tie outs for other tarp layouts if you choose. Before this I always liked the flying diamond pitch with my prior tarp.


https://www.warbonnetoutdoors.com/pr...t-ground-tarp/

[Miner]

In 2006, I started off with a 8x10 tarp and then quickly (less than a year) downsized to a roughly 6x8 which was the UL craze at the time. After several years of using that, including on the northern part of the AT, about 5 years ago I finally bought a new tarp which is roughly 7x9 size tarp which needs a little less attention. I say roughly on the sizes as they aren't truely rectangular tarps except the first 8x10 one. All Grace Solo tarps by Mountain laurel designs. In an A Frame pitch, I have never found width to be a huge issue, however, length is. The shorter the length, the more care and technique you need to use to stay dry in all conditions (i.e. winds that shift). I do often use a 5oz bivy sack with the tarp because I mainly cowboy camp and the bivy is very useful for that. Tarp only gets put up if its actually raining or very obvious its going to. Without a bivy, the 8x10 is the safe choice, though I could get by with the a smaller size without one, but I've been tarping for a very long time.

Poles as supports are more flexible in a wide variety of camp sites. While I have use a tree on one end as the support several times, they aren't always placed where you want it. You can also use branches as the support or running a guy line between trees as the center line support, but once again, they aren't always where you want them. Poles work everywhere, the other items, you may have to hunt a lot longer for a campsite that has what you need. At the end of a long day, you may not want to.

[needlefish]

i have both, a 8x10 Paria & a 7x9 Yama Mountain Gear. i prefer the 8x10.