canoe camping shelter

chuck buck

chuck buck

Joined
Nov 4, 2007
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453
hi, last summer i bought myself an old mohawk canoe and i am really excited to do some canoe camping this year. mostly solo but sometimes with a buddy.
i live in central VA and so far only plan on fair weather weekend trips. i have looked over many of the shelters here and although a tarp sounds nice there are WAY too many bugs ie mosquitoes, specially around the rivers of course.

the landscapes/ river sides consists of rather steep sloping banks about 10 feet high, then leveling off with about 10 yards of woods, then opening to the edges of large cornfields. so my concerns are mosquitoes, muddy land, and were to camp exactly. i dont plan on fires but wonder if it would tick farmers off to have me tented up right outside the tree line or if id be better off in the trees. i am a very thoughtful/ consciencious person (but they dont know that of course).

i have come up with two options.
First would be a Go-lite Shangri-la 2 nest (typical A frame consisting of bug netting and tub floor.) then using a large tarp for a fly if it gets a little nasty. i figure this will give me ample room to hang out in and enjoy the weather and views but might put me on the edge of someones field.
Second would be a light hammock set-up with tarp fly and lots of bug netting hanging in the woods between river and field. this keeps me off the ground and seems to be more... stealthy but doesnt seem to offer the room to enjoy and stretch out.

i guess corn would be high enough around that time that id be unlikely to be spotted but just looking for some opinions / advice / personal experiences.

thanks - CB
 
I canoe alot.Larger tarp set up at a convenient spot at camp.Then a tent to sleep in.This at usually every campsite if the tarp can be set up.Tarp goes up 1st.Never have used a hammock so cant comment on it,except to say that I have spent windbound days in a tent comfortably with a book to read and/or rolled up in a sleeping bag,cant see that with a hammock Different strokes for different folks,mileage may vary for other peoples experience so it could work
I do not worry about weight too much because the canoe can carry lots,but having said that if portages are to be made then every piece of equipment is scutinized to see if it is absolutley needed
Dan'l
 
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i say hammock ... love mine ... pitches any where ... pulls tight and can weather most storms maybe even better then my old tents...

but yea get a really big over tarp and youll have the best of both worlds... also hammock doubles as a nice lounge chair.
 
I am a huge fan of a hammock and tarp. Best nights sleep int he woods unless its really cold. Just remember drip strings.
 
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A hammock is a lot easier to set up than a tent and weighs about 3 lbs.
 
If you're using a hammock, you're sleeping on your back all night...right? That would never work for me.
 
I can sleep on my back or my side in the hammock. Hung properly and with the right style hammock give you a few options.
 
What dboles said. I usually take a tarp and a tent. If you're hardcore a tarp is enough for cooking and sleeping.
It is quite possible to take only a bivy sack, and OR makes some really good ones that weigh very little and are weather tight. But a good tent doesn't really weigh all that much and, call me spoiled, but when the weather turns it's great to have.
 
Jose Wales said:
A hammock is a lot easier to set up than a tent and weighs about 3 lbs.
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Ya, but it's tough to sleep under a hammock to get out of the rain and the wind ;)

Have you ever seen those mountain climbing crazies who sleep on the side of mountains?
I'd be afraid of getting up for a whizz at night. That first step is a doozie...
 
thanks for the opinions so far guys!

a tent seemed like it would provide ample mosquitoeless room. i like the simplicity of swinging between trees but how do you all avoid the bugs when hanging out in the hammock? ive seen most have bug screens but it doesnt seem like much room and if you use it like a chair as suggested you lose the screens benefit right?
 
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The top of the hennessy is covered with a bug screen, you enter from the bottom.

Insects are not a problem.
 
REI Bug Hut 2 and a tarp are one of my favorite combos.

these advanced hammocks mentioned are pretty nice too. - especially in temperature extremes.

have you considered making a platform in the canoe, and just sleeping offshore?

vec
 
"have you considered making a platform in the canoe, and just sleeping offshore?"

that does sound like it could be fun but im looking for more movement at the end of the night. also the rivers are ususally so low ill most likely be poling up river! im not really looking for the hi -speed, low -drag solution. i just wanna be able to canoe up river all day then hang out for a night and enjoy myself.
 
I am starting to think I am the only guy around that doesn't like hammocks. :o

Anyway, canoe camping, take whatever you want too, within reason of course. You have the canoe to haul your stuff so why not be comfortable. My WeNoNah prospector will carry over 800 pounds, now of course it won't handle the same, but 2 people, say 350 pounds, plus 200 in gear, for a total of 550 will handle just fine and 100 pounds of gear a piece is a lot o stuff.

Canoe camping in my mind is closer to car camping than backpacking. Here is an example, I didn't paddle this far maybe a couple of miles but gives you an idea of what not to do. :p Chris

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haha good thing you didnt dunk all that! i found a good combo in one huge ( i think 3OL) dry bag, and 2 smaller dry bags that fit perfectly into an old GI duffle that i "waterproofed". fits well in the bottom of the canoe and didnt cost near as much as what are touted as "canoe packs".

does anyone have any experience camping where they might not be supposed to? i dont plan on making fires (it will be summer or warm at least) or getting rowdy- just enjoying some outside time alone and secluded. however, i dont plan to look at land plots and finding / asking land owners either before pulling off the river.
 
chuck buck said:
does anyone have any experience camping where they might not be supposed to? i dont plan on making fires (it will be summer or warm at least) or getting rowdy- just enjoying some outside time alone and secluded. however, i dont plan to look at land plots and finding / asking land owners either before pulling off the river.
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Ya, lol. Many years ago I was co-leading a small group outside Algonquin Park in Ontario when the weather got really nasty, so we pulled out for the night in a small cabin just off the river. By itself that isn't unusual in the North, as long as you respect it and don'[t take anything. Well, in the morning we woke up to increasingly loud booms and soon two surprised soldiers came by wondering why we were camping out in their firing range...
We packed out and got on the water in world record time that morning:foot:
 
chuck buck said:
does anyone have any experience camping where they might not be supposed to? i dont plan on making fires (it will be summer or warm at least) or getting rowdy- just enjoying some outside time alone and secluded. however, i dont plan to look at land plots and finding / asking land owners either before pulling off the river.
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Maybe....I'm not saying, just saying.

Pull up on a nice shoal or sand bar, prop canoe up on it's side, maybe a tarp stretched over the side of the canoe and staked out depending on weather, eat prepared food, no fire, crawl underneath with pad and blanket, get up early and leave. Not that I have any experience with such things but it can get real sticky, real quick if you get discovered after dark and the land owner tells you to leave, RIGHT NOW!! Best advice is to obtain permission beforehand. Chris
 
Check with the local canoe clubs about riparian rights. It has been an ongoing battle in some areas of the South. In most places, no one cn stop you from using navagable waterways up to the high water mark. States differ in their definition of what is a navagable waterway though. For some, they use the archaic definition of useable by traffic in commerce. In Arkansas we got that turned on it's ear to allow recreational boating as a definition of navagable waterway. Again, check with the nearest canoe club. They'll know.
 
chuck buck said:
"have you considered making a platform in the canoe, and just sleeping offshore?"

that does sound like it could be fun but im looking for more movement at the end of the night. also the rivers are ususally so low ill most likely be poling up river! im not really looking for the hi -speed, low -drag solution. i just wanna be able to canoe up river all day then hang out for a night and enjoy myself.
Click to expand...

i was thinking a canvas tarp, a couple sections of 2x4's across the ends of the canoe, anchored over the bow and stern with a loop of rope might make a nice bed.

i have never had a bad canoe or kayak trip.

have fun.

vec
 
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