(how) do you dry your tent for packing?

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xxguitarist

Joined
Jun 12, 2007
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So, here's the familiar scenario:
You wake up in the morning after a cold night (last night was ~35 F based on the forecast) and need to break camp & get going on your way to the next nights location.
Your tent itself is fairly dry, but the rainfly is coated with condensation from your (& your tentmates) breath.

I'm generally just car-camping, so I pack the tent body as I normally would.. some folds then rolled around the poles, but the rainfly is always wet so I have to loosely roll it up, bring it home, and put it out to dry. That said, I see this being an issue when you need to have your tent packed to fit back in your backpack so you can get going on the hike again.

I'm just looking to see how most of you deal with the condensation on a multi-day trip- if you dry it off first with a towel, flip it inside out & allow to dry while waiting around and making breakfast, just roll it up wet or not, etc.
 
On multi-night camps we generally would wrap it up wet if we had to (assuming by breakfast end it was still wet) and set it up ASAP when we got to the new campsite. At the end of the trip or after a single night camping we would have to set it up at home again out in the yard or garage to let it fully dry. But that's just me, I bet someone here has a better idea :D
 
Shake it out, throw it over a bush, brew some coffee, flip it over, drink coffee, then pack up. :D

Jeff
 
I don't. I am kind of partial to the musty odor of the stink of the very latest forest animals we've killed, butchered and eaten along with campfire, libation and the husky odor that real men and women excrete afterward combined with all the other fine woodsy smells that make that tent feel like my home away from home.. :cool: Mmmm, Good!. :D
 
I don't worry about it too much. I'll toss it over a line in the sun if I can, if not just wipe it down if I have a towel and shake it well. It will be back up in 8 hours or so anyway.
 
Shore08 said:
On multi-night camps we generally would wrap it up wet if we had to (assuming by breakfast end it was still wet) and set it up ASAP when we got to the new campsite. At the end of the trip or after a single night camping we would have to set it up at home again out in the yard or garage to let it fully dry. But that's just me, I bet someone here has a better idea :D
Click to expand...

Thats what I do. Most of the time it doesn't get 100% dry before packing up and moving on. It really shouldn't be a problem. Tents suffer the most from moisture it stored for several days+ while wet. But at most it's usually in the pack 8-10 hours between destinations.
When I get home I hang it from the basement rafters for a week and really let it dry out before storing it away.
 
If I know I need to pack up the site early or it's the season for frost I'll pack a chamois to wipe down the fly. It's not perfectly dry but so far I haven't had any issues.
 
I generally wipe it down with my chamois rag. If it is still too wet by the time I'm ready to move, I'll leave it unfolded but gathered in the middle and hang it from the top of my pack while I'm moving. It doesn't take long for it to dry once I'm moving down the trail. When I take my first break, it's usually ready to be crammed into the pack with the rest of the dry gear.
 
I've never had a problem with packing a wet fly. When we get up and out of the tent in the morning, we turn the fly over and wipe it down, then let it air while we are making and eating breakfast. It's usually either still damp or frozen solid by the time we're finished and ready to break camp so we just shake it out, roll it up and put it into the stuff sack around the tent. The first thing we do when we arrive at the next night's destination is set up the tent and allow it (and the fly) to air and dry out more. It gets a complete cleaning, washing, and drying when we get home at the end of a trip.

Stitchawl
 
Stuff it in a dry sack or trash bag when it is wet if you can't get it dry immediately, then dry it off when you can. I just stuff mine in my pack, since everything that shouldn't get wet is in dry sacks, so it doesn't matter if it gets moisture all over the inside of my pack. Many packs also have straps or bungee cords on the exterior, so you could strap it to the outside and let it drip/air dry as you move on to the next spot.
 
Roll it up wet, dry it at lunch. Not a problem usually, as I tend to hike in arid or high altitude (i.e. windy) areas. The fly is dry in 30 minutes, tops.
 
If it's goin back up again soon it's not a problem but if it's goin to be stored a while I'll bring it home wet and hang it to dry when back home before packing it away !
 
+1 on the garbage bag, I'll pack the wet fly in a separate garbage bag or stuff-sack and dry it when it's convenient. When the trip is over I'll dry it on the clothes line, I've even put mine in the dryer on the no-heat, air only setting, it's done no damage, and I've been using the same North Face Bullfrog tent for the past 15-16 years.
 
I try to pitch it so the morning sun hits it. It is the last thing packed before we move on so we can give it more time to dry. The floor bottom is always wet so I wipe it down with one of those washcloth sized synthetic car wash rags. Roll it into the stuff sack with the floor rolled out. This all works as long as it is not raining. Get home and let it hang out all day before storing it. When storing it for a long period of time I do not fold it into its stuff sack but fold it loosely into a cheap duffle bag.
 
shake it hard - like a dog when it gets out of the water. hang it up to dry and finish packing/making breakfast
 
I wouldn't worry about it, just shake it down if its got a lot of water. I don't bother drying it.

Just don't store it at home whilst wet otherwise the coating will probably degrade and you'll get mold and musty smells.
 
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