New to this lightweight camping thing need advice on shelter

A

akthor

Joined
Jan 23, 2010
Messages
1,940
OK been camping for decades, typically we fill a pickup and a boat on a trailer with the gear. Giant cabin tents, double thick queen size air matresses etc. Hell we've brought mini fridges, BBQ grills and microwaves before. Not to mention the coolers full of food and beer.

THAT was camping with family and with women or a big group of guys along who don't like to give up their comforts. Me included ;)

Now kids grown, divorced and I still will do the comfort camping thing but I am getting the urge to strike alone just me and my lab and rough it. Well not so much rough as much as go out and enjoy some camping without the toil involved with the days of packing and organizing and then the days spent unpacking and unoganizing.

So my goal is to go out and camp and fish with just what I can carry on my person.

Money is an issue, laid off in Oct, (part of the reason for this, think I will have a lot of free time this spring and summer) so I can't just go buy all that super lightweight high priced gear.

To that end I have been accumulating gear online and by selling off some stuff and trading for others. Been making lists of what I need and I think I have figured out everything except shelter.

I got 7 tents but even the smallest 2 man dome I have is too big packed for my purposes.

I need something I can fit in a 3 day backpack or lashed to it.

Also I want something as cheap as possible.

I live in Maine so bugs, especially black flies are an issue. Have to be dry and bugproof to sleep. Gotta fit my buddy Bart, my lab, in there too.

I was thinking with a tarp and some mosquito netting I could make something that would keep rain and bugs out. I could make any needed poles or stakes on site so I think it could pack pretty small.

Am I missing better ideas? Please share your thoughts if any.
 
Well, I'll try again and see if I get banned this time. I was in your situation a dozen years ago. What I found to be the best compromise was a solo tent from Eureka. Cost a little over a C-note. I dont know if this is too much for your budget or not. Considering that I still own, and use, it - works out to $10 per year so far.
 
A cost effective and lazy solution would be to get something like this and dump all the crap bits. Tarp over the top.

I guess that's about 3lb going by similar ones I've seen. Dump the floor and the poles ...
 
And I am in love with the 29 dollar wenzel pup tent. 3 pounds. withstood 40 mph gusts.
?Campmor? don't remember. Good luck. Be safe.
 
when I go ultralight I just pack my poncho and bivy bag, truth be told most of the time I dont even use a tarp or my poncho setup. I just find a natural overhang or just sleep in my bivy bag
 
If you think tarp camping might be for you, the best thing to do would be to try it out in the back yard with a cheap blue tarp form the hardware store. You can try various bug tent options and decide how much real estate you require under the tarp. To get the most out of it, you should spend a night out in it when there will be at least a few showers.

If you like it, then you can decide how light & small you want your tarp to be, recognizing that lighter costs more.

A popular lightweight method of insect control is the A-16 Bug Bivy. It is light and fast to set up, and packs small. One nice thing with this option is that it pops up independent of your tarp and only covers what needs to be covered.

31xZM0YG9qL._SL500_AA280_.jpg


If tarps don't seem the way to go, you can look at solo tents or small two-man backpacking tents. A couple to look at are the Big Agnes Seedhouse or Seedhouse SL in 1 or 2-man versions. Tarptent also makes nice single-walled tents with floors and bug mesh, and should not be confused with tarps.

TSH1.jpg


Have fun.
 
cuphead said:
when I go ultralight I just pack my poncho and bivy bag, truth be told most of the time I dont even use a tarp or my poncho setup. I just find a natural overhang or just sleep in my bivy bag
Click to expand...

With the mosquitos and black flies up here that's not possible :thumbdn:
 
poncho/tarp, bivy bag here too

the poncho/tarp can be had (w/ a little diligence) used for $35-50-ish, you'll need guy lines and stakes

this is a nice bug bivy for under $50

http://www.simblissity.net/inner-peace.htm

the poncho/tarp combo is nice as it takes care of two things (shelter and raingear) in one fell swoop- for 10 oz and not much volume
 
Forget lightweight tents, if you want to replicate the comfort of your massive cabin tents and cots or air mattresses, you need a hammock. I got the Warbonnet Blackbird ( http://warbonnetoutdoors.com ) and absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE it. I'll never sleep in a tent again, unless I'm going somewhere with no trees. Some folks have their dogs lie under their tarps, some carry a second tarp or poncho for the pup, and some have the pup sleep inside the hammock with them. You can get an ultralight bugnet to keep your pooch protected from the critters, if he's sleeping outside the hammock. You could even make a small secondary hammock, to hang below yours, if your dog likes sleeping in hammock type setups.

There are some various tricks to hammock camping, but once you've got it figured it out, it will be far more comfortable than any tent you could ever purchase. You can read more at Just Jeff's website for more info: http://www.tothewoods.net/HammockCamping.html

4027855018_4ac03e7a7d_o.jpg


4027853288_7acdb97c43_o.jpg


4027099193_0ffeee3ae7_o.jpg
 
Also, perhaps most importantly, you can put a hammock setup together as expensively or as cheaply as you want - if you can get access to or borrow a sewing machine, everything can be made DIY fairly easily. You can use a foam pad from walmart for 10 bucks for bottom insulation, any cheap tarp to cover you from rain, and a DIY hammock is quick to put together in a number of ways. Buy a bugnet to cover it, and you are golden, and a lot more comfortable than you will be crawing into a bivy or 2-man tent on the ground.
 
+1 on the Eureka. I've had mine for about six years and it's taken some hard use. If you use a summer sleeping bag and something no bigger than a canteen cup to cook with, the heaviest thing you'll probably be carrying is water.
 
The hammock is very intriguing, the big issue is what to do with my dog, he's not a pup he's about 90lbs bears thinking about.

Keep the info and suggestions coming I am learning a lot. Thanks guys
 
You could easily do a second hammock for the dog. It could be hung beside yours, or below. Just Jeff has plans for a "kids" hammock that would be a good size for a dog.
 
MustardMan said:
You could easily do a second hammock for the dog. It could be hung beside yours, or below. Just Jeff has plans for a "kids" hammock that would be a good size for a dog.
Click to expand...

I think I'd pay to see a video of the initial attempt at getting a 90lb dog into a hammock. :D
 
I've seen people sleep with their 90 pound dogs IN the same hammock with them. Getting a dog into it's own hammock is simple by comparison :D
 
Not sure, been searching and looking but for sure I can't spend over $200 but most likely a lot less than that.

Don't think my dog would like a hammoc, I'm not sure I could sleep in one since I always sleep on my stomach.

Things I've seen I like:

http://www.tarptent.com/sublite.html

http://www.kitterytradingpost.com/product.php/pid/105/sid/1044/prodid/3280 (add another $40 for the floor

But the prices of those eh not sure, probably since I can't really get a decent lightweight tarp and bug net for much less I will end up with something like this:

http://www.kitterytradingpost.com/product.php/pid/105/sid/546/tid/2207/prodid/3266

Still looking tho

http://www.tarptent.com/sublite.html
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top