tarp as a shelter

MAURICE

MAURICE

Joined
Jul 14, 2000
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when you use a tarp for a shelter would it be a good idea to build a trench around the edges of the tarp? i was thinking that this might be a good idea to channel water away from me while i was sleeping/cooking/whatever.i figured teh water would just drip down from the edge of the tarp into the trench.
what do you think?
advise and comments are much appreciated.

note-this is an established site on a patch of land owned by a firend.if i was hiking i would not consider trenching.
 
I use to know a Smoke-Jumper who worked for the U.S. Forest service. On his time-off from that professional duty, he would camp in different locations for various reasons.

He ALWAYS slept under a tarp ( enclosed tents bothered him ). He would etch trenches for the tarp, as needed, but always placed small pebble-size rocks into the trenched area and pack them down. Before moving on, he would leave a layer of rock on the bottom of the trench, fill it in with original dirt and pack it down tightly. Then he placed a " mound " of leaves and other forest material on top of the soil. His method of trenching with pebbles for drainage worked well for him.

I did not ask him, at the time, if he ever returned to see if soil erosion took place. I relate this info. because he stated his method worked very well during heavy or during long-lasting rain-falls. Like yourself, I do not endorse trenching of the earth on public land.
 
Maurice
If you pitch your tarp on soft duff or pine needles etc. you will not need a trench.
If you bring a light ground cloth such as a heavy duty garbage bag or cut down painter's drop cloth from Home Depo you will definitely stay dry.
Another option is to place the end of the tarp facing the wind on the ground and stake it. Leave the other end off the ground buy tying to trees or hiking poles.
Hopes this helps.
Bill
 
If you put a drop cloth or tarp under you, be sure that it does not extend beyond the edge of your cover tarp or you will wake up in a puddle. (Yep - that's the voice of experience talkin'!)

One thing I often do is to lay the tarp so that part of it folds underneath me and the rest is propped up like a lean-to above me. That way I'm covered from above and below, plus the side with the fold is completely protected. If my tarp is large enough I peg down two or three sides to minimize draft.

I prefer tarps over tents except in the most extreme conditions. They allow you to star gaze in good weather, and you can lay there and watch your fire die and philosophize to your heart's content. Plus, if a critter (two or four legged) comes along with ill intentions, it's much easier to escape.
 
thanks for the replies,folks.now,how about them there skeeters? what do you do about em? wear lots of bug spray?
 
Take along a big piece of mosquito netting. My old friend Tommy Tompkins, a noted Candian bushman who invariably used a tarp during his marathon journeys across northern Canada, used to put his denim jacket over his head and breath through the sleeve. He said the occasional hero mosquito made it up but not many. Baby oil discourages the bugs and is not toxic.
 
I can confirm that pulling some clothes over your head makes wonders and a good night sleep. That is one lesson of my mil service. If you have seen a ceiling with zillions of little blood spots you know what I mean.

HM
 
I have to ask, what is the big deal about cutting a little trench around a tarp shelter on public land? We're talking about digging in dirt here right, not cutting away and digging up the local flora? Surely a little trench (I make mine about 4-6" deep), even with a few rocks in the bottom (a great idea by the way) is about the least invasive alteration to the land I can imagine.

 
I myself don't think that trenching is all that terrible, as long as you are not in the middle of the only patch of a rare flower species for miles around. As I wander the backwoods of Southern Oregon I sometimes find the remains of old Indian villages. The local tribes lived in pit houses dug about 4 feet down, but the only way to identify the site now is by a ring of rocks, often just barely distinguishible. The pits fill in naturally, and I've never seen erosion on an ancient village site.

I think that "Leave No Trace" ethics are mosty a politically correct phenomena, although I'll confess that when I'm out and about I don't want to see your trench, either. For the small effort required by backfilling, it's really a non-issue.

Walk softly.

cv
 
I nearly drowned in some f******'s trench while on night exercise. It was full of liquid mud and I was carrying a GPMG and fully laden. B******d.

Nothing worse than finding someone elses tracks when you want to be out alone. Another of my pet hates is those that carry a rock from the bottom of a hill/moutain and build a cain stone pile at the top. To me their human graffiti.

If you think it helps then do it but leave no trace.
 
Hi Matthew : Now that I look back on my statement, please allow for the insertion of one word...I do not endorse the ( insetion ) irresponsible trenching of public land. I use to trench occassionaly, but I always worried about it before moving on. Why ? I have come out of the wilderness and dropped into state and national parks where you are required to camp in designated areas. Over there a person trenched, 2' away another trench. Northwest of that camp site, three more trenches almost touching each other. The soil erosion was well under way. In one state sponsored camp site I visited signs were hanging everywhere forbidding, among other things...trenching. As you walked aroung you could clearly see why. I guess this is what I had in mind by making the statement and nothing else.

 
Heres an animation on how I used my tarp on a wilderness trip. I basically just tied a long down branchless tree to another tree and raised and pinched the tarp to look something like a diamond. Witch gave me room to place and keep my clothes, pack, etc... dry and in arms reach away. It only took a few minutes to assemble. I could also tie the front shut.

shel.gif


[This message has been edited by Rik Palm (edited 04-06-2001).]
 
As for the pesky bugs, here's what's worked for me for 30 years. A mosquito headnet. I use the style with two metal hoops in it. When you lie down, the hoops keep the net up off your face. It works like a charm with tarps and I've never had a problem. I use to use the old military surplus kind until I found a better one with no-see-um netting but I can't remember where because it was 20 years ago (maybe it was eddie bauer, I dunno). Still works good though. Also, outdoor research has a new mosquito net out that has a single hoop in it. The nice thing about it is that it folds up well because the hoop is designed to coil in on itself. I put these in my survival kits.

There is also a small bug shroud you can buy that fits over the whole top section of your sleeping bag. I believe it stands upright on its own. Campmor used to sell these but I'm not sure if they still do. I've never tried them so I can't say how useful they are.

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Hoodoo

I get some pleasure from finding a relentlessly peaceful use for a combative looking knife.
JKM

[This message has been edited by Hoodoo (edited 04-06-2001).]
 
Go buy a six foot long by four foot wide piece of wedding veil from a bridal shop. (Basically mosquitoe netting). Put a couple of sticks in the ground beside you to keep it off your face, and lay it over you.
 
Condiser a 'Hennessy Hammock" Strings from trees, has a canopy over it, mosquito netting, andyou sleep cross ways in it, therefor, you sleep flat. Cost about $70>00 from REI. and weighs about as much as a good slilcon nylon tarp. no foam matress required.
Ravenn in Ky

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Age, and treachery , will always win out over youth and skill!
 
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