A couple of years ago I bought a 3 metre by 3 metre lightweight tarp from Canada. It is a great tarp, very lightweight, but also strong and waterproof. We used it on the South Coast Track in Tasmania as a shelter while we cooked in the rain. It also provided an excellent covering to leave in place at night. We stored our wet gear and other stuff that the possums would not trash under it overnight. Sometimes by morning, if the breeze was kind , some of the gear would be nearly dry!
I also used it one night , down at Lake Elizabeth in the Otways, but had set it up like a hutchie (slung between two trees as it was the only way I could work out to hold it up!). Unfortunately, I slid out the end and got my sleeping bag wet. The others in the party would have been much happier in the morning if I had set it up a long way away, as my alcohol assisted snoring had kept some of them awake. Being able to set it up free standing will now be a bonus!
So today I was wandering around the Simple Hiker blog and discovered this great video clip on Youtube demonstrating how, using a lightweight tarp and one hiking pole, you can set up a servicable 2 person tent.
Movie on how to make a tent from a tarp!
I also used it one night , down at Lake Elizabeth in the Otways, but had set it up like a hutchie (slung between two trees as it was the only way I could work out to hold it up!). Unfortunately, I slid out the end and got my sleeping bag wet. The others in the party would have been much happier in the morning if I had set it up a long way away, as my alcohol assisted snoring had kept some of them awake. Being able to set it up free standing will now be a bonus!
So today I was wandering around the Simple Hiker blog and discovered this great video clip on Youtube demonstrating how, using a lightweight tarp and one hiking pole, you can set up a servicable 2 person tent.
Movie on how to make a tent from a tarp!
The finished product!
Now this tent doesn't have a front door (or any door by that matter) but would be a great setup for summer if you were wanting a lightweight option. Check out the movie!
Update: If you are interested in tarps and using them as a light weight option, check out this post at Litehiker There is an interesting report on using a tarp in bad English weather......
While I was looking at the movie in You Tube, another movie was suggested as relevent, so I watched it hoping I would learn something about setting up a tarp as a tent. Well, I wasted 3 min 39 seconds of my life on this dumb video. You can too if you watch it, click below.........
A VERY BORING MOVIE
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3 comments:
If you want a more in-depth education on how to turn flat tarps into an amazing array of different shelter geometries, check out this link: Tarp Shelters - An Introduction,
by David B. Macpherson
Thanks Steve, You are correct, there is an AMAZING range of tent / shelter styles than can be produced from a tarp. Some of them look too complicated for my simple mind.....
Cool - I'd seen that video too. I have a pattern on my site for a tarp which may not be the most thrilling thing on earth - but hopefully it is useful to some!
Tarp shelter
Cheers,
Mungo
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