I have a bivy sack and want to add a light weight tarp to the mix incase of bad weather. I have been looking at the GoLite tarps. Any input or experiences in going in this direction. I have a 4 seasons tent...just want less weight.
I just got a 12 x 12 light tarp from the sportsmans guide, it was only 29$. It has multi tie out spots and is very light. I hope to use it with a bivy tent this fall in the Adirondaks. I'm thinking the same as you, more protection less wieght.
snag,
look at the "paratarp" from kifaru.net,
I used one when I lived in Colorado, and now I use it here in Florida to let the breeze blow in,
A little pricy but a good product,
John
I have heard of those John. I'll check them out. The GoLite is $145. I remember when you would get the WHOLE tent for that!
snag, the 2007 kifaru catalog has the paratarp emergency shelter for 174.00, the peg and pole kit brings it up to 253.00.
Like I said they aint cheap, but mine has really stood up. I used it in Colorado and upstate NY, if you get them tight, they will keep the snow off.
John
Ditto on the paratarp.
11oz No poles needed. I use limbs. I already had some UL stakes.
It can be pitched lot of different ways to get more space underneath depending on what trees you have close by and how much parachute cord you have:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/LostArrow/Shelters/Paratarp03.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v628/LostArrow/Shelters/Paratarp01.jpg)
I've also got a Golite Ultralite Poncho/Tarp that weighs the same as the paratarp and will make a shelter but it's smaller in the shelter mode.
I guess it is like most things...you get what you pay for...spend less, get less.
So this material holds up to the elements huh?
I've set mine up at a real steep angle using the handle bars of my atv, when a thunderstome comes up here in Florida during bow season it comes up fast!, The angle took a lot or interior room away, but I was dry!
John
not stome, storm :banghead:
The website says they are weather "resistant"...? Is that because they aren't an enclosed tent or is it the material that isn't rain-proof?
sang, my paratarp and supertarp have taken a LOT of wind when hunting high altitude in Colorado, I have the peg and pole kit but anything will do like lost arra said, just keep it tight to the ground.
John
I don't know how many hours of rain they will keep off, but as long as the snow doesn't build up and melt, they should hold up well. They are great for emergency shelters or a quick spike camp.
They can be set up with pretty steep angles to allow the snow and rain to run off rather quickly.
I haven't spent an all nighter in the rain in one yet.
John
Here in Oregon it can rain pretty good! I need something that will stop the rain. I would hate to be 3 miles back in and find out it isn't waterproof. That would make for a looooong night.
I hear that, if I am not mistaken, Cabelas has several tarps also, might want to check out their website.
One good thing about snow, you can brush it off before it melts!
Wish I had more info for you on how long a paratarp could take the rain, like I said, I have put it up quick for a passing storm if I wanted to stay out and hunt and not go into camp, when the storm or shower passes, I went back on stand.
For that short time, it made a pretty good place to drink a cup of coffee from the thermos and eat a bologna sandwich and a can of sardines!
John
Yeah, pass those sardines over here! I was looking at the Cabela's XPG Ultralight wing too. $69.99-but is heavier.
Yeah, I am looking at that one also, might be a good place for a tin of sardines, a few crackers, and a can of Dinty Moore beef stew!
snag: the material is waterproof. Water ain't coming thru the material. The seams have to be sealed which is simple. They even send you the sealer. Pitch it on a warm day and it takes less than 15 minutes. I would guess that if you didn't seal the seams moisture could eventually come thru there, hence water resistant.
For a lot of rain, I put a poncho over the front guy line and stake it down. That closes off the front like a vestibule. They sell an annex but it's not needed.
The strong points on the Paratarp is ease of setup and it's wind resistance.
The wing looks nice but you've got to be able to get those sides down tight or it will be flapping like ....well a wing.
I have an EXPED Scout Tarp Extreme that is my favorite go light all purpose shelter that will withstand high winds and rain with a proper pitch. All the cords, tensioners, stakes, tarp, etc. stuff into its built in pocket which is about the size of a Nalgene bottle.
I use it as a stand alone spike shelter when I bivy overnight and I use it as a cook shelter away from my tent when backpacking in bear country.
http://www.exped.com/exped/web/exped_homepage.nsf/f54e11c501548847c1256eb300743a86/6e3682f03478e59cc1256f2b001efab5//ScoutTarpExtreme_Info.pdf
later,
Daddy Bear
Snag, ever think about a military poncho. If you use two they snap together for a two man tent. Very light weight too.
Mike
The only tarps worth considering are made of either polyurethane coated nylon or silicone treated nylon.
The silicone stuff is about 1/3 the weight of the polyurethane stuff and packs into a little less space -- and is two or three times the cost.
Check out this guy's site and his youtube videos...
http://www.wildernessoutfittersarchery.com/
He does a bunch of treking and sleeping under tarps and so forth and sells a good one for not too much cash.
How often do you use it? If it is only a few nites here and there...I've spent many nights under a painters tarp. Cheap, effective and light/small too pack (comes in its own waterproof package.
Outside of that I tooo recommend all of Kifarus products.
Snag, The tarps go-lite sells are well made and come in a drab green if that matters to you. Go-lite uses a high quality sil-nylon and on the tarps they have sewn on tie outs. I have a couple of theirs and some from Integral Designs (a high quality / cost alternative) and I would rate them equal for workmanship.
The Kifaru pictured is a shaped tarp versus a flat tarp and they certainly have their benefits in the wind but usually cost quite bit more, go-lite also offers various shaped tarps.
The military ponchos mentioned above weigh just a bit over twice as much as the go-lite sil version. (I own them both and weigh all my gear on accurate scales) When weight doesn't matter I much prefer heavier coated nylon products for their lower price, less wind flapping issues and all around toughness. There are tarps available in spinnaker cloth that make sil-nylon versions seem heavy but they require a bit of care and are said to be noisy and are pretty expensive. The picture is of my Integral Designs sil poncho.
(http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g193/olypen/tent050.jpg)
If it's just you, an 8x10' will do. If you ever think you'll go tandem, buy a 10x12'. I made my own from silnylon seconds from owareusa.com. Cost about $25 and a day of sewing. It's 9x11'. I'l be using it for a week in Idaho this fall.
Here's a pic of my buddy's 8x10' he got from campmor for $80. He has used it all over for years in all kinds of weather. Including a week of rain in Utah and this trip to Idaho where we got a lot of snow.
(http://residents.bowhunting.net/sticknstring/06elkhunt50.jpg)
Here's a pic of the inside of my 6x8' silnylon vestibule covered in about 4" of wet snow.
(http://residents.bowhunting.net/sticknstring/06elkhunt48.jpg)
Good morning David.
I'm the buddy that John mentioned in the above post and that's my green tarp that he showed a picture of. As John mentioned, I've been using it for 5+ years now and during that time it's seen 15+ days of rain or snow. In fact, during the one elk hunt in Utah, it rained solid for 5 out of the 6 days and I'm not talking an intermittent or light rain either. We're talking all-day soakers. The tarp has held up great during it all and I've never gotten wet while under it. This is especially important to me because I use a down sleeping bag. In fact, of the 4 people on the Utah trip, I stayed the driest even though the other 3 all had tents. I definitely had the most room also.
So do I recommend a good silnylon tarp? You betcha. In fact, it sounds like I have John convinced and he's leaving his tent at home and bringing a tarp when he comes out to Idaho in September for an elk hunt.
If you do decide to go the tarp route, be sure to learn different ways to pitch it and be careful in your site selection and it should work out great for you.
Steve
I made a great ultra light tarp tent using rip stop nylon that I then waterproofed. It weighs less than 2 pounds including the poles (which are arrows) stakes and ground cloth. It even has bug netting for warm weather use.You can see it here
http://www.camospace.com/blog/view/id_1540/title_wilderness-survival-kit/
I got the plans online.
http://www.tarptent.com/projects/tarpdesign.html
Thanks for the feedback guys. More money than I wanted to spend. But in the long run I will probably be glad I spent the money.
Steven, that sounds like a good test for the tarp! I also switched to a down bag this year to help with pack space. So to stay dry is very important.
I'm leaning toward the GoLite Shangri-la 1. It looks like for one person it will set up like a tent for good protection and plenty of room. But I'll check out the Campor also.
Snag, I just use a cheapo wal mart green tarp. I think its a 8 by 12. Rolls up small & light, real spendy at 9.97. If you keep the angle steep it don't leak.
I've used it a bunch, pack it on the sled in the winter for a windbreak for the fire. When it gets raggy it will acidently catch fire so's I don't have to pack it out.
Got to using one after using a big one when packing fishery bios up the John Day drainage. Weathered some big rainstorms under the tarp nicknamed, Boystown.
What are you doing up the John Day? That's a river I want to fish. I was coming back from elk hunting once and driving along that river there was a fish hitting surface in ever pool!
look up cooks custom sewing cant beat the price
I really liked the idea's and designs of the Kifaru but just couldn't see myself spending that much. So I got the Go-Lite Shangrala-3 and I'm really impressed so far. I don't think you'll be dissapointed.
I'm something of a tarp freak and the tarps made by Dan Cooke are the best you can get. Plus they are made here in America.
http://www.cookecustomsewing.com/
Snag, I was on the north fork, from the end of the road on up into the wilderness.
They do stream surveys every year & count the salmon reds. Our job was to have a camp ready every night and a hot meal. Two of us used 5 horses and moved camp every day. The bios walk the river.
Great time for me to scout for hunting season. One thing I noticed was the bear sign, it would be a great time to hunt bear. Lots of trail's where the bruins are getting after the dead and dying fish.
My favorite stream was the Walla Walla. they count Bull trout reds on it. I could get a feel for how high the elk were.
Roughcountry pm sent.
Snag--
Various sales on right now on discontinued Golite tarps and floorless, TarpTent type shelters around the Internet. I think I found where on backpackinglight.com (look for Forums -> Gear -> Gear Deals. If you can't find one for about a third off, PM me and I'll look up where I just made a purchase. I think I bought a Golite Hut--nice if you're in wind. I'm pretty sure it was at Sierra Trading Post. I have a 8x10 non-cat Campmor silnylon tarp, and this Hut is way quieter and more bomb-proof for equal weight.
Couldn't you use a rainfly from a regular A-frame tent?? Campmor has the rainfly only for a Eureka Timberline 2 man tent for like $40. I have a four-man version and it has sewn in loops on the peak of the rainfly and grommets all the way around.
JockC, the Golites on Sierra are older discontinued models that are heavier. I will do some further searching...thanks though.
Problem Child (how did you earn this name, or do I want to know?) The rainflys I have seen are designed to fit over a tent...pretty hard to get them to be tight by themselves. Maybe it work.
QuoteOriginally posted by snag:
JockC, the Golites on Sierra are older discontinued models that are heavier. I will do some further searching...thanks though.
Problem Child (how did you earn this name, or do I want to know?) The rainflys I have seen are designed to fit over a tent...pretty hard to get them to be tight by themselves. Maybe it work.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGPQG_OtksQ
hmmm, if I could understand a word he was saying it would help! Is that really singing? I'm sorry I must just be getting old.........or that's just NOT singing! lol
We have had a Dan Cooke tarp for over 15 yrs.
we have used it in BWCAW area, in 1999 the blow down yr the tarp stayed up until we had to leave.
great tarps from Dan Cooke
Carl
Why not a small 5' X 7' or a 6' X 8' dome tent?????
I won one a few years ago in a raffle,then I bought another one for about $29.
They weigh very little and they are far more weatherproof than any tarp IMHO.
Snag, that's true about the heavier fabric. In my mind that's not always a problem in windy states where junk is coming off trees during storms or the lightest stuff tends to be a little more noisy at a given pitch. I stay away from the the very lightest and most delicate for that and for financial reasons. It's still pretty darned light.
Oh, Snag, one other thing--Those GoLites come with relatively crappy, massive aluminum stakes. They are much lighter with better stakes from Virga or backpackinglight.com's shop.
tarps are easy and cheap. If you want to spend some money look at Hennessy hammocks, you will have a tent and also a fly or tarp but it will cost you some money.
Snag--
Mountain Gear has the single wall Black Diamond Firstlight on sale. 2 person, 3 lb, $225. Not suitable for major sustained rain, and not that cheap (well, $75 off list), but bugproof and windspray proof. Very good tent.
For woody areas, as wahoo points out, a hammock might be the ticket. There are a bunch of them, with Hennessey being one of the good choices. One I'm half-interested in the Jacks R Better Bear Mtn Bridge hammock; it lies flat:
http://216.83.168.206/index_files/BMBH.htm
Note that with many hammocks the rainfly is extra $$ and weight. You don't need a ground cloth (though I use cheap and light Tyvek sheets for that), but you usually do need a pad under you for insulation purposes. Hammocks seem to be either a love it or hate it proposition.