Wilderness Camping Guides and Gear

Tents

Your home in the backwoods and shelter from the weather. There are many types, sizes and styles for different situations and applications... Learn More About Tents

Tent Alternatives

Other kinds of shelter choices that can be quite practical and lightweight for backpacking applications... Learn More About Tent Alternatives

Backpacks

A properly sized and correctly adjusted backpack can make carrying all your gear a breeze... Learn More About Backpacks

Sleeping Bags

Keeping you warm and comfortable to get a good nights sleep... Learn More About Sleeping Bags

Sleeping Pads

Added to a good quality bag to smooth out the bumps and keep you much warmer... Learn More About Sleeping Pads

Clothing

To make sure you are warm, dry and comfortable while you are on the trail... Learn More About Camp Appropriate Clothing

Additional Gear

There are many other items to make your wilderness experience easier, safer and more enjoyable... Learn More About Additional Gear

More Sites to the Great Outdoors

• Trailer Tent Guide

Camping Tents - Select the Right Tents for Camping

Selecting the correct tent for camping depends on many situations and circumstances. Tents come in a wide variety of sizes, colors and configurations. They are generally made of ripstop nylon and have either fiberglass or aluminium poles. I much prefer aluminium poles to fiberglass as they are lighter and are much more durable. The body of the tents are usually uncoated ripstop nylon with the tent floor and rainfly being coated ripstop for waterproofness. The rainfly fits over the body of the tent for. Tents are classified as either free-standing or non free-standing styles. Free-standing tents are just as they sound and do not require staking out other than to keep them anchored to the ground. Non free-standing tents need to be staked to the ground as part of getting them to stand up.

Select the Backpacking Tent That is Best For Your Situation

For backpacking, you will want to choose a tent that satisifies your needs while still keeping the weight to a minimum. Your choice will depend on situations you believe you will find yourself in. Tents come in sizes measured in how many "men" will fit inside. Keep in mind that this is measurement is similar to packing in sardines. In my opinion, if you have a two man rated tent it would really be much more comfortable for one person. So, depending on how many people you plan to have on your trip, you may be able to split the weight by having someone carry the tent while others could carry the food and other common supplies. There also may be a time when you could use a larger tent as a base camp tent. This allows for the flexability of doing short day hikes out from your base camp.

Tents come in one and two, three and four season ratings, as well as single wall tents. A one or two season tent would be used for warm weather camping and the tent body would most likely be constructed of a mesh window material with a rainfly cover. Three and four season tents are for colder weather and have less mesh window material, and in the case of four season tents can be completley sealed up with zip-in panels. This is to control air movement and prevent snow from blowing in under the rain fly. Plus three and four season tents use more poles, are studier and can stand up to higher wind speeds. In cold weather applications you will find that the moisture in your breath will condensate on the inside of the tent unless a vent is left open to allow it to escape. Finally, single wall tents have the body of the tent coated for waterproofness with no accompaning rainfly. These may be a good choice for backpacking as there is less weight, but may not be as versital as a tent with a rainfly.

Give Your Tent a Footprint...and Other Accessories

Many tents also have a "footprint" available from the manfacturer. This is a piece of heavier gauge coated nylon that goes under the tent to keep it clean and protect the tent bottom. Also with the footprint you may be able to set up a rain/sun shelter with just the footprint and fly, leaving the tent body out. Other features to look for are vestibules, annexes and gearlofts. Tent vestibules are areas outside the tent body covered by the rainfly. This is a handy area to store gear, wet items, muddy boots and small amounts of firewood to keep it dry. Annexes are add on tarp like attachments that come off the tents rainfly for added sheltered area. Gearlofts are mesh attachments that clip in the inside of the ceiling of the tent to hold small items out of the way or to hang damp items to dry.

Become Familiar With Your Tent

Once you have chosen the tent that you think will best suit your needs I would reccomend setting it up to famaliarize yourself with it. Also at this time, if it does not come with a footprint, I recommend creating one out of heavy gauge plastic. Make sure to cut it to a size just smaller than the area the tent with fly actually covers. You do not want it any larger because if you get rained on and it is sticking out you will end up with water between the groundcloth and the bottom of the tent. Also, while your tent is new I would take off the rainfly, turn it over and use commonly available products to reinforce the waterproofing on the seams. Make sure to let it dry completely before you repack it so it doesn't end up sticking together. Also a little talcum powder added on top of the seams after the new waterproofing has dried can keep it from sticking. You always want to be completely confident that your tent will keep you and your gear nice and dry in the heaviest downpours.