Tarps In Heavy Rain - The Real Dirt

“Tarp Pros (for me)

Light
Communion with the woods
Cooler and less humid (here in FL)

So I'm trying to convert. Which was a pleasant experience in dry weather. This morning I heard the thunder rolling in so I got up, pitched the tarp in the backyard and waited. The rain started comin' down pretty hard while I was inside getting my coffee. I cam out and the two sides of my A-frame were actually big pools of water. Instead of creating a shelter I had created an attractive garden decoration in my backyard. I just needed a bird bath to make it complete.

It's hard to convince my wife that I'm an outdoorsman when I need to repeatedly hand her my balls after every backyard field test (lighting wet wood was another good one).

I am really gonna need to step up my tarp pitching ability if I want to stay dry in heavy rain. which makes me wonder. If I expect heavy rain (2 seasons here) - is the bulletproof pitch that I need really that different from a tent? Particularly when I need to take bug protection into account?

My initial thoughts are that tarping may be more suited for the non-tropical seasons and climates.”

“Well Im no pro at it but...
assuming your pitching an A frame style with two end poles/sticks....
try making sure the middle of the down slope sits higher then the ends by staking them farthur out.
Any dips in the tarp will lead to rain water collection.

The part I havent figured out is how you keep the ground under the tarp from turning to mud during a heavy rain.”

“Coop... That's why we usually do things like that out in the woods where there aren't as many witnesses, LOL

DOM, I can't even BEGIN to count the times I've seen a stream appear under somebody's tent in a cloudburst. 'Site selection' is key. To make sure water doesn't pool, you can wind up sleeping on a hump in the ground, which can kill your back.

Those are the main reasons I haven't converted. Around here it just seems too buggy and too wet.
What can I say... Murphy's Law is still in force.”

“To hell with tarps............”

“Don't pitch a tarp in your back yard.

Pitch the tarp in your neighbor's back yard on that small elevated hump.

The great outdoors is much, much, bigger and scarier than your own back yard.

Use your brain. Water goes down or out. It rarely goes up.”

“Oh well, I don't think it will rain tonight.”

“Good thing, Your brain could use a break.”

“Tarps suck i the summer anyway. No bug protection.

I've been rained on pretty hard in a tarp and been fine. You gotta set it up low and wide. That way you have more coverage. And, like they said, Set it up on high ground. Of course that goes for any shelter.
You may need a bigger tarp also. I use a 9x10 and it'd plenty.”

“Never tarped, but have gone through several days of non-stop rain in my tent and stayed nice and dry. Location, location, location.”

“i tarp as much as possible. too buggy or too much snow are the cut offs. as walkindude said, low and wide is the trick. try different pitches.”

“I've tarp on few times. 8x10 plastic camo type. Somethings I've learn is to set the low end toward the west and have a flap on the front edge that hangs out and down above the entrance. If the land grade is not your liking you could always kick out a boot trench in the upslope or foot sweep debris one way to create a bank that could help in catching and diverting the flowing water. If you are using a ground cloth, I normally use a E. blanket. Create a bedding on which to lay your ground cloth. It is highly unlikely that the whole thing will wet out in a heavy rain provided you have ample protection from above. You save wieght on a bed roll if you use what nature provides.”

“There's no doubt that I can improve my tarp pitching - (Sgt. Rock's site is a great resource). My bigger ponder is - in this climate - if I have to pitch it low and guy it out and use a bug bivy then I may be better off with an extra pound of tent.”

“Tarp on, Wayne. Tarp on, Garth.”

“Shwing!”

“A 'boot trench' is not exactly LNT. Site selection is key.”

“you turn it iside out, crawl in it and zip it shut. there is the air issue, but at least your problems of bugs and water will be solved.”

“Um, yeah...unless the water's blowing under your tarp or you're camping in a swamp, the ground covered by it will stay dry, lol.”

“Tarping nearby a stream, ontop of ground having very low permeability, then having it rain cats and dogs for only hours can make for volumous overland flow and quite an experience trapped on... ThermaRest Island.”

“Never gotten wet. Have been dumped on for hours 3 times in two seperate tarps. I do use a ground sheet though.”

“what is sgt rocks website?”

“Would you believe my Trekker Tarp got condensation on the underside of it this weekend...even though it was open and ventilated well, and it didn't even rain. Come to think of it, it even had condensation on the topside too.”

“I've gotten condensation on the inside of my tarp even when I had it pitched A-frame style. This was in the winter though.”

“Stratdewd - Sgt. Rock used to post here quite a bit - don't see him much anymore. His site is a good resource for pitching tarps and making stoves.”

“So after avoiding the tarp for a while I decided to give it another try. This time with considerably better luck. Using some of the advice here as well as common sense (collected through experience) I re-pitched the tarp and had a pretty wind proof / water proof pitch.

Key differences...

1. Pitching a simple A-frame with the 8' section as front and back door and the 10' section as the two walls. I had been doing it the other way (following the crease - foolishly) and ended up with flapping / flimsy sides that sunk in when wet. This time it was much tighter and I was able to use the ties outs on the outer walls to increase the interior volume. Also, using the 10' length - the tarp fully covered me from head to foot, the 8' side left either my feet or head exposed to blowing rain.

2. I was more careful about where I pitched the tarp (in my back yard). I found a spot that was a little more raised than other areas. Little dips can be tempting as bed spots, but they are certain doom in a tarped downpour. This time I was sleeping on a little ridge and the rain never seeped in under the tarp.

More testing is needed to be confident in the woods. I also need to decide on some form of bug defense, but I am definitely heading in the tarp direction after this round of testing.”

“Sounds like a nice set up Coop. You will be a dedicated tarper soon.”

“Good show on the testing BC. I got an 8x10 siltarp recently and used it a few times, but not in heavy rain yet. I also have been pitching it like your first test and I'll try it out like you just did. The tie-outs will be more useful now.

For summer with the bugs, I've been looking at the Adventure 16 Bug Bivy.”

“Tarps can get some spray under them in heavy rain pitched in an A frame fashion. I saw it happen this fall in heavy rain in central PA. Also the ground was so dry and hard the water couldn't soak in fast enough and ran under my tarp. I had amesh insert with floor so I didn't get wet, but without that it would have rough sleeping. From now on if heavy rain is forecast I'll close in the sides more to reduce spray and be more careful where I pitch it to reduce runoff.”

“Wait till yer out in a storm which dumps such a volume that the rainwater cannot infiltrate the ground fast enough and overland flow occurs...under your tarp.”

“That's just what happened and a small stream started to flow.”

“Hey Rich - if you do the AFT T-day weekend, perhaps you can share some your expert tarp tips? I'll be bringing it unless the weather looks really awful.”

“I don't think I'm any "tarp expert" and I seem to always learn something new when I use mine. I use a tent this time of the year since it's warmer. Last time I used my tarp on a cold windy night I was wishing I brought my tent instead or my winter bag.”

“If you want that Adventure 16 bug bivy you can have mine! Quite frankly I would not recommend it, but if you want it to play around with you're more than welcome to it. It's only taking up space in my closet.”

“I'd love to give it a try g-man. Since I'm about half your height, it might work for me. ;o)
I'll scoot ya an email.

Rich - I've seen your inventions and cleverness. Don't sell yourself short.”

“Just send me your address and I'll send it your way. Hope it works for you, but you've got to watch getting your hair caught in it. Wear a stocking cap at night so you don't have to worry! :^)”

“Since my head is shaved, I doubt that will be a problem. ;o)”

“Yes - confidence will come over time. For instance - as I mentioned - I pitched it over a slightly raised area and everything stayed dry in my garden hose simulation. Who knows about a real live downpour? Until I feel real comfortable with the tarp I will probably take the Eureka Solitaire as back-up in case a "worst case" scenario rears its head. I don't want to be an "idot ultralighter" who is a burden to others who are better prepared with either experience or gear.

I have a trekker tarp insert but I figure if I'm taking all that (tarp/insert/tent pegs) I might as well take a tent - it weighs about the same.”

“It may weigh the same but is it as roomy?

Still haven't gotten wet in a downpour in the tarp. Maybe we've just been lucky?”

“I like the double protection of my one-man tent with an 8' x 10' nylon tarp hung above it. I, also, use the tarp for shelter from rain storms and showers, while I'm on the trail.”

“Big Coop, the big advantage of the Tarp/Insert is not weight but room and VENTILATION. It is a much better setup for hot buggy muggy nights than a lot of tents are. Plus you have the tarp to throw up quick if you get caught hiking in a summer downpour.”

“Oops sorry Nowslimmer, I didn't see your post where you said the same thing about using the tarp for rainstorms.”

“It's OK, LyndyS. I've been ignored most of my life, so I'm used to it.”

“Yeah, yeah, guys always say that, when they tear themselves away from the newspaper or TV for a second or two.”

“The biggest disadvantage of using a tarp in my opinion is the hassle of dealing with it opposed to just setting up a tent at the end of the day. If you aren't using trekking poles you need to find the right trees in just the right spot and sometimes that isn't easy or even possible to do, depending on where you are. Depending on how you have it pitched if big winds come and heavy rain you may need to make adjustments to the pitch where in a tent you can just roll over and go back to sleep.”

“I didn't say that I like being ignored. That may be why I keep getting divorced!”

“I don't know guys, I've been in long heavy rainstorms where most everyone in tents got wet, and we stayed bone dry in the trekker tarp. It's never been seam sealed, gets lots of use and is, all in all, very pimp. (To use CMB's phrasology)

I wouldn't trade it for any tent. The only thing I don't like about it is, every once in a while, the lack of privacy. But, then again, I like rolling over in the morning and being able to say good morning to everyone else who's tarping it. =)”

“Good Morning!”

“The Trekker tarp is a different thing and more tent-like compared to a plain tarp. The Trekker can be seal off from wind and rain easier than a regular tarp.”

“Sass - I definitely agree on the benefits you mention - that's why I keep trying - but I do also want to lighten up as much as possible along the way.”

“Tarping has its appeal under certain conditions, I think. When you're with a group. Even for snow camping. On a solo trip, eh I'll pass.


I remember on one trip, at about 11,000ft and at the end of the day trying to tie off a taught-line hitch to a boulder in order to get the tarp thing to stand. Finally got it up and was right proud of it.

Slept soundly among an army of giant ants that night.”

“I have always tarped. I have been down to 20 at night in one and its not so bad. I like to use a hammock with one as long as it isnt below freezing. I am trying this winter to test a hamock with sleeping pad in cold weather if we ever get some. The hammock is my choice if I know it will rain because I dont need a ground cloth no hills or rocks to worry about, and its nice to sit in as a chair in fair weather. I also cook in mine.”