Henry Shires TarpTent Raintest Results

“This past weekend I got to do another little AT section with bitpusher and Father Goose.

Late Saturday afternoon a good thunderstorm with hard blowing rain came up just after getting camp set up.

The storm lasted about an hour, with me napping in my Henry Shires Squall TarpTent through most of it.
This pound and a half tent kept me and my gear dry even with the wind blowing from the 'wrong' direction into the front of the tent. The blowing rain hit the net door and only a very fine mist fell about 6" max into the front. Most water just ran down the netting.
I'm still very happy with this choice of shelter.
I don't think there is anything better for the weight.”

“Excellent news.

Thanks for the info !”

“great gear review!!!”

“lead me not into temptation! heh
very nice! .....




btw....the honey is superb..thanks!”

“Great report!

I'm constantly amazed at how well a tarp works. Rain has to be blowing near horizontal to cause trouble. Of course with my luck it's always blowing right into the front. Tarabull laughed at me last winter when it began raining and I just poped up the umbrella and stuffed it in the front opening. Instant door!”

“Yeah, that's a pretty impressive shelter. I'm thinking about that now instead of the SD Ultra Light Year.”

“they don't float very good though.”

“I`ve only tarped once,And that night it hit -32C,cold night but surviable.Lot of frost on me in the morning but it got me hooked on winter camping.Main draw back for me is "bugs" and dirt floors.Just as point of interest a kid got dragged out of a tarp by a wolf a few years back while canoe camping in Algonquin.....Food for thought!!!”

“Well, did the wolf eat the kid?

I'm expecting delivery of a Tarptent Cloudburst any day.

Before Friday would be nice.”

“No but he did require some stitches to his face....his parents scared it off.Park staff felt it was a mistake by the wolf...They felt that the wolf was curiuos about the sleeping bag....apparently there where a few wolves in that area known for stealing campers clothing...some had been bold enough to enter...campsites by day and sneak off with shirts packs etc..A tent doesn`t offer much protection I know,but it does ofer some kind of barrier to an animal a tarp opening,just increases an animals natural curiosty. If you tarp it in the summer you have respect. The mosquitos up here would do me in.”

“A few stitches and a clean pair of pants, no doubt.”

“That ain't food for thought paddles...that's food for the wolves!”

“A classic case of .....my what big teeth you have granma!!!”

“im interested in tarping it-my eureka tent is small and 'sauna' like.It also kills the 'connection' with nature in a way.I dont like marmots chewing my gear up tho.Anyway,a lot lighter too and the ventilation in my tent is mediocre and space is cramped... so waiting out storms is dreadful.I can imagine waiting out a storm in a tarp could be enjoyable with all that space around you.”

“Keep in mind that the tarptent can be customized to still act as a tent to bugs, but as a tarp for connection to the woods.

I need to get my tarp back out and try to sew one of these.”

“When I got home yesterday it(Cloudburst) was there!!!

I imediately set it up in the door yard(ha ha!).
Well, it was the back door yard.
twigeater would understand.

Two of the boys and I crawled in.
I had to throw them out......'rasslin', ya know!
It has room for two of me at 6' 4" 210#.

The rain would have to be goin' sideways to get in at all.

With a sewn-in floor it weighs 37.5 ounces.
That's about the same as my 10 X 10 tarp and its cords and stakes, maybe lighter.”

“dooryard, ayuh!
(TomT, Pennsy says "iyah" - let's pick on him over here, where he won't notice, hehe)

Stove Stomper, you can't make it to Maine next weekend? :(”

“Gotchya twigeater!”

“Tom Terrific doesn't your head hit the top of it? Can you sit straight up in it, I couldn't! That's why I didn't like it.”

“tango, I could just about sit up at the front end.

Its kinda so-so for sittin' room.

The Cloudburst is the one I got, with the hoop pole at the front.”

“LOL!! Brilliant observation Baume.”

“I caught ya TT and Twigeater! You can't hide from me.

That looks like a pretty good set-up SS. Twigeater is the tent junky these days and I bet she'll have one soon.”

“You ain't foolin' anyone Pennsy, if I hadn't pointed you to this thread, you never woulda found us!

I still haven't tried out my last new tent yet, plus I'm on a gear-hog diet.
=D”

“".....I'm on a gear-hog diet.
=D"
twigeater
07:24:15 AM

Baked or fried? ~@%^P”

“Opinions, for solo hiking use?”

“for 4 more ounces, you get a ton more room. not much room to store your gear if it's lashin down rain in the Virga. Squall gets my vote every time.”

“yea but the there are certain joys to having a tent with a smaller footprint, I'm kinda wanting the virga for MY solo tent...should i just get the squall anyway?...hmmmm”

“Wusses...at the weight of the Shires's tent's, ya should be carryin' BOTH, then choosing the one ya need each night....

:-)”

“The Cloudburst has more sittin up room at the front. Cause it's like this( instead of like this<. only upright. LOL”

“I use the Cloudburst as a one-man tent.

My first night in it was on the Allegheny Front near Roaring Plains, WVa.

The wind lashed every which way with rain of variable intensity.

Only the top of my head got a tad wet and the tent flexed like all hell in the wind but did not otherwise budge.”

“The Squall2 & Virga2 are very different shelters than the originals.
The sit up headroom and wall steepness are greatly improved from the old models.
OPIE has a point about the small footprint of the Virga2. Many times, you just do not have the room for a wide tent.”

“alot of times when solo, a big huge tent is kinda...retarded. I know some of you guys are claustrophopic...but I know i'm not the only one that likes a smaller, less visible tent. Who has the Virga 1 or 2??? 4 ounces is 4 ounces right SS, they add up eventually, and with the new extended floor it's even more weight”

“4 oz is another Mountain House Meal. ;-)

I've been looking at the Virga2 pretty hard as an option to my bigger old style Squall.
Still gonna keep my Squall, love it.
last edited: 3/23/05 10:14:12 AM”

“Borrow my Squall if you want. If the footprint is bigger than what you'd like, go with the Virga.”

“I've used an old Walrus Microlight, and last year the REI Roadster, they both are rather confining. I'm guessing that the Virga2 would seem large to me in comparison. The weight of the microlight is a bit less than the Virga2(extended), but only had something like 30" headroom (ughh). Its bigger than a bivy, but not much, kind of a hybrid between a bivy and a solo tent. The Roadster is an interesting design but weighs a bit more.

I'm definitely looking for ways to lighten the load prior to this summer's hike. And the main contenders are to replace the tent and my current backpack.”

“Curahee...i'll be by to pick it up in a day or two...lol For real..i'll call you and get up with you...i'd like to see it up again and make a decision.

once i get this tent, my last weighty object is my belly”

“Funny. Hey, we'll be hanging out at the pub tomorrow night for the Rock & Roll Circus. I'll bring it there if you're out & about. Did you get a ULA as well?”

“I understand Henry has run into some production problems with the new Squall2 & Virga2 designs and has stopped taking orders until he can get them fixed.
Check his website.
http://www.tarptent.com

Yep

snip...
Thanks for your interest in Tarptent.

We are currently filling backorders for the Virga 2 and Squall 2 and are unable to accept any new orders for those models. We'll be adding new manufacturing capabilities in the next few weeks and will resume accepting orders for the Virga 2 and Squall 2 at that time.

Click here if you would like to be put on the Virga 2 Waiting List, or Squall 2 Waiting List. We'll notify you by e-mail as soon as we're ready to resume accepting orders.

Click here if you would like to place an order for a Cloudburst, Rainshadow, or accessories.

We apologize for any inconvenience. Thanks for your patience.

Henry Shires
Tarptent

..snip
last edited: 3/23/05 3:12:03 PM”

“i'm still a month off from ordering one i think. Yea i got a ULA p2. Only used it twice so far, i think i had it when we went last”

“OPIE - I consider my old style Squall to be a 1 and 1/2 person shelter. Two CAN use it but the slopeing walls will get a little water on your sleeping bags from rubbing up against them during the night from condensation. The new style Squalls seem to help solve this problem with the steeper walls and I think will make a better 2 person shelter. An extra 4 oz for something both you and Miss Opie can fit into might well be worth considering, rather than the one person Virga2.”

“Have you seen Miss Opie? She could use a Breeze pack for a sleeping bag!”

“we have my kelty zen for both of us, she carries the poles and stakes..lol, and i carry the tent and fly.
i have a hammock for myself solo, but i want a solo tent...almost got the eureka gossamer, and kelty clark...but they are too heavy for solo UL”

“My son made one of the squall type tarp tents. He and his buddy used it last year for Philmont where it rained every day for 12 days straight - frequently heavy rain. No problem. They did take a little more time to pick a tent spot though. The only time I shared it with him I thought it was plenty roomy.”

“Hit the WRT in Pennsylvania for a day hike and stayed at my Moms farm in an open field. My Tarptent Virga withstood a 10 minute wind shear while raining buckets. This gale knocked down a number of eureka Timberline tents. When it finally stopped, I checked out the Virga and besides a little spray at the foot, Bone Dry!! It rained a few hours later in the evening but i was completly dry. Henry Shires tents rule!”

“boy, thats good news to hear! I just told Tango I'd take her Squall!”

“I've never been wet in mine.”

“That's a damn shame.”

“lol bit, well it is a little cramped in there.”

“wouldn't cramped conditions be a plus???”

“Yes, Especially if you plan on using it as a 4 season shelter : )”