i personly use a 3 seasooned ytent from north face but what do you guys use tents tarps ponchos and bivis :P and if so what types and if there good 

right now I use a msr one person hubbu it's pretty small and very easy to set up. I am looking to get in to bivys, but I don't have any experiance with them yet.

I live in north Ga. so most of the time I have mild weather and lots of trees.  That said a rain fly and a hamic is my goto.  I will some times sling a hooch by staking the courners and using a cord run to a over hanging branch to lift the center.   I like a rain fly and gorund cloth combo for it's flexablity and options, pluss the price point.  the hamic rainfly combo has me looking for just the rite trees but being off the ground has lots of advantages in the south!

I mostly use a 10x10 tarp.  If I'm bringing the girlfriend along, I switch to a Eureka Spitfire 2 tent.

Ryan LaPan wrote:Is the Spitfire tent hers too?lol

Haha, nope, that one is mine!

I use a simple Army poncho for my shelter and maybe my PT mat to sleep on, but if I'm camping with my family than I will bring the family tent.

I personally would like to see some wigwams with a horno in the middle. Some bark shingles or maybe European barrowed ideas such as a thatched roof.

Dean Hylton wrote:

I personally would like to see some wigwams with a horno in the middle. Some bark shingles or maybe European barrowed ideas such as a thatched roof.

I am guessing you are talking more of a permanent shelter? That would be a ton of work for an overnight. lol

Didn't want to start a new thread so i thought I'd continue this one for more opinions. My cheap little single wall, single person tent ripped apart at the end of fall last year. So I'm in the market for a new shelter. I'm torn between a tent or a tarp system. I haven't ventured into the hammock world yet so i might do that eventually, but for now I'm looking to stay on the ground.

For a tent I've been looking at the Alps mountaineering Zephyr 1. I like the full mesh so if it's a nice night I can leave the rain fly off and have it full open with basically a bug net. it's listed as 3lbs 14oz. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000MATC52/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3K90JHFOGRITA

For a tarp, Well i'm just looking into a getting a nice light weight tarp and some sort of bug net. I have the kelty Noah's 9x9 in mind for a tarp and either a suspended bugnet or a little popup bednet. http://www.amazon.com/Kelty-Noahs-Tarp-9-9x9-Feet/dp/B009R9FVAE/ref=sr_1_2?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1363215484&sr=1-2&keywords=kelty+noah%27s+tarp+9

and maybe a bug net like this, or just a hanging net. http://www.amazon.com/Iguana-Mosquito-Repellent-Woodland-camouflage/dp/B00BPBOOU0/ref=sr_1_8?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1363215521&sr=1-8&keywords=pop+up+bug+net

My main concerns are weight, because I hate lugging around too much gear, it makes the trip crappy. Then theres mosquitos, creepy crawlers, and rain. 

I've never done any tarp shelters yet so I'm a little hesitant, but I'd like to get a little more versatile with my skill set and maybe lose a little hiking weight in the process.

Dean Hylton wrote:

I personally would like to see some wigwams with a horno in the middle. Some bark shingles or maybe European barrowed ideas such as a thatched roof.

It takes days to build a propper wigwam I built one in the scouts with an old native who was teaching us and five guys working all day took 4 days (propper wigwam mind you, not a wikiup)

Sam MacDavid wrote:

Didn't want to start a new thread so i thought I'd continue this one for more opinions. My cheap little single wall, single person tent ripped apart at the end of fall last year. So I'm in the market for a new shelter. I'm torn between a tent or a tarp system. I haven't ventured into the hammock world yet so i might do that eventually, but for now I'm looking to stay on the ground.

For a tent I've been looking at the Alps mountaineering Zephyr 1. I like the full mesh so if it's a nice night I can leave the rain fly off and have it full open with basically a bug net. it's listed as 3lbs 14oz. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000MATC52/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3K90JHFOGRITA

 

For a tarp, Well i'm just looking into a getting a nice light weight tarp and some sort of bug net. I have the kelty Noah's 9x9 in mind for a tarp and either a suspended bugnet or a little popup bednet. http://www.amazon.com/Kelty-Noahs-Tarp-9-9x9-Feet/dp/B009R9FVAE/ref=sr_1_2?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1363215484&sr=1-2&keywords=kelty+noah%27s+tarp+9

 

and maybe a bug net like this, or just a hanging net. http://www.amazon.com/Iguana-Mosquito-Repellent-Woodland-camouflage/dp/B00BPBOOU0/ref=sr_1_8?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1363215521&sr=1-8&keywords=pop+up+bug+net

 

 

My main concerns are weight, because I hate lugging around too much gear, it makes the trip crappy. Then theres mosquitos, creepy crawlers, and rain. 

I've never done any tarp shelters yet so I'm a little hesitant, but I'd like to get a little more versatile with my skill set and maybe lose a little hiking weight in the process.

really the zephyr or my tent the hooligan are just bugnets with fitted tarps... If you get a big 12x12 tarp and a good quality bug net with a sturdy bottom it is kind of the same...the only problem with that style of tent or shelter is that when it is really cold your shelter will retain no heat and you freeze your ass off

It depends on my activity:

as an emergency shelther i always carry bothy bag in all my bags

when i go practice in the wood( or backyeard) i use a tarp. I use to have an integral design silk one but was to small. I bought from mountain equipment co-op much bigger and recicle my silk one to my urban EDC

winter i used to carry a bivouac but last time gottired of the no space and got into troule because of hat. So now i just bought a 4 season lighter version tent from MEC. And in regulat camping wih other will carry my more heavy 4 seasons expeditions tent from MEC.

So i was about to buy a tent, just to be on the safe side with my money, then i saw on REI this tarp http://www.rei.com/product/848882/outdoor-products-all-purpose-tarp

8x10ft, it's 1lb, and it's 8$?!?! it's no silnylon i guess but for 8$ i'm going to try it out. If i hate it then i'll spring for a 150$ tent, REI is good about returns too. 

I did look around at the coop you had suggested Daniel. Some pretty interesting stuff on there, I like the half tent half tarps they have (floor-less tents?) Some of that stuff is a little pricey for me at the moment though. Thanks for all the neat feedback, I'll update this thread after I try it out. My little outing isn't until april 6th. Hopefully the bugs stay away for a few more weeks.

undefined

Ryan LaPan wrote:

undefined

I'm going the tarp route for now, because I found one for way cheaper than a tent. That way If I hate it I'll still have money for a tent. So yeah sort of undefined :) But I'm going to attempt the tarp method this next outing.

my posts keep saying undefined---can you read them, Sam---you quoted me and answered but in your quote of me it says undefined again---

Sam MacDavid wrote:

I did look around at the coop you had suggested Daniel. Some pretty interesting stuff on there, I like the half tent half tarps they have (floor-less tents?) Some of that stuff is a little pricey for me at the moment though. Thanks for all the neat feedback, I'll update this thread after I try it out. My little outing isn't until april 6th. Hopefully the bugs stay away for a few more weeks.

Yes they started in the 70's the reason to start their co-op was to buy bulk gear and sell

it for less.

Sam MacDavid wrote:

Ryan LaPan wrote:

undefined

I'm going the tarp route for now, because I found one for way cheaper than a tent. That way If I hate it I'll still have money for a tent. So yeah sort of undefined :) But I'm going to attempt the tarp method this next outing.

If you are going to go just the tarp route..Then I would suggest a heavy canvas tarp it is deff more weight but will retain a heck of a lot more heat, so it is a trade off light or warm I always choose warm to me a little extra wieght is justmore of a work out my theory is don't pack lighter just get stronger so it feels lighter