My wife and I are planning a trip out west this summer and will put in at least a few nights camping. I have all the camping gear I need including a couple of good tents.

I'm considering buying a Black Diamond teepee type tent without floor or bug netting to take the place of a tent. It weighs less, gives lots of room and packs small. While we can get by using either of the tents I have, this one would be more comfortable. On the hunting sites teepee type shelters are all the rage and people seem very pleased with them but they're primarily used in the later fall.

Here's what I'm looking at: http://blackdiamondequipment.com/en_US/ ... ml#start=1 While there are other manufacturers available, I can get a pretty good deal on one of these amd BD makes great gear.

Here's my question: In the east these type shelters aren't very practical for sleeping out in the summer because of BUGS! We'll be traveling most of the month of July and in the Adirondacks you'd get chewed up at that time of year, mostly by mosquitos. A few years ago I kayaked the Grand Canyon and while I brought a tent I used it very little and just slept out on a tarp. How practical is that in the mid west and western states during July? I hope to get in two or three nights camping in the Idaho backcountry on this trip as well as the travel to and from. BD sells a screen/floor setup that goes with the shelter, but by the time I bought it all and packed it up I'd be just as far ahead to just take one of the tents I own.

I'm not too worried what would crawl in, just about being able to sleep comfortably.

Thanks.

Frank

I'm a fan of tents, as opposed to "shelters" like those tepees. For camping in the mountains of the west I prefer a good four season tent. First time you're in a real "toad strangler" downpour associated with a thunderstorm or a summer snowstorm a bathtub floor will look pretty good.

If you have a good solid proven tent, I'd stick with it. Oh, and depending on where you go and what time of year, bugs will be an issue as well.

MTV

I would not plan on camping without a tent that can isolate you from small biting critters. There is a lot of snowpack in the mountains this year, which means late snowmelt and lots of stagnant water for bugs to hatch from. I would expect an extra long and heavy mosquito season out in the western states. At some of the lower strips, like the Hell's canyon strips and others, there is a possibility that a rattlesnake might decide to get in on some of your body heat in the middle of the night.

I'm with MTV and Scolopax, I like sleeping in a standard tent. When I'm on a river trip without my wife I usually sleep on my raft but I always have a tent with me in case the camp has lots of bugs or some weather moves in. I'm a wimp, I can't sleep on the dirt without a tent but I really like sleeping on my raft.

fshaw wrote: BD sells a screen/floor setup that goes with the shelter, but by the time I bought it all and packed it up I'd be just as far ahead to just take one of the tents I own.

I'm into lightweight backpacking and have both tent and tarp setups. I love being able to go almost ultralight, but it's dependent on weather, season, etc. You've identified the limitation of tarptents: Once you add bug netting and floor to a tarp setup, you've reinvented the tent. With a regular tent, you'll be able to literally rest easier.

I went bigger rather than smaller...both weight and size...

I now camp in a Big Agnes Flying Diamond 8. Really not that heavy for its size...and so worth it.

Troy Hamon wrote:I went bigger rather than smaller...both weight and size...

I now camp in a Big Agnes Flying Diamond 8. Really not that heavy for its size...and so worth it.

We have the same tent, and love it. Totally agree.

I keep a Black Diamond Megamid in the plane all the time. Ties to the Cessna tied own hook nicely. Bugs are a problem but tent is always better than no tent. They are also a pit condensation prone, I think a vent near the top would help.

My opinion.

Pyramid tents are great for snow camping. Not a fan for the other three seasons.

Bugs and critters are big issues. Went on a climb in the Olympics a number of years back. I had a small tent and my friends had a pyramid. I got a good night sleep while they had mice pawing at their hair all night long and they had clothing ruined when the mice chewed holes in it for bedding material.

Tent it is!

Thanks.

Frank

Thought I posted this earlier, guess it went up in smoke
This is my pick
http://www.cabelas.com/product/CABELAS- ... lsrc=aw.ds

I have the six person one also if I am going to need more room
Very weather proof, wind and rain
Vents can be sealed off to help keep dust out.
Nice front and rear vestibules
4 season
Good zippers
Good customer support
Easy to put up and down
Pretty light considering the features
Light colored to reflect desert heat
Usually can be found in very good condition on Craigslist if you want cheaper
Rain fly goes pretty much to the ground. better for keeping warm and dust.
The 4 person tent is easy to put up by myself, the 6 person tent is easier with a helper.

I have also gone to Cabelas 3" sleeping pads vs the blow up air mattresses and been very happy with those. A little bulky, but I have room, and they don't go flat.

Gary

I'm a little late to this party, too, but I agree with all that's been said. I also am a fan of "bigger is better", with my Big Agnes Big House 4, which often only houses me or me and my pupdog. In fact, when mine was damaged in last year's OSH storm, I ended up replacing it with the latest model of the Big House 4. I also own a couple of good quality backpacking size tents (a Walrus and an MSR), which if I needed to count ounces, I'd go to sooner than a bigger "shelter only" setup. When you're tenting on a relatively long trip, you want to be able to sleep comfortably, the fewer bugs and other wee beasties, the better.

Incidentally, I've found that one of the very best anti-bug devices is an "Off" fan. They're quiet and effective at discouraging all sorts of flying buggers, and they don't have the strong smell of bug repellent sprays or lotions. The batteries last only a couple of nights, and the repellent pads aren't good for much longer than that, but they are so worth it--just take a supply of AAs and pads with. When I'm sleeping at OSH, for instance, I have literally zero mosquito issues inside my tent, whereas my neighbors complain every morning about them.

Sounds like a fun excursion.

Cary

been doing Idaho at Johnson creek every year since 1998... started with a small 6 x 8 dome...which was light for my tripacer and served me well for several years... Now with my Maule I upgraded to a Eureka tetragon 1210... It's plenty big enough for my son and I with room to spare ,and isn't much heavier, for all the gear we bring for 9 days fly fishing and camping... Idaho nights can get down to close to freezing so a tent is much better than under the wing sleeping.... also if you've ever experienced a Idaho monsoon,they only last a short time, you won't want to be without a good water repellant tent....

Some recent discussion here: https://www.backcountrypilot.org/forum/ ... ents-18122

We actually have a knowledge base article coming out on this soon.

Cary wrote:I'm a little late to this party, too, but I agree with all that's been said. I also am a fan of "bigger is better", with my Big Agnes Big House 4, which often only houses me or me and my pupdog. In fact, when mine was damaged in last year's OSH storm, I ended up replacing it with the latest model of the Big House 4. I also own a couple of good quality backpacking size tents (a Walrus and an MSR), which if I needed to count ounces, I'd go to sooner than a bigger "shelter only" setup. When you're tenting on a relatively long trip, you want to be able to sleep comfortably, the fewer bugs and other wee beasties, the better.

Incidentally, I've found that one of the very best anti-bug devices is an "Off" fan. They're quiet and effective at discouraging all sorts of flying buggers, and they don't have the strong smell of bug repellent sprays or lotions. The batteries last only a couple of nights, and the repellent pads aren't good for much longer than that, but they are so worth it--just take a supply of AAs and pads with. When I'm sleeping at OSH, for instance, I have literally zero mosquito issues inside my tent, whereas my neighbors complain every morning about them.

Sounds like a fun excursion.

Cary

Hopefully not too much thread drift, but bugs and tents go hand in hand (so to speak).

The BEST tent/camper/trailer bug killer I've ever used is Konk. Not sure if they sell it in the US. One quick spritz about 30 minutes before bed and you're good to go. No residual odour. I've never seen anything remotely comparable and I've spent my share of time in buggy woods.

Like many repellents it probably isn't a good idea to ponder how something can be so deadly for bugs but not for humans.

A good 3 season tent for aircraft is the marine 2-person tent:

http://www.eurekamilitarytents.com/tents/combat.cfm

A relatively inexpensive surplus 4 season 4-person:

http://www.keepshooting.com/british-arm ... tent.html#

I have both; only used the 2-person down to 20's so far, works great, seems more durable than lightweight backpacking types. The british tent seems stout, but haven't used it in anger so far. No broken poles in my unit, unlike the review. YMMV

I love this tent so much I bought one for my daughter who often needs protection from tropical rain and bugs on the wet side of Maui.
https://www.rei.com/product/894015/rei-kingdom-4-tent

John

I'm in the tent camp, pun intended. I've done a lot of backpacking in the PNW and there have been times we have stopped and thrown the tent up, jumped in and watched in horror as about a million biting bugs massed over the (thankfully zipped) screens. FZ

albravo wrote:The BEST tent/camper/trailer bug killer I've ever used is Konk. Not sure if they sell it in the US. One quick spritz about 30 minutes before bed and you're good to go. No residual odour. I've never seen anything remotely comparable and I've spent my share of time in buggy woods.

Like many repellents it probably isn't a good idea to ponder how something can be so deadly for bugs but not for humans.

I was thinking pondering that is *exactly* what we should do. So I looked it up because I was unfamiliar with that brand.

Apparently it's pyrethrin which has been used as a reasonably safe insecticide for over a hundred years. How it is deadly to bugs but no humans is because of differences between insect and mammalian nervous systems and that it is much harder to get it into mammals at all because of our skin.

So I wouldn't go ahead and put it on your ice cream, but it looks pretty legit and pyrethrin is definitely available in the US in many forms even if the Konk brand isn't.

Good for all kinds of "bugs."

http://www.skintherapyletter.com/treat/ ... oxide.html

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