Fast Pitching Tarps?

A flat tarp sets up pretty fast. Just tie off to 2 trees and then stake down the 10 tie outs. Yeah 10 is a lot, but you don't have to be really precise in placing them just right for a perfect pitch. Just pull on until taught and hammer them in. Have some pre-tied taught line hitches or line locks and you can tighten them right up.

The mids and stretched pryramids like the Six Moon Designs Gatewood and Descutes use one pole and about six stakes. The corners can be staked out and then the pole extended. That goes pretty quick and there's no comedy of falling poles when you are trying to stake the guy lines. They are far easier to put in the wind.

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I also have never pitched anything easier or faster than my MLD Solomid. That being said, if you want the amenities of a "real" tarp (such as views or minimization of condensation), which I sometimes do, I find that the kind of pitch influences setup time and hassle. For instance, I find a "shut-end A-frame"-setup much easier to pitch alone than a regular A-frame. Actually, this setup is virtually identical to the half pyramid with the only exception that you peg the short-rear side of the tarp directly to the ground instead of one side. You'll need a large enough tarp (I found 10ft length to be plenty) for this setup, though. However, even for the shut-end A-frame/half pyramid, I find it not advisable to peg all corners directly to the ground as this will result in poor tension (at least with a flat tarp if no other tie-outs are used). Imho, you should at least use guylines for the corners on the high side of the tarp. Usually, I also use guylines on the low side, too, but very short ones (I find the possibility to tension those guylines a little more when setup is complete results in a taughter pitch). However, I do not find that these guylines create additional hassle (on the contrary, actually). You still eliminate the annoying "hold the pole in one hand and put in the peg just to move it at least once more in the further process"-thing. With the MLD Monk, you should take into consideration that the tarp is rather small (barely larger than most poncho-tarps), so you should estimate if the offered weather protection is enough for you.

All tarps can be pretty fast pitching. You just need a shelter for for the night. Three stakes is the absolute minimum. One in the rear with corners folded in. One in the front. Set your pole to about 42 to 44 inches and put it in the center, front. Then take the third stake and set it on the opposite corner, front. You may need a fourth stake & guy line on the pole as in the first set of three drawings. The next set is adding one stake, unfolding the rear and perhaps the optional stake at the front. This adds very little in my estimation since the back and sides are angled enough not to have gear in them. I often place my nearly empty pack at the back rather than use it as a pillow, though. The last set is a typical "A" frame. You may need up to six stakes, two guy lines and two poles for this set up. Note that it is not wind proof.

That's it. MLD Grace solo tarp. Spacious,lightweight and pitches quickly and easily..no hassels.

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Get a Tarptent Notch and leave the inner at home when bugs are not a problem. Sets up in under two minutes with 4 stakes . Leave all the 4 panels open, close one at a time, according to needs. Done. Notch fly only 475g /16.7 oz Bonus : you have a custom made bug net for when you need one. TT Notch 90 sec set up (I can do it faster…)

"Get a Tarptent Notch and leave the inner at home when bugs are not a problem. Sets up in under two minutes with 4 stakes ." I just finished a month of traveling and backpacking with the Tarptent Notch so I have some experience with it. I timed myself severl times after learning how to pitch the Notch. 15 minutes is about the fastest I can do it and that's after site selection and grooming and a site that is not complicated. A complicated situation and I have spent 30 minutes or more pitching the Notch. This is a rather finickie tarp/tent to set up. Billy

All things being equal, I feel my Grace Solo, like most A frame tarps, pitches rather fast. I've never timed it but I suspect if I was in a hurry (assuming I can get the stakes into the ground), I could have it up in under three minutes without breaking a sweat.

Ian, your Avatar is scaring me.

I have never had trouble pitching the Notch. Maybe 2 minutes if I am in a hurry. One trick it that before you take it down, remember to build in some length in the guylines so that when you set it up again there is less fiddle factor. Franco – indeed. That is why my previous post mentions modified mids, which is what I consider the Notch to be. By the way, you are a lot younger than I remember.

"Maybe 2 minutes if I am in a hurry" I don't think you guys are being realistic. I can't even unpack the tent and stakes and adjust my pole lengths in two minutes. Billy

Fair question. I usually keep my poles at 115 cm so they are ready to go anyway. Minimal adjustment required. I also keep my tent on the outside front pocket of my pack so it is accessible. But I am not sure why it is taking you 10 -15 minutes or more to set up the Notch. Do you stake the ends out first? Slightly loose?

Franco's demo video above shows a pretty quick pitch. Clearly he knows well how much slack to leave in the center when pinning the ends, and it helps to have a nice, flat lawn to work with, and also no rocks/roots to have to work around when inserting the stakes! Under ideal circumstances such as those, I can pitch my Duplex very quickly. However, this doesn't occur often. Sometimes I spend 2 minutes just finding a suitable rock to tap in the stakes. Then, sometimes the stakes go in easily, but in reality it is more common to curse and poke around for a minute trying to place just one stake. The first time I had to pitch the Duomid in earnest, the first fat raindrops from an impending deluge were already falling. This was down in Seneca Creek, WV, and I absolutely pounded 4 Ground hogs through the grass, dirt and crumbly shale, and was throwing the dog and my pack and myself inside in less than a minute. So motivation is a factor as well! :^)

And by the way, Franco sells tarptents and is about the worst on the board at not disclosing that when recommending that brand.

Well, maybe he should for the very few who don't know it, at least with any comments related to TT. I seem to recall him signing off with "Franco at Tarptents" on some posts.

yeah, would be better to have his name or signature include "tarptent"

Yes, sorry I forgot that signature bit, I was posting sometime during the night. (I woke myself up snoring…) Anyway, yes my backyard is ideal however it does not take me much longer to do in the bush. That clip was the only take I did, so not as good as it gets just how I did it that time. BTW, working with Tarptent or not does not make any difference on how the Notch can be set up. That clip is one continuous shot so it isn’t doctored to look good or faster than it is. (I might just shoot a faster set up ,just for fun..) The trick is to learn how to do it although it comes very natural to me. A good tip is to first take your time to set it up, then remove the poles and take note of how it looks on the ground without poles. Once you learn the slack needed in the fabric between ends, you just repeat it the next time. Here is another example. This time it takes me 2:30 min but it was raining rather heavily and I was cold (it was much warmer inside): Setting up the Notch in the rain franco@tarptent

great! I appreciate your comments about tarptents and other things

Thanks Jerry, it's morning now and I have had a coffee but I still find it amusing that it makes any difference on how a tent can be set up by working for Tarptent or not. Years ago after having seen many commenting on how difficult the Akto was to do, I borrowed one. Took my time the first go, just to get the feel, then did it in just under 3 minutes the second time. Billy "Maybe 2 minutes if I am in a hurry" I don't think you guys are being realistic. I can't even unpack the tent and stakes and adjust my pole lengths in two minutes. Watch my two videos (the blue "Notch set up" bit is a link to a video clip)they are in real time and not all that polished either particularly the one under rain. You can contact me at franco@tarptent.com if you like.

Says @ Tarptent in his avatar. That is good enough in my book. No need to add signatures to posts IMHO.

"Says @ Tarptent in his avatar. That is good enough in my book. No need to add signatures to posts IMHO." +1.

yeah n++