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Ditch Your Stakes: A Guide To Alternative Shelter Anchors


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Home Forums Campfire Editor’s Roundtable Ditch Your Stakes: A Guide To Alternative Shelter Anchors

Viewing 25 posts - 1 through 25 (of 25 total)
  • Author
    Posts
  • #1230065
    Addie Bedford
    BPL Member

    @addiebedford

    Locale: Montana
    #1442385
    Frank Deland
    Member

    @rambler

    Locale: On the AT in VA

    Great diagrams. Just a reminder, however, when one buries tie-outs in snow and tamps it down, one might be digging through ice in the morning to retrieve what ever was buried.

    #1442408
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    > when one buries tie-outs in snow and tamps it down, one might be digging through ice in the morning to retrieve what ever was buried.
    Make that 'every morning' in Australia. It can be very hard to even get a plain aluminium angle stake out of the ice: the ice locks in very hard onto the surface of the aluminium. I have had to use an ice axe to dig out each stake. But there was no ice there in the evening!
    Different places, different conditions, different solutions. Mike has lots of solutions.

    #1442412
    Michael Davis
    Member

    @mad777

    Locale: South Florida

    Quote: "when one buries tie-outs in snow and tamps it down, one might be digging through ice in the morning.."

    I think mike's reference to 'flossing' addresses this concern. The idea being that you will be able to slip your line off the deadperson even when iced over.

    This of course assumes that you have used a stray stick as a deadperson and not your hiking pole. Oops! Could be worse; could be your ice axe down there! :-)

    #1442425
    Michael Davis
    Member

    @mad777

    Locale: South Florida

    Hi Michael Martin,
    Those Nite Ize Figure 9's look interesting. The small size is advertised for line diameters of 2mm to 5mm.

    Have you, or anyone else, used these with the AirCore PRO Dymeema guylines sold on this site. I have that line and it is 1.7mm diameter.

    #1442429
    Michael Martin
    BPL Member

    @mikemartin

    Locale: North Idaho

    Michael-

    Sorry, but I don't know if the Figure 9 will work with AirCore Pro…

    Anybody tried this?

    #1442432
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    > I think mike's reference to 'flossing' addresses this concern. The idea being that you will be able to slip your line off the deadperson even when iced over.

    There are no dead persons around here! Down with political correctness!

    More to the point, out on the plains there are often no spare dead sticks on the surface – or under the surface. We have to use stakes.
    Out on the plains

    Different places, different problems.

    #1442694
    Christopher Kuzmich
    Member

    @obchristo2

    Great article.

    Have enjoyed Mike's various books over the years. Laughing and learning at the same time? Priceless!

    Thanks,
    Christo

    #1442706
    Andrew Lush
    BPL Member

    @lushy

    Locale: Lake Mungo, Mutawintji NPs

    I enjoyed your article, Mike. Very informative and useful – thanks a lot.

    Just one point: For lots of little critters, rocks = home. If you pull up up a rock to use as an anchor, you are consequently destroying the habitat of a whole suite of insects and other assorted arthropods.

    Just something else to add into the mix when considering "stakelessness" and our responsibilities with "leave no trace' principles.

    #1442731
    Mike Clelland
    Member

    @mikeclelland

    Locale: The Tetons (via Idaho)

    I agree about the little critters in the topsoil around rocks. It's something I should have addressed. But, if there is top soil, it should be easy to get a tent-stake in there. So no need to annoy the little locals

    The rocks I use are mostly only in sandy river bottoms (no critters) and in high alpine boulder fields (no soil, no critters).

    And – I want to re-state that I actually DO take stakes out there. But, there are some places you just can't get 'em to work.

    Once again – thanks for all the kind words about the article and the cartoons. It's fun for me!

    peace,
    M!

    #1443392
    Roman Dial
    Member

    @romandial

    Locale: packrafting NZ

    We packrafters, especially up here in Alaska, are often too wet, cold, lazy, and un-sophisticated to bother with knots on twine and so use the same straps we use to keep our packs on the boats to keep the rocks and sticks strapped to the 'Mid. Instead of friction knots we use the friction slider.

    We used spectra cord (2 mm?) on the Cuben Fiber Oware Mid for only a week before the rocks abraded through it and we had to go to straps.

    The straps I am talking about are not fastex buckles (they pop under tension) but friction straps. While they do weigh more than 2-3 mm spectra they are functional for a broad array of things and work especially well for shoe/boot repairs.

    BTW Mike, your article was great.

    #1443393
    Roman Dial
    Member

    @romandial

    Locale: packrafting NZ

    Tying off to bicycles works well, too. Use the pedals and lay the bike away from the shelter.

    #1446632
    Margaret Snyder
    BPL Member

    @jetcash

    Locale: Southern Arizona

    I used rocks as anchors up on Jackson Glacier this weekend and it was much more secure than I could have imagined. My tent was drum tight while my friend's flapped about like a circus tent.

    #1560017
    Paul Davis
    Spectator

    @pdavis

    Locale: Yukon, 60N 135W

    It may just be me, but in the Yukon I spend a fair amount of time camping on gravel bars on the river, and in abandonned gravel pits along the Alaska highway bike camping. Both places are great as they are not good bear habitat, have good visibility, and are noisy if Mr. Griz strolls by…

    So I have taken to semi-permanently tieing mesh stuff-sacs to my tie-out loops on my Bibler I-tent, and filling those up with glacial rocks, sometimes with small stones as fine as marbles….

    In fact, the only time there seems to be enough soil around for a tent peg is in a government campground!

    #1595214
    Hendrik Morkel
    BPL Member

    @skullmonkey

    Locale: Finland

    Loved the article, Mike C! articles are among the best because of the great use of language (grooviness!) and the illustrations just rock. Thanks, I learned a bunch =)

    #1763497
    Shaun Carrigan
    Member

    @gubid

    How long would you cut the guys to be able to use these techniques?
    Thanks.

    #1845415
    Tjaard Breeuwer
    BPL Member

    @tjaard

    Locale: Minnesota, USA

    Last night I had solidly frozen ground with 2"(5cm) fresh snow on top. It was in an open forest. I tied of to trees and shrubs, but as Mike mentioned, they were often in the wrong place.

    None of the them were close enough to 'stake' the sides of the tarp all the way down to the ground, leaving the sides open and spindrift inside.

    Any suggestions?

    #1845417
    Travis Leanna
    BPL Member

    @t-l

    Locale: Wisconsin

    Tjaard,
    If you have very sturdy stakes, like a simple nail stake (not the easton ones, the heads can break off) or MSR Groundhogs, they will pound into the frozen ground easier than you'd think. Find a good rock and hit the stakes as squarely as possible, and they'll go in. Not as easy as summer, but that's expected.

    When you want to get them out, they'll be frozen in. Take your rock and give them a good solid tap squarely on the head, which will loosen them up. They'll slide out of the ground with only a bit of tugging. Not too bad. Just make sure they have good strong pull-loops on them.

    #1845461
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    Hi Tjaard

    Under those conditions you may find that Ti wires will go in easily and hold well. Works for me.

    As for spindrift under a tarp – that's what a winter tunnel tent is for ;-)

    Cheers

    #1845544
    Ike Jutkowitz
    BPL Member

    @ike

    Locale: Central Michigan

    Hi Tjaard,
    If there's even just a few inches of snow on the ground, I'll usually dig down to solid ground and bury sticks, with the guylines draped loosely around them. I pile snow on top (keeping the end of the guyline accessible) and compress it by walking repeatedly over the top. Then I let it sit for 5 minutes or so until it hardens. Once the snow has set, I use a slippery half hitch to tension the guylines, as Mike describes in his article. Where I live, there's always sticks and snow in the winter so I don't ever bring stakes.

    deadmen

    #1847868
    Tjaard Breeuwer
    BPL Member

    @tjaard

    Locale: Minnesota, USA

    Roger, what do you mean with 'Ti wires'?

    #1847949
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    Hi Tjaard

    See photo at http://www.bushwalking.org.au/FAQ/FAQ_Pegs.htm#Pegs
    The orange stake D in the 1st photo is a classic Ti wire.

    They are commercially available, for instance
    (painted) http://www.ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk/vargo_titanium_flourescent_tent_pegs_-_6_pack.html
    (plain) http://www.aerostich.com/off-the-road-again/campsite/tent-accessories/wire-titanium-tent-stakes.html

    Caution: the unpainted ones are extremely easy to lose in grass or mulch! Get the orange ones!

    Cheers

    #1893503
    Ken Thompson
    BPL Member

    @here

    Locale: Right there

    Bump of a classic.

    #3394764
    Ken Thompson
    BPL Member

    @here

    Locale: Right there

    Mike, you are missed.

    #3438949
    Eric Blumensaadt
    BPL Member

    @danepacker

    Locale: Mojave Desert

    I knew and have used all methods except two – the V tunnel-with-line in the snow and the rock pile with a stick.

    The rock pile is the cleverest!

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