I’m curious about what to use for bike touring. I currently use a BMW bivy and a small silnylon tarp, but find the combination fiddly and annoying. I’m always rolling the bivy over and wiggling out from under the tarp. I have staked the corners down with shock-cord attachments, but can’t seem to find a way to alleviate any of the problems without feeling like I’m going to tear the bivy. Since I’m biking, I sometimes end up in state parks or campgrounds for camping and it can be hard to find a good spot in the numbered campsite areas for setting up the tarp.
I’m looking for something that has enough structure that I won’t turn it over when I turn in my sleep and that provides bug protection. It doesn’t need to be freestanding but I’d rather not rely on trying to rig up replacements for hiking poles – most of the UL 1 person tents on the market seem to rely on either hiking poles or a carbon fiber replacement. If I have to use one of those, the 2-4 oz. weight addition needs to be taken into account. I also use a handlebar bag/tail bag combo that would make it hard to carry poles, and my bike frame is pretty small so the places I could lash poles to are limited. As a note for tent size, I’m a smallish female and have never had an issue with things being too small.
The current packed bike:
Nemo Gogo – Currently top of my list. I love the vestibule design and how it packs into a small, soft bundle that could fit nicely into my tail bag. I don’t know how the fabric will handle New England rain, which can be more than that of Seattle.
eVent Unishelter – I’m a big fan of eVent, but I hate the entry. It looks like any amount of rain or wet clothing would guarantee a wet sleeping bag, along with having to shuffle off shoes in some sort of weird dance. It also weighs more than the Gogo.
Hennessy Adventure Racer hammock – Looks luxurious, but I’m afraid of sleeping cold and given my issues finding places to put the tarp in (K)ampground style places, I’m probably going to have the same issue.
Does anyone have any opinions, info, or other suggestions to go in here? Am I really crazy to think about replacing my 18 ounce bivy/tarp combo with something that weighs a minimum of 2 pounds?
