Non-freestanding tents on unfriendly soil…

I never use freestanding designs.

I have camped on solid flat impenetrable rock – used big stones instead of stakes. A pair of stones side by side with a stick wedged behind is another option.

Loose sand or snow – Tie lines to bags, bandanas, socks, … filled with sand and bury. The rock metho also works, if rocks are around.

Usually a combination of stakes and the two methods above get me by.

Be aware that you have the same issue with freestanding tents. You always have to attach any tent, freestanding or not.
I have seen too many people try to get away with not attaching their freestanding tents. Luckily people usually learn their lesson after they loose their first tent.

P.S. Considering that you have to attach any shelter, is it worth the extra weight to carry a freestanding tent?

For me it is not, but I don't like carrying a lot of weight and do what I can to keep it down.

I usually don't use a free standing tent, and I agree with Mr. McAllister that most free standing tents need some part of them staked for airflow/weather reasons.

My experience has been that I can always get at least 2 stakes far enough in the ground to make me happy. I then rig the remaining as rock piles or tie-outs to naturals (rocks, trees, sand, snow, etc).

The unfortunate side effect is that I end up cutting my tie-outs off my bear bag rope, which then has to be replaced when I get back.

This is one of those times where weight can usually be traded for planning, training, and creativity.

acronym 5/11/2010 8:46 AM

I own two free standing tents and they require more stakes than most of my non freestanding tents.

Dan

I like my TT rainbow, since it can be free standing with my poles. I never use it that way though.

an alps mtneering 1 man non-freestanding tent on a bedrock slad in the middle of the MF FLathead river and watched moose graze the river banks.

no stakes, just a single 70' piece of line.

if you can rig a decent tarp, you shouldn't need stakes to rig a tent. you might need a sip o' scotch and a few moments to form a plan, but that's the fun part, right?

Yep, the Tarptent Rainbow and Double Rainbow can be "freestanding" with trekking poles. Note, however, that you still have to guy out the vestibules. This is true of most (but not all) freestanding tents with poles anyways.

Also, non-freestanding tents/tarps are quite common here, if not the majority. I just don't think there are too many circumstances where you would absolutely need a freestanding tent. A little creativity (and scotch as noted above!) goes a long way.

But please, ALWAYS stake down any tent. Those become expensive tumbleweeds very quickly.

The one benefit of a freestanding design is that if your stakes do pull out, the entire thing won't collapse. Having said that – I have not used a freestanding tent in 6 years.

BUT if the stakes on the freestanding tent pull out it becomes a kite, and you may want to look for it in the next county. If a nonfreestanding tent pulls a stake or two it generally collapses and flaps around a bit, but remains attached to the other pegs…

I'm ag'in it. You can always use rocks, etc. to secure a tent of course. However, having said that, I always take along the extra strut for my Tarptent Moment. I figure that in extreme conditions, I can weight the tent down internally with rocks so that it doesn't blow away. Really, the Moment is the best bet for such adventures. It's lightweight at under two pounds with the extra strut to make it free-standing, requires minimum hardware, and can be weighted down internally so long as there are rocks around.

Why I'm ag'in it: Don't set up a free-standing tent without weighting it down! There's nothing like watching your tent and bag floating away on the wind, as someone pointed out earlier. Ever tried to case down a piece of paper that fell out of your car? Now imagine your tent with your $300 sleeping bag doing the same danged thing.

Been there, done that, I'm embarrassed to say,

Stargazer

Flying Tents

Awesome video! A picture is worth a thousand words.

Less than an inch of dirt and leaf litter on sheet rock. Straight stick and some rocks work just fine at each end of tunnel tent.

Cheers

I was at Bonnaroo and saw the mayham first hand. Flying tents are alot like kites but they are much harder to control : )

"BUT if the stakes on the freestanding tent pull out it becomes a kite, and you may want to look for it in the next county. If a nonfreestanding tent pulls a stake or two it generally collapses and flaps around a bit, but remains attached to the other pegs…"

NOT if I'm in the tent with my wife with gear.

The nice thing about many freestanding tents is that your anchor placement is flexible without getting a saggy pitch. Arch-pole tunnel tents are somewhat similar- you don't have to peg out the exact corner.

On the other hand you can carry a lot of extra pegs and guys for less weight than the penalty of many free-standing tents.

Many straight-pole tents are very finicky about peg placement. A few inches out of position (due to root or rock) and the whole thing is saggy and flappy. (Like a ___ year old ___)

I also prefer freestanding tents and have never had the wind carry one of my tents away. Then again when im not in the tent I tend to keep the "doors" shut.

Re:
"NOT if I'm in the tent with my wife with gear."

But, you do have to get out to take a pee and such:-)

I saw one tent blow out into the river with backpack, sleeping bag, clothes and every piece of gear the person carried. We were able to retrieve it, but everything was soaked.

It's amazing how much weight an un-pegged tent can carry in a wind.

Lots of good info/experience. Obviously, you never want to leave a tent not staked/weighted down. I have done the rock as an anchor thing when I was motorcycle camping at a campground in New Mexico with nothing but about and inch of soil on top of gravel to work with. But I was also glad I had my freestanding tent and not my old Nemo Morpho.

But I guess my main concern, as someone pointed out, is what if it's 3 a.m. and it happens to be pouring buckets outside and one of my stake slips and the tent is on top of me and my wife with no pleasant way of rectifying the situation. If I'm in a free standing tent, our body weight will keep it in place and the thing isn't going to come down on top of us if a stake fails.

Also after watching that video, I need to buy some BPL titanium hook stakes!

> It's amazing how much weight an un-pegged tent can carry in a wind.

Almost as amazing as how heavy the gear becomes after being in the river!

Cheers

Hi Jonathon, Regarding:

"If I'm in a free standing tent, our body weight will keep it in place and the thing isn't going to come down on top of us if a stake fails."

That really isn't an issue if the shelter is is well attached. If your stakes aren't holding solid you will need to put a heavy rock on top.

What I consider the deal breaker is the weight of a freestanding tent. For me, once I get over a certain amount of weight in my pack, my miles per day drops. Even a few ounces can make a difference when you are on an extended wilderness trek.

Short weekend hikes shouldn't matter as much.