Tarp in rain/bugs?

When I was a teenager, I sometimes slept out in the open with a synthetic bag and a bivy sack made of two large trash bags which probably weighed 4 oz at most. When it rained, I awoke to cold water hitting me in the face. That meant it was time to simply turn over, cover my head with the bag and bivy sack, and breathe out of a ground level gap. I could have probably added a yard of noseeum netting for bugs, but I was an invincible teenager. :)

Now that I'm older, I guess I prefer a tent which costs 500% more than that simple solution. I'm not sure if I've gained wisdom, or just consumerism. :”,AndyF”

just curious – how long could you last with that setup? A weekend, a month? a thru hike? did you just leave your pack in the rain with a cover?

Maybe I am being a bit prissy but it just seems like a bivy on it's own is a pain. Maybe for a night or two in perfect weather for cowboy camping, but long term? Anyway more insight would be appreciated.

Thanks

You use a large tarp, that would typically be for two people. A cuben fiber one weighs 5 oz. It is big enough that a bivy is not needed. A polycro goundsheet weighs 1.7 oz. A head net weighs 1 oz. Add stakes/lines for another 2 oz. Use trekking poles or natural stuff for set up. Total weight is less than 10 oz. Works in light snow also. Properly pitched it will with stand some pretty serious wind.

Usually you don't take a bivy and a bug net with a tarp. Most full-bodied bug nets have a waterproof floor that acts as the groundsheet. Many bivys have mesh to keep the bugs out.

Its a matter of priorities. A bivy will allow for a simpler, sometimes lighter no-frills option of bug and rain protection.

A full bug shelter will afford much more room, but usually at a weight and versatility penalty. What I mean by versatility is that you can pretty much use a bivy under any tarp. Many bug shelters are shaped in such a way that they only will fit under certain tarps.

It also depends on your tarp as well. Some of the mids and Trailstar shaped tarps offer greater wind/rain/splash protection than the straight rectangle or a-frame style tarps. So, under the former, a waterproof bivy may not be as necessary as under the latter.

My bug bivy has a silnylon bottom. It protects well against wet ground and rain. I skip the polycro most of the time. My clothes stand as an extra barrier versus bugs.

My tarp + bivy in warm, bug ridden climates weighs in at a skinny 9.5 oz. Hard to beat!

Jack

Thanks Nick, I think that's why the hexamid sounds pretty good maybe the larger size for two people would be the best bet. Do you find a head net is enough in the worst of bug seasons?

Thanks Jack, what kind of tarp bivy combo are you using?

P.S. this forum is a bit weird, why can't you search for thread titles only and why must we constantly enter a subject title in replies?

With a trash bag bivvy, I don't think I'd want to go longer than a weekend in constant rain or high humidity. Drying out the bag in the morning is important. When able to dry the bag adequately, I wouldn't mind going indefinitely.

I just left my pack out beside me. What little gear needed to be waterproof was in ziploc bags.

Yes, a bivvy alone definitely has disadvantages. The main advantages are simplicity and space required. I now use a large tarp (8×10') without a bivvy, or a tent.

Patrick,

Bugs depend upon where you live. Also depends on the person. Many people complain about bugs in the Sierra's and they really don't bother me.

We live in the Tongass rainforest and sleep under a tarp. Our bivies are light weight (6 oz) with a no-see-um netting. Most of the time we use Tyvek ground cloths. Placement of the tarp and bivy is key to staying dry. Our forests are made to absorb water so many times the duff is drier than one would think. Gravel beaches are typically drier than the forest after a solid rain. Both the forest and the beach dry out in a couple of hours after a storm. When hiking we carry a 10×10 silnylon tarp, two bivies and the ground cloths. Together they weigh under two pounds. Not bad for 100 sq feet of potential coverage. This is an image of a solo tarp set on a beach last week following a day of rain.

Patrick,

Click on the green "bubble" next to the post you wish to reply to and the subject line automatically populates.

Todd

Just get a TarpTent Moment single wall tent (29 oz) and enjoy!

"Just get a TarpTent Moment single wall tent (29 oz) and enjoy!"

Sort of an apples to bowling balls type of comparison here…they're talking the semantics of 10 oz tarp/bivy shelters, and your suggestion is a tent that weighs in at over a pound more than that.

Keep in mind that you only need to worry about bugs for about 3 months of the year. The modular configuration of tarp/bug net/groundcloth means you only carry the weight that is necessary for the season. You can't take a tent apart to suit this weekend's needs

"Keep in mind that you only need to worry about bugs for about 3 months of the year."

That depends on where you are. We are lucky to get three months without bugs per year.

We both hate biting bugs, we have them most of the year here, and we both find sleeping in a bivy bag with bug netting over our faces to be both claustrophobic and difficult to get in and out of. It also gets pretty steamy in warm weather when you are stuck in a bivy bag and are dieing for some fresh cool air circulation. We also like having a bug-free zone to sit and read, eat a meal or just chill out. A tarp plus bug bivy is an option, but for two people it doesn't really work out much lighter than a single skinned tent. If none of those things are problems for you, then a tarp plus extras may be fine for you. Not for us.

I'm with Lynne on this one. A bug free cuppa in the morning and a refuge from the little bleeders at night is worth a few more oz's. Kath and I modified a Golite Hut 1 with a perimeter of mesh and a tyvek floor. 26 oz total including pole and stakes. Between people that's not bad for bug free canoodling.