Another newbie tarp question

A 8×10 tarp is hard to mess up. Not impossible, just hard. ;-)

Most people get their start on an inexpensive 8×10 unless they just love some of those weird pitches that I never felt the need for. Then the square tarp might be nice.

8.5×8.5 seems large enough for storm mode (a big half-pyramid) for me and my hiking partner in splash bivies above treeline with a rain-skirt door. At least that’s the plan for this summer.

8×10 would give the above setup a much larger safety margin.

We are 5’6″ and 5’9″. If you are 6’3″ you might want to go bigger.

8×10 would probably be better if you are planning on doing A-frame setups.

In severe storm mode, an 9’x11′ tarp is large enough for two people with all edges down to the ground. A single flap (rolled in and staked out at night) will act as a door way in a “pyramid” like set-up with a 4′ peak height set up on a slight mound to facilitate water run-off away from the tarp. Cold, windy, heavy rain weather will be the worst, generally. Snow is much dryer and can build up, but also acts as an insulator. Some people go with a small tarp (around 5’x7′) and use a bivy. This weighs as much as a larger tarp and you gain no benefits, just another piece of gear to fiddle with.

In every case, going smaller limits your rain, wind protection, but weighs less (generally.) Going larger gives you more space but weighs more (generally.) It depends a LOT on the conditions you expect to encounter. In a desert or very dry conditions, go smaller. You won’t get two days of rain/wind, more than likely. You might want a ground sheet attached for scorpions, snakes, rocky ground, etc, though. Here in the ADK’s we get swarms of blackflies in spring. They will drive you out of the woods without a netting, but they are not active at night. I can do away with a ground sheet and just use my rain jacket on wet ground. Special conditions will require special accommodations to meet them comfortably.