Tarp Camping Workshop
Details
Activity Type: Outdoor Learning Experience | Outdoor Learning Experience
Difficulty: 4 - Moderate
Trip Leader(s): David Miller
Registration Type: Application
Please Click Here to RSVP: https://activities.outdoors.org/a5UVX000001IFRR
Audience: Everyone
Description: During a recent overnight backpack, several people expressed interest in learning how to pitch a tarp for overnight camping. The group will meet at the trailhead and hike 1.6 miles to camp for lunch, including a section of the Midstate Trail. After lunch, the leader will begin with a brief review of the pros and cons of camping with a tarp instead of a tent. Then, the leader will demonstrate ways of pitching tarps of various sizes and shapes . Demonstration of tarp pitches, tarp sizes and weights: 1. Plow point: Silnylon (10 X 10 ft. and 1 lb. 7 oz,) 2. A frame: Silnylon (8.5 X 8.5 ft. with beaks and 1 lb. 9 oz,) 3. Leanto: Space blanket with grommets (5 ft X 7 ft. 12 oz.) 4. Half pyramid: MLD Super Tarp (8.5 X 10 ft. and 12 oz.) 5. Gunya: Nylon DD Multicam Tarp (3m X 3m or 10ft X 10ft and 1 lb. 12 oz,) Knots I often use: bowline, prussic, sheet bend, tautline hitch, clove hitch, half hitch, slippery half hitch. Knots I seldom use: overhand knot, trucker’s hitch, McCarthy hitch, mooring hitch, marlinspike hitch. Sometimes a toggle can take the place of a knot. This outing will take place at the Miller family woodlot, in Princeton, MA. Participants are asked to bring whatever equipment they normally carry on an overnight backpack including water for two days (The nearest filterable water is 650 yards or about a third of a mile away.) and four meals (lunch, dinner, breakfast, and lunch). In place of a tent, participants will bring a tarp, 6 to 10 tent stakes, 50 feet of cordage, a waterproof ground sheet, and some form of insect protection (a bug net, a bivy sack, a net tent, or insect repellent). After the leader’s tarp pitching demonstrations, participants will practice setting up their shelters for the night.
Reminder: Please click the RSVP link above to register!