Schnebly Hill Rd, AZ - Tarp trouble and Snow in May!

**Nojope** · 05-09-2015, 20:23

First time hanging in a year and I got to test my new down sleeping bag (Big Agnes Mystic SL 15*) and underquilt (Hammock Gear Incubator 20*) on a quick overnighter. This was with a church group of fathers and sons, about 30 people in all. I was the second party to arrive after driving 106 miles north from Phoenix and 3.5 miles west on Schnebly Hill Road. After saying hello, I decided to drive a couple more miles west to Schnebly Hill Vista, which overlooks the beautiful red rock mountains of Sedona, to snap some photos and enjoy the views before heading back to the camp spot, foraging for firewood along the way. For the first few hours, it looked like noone else would show but they started rolling in shortly after dark. The snow started falling a couple hours after that and we all hunkered around a big fire, some of us until midnight.

I was a bit anxious about how the night would go, as I'm relatively new to hanging and had never used an underquilt before, but I dove in and was surprised how quickly I warmed up. I had planned on changing into some shorts to sleep in this trip but with it snowing and as cold as it was I just crawled in with my jeans on and a couple shirts and a sweater. I loved the hood on my bag and kept it cinched up tightly all night. The Incubator's suspension worked like a charm. I felt a little chilly under my upper body at one point around early morning and realized that the on and off snow fall all night had pushed my tarp walls in (Kelty Noah 12) so they were touching my underquilt, hammock, and sleeping bag and transferring moisture. I tried to adjust a bit and was able to get 3 more hours of sleep before waking up to shouts of kids playing and people awake.

After a great breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and more bacon than we could eat, people started packing up and leaving before the snow melted even more and the roads got too bad. Several 2wd vehicles got stuck and I broke in my new hiking boots quite well sloshing through the mud to help push them out, as well as got to use my truck's 4wd to tow a couple. All the snow on top of my truck came in handy for putting out the fire before we left. I made it home by 11am and laid out all my gear to dry.

All in all, a very memorable trip. I should have pitched my tarp higher but I was worried about wind when I set up before dark. I should have been worried about the snow. I also need to get more than 6 stakes and guy lines so I can use the side center pull-outs. How do you all decide how high to pitch your tarp? Any other advice?

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**BillyBob58** · 05-09-2015, 21:27

Great report, Nojope! Good old Schnebly Hill Rd and vista, I remember it well! I also remember May snows in that area. If any one remembers the old Chevy Chase Vacation movie, the 1st one where they are going to Wally World? Along the way they realize the elderly aunt Edna has passed away, so they strap her on the roof until they get her to her relatives in Phoenix? Where they all jump out of the car when they realize she has passed on, is Schnebly Hill Vista.

Sounds like you guys had a great adventure!

**KSC** · 05-09-2015, 22:02

Looks like you had a good hang. You learned a few things that will make your next one better. We had some snow earlier this week in N.E. Nevada and it was heavy and wet. If I had been sleeping under my tarp I would have had the same problem you did. In those conditions you need to shake your tarp a few time in the night to keep the snow from building up.

Thanks for sharing. The first picture is beautifl. I need to make it to Arizona sometime and check it out.

**FJRpilot** · 05-09-2015, 22:29

What a great trip! You will remember it for years. Lessons learned and life experiences, that's what it's all about. Pitch it tight and don't worry to much about the height. Maybe a pole mode would work for you in the future...

**Boothill** · 05-09-2015, 22:54

what kind of cordage did you use for your tarp suspension? paracord will stretch badly and even worse once it gets wet, not sure what you used, just a heads up.....also you could pitch your tarp over the ridgeline if you know it's going to snow and that will help it keep it's shape and sluff off the snow a bit better

boot

**Dark Sky Solutions** · 05-10-2015, 10:25

Yeah, we did have snow up here a couple days ago. It was crazy but normal for up here in NAZ.

Glad you had a good trip.

**Tom18C** · 05-10-2015, 14:03

The Kelty is solid equipment, I think pitching it over the ridgeline would be the preferred method in the conditions. Many of the tarp makers today make the ridgeline at an angle, so pitching it above the ridgeline causes some loss of length. I also wonder about the cordage used. The guylines should have held up better. Great trip report, we all learn from each other.

**Valveless** · 05-12-2015, 00:55

Awesome! Without the snow and mud, who'd remember the trip? Now all those fathers and sons will have a commemorative experience to remember and cherish! Re: tarp, I prefer tieouts to pitching over a ridgeline. Less abrasion potential I guess. Also, when I bother to pitch it all, i prefer to keep it just above my hammock ridgeline bu not touching. But that's me. If I'm then going to make an adjustment for ventilation, I prefer to adjust my tieouts for porch mode, wide angle, or close and tight if it looks bad. But my tarp isn't the best. Looks like your guy lines may have stretched?

**Nojope** · 05-13-2015, 19:56

Originally Posted by Boothill

what kind of cordage did you use for your tarp suspension? paracord will stretch badly and even worse once it gets wet, not sure what you used, just a heads up.....also you could pitch your tarp over the ridgeline if you know it's going to snow and that will help it keep it's shape and sluff off the snow a bit better

boot

I used some reflective cord that came in a pack with some NiteIze Figure 9s. Does that stretch? I'm going out again this Friday, this time with 70% chance of rain. I plan to try using some side tieouts or maybe even use some poles from an unused tent to do a pole mod as I've read about on here. After that, I'll decide whether or not to pull the trigger on some Dutch gear I've been ogling.

**Boothill** · 05-13-2015, 20:33

Originally Posted by Nojope

I used some reflective cord that came in a pack with some NiteIze Figure 9s. Does that stretch? I'm going out again this Friday, this time with 70% chance of rain. I plan to try using some side tieouts or maybe even use some poles from an unused tent to do a pole mod as I've read about on here. After that, I'll decide whether or not to pull the trigger on some Dutch gear I've been ogling.

not sure what that cord is, my guess would be it's some type of nylon which streches but i don't really know......most people use something like zing it that won't stretch

using the side tieouts will definitely help and you can't ever go wrong with dutch bling, i have used his tarp flyz for quite some time now and they are great for a tarp, you aren't ever wasting your money when you buy stuff from dutch

boot