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  1. #1
    New Member Man Scout's Avatar
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    Setting up a tarp in the rain while wearing a Packa?

    I love the idea of being able to deploy the tarp first when it is raining so that you have an area out of the rain to place/deploy the rest of your gear. I tried my hand at setting up my tarp in the snow Sunday night to see how well I could setup camp and keep my gear out of the elements. I have a packa so I was unsure of how I could pull the tarp out of my pack without either the pack or me getting wet (since the packa is both the pack cover and rain jacket).

    So my question to the forum is twofold:

    1)What techniques do you use to deploy your tarp while it is raining in an attempt to keep the rest of your gear and you dry (including techniques such as ground sheets for gear or ridge lines to hang gear keeping them off the wet ground, etc)?

    2)If you have a packa, how do you pull the tarp from your pack while keeping you and the pack as dry as possible (e.g. do you keep the tarp attached to your pack where you can still reach it while wearing the packa, do you have a method of removing the pack while still wearing the packa and then covering the pack with something else to keep it dry while you're setting up the tarp, etc)?

    Thank you in advance!

  2. #2
    Senior Member Silverlion's Avatar
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    My tarp is in a water proof stuff sack kept between the lower back support and the pack(I use an A.L.I.C.E. pack). Even when I have the rain cover over the pack, I can still reach behind me and grab my tarp. I know this isn't the case with those new fangled internal frame packs.
    As far as deploying the tarp, it's packed to where I can grab one end of the ridgeline, tie it off,and pull it on out. There is always a little adjustment to get it just so, but it works. After it's stretched, I grab an old poncho to set my pack on and get to setting everything else up.
    We must all learn to live together as brothers--or we will all perish together as fools. MLK

  3. #3
    Senior Member Cannibal's Avatar
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    1. I never open my pack to setup my tarp, so my other gear getting wet is not a concern.

    2. Angrysparrow posted something a while back about keeping his tarp in the side pocket of his pack so that he'd never have to remove his pack, or Packa, to get to his tarp. It sure sounds genius and I've started packing my tarp in the side pocket (usually goes in the large pocket on the back of my pack) of my pack when it looks 'iffy'. However, I've yet to have the opportunity to try it for real. The tarp is pretty easy to get out of the pack and into my hands without taking the Packa off, but living room practice doesn't really count.

    Packas RULE!
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  4. #4
    Senior Member rip waverly's Avatar
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    wow. i never even considered this.

    i'll have to give it the "living room" test
    "Jeff-Becking"

    DOWNTOWN BROWN!!!!

  5. #5
    Senior Member angrysparrow's Avatar
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    Yeah, if I put my tarp in the side pouch of the pack I can reach it through the pit-zip of the Packa without taking the pack off. That has worked really well for me on a few occasions.
    “I think that when the lies are all told and forgot the truth will be there yet. It dont move about from place to place and it dont change from time to time. You cant corrupt it any more than you can salt salt.” - Cormac McCarthy

  6. #6
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    I look at it like this - if I'm hiking with my Packa on i'm going to be rather wet from sweat anyways so no big deal getting wet from rain/snow while I get my tarp up - I just take the pack off, get the tarp, put the Packa over the pack while it leans against the tree and hang my tarp - once that rush is over I move the pack under the tarp and go from there

    when I was hiking the BMT through the Smokys I had seven days of rain - I had a lot of practice setting up and taking down in the rain

  7. #7
    Senior Member Pro Vagabond's Avatar
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    I really think this is the biggest challenge while hiking/hanging. I porposely go out in the rain and try to set stuff up to get my technique down. Here's what I do (although I'm by no means an expert):

    I have a pack cover, but my tarp is in snake skins on the outside pouch of my pack under the cover. I reach under the pack cover, grab my ground cloth, set my pack on it. Grab the tarp from under the pack cover and set it up. My stakes are in the same pouch as my ground cloth so they came out with the ground cloth. I grab the stakes I need, pull out my lines, and basically my tarp is done. Then I throw my pack under the tarp, on the ground cloth, and can relax, reposition the tarp if necc., and set up my hammock.

    AFter setting up and taking down in the rain, cold is easy, even show is easier since it falls slower and usually doesn't get EVERYTHING wet.

    If school is cancelled tomorrow, I may do a practice set up in the morning in the snow. Practice makes perfect

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hog On Ice View Post
    I look at it like this - if I'm hiking with my Packa on i'm going to be rather wet from sweat anyways so no big deal getting wet from rain/snow while I get my tarp up - I just take the pack off, get the tarp, put the Packa over the pack while it leans against the tree and hang my tarp - once that rush is over I move the pack under the tarp and go from there

    when I was hiking the BMT through the Smokys I had seven days of rain - I had a lot of practice setting up and taking down in the rain
    I agree with HOI, last June while hiking the AT thru Maine and the White Mtns., I wore my Packa and the tarp resides in an outside pocket as Angry Sparrow stated because it is most likely wet from the previous night anyway. My Packa does not keep me dry nor the outside of my pack dry, it does keep the wind off and aids in keeping me warm. My trap is in a bishop bag and I use a biner on one end of the ridge line and a figure 9 on the other. Packa and pack come off after the trap is set up (sometimes this is a balancing act best done unobserved). I then set the pack off the ground on what ever is a available, rocks, log, hiking poles etc. I set up my hammock next as it resides at the top of my pack and allows me to empty my pack into the hammock (except my food bag and stove kit which get set on the my pack). I then change into my warm, dry camp clothes because I am usually freezing by then and get my TQ and UQ out of each of their bags and begin to get something ready to eat. This system has worked well for me and I never once got my down TQ and UQ wet.

  9. #9
    Senior Member Just Jeff's Avatar
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    Same as angrysparrow, except I keep it in the back pocket instead of side pocket. My pack is small enough that I can slide it around far enough to reach the back pocket, pull out my tarp, and put my pack back on without anything getting wet.

    I'm also deciding whether or not to change my packing strategy. I used to use a Blackbishop bag that had my hammock, UQ and TQ all in one easy bag...which is very quick and simple. But when it's raining, it's easier to pull out the hammock only, set that up, and then put my pack in the hammock to get everything else out. Using the BB makes it more likely that my UQ will touch the wet ground as I'm wrapping the hugger around the 2nd tree.

    So recently I've been packing my quilts at the bottom of my pack and my hammock right on top. Makes it much more likely that I'll set it up for more comfortable lunch breaks, too.
    “Republics are created by the virtue, public spirit, and intelligence of the citizens. They fall when the wise are banished from the public councils because they dare to be honest, and the profligate are rewarded because they flatter the people, in order to betray them.” ~Judge Joseph Story

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  10. #10
    Senior Member drewboy's Avatar
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    I always keep my tarp in an outside pocket of my pack like others have described. Last time out with my Event Packa I was thinking that the huge pocket (that doubles as a storage pouch) in the Packa could easily hold my tarp. Yet another other option to try.

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