Another lesson learned...

[golfpro1286]

So I went out to the woods at our farm this Saturday night for a nice solo hang... thought I had a pretty good set up. I had one side of my tarp tied up to a tree to form a type of awning to enjoy the view of the hills and fields. All was going well, fell asleep with a nice tiny breeze keeping me cool. Little did I know... I woke up startled when a giant gust of wind took turned my tarp into a sail and actually ripped the stakes out of the ground after a couple of minutes. I ended up having to pack up and go in, I couldnt get the tarp under control in the wind to tie it back down and it looked like rain was on the way. Now I know that I need to check the wind forecast and plan accordingly!

Here is a pic of the set up I had...

[MAD777]

Yep, that looks like a nice sail!
Glad you were near the house.
This is my main argument for snakeskins. They keep the tarp contained, at least partially through the setup. And they can, with some effort, be slipped over a wild, flailing tarp to tame it.

[kwchannell89]

Maybe better stakes?

[Chammocks]

Wind drives me nuts. It's almost guaranteed to really blow 40 mph at some point in a weekend trip here. It's always windy. The biggest thing that helps me on setup and takedown is snakeskins, allows you to do it real fast.
Also good for storage of the tarp and hammock if you leave the campsite for very long. Settup is worst because until you get your stakes in, it's a problem. I've also got a lazy slug tube that I'm anxious to try.
I also have lots of trouble falling asleep with the tarp flapping and snapping. I'm considering using a canvas tarp when car/boat camping. I know the canvas tents do better out here on the high prairie.

[Cannibal]

Stakes won't help when an open tarp catches a breeze. They move giant ships around the seas with that concept. A piece of whatever in the ground doesn't stand a chance.

Site selection and tarp configuration are your only and best bets. But when you find yourself in the position of the OP with the setup already in place and dreams of sugarplums dancing around your sleeping mind when the winds do hit, there just isn't much that can be done without a lot of effort. I've been bit by this too golfpro1286, be glad you were near home. I wasn't so lucky.

[XTrekker]

Stakes won't help when an open tarp catches a breeze. They move giant ships around the seas with that concept. A piece of whatever in the ground doesn't stand a chance.

Site selection and tarp configuration are your only and best bets. But when you find yourself in the position of the OP with the setup already in place and dreams of sugarplums dancing around your sleeping mind when the winds do hit, there just isn't much that can be done without a lot of effort. I've been bit by this too golfpro1286, be glad you were near home. I wasn't so lucky.

Agreed, I learned this even back in my ground dwelling days. I remember having to move to new locations because of wind many times. Sometimes the beautiful view comes with a hefty price.

Edit: Although, there has been times where my little MSR Stakes kept pulling out and I resolved my issue by grabbing a 12" stick and pointed the end and then hammered it into the ground about 9 inches and that held up pretty good against the Appalachian Winds that whip up the mountain side. Also, in high winds, if you have a square tarp or hex tarp sometimes you can get away with just lowering your hole suspension system including tarp and allow the tarp to basically touch the ground on both sides, thus redirecting most of the wind over the tarp rather than under it.

[golfpro1286]

Stakes won't help when an open tarp catches a breeze. They move giant ships around the seas with that concept. A piece of whatever in the ground doesn't stand a chance.

Site selection and tarp configuration are your only and best bets. But when you find yourself in the position of the OP with the setup already in place and dreams of sugarplums dancing around your sleeping mind when the winds do hit, there just isn't much that can be done without a lot of effort. I've been bit by this too golfpro1286, be glad you were near home. I wasn't so lucky.

I wasnt actually near home, but my second home (the barn) went inside and re hung between two tractors and sleep like a log... Wish I took a picture of it. But yes, lesson learned, will look into snake skins, didn't have any problems setting it up as it was sunny and calm at the time, don't want to imagine the headache trying to set up my tarp alone in the wind.