Why I hang...now. **WARNING**

[Owl]

****WARNING THE FOLLOWING PICTURES MAY BE TOO GRAPHIC AND PAINFUL FOR SOME FORUM MEMBERS TO VIEW****

CAUTION IS ADVISED!!!!

Several years ago, my brother invited my family to go camping with him at a campgrounds in the Smokies. Normally when my brother and I camp, we like to actually get out away from people and go as primitive as we can. In this case, we decided to camp out along one of the rivers so that we could do a lot of tubing down the river, visit some of the caves, and basically just bring our families together rather than try to take my young kids out into the woods.

So, we set up. My wife and I brought our tent that we'd used with the kids for several outdoor camping trips previously. It was a WM on sale special. I'd camp-dried it as well as I could, and knew that the rainfly wasn't enough, but figured we'd survive a rainstorm or two.

Boy...what a mistake.

It rained sideways every afternoon we were there. I'd brought an extra tarp to use if we needed it, but hadn't counted on this. No plan at all to try to cover the whole tent.

I ended up buying two more tarps, and found that still wasn't enough to cover the whole tent during the 2-3 hours of blasting wind and rain every night. I had to come up with something. I began piecing together tarps, trash bags, duct tape...

Every evening, I'd pull this up and tie it down over the top of the tent...and once the storm was past, I'd leave it off until the next afternoon

Below you see the results.

***Caution...painful viewing ahead!!!*****


And now you know why I hang a hammock...and my head in shame at my past.

[Owl]

Sorry, here are the pics...kinda anticlimactic now I guess. /sigh

[kayak karl]

visibility was zero? cause i don't see no pics edit........now i DO

[Owl]

Posted in a reply to the thread...sorry for my internet ineptness.

[photojag]

that is a good reason to hang now and im sorry you had to learn this way.. that looks like a rough trip.. hopefully everyone found a way to still enjoy themselves..

[brushybill]

that is one ugly looking tent!

[tiredhiker]

Ouch! My eyes there burning !!

[Weasel]

Yes the fly was terrible. I for years had mocked this "Hillbilly Rainfly" and tell this story to warn other campers and backpackers of not having the proper equipment.

[southmark]

Reminds me of a trip a few friends too several years ago to the Okefenokee Swamp. We stayed in a state park campground. I decided to borrow my son's large family tent for my neighbor and I. Well when we arrived and proceeded to set up the tent, there was no rain fly. Well one of our friends had one of those Walmart blue tarps to loan us which was not big enough. I bought two more similar green plastic tarps from the camp store and 50' of rope. Pitched the tent between to large pine trees and used the rope as a ridge line over the tent and then hung the three tarps in a patchwork configuration overt the ridge line, attached guy lines and staked them out. We looked like refugees among all the other fine RV's campers and such. But when a bad thunder storm rolled in the following night it was just as nice and dry inside.

Link to pic: http://gallery.mac.com/dsouth#100263...&bgcolor=black

[Owl]

That looked like an awesome trip Southmark. And I have to give you props...at least your tarps and tent were color coordinated!