Richard, the WBBB's "length of 120 inches" is a "
raw dimension" per the WB website - i.e.,
before it is 'finished'... A much
more important spec is that the WBBB has a "
structural ridgeline" of
100 inches - as such after the BB is 'built' &
finished it is only roughly
8' 6" long when hung; therefore, a HG tarp of "Standard" length (10' 10" spec) would have
more than one foot of ridgeline beyond each end of a BB - which is more than sufficient coverage. (This isn't mere speculation, see my gear profile.
)
A little more 'detail' for differences between HG & ZP tarps:
ZP aready has 4 more 'standard' tie-outs than HG included in its price; HG ridgeline length is 10' 10", ZP's is 11'; HG has cat cut sides, ZP's are straight; ZP's weight includes the stuff sack... All those points can directly relate to the ZP being 'heavier' than the HG at
first glance - to me they are fairly equal taking everything into account, and both are much lighter than any SilNylon tarp with the same coverage... IMHO, you can't or won't go wrong with either HG or ZP - both are great cottage vendors (caveat: I personally prefer the HG cat cut sides - less flapping in wind - but that might be why ZP includes the additional side tie-outs as standard, too(?)).
Regarding the Winter Palace set up on the ground comments:
"...if your hiking poles are not long enough, use a stick or branch that is long enough." If there was a long stick or branch readily available, wouldn't that also mean there were "trees", too? In that case, why would he be "going to ground"
and not hanging??
As for a lower ridgeline set-up creating a wider base - I agree that the doors probably wouldn't function as 'designed', but one could definitely 'make do' considering the overall size of the WP tarp!
Perhaps you could get more detail specs of the WP from Adam at HG before you make your final decision... FWIW, IMO a Winter Palace is
too big for "three season" usage, especially on a
thru-hike(!).
Hope to see you, Richard, on the PCT next year!
- and
any other hangers, too, of course!!
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