Florida Tarp Stake Issues?!?

[equilibrium]

I'm new to Florida and have only hung a couple of times. My question to the veterans of hanging in FL is this...do your stakes "wash" away while you have the tarp setup during the FL inevitable torrential downpours? I've realized that there isn't a lot of fresh soil here, mainly sand, so that is where my question has originated from.

[Floridahanger]

I use the Coghlan's Y stakes. $3 for 4 stakes at Walmart. They haven't slipped yet in many a storm.

[SAAvage]

nice question and even better answer!!! I move to florida in a month and will need a pack of these stakes for sure!!!

[Floridahanger]

Welcome to Florida when you get here.

The woods have some duff and yes still sandy, but, the stakes should be fine. I have used some shepherds hooks and have had a little slipping. Mind you, this is the woods and not the beach. There you may want to use small sacks or bags(think tiny parachute) to bury in the sand.

The heavy traffic campgrounds have been pounded so much it may feel like concrete so shepherds hooks may be better there.

Come to the 5th Annual Florida Hang in January and you can see many rigs.

[LuvmyBonnet]

I've never camped in sand but I was thinking fill 1/2 gal or gal jugs filled with sand and tie off to jug handle. Maybe?

[CeeVee]

I think I've tried every d... stake you can image in Florida sand. Right now the Ti stakes that look like mini corner bead are my favorite. The best "nail" tent stake I ever found was a square section aluminum peg with a pointed end and a shepard's crook for the guyline. They were great! for sand. Still have 4 left and their mine!
When we tented on soft "sugar" sand the yellow plastic "tee" cross section stakes were the only thing to use.
Sugar sand is called that because it's sand without any clay for a binder and it's generally been weathered to the point that the sand grains are rounded and smooth, no points on the crystals. Add some water and you got a slippery mess. Makes bad mortar or cement (grains won't interlock) but if you look close there's garnet crystals mixed in. Get your vehicle into that stuff and you'll be there a while digging out.

[Carbonmated]

I have used shepherds hooks for 3 years now in Florida, they have only popped out a few times in really loose soil. If you encounter the loose soil just tie off to a tree or try to find a few rocks to place on top of the stakes/hooks.

My wife and I are trying to plan another trip to St. Augustine at the end of the year, I am in the process of finding a place up there I can hang for at least one night!! And then the task of slipping away from our favorite B&B...... lol

[FLRider]

MSR Groundhogs are probably the way to go if you only want to spend once. They hold in moderate sand (the usual forest conditons here) and will take a pounding without bending in harder soils (including t**t pads), which the Coghlan's will occasionally do. They can also (like all stakes) be buried as "deadman" anchors in softer sand (dig an 8" to 12" deep hole and bury the stake horizontally to increase surface area).

That being said, different conditions need different stakes. The MSRs just happen to cover the most of any stake I've tried.

Hope it helps!

[MAD777]

I've found the easiest stakes to use in our Florida sand that hold well are 9" aluminum nail stakes. They are about 1/4" diameter. A lot of surface area is the key to holding in sand and also in our soft muck.

[equilibrium]

Thanks for all the great answers guys!! I have the MSR Groundhog stakes and they seem to work great so I wasn't too worried. The question was brought up in a conversation than got my attention. I'm looking at the attending next Florida hang event(which I believe is in October). The last one this past weekend had me pumped but of course things popped up last minute, so I'll have to plan better for the next hang.This is Florida hiking season that is approaching so I am looking forward to some nice hikes and camps during the season.