Started using a tarp under my tent differently after a rainy trip to Shenandoah

I've been camping for about 5 years now and always just threw my tarp flat under the tent, thinking it kept things dry. Last month at Shenandoah it rained for like 8 hours straight and I woke up with a puddle inside my tent floor. My buddy walked over and showed me his setup where he folds the tarp edges back underneath so nothing sticks out past the tent. I felt pretty dumb because I'd seen that tip online before but never actually tried it. The difference was night and day man, his tent was bone dry inside while mine felt like a swamp. What's the one camping gear trick you swore by for years until you finally saw someone do it better?

3 comments

3 Comments

thomas_price4d ago

Wait is a little water on the tent floor really that big of a deal? I've used a flat tarp for years and yeah sometimes I get a little damp spot but it dries out by morning. Unless you're sleeping in a straight up puddle I don't see the crisis. Folding the edges back sounds like extra work for maybe zero real gain.

fionam114d ago

Honestly, "dries out by morning" assumes a lot about weather and humidity, and in the Smokies that's a big gamble. A damp spot might be fine in dry conditions, but it only takes one heavier dew or unexpected rain to turn your whole floor into a sponge. Folding the edges back is like thirty seconds of work, and I'd rather do that than wake up at 3am with a cold, wet sleeping pad.

quinnm774d ago

My buddy Dave slept on a flat tarp for one night in the Smokies and woke up with his sleeping bag wet from ground moisture that wicked right through. The thing is, a little damp spot today can turn into a soaked sleeping pad tomorrow if you get unlucky with the ground. Tarps just don't trap air the same way a closed footprint does, so even a small amount of water can spread. Folding the edges back is maybe two extra minutes and it saves you from that nasty cold wet feeling at 3am lol. Plus, a dry tent floor means your gear stays dry too, not just your sleeping area. I'd rather do the tiny bit of prep than gamble on a random damp patch turning into a problem.