Ants, wildlife & Tarp/Bivy Camping

[Solohike74]

Are they much risk of hassling you in Australia? I'm looking at the Six Moons Wild Oasis or a tarp to buy. If I buy a tarp I'll use a hanging mozzie net. In either case, I'll use my hiking poles to hold it up, and tyvek for the floor.

I usually go to elevated locstions & alpine areas either wild camp or camp near huts.

[ryantmalone]

I haven't been hiking with a tarp yet, main reason is that its just too unpredictable where I go. Sometimes, you will get next to no ants. Other times, you cant find a place to sit without them crawling all over you. Spiders are another biggie as well, near walked on a Funnel Web one of my last walks.

That said... I'd be curious to hear how others combat this, because I know that there are more than a handful here who do go ultra lightweight.

[Mark F]

While I have done a reasonable amount of open tarp camping I do prefer to use an sealable inner tent under the tarp. This is as much for the security of food from marauding possums etc as protection from the invertebrate world. The weight penalty for a 1 person inner (SMD Serenity Net inner) is only 150g (210 - 60 for the ground sheet I don't carry). Into the inner I can get all my gear especially food unlike a bivvy.

My one person setup is either a SMD Gatewood Cape and inner (540g) which doubles as rainwear or now a ZPacks Hexamid+ fly (no net floor) and the inner (350g) - so quite light. For 2 person trips my partner insists on an inner so omitting it is not an option.

[norts]

Also have to combat leeches, I have had them all over tent inner got rid of most of them when I got home and hung the tent up to dry. Leeches, ants, spiders, possums, snakes, mice, rats, an enclosed inner will stop most. Mice and rats will chew their way into your tent though. That's why all my food goes in the pack, in the vestibule at well used camp sites, ie on the OLT.
Once found a snake curled up under my footprint as I packed up my tent, I did get a fright.

Roger

[Jason68]

While I have done a reasonable amount of open tarp camping I do prefer to use an sealable inner tent under the tarp. This is as much for the security of food from marauding possums etc as protection from the invertebrate world. The weight penalty for a 1 person inner (SMD Serenity Net inner) is only 150g (210 - 60 for the ground sheet I don't carry). Into the inner I can get all my gear especially food unlike a bivvy.

My one person setup is either a SMD Gatewood Cape and inner (540g) which doubles as rainwear or now a ZPacks Hexamid+ fly (no net floor) and the inner (350g) - so quite light. For 2 person trips my partner insists on an inner so omitting it is not an option.

I'm with Mark, I have the same option (6md). I'm based in the north so creepy crawly/flyie things are an issue, but find this setup a flexible 3season (prob 4 in Au) combination.

[Turfa]

Yes, leeches...... that's what killed my tarp aspirations. A very wet night at Acacia Flat in the Grose Valley where the ground was literally crawling with them. Never seen anything like it (before or since). Not the best place for an open tarp. Didn't get much sleep that night !

The weight of a tarp is nice, but for me it just goes past the point of acceptable comfort...

[Solohike74]

I was/am considering the SMD Wild Oasis, with Tyvek Groundsheet.

[michael_p]

Solohike74,

Have you had a look at the range of net tents made by Bearpaw Wilderness Designs. Have a look at the net tent photos, they have a range of configurations in both silnylon and cuben and their prices seem good for a cottage manufacturer.

Cheers,
Michael.

[neilmny]

..............Once found a snake curled up under my footprint as I packed up my tent, I did get a fright.

Roger

I've often wondered if this happens, would be a good cure for any binding up from dehydrated tucker

[Solohike74]

Thanks everyone. I found the Lunar Solo by Six Moon Designs, its $200 & has mesh inner door, bathtub floor, mesh linking floor & fly. It's 600 to 700gram & will be great with my click lock Black Wolf pole doing double duty. It's roof is steeper than a tarp tent better for rain. I'm also getting a Tyvek footprint for extra protection.

[Strider]

Apparently very little interior space in the Lunar Solo though, due to the angle of the roof. This was the one thing that steered me away from it.

[Onestepmore]

Did you have a look at the Mountain Laurel Designs Cricket? It's not a hybrid set-up, the inner can go under many different tarps, maybe more rainand bug protection if that's what you were after? Lighter as well (comparing silnylon, cuben of course is much lighter but more $$)

[Solohike74]

I've ordered the SMD Lunar Solo suits my budget right now. Reports & feedback will be added from me after I use it. It's not huge on space, but its mainly just for sleeping in. I'm also getting tyvek Groundsheet for protection of the tent floor. I have a bundle of Groundhog stakes to help using it plus walk with 2 adjustable poles.

[FatCanyoner]

Wow, I can't believe no one has come to the defence of the humble tarp. Do you folks never use camp caves either?
For multi-day canyoning I have never taken a tent. For high camps I use the tarp, and for low camps I look for camp caves.
For multi-day bushwalking it is the same. I think a three day trip is the longest walk I've ever been willing to lug a tent on. For anything longer it is always the tarp. Again, in sandstone country I often look for camp caves (for me, I love the ability to wander around, even if it starts raining, which you can't do in a tent!) One of the things I most love about the fly is that in good conditions I can just slide out the top and sleep under the stars, or roll over to watch the sunrise without getting up.
As for creepy crawlies, I've very rarely found it an issue. I've never had a snake / spider / possum etc problem when using a tarp. The only thing that has ever bugged me are bad flies or mozzies. For the mozzies, some insect repellant on the ears is usually enough.

[wildwalks]

I am with FatCanyoner on this -
It is less about the gear and more about how/where you set up camp.
Even in well used camping spots where you set up make a big difference. Look for animal/ant tracks look for natural shelter (cave or even rock wall or trees the prevent wind), water drainage etc.
With a big heavy solid tent you can plonk it anywhere. But with just a bit of time and thinking you can find a better spot to sleep.

I first learnt this lesson camping under the starts in Vic, we camped (unknowingly) in the middle of an obvious animal track. Midnight we were dreaming of this gentle thud-thud-thud noise then awoke suddenly to the screams of a friend clutching his chest and the site of a kangaroo hopping off into the moon light -- Don't worry the kangaroo was fine
If we where in a tent or tarp this would not have happened - but if we also just looked around and planned our camp a bit better we could have also avoided it to.

So weather a tarp, hammock tent, sandstone cave, snow cave, under the stars or what ever I reckon a few minutes of looking around, some insect repellent (or a mozzie net in some areas) you can be comfortable. Choose the shelter for your walk, Set up your gear well working the environment you have. It takes practice and observation. And from time to time you get it wrong and just don't sleep perfectly - that's OK.

Matt

[tom_brennan]

Depends on where you're walking, but I agree with FatCanyoner and wildwalks. A tarp is certainly fine around Sydney/Blue Mountains for much of the year. I probably use a tent about 1 night in every 5 or 6 (for overnight walks/canyons). The rest of the time we either use a camp cave or a tarp. The issue of creepy crawlies is way overstated. Mozzies is about as bad as it gets.

[Macca81]

a tarp over my hammock, still have not used a mozzie net. If the mozzies are out that night i put some repelant on, otherwise i dont bother. No problem yet. I do have the advantage of not being on the ground however.

[Miyata610]

I've spent quite a few nights under a tarp this season. Yes, mozzies can be a problem, even inside a bivi with a mozzie net. But the most annoying pest is the humble possum. it would be rare to spend a night without a possum crawling over me, or bouncing off after being kicked in my direction by a tarp sharing companion.

No leech attacks yet.

[gelandangan]

Leeches are what made me change from tarp / tents to hammocks.
Have not been in a tent for a few years now.

Got mozzie net built in on my hammocks.

[FatCanyoner]

Leeches are what made me change from tarp / tents to hammocks.

Where are you lot camping? I can't ever recall being attacked by leeches while sleeping. I think it comes back to wildwalks' suggestion about thinking a bit about where you camp. The kind of places leeches like are often pretty obvious, so simply find somewhere better to camp.

The worst I've had was a night years back when I found a couple scorpions wandering around about a foot from my sleeping bag. It was the first time I'd seen them in the Blue Mountains. Thankfully no bites, but it did make my sleep a tiny bit more nervous!

[awildland]

Thanks fatcanyoner and wildwalks for defending the humble tarp and (I would add) the bivy bag.

We tarp camp and bivy in wet rainforest, by rivers, on rocky outcrops, in forests, and love it. Yes, there have been some challenges (e.g: bivy bags only and night long rain, fawn-footed melomy stole head torch one night, got home once and week later found a dead antichinus in bottom of bivy bag, bush rat bit ear once) but..we are out there for an adventure and maybe we have been lucky that these have been minor incursions only. Still, all these mishaps can also happen with a tent (e.g: dingo tore a hole in our tent, kangaraoo tore a hole in an old tent, leeches inside tent dropped on face in middle of night, leaking seams in heavy rain on old tent). (Makes us sound like hopeless campers actually - but it's just the odds - we are out there a lot ).

Some great points from wildwalks about picking a good campsite - we did a wrap up of our favourite campsites for 2012 on our blog page and in the end they almost all were bivy or tarp camps because the bivy bag and tarp also give you so much flexibility as to where you can spend the night.

Happy camping though...however you go!

[MAF]

Hi, I use an light weight tent - just 690g ... 2 person ... Walked the Cape Pillar track last weekend and had leeches...all over my tent(exaggeration maybe 10), 2 actually pushed there way thru the netting...so im thinking of brining salt or tropical spray on my next expedition.

[jeremy089786]

My swaps in shelter have been:
Tent to tarp (saving weight)
Tarp to Tarp + Bivy (avoiding insects)
Tarp + Bivy to Tarp + Netting (avoiding claustrophobia + animals)

I personally hate getting pestered all night by mozzies, sandflies, spiders (plenty have run over my face with an open bivy) possums et al and have been much happier with the net tent. This combo also only weighs about 400g (Hexamid + net tent). Finally, as the netting sets up independently you can bust it out in those big sandstone caves.

MAF: That sounds pretty miserable! Try getting a shelter with proper nanoseeum (very fine) mesh. It doesn't allow sandflies through so would hopefully keep the leeches out too!

[FatCanyoner]

I got a kiss from a bush rat on the weekend while camping in a big sandstone overhang. I woke up to his whiskers brushing my nose! I still love camping out in the open. I can't imagine setting up a tent or even netting in a cave.