Bushwalk Australia

I may have the opportunity to walk in Tassie in the new year. My research suggests I may encounter rain (tongue in cheek). Thinking ahead in anticipation of doing a couple of through walks, I have no experience of sustained rain and especially, what do you do if it is pouring and it is time to erect the tent. I normally camp in a hammock and can set up a hammock camp under a tarp but I anticipate having to use a tent on walks like the OLT. Any hints or comments on what to do if it is raining and not likely to stop soon would be appreciated.

TB

What sort of tent do you have? Helps to have one where you can erect the fly first, then put up the inner.

Step 1: Wait for rain to stop. Or move to pub.

Set 1a: If rain will not stop and no pub around, erect tent fly. This should be practiced first so that the top of the fly is the only thing (other than how you and your gear arrived) exposed to rain. I have found that even tents that 'must be errected fly last' can be erected fly first with enough determination.

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I find erection of the tent is easier than the packing up of the tent ... in the rain. This too should be practiced. The fly should be the last thing 'down' having completed everything else under the cover of the erect fly.

All the above can be practiced without rain. Part of this will be realizing how things need to be packed for arriving in rain and departing in rain. As everyone has different gear and ideas on the matter there are lots of different methods. It can be entertaining to watch provided you have your method working well.

flingebunt wrote:.....erect the fly first, then put up the inner.

I am considering taking the hammock tarp to put up first, then erect tent in that shelter. Not sure if that is a possibility on a platform.

TB

Ticklebelly wrote:I am considering taking the hammock tarp to put up first, then erect tent in that shelter. Not sure if that is a possibility on a platform.

If you don't have a tent that lets you erect the fly by itself, there are ways to minimise the rain.

-Maybe one trick is have an oversized tent bag. Many tent bags are a tight squeeze, so trying to roll up or unpack a tent in the rain is slower. With an oversized bag, you can get it all unwrapped or wrapped up quickly.
-There are also huts. If you prefer to stay in your tent than the hut, you can still put your bag in the hut, get out your tent without things in your bag more wet than they are.
- Lay out the tent inner with the doors zipped up or at least folded down, then throw the fly over the top to reduce how much rain gets into the tent Get the tent up as quickly as possible. Your strategy depends on the tent design. Freestanding tents will go up pretty quickly with practice.
- Alternatively, have your hiking companions or other people there help you, by holding the tent fly up above the tent inner while you faff around with getting that up.

A separate fly can be useful as something to use to keep you dry while having a break for lunch so why not.

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My limited experience of rain is that everything gets kinda damp anyway.
I would think moving quickly, lay out the inner and then the fly over the top... try to erect the tent keeping the fly over it.

Yep depends on the tent design. Some work with the fly and a footprint, then can put the inner in separately.

I have a 2p dome with external poles. Great for the first day of rain but then when packed the condensation etc all squishes together. Drys, or enough, when next put up.

Taking the tarp as well sounds good. (just got a pyramid plus nest which is like combining tarp and tent in one)

Before walk - familiarise yourself with pitching the tent. Hopefully you have purchased a tent the goes up as one piece or fly first.
1. Pack tent where it can be easily accessed without exposing your sleeping gear to the elements.
2. Remove tent from pack. Remember to get out poles and pegs if stored separately. Stash pack as best as possible (as well as the inner if separate) in shelter of a tree etc.
2. Lay out tent or fly and roughly peg to expected dimensions.
3. Insert poles and improve peg placements. Guy out to suit conditions.
3a. Lay out inner (if necessary) under the fly and clip into position.
4. Drag pack into vestibule and enter tent.

I hiked the OLT and slept in a hammock every night. Are you sure you need the tent?

There were good trees for hammocking at every hut/camp area except New Pelion, but it would have been possible to hang a hammock on the verandah of the hut using the roof supports. As luck would have it, New Pelion was the only official stop I didn't stop at so I didn't have to resort to this.

If you don’t have a tent, look at the Wilderness Equipment Second Arrow, it pitches with the fly and inner attached so takes about 3 minutes max. You could thread the poles on the veranda/gear vestibule of any of the huts, carry it to the platform, and have it pitched in about 1 minute - it takes 3 stakes/clips to platform chains to have it standing.

Otherwise, I don’t think you would have a problem finding trees for a hammock at most huts.

flingebunt wrote:have your hiking companions or other people there help you, by holding the tent fly up above the tent inner while you faff around with getting that up

You've almost nailed it, flingebunt.

Have your hiking companions hold their tent fly above the tentsite while you take your time to put up the inner and outer of your tent. (Then have your hiking companions cook dinner for you, massage your feet, and serenade you to sleep.)

Bring a big wipe for drying things after the tent is up... But I hate the mud much more.

There are bigger potential problems to worry about on the Overland trail than 5 minutes of rain.
EG. rodents eating your food, blisters, hypothermia, sleeping next to snoring strangers, running out of fuel
and missing the boat.

commando wrote:There are bigger potential problems to worry about on the Overland trail than 5 minutes of rain.
EG. rodents eating your food, blisters, hypothermia, sleeping next to snoring strangers, running out of fuel
and missing the boat.

'Hell is other people" - Sartre.

commando wrote:There are bigger potential problems to worry about on the Overland trail than 5 minutes of rain.
EG. rodents eating your food, blisters, hypothermia, sleeping next to snoring strangers, running out of fuel and missing the boat.

It's a track, not a trail, and if you take the boat from Narcissus, you've only walked part of it.
(Thank you for coming to my TED talk)

As said before, take the hammock and tarp.

Not problems - stuff ups.

Rodents - poor technique
Blisters - should have broken in your footwear
Hypothermia - poor gear choices
Snoring - thats why you take and use a tent
Out of fuel - poor planning
Missing the boat - why skip a very enjoyable part of the olt.

I think the obvious solution is to carry more gear, put up a big tarp and then erect the tent under the cover of the tarp.
Naturally nobody is going to do that solo so the advice to practice so the tent can be put up and made secure in the shortest possible time is the best solution

Good thing the rain always falls vertically in Tasmania.

Don't get too hung up about having a wet tent. Of course, keep it dry using any of the above-mentioned techniques to whatever extent is reasonable. But if it does get wet, just wipe the floor down before you get in. It's not a big deal.

Personally, I just don't worry about it. My first tent, and one of my current tents (the solo one) have both been fly-on-last tents. They get just a little wet when I set them up in the rain (the inner tent is only exposed to the rain for a very short time). Then the fly goes on. Then I dry the floor, if it got wet enough to bother - which it usually does not. Simple. No problem.

Packing up is more of an issue than setting up. Everything is more difficult to manage when its wet. And the tent has to go into the pack last (instead of first), because you have to pack the rest of the gear while you can keep it dry under the tent. Even then it's not too much trouble when you get used to it. Just make sure the pack is not too tightly packed so that you can shove the tent down the side of it (preferably between the pack fabric and the water proof pack liner, to avoid putting water inside the pack liner with the dry stuff). Optionally, pack the inner tent separately to the fly, if the inner is dry, to avoid it getting wetter.

Also placement of the tent in (or before) rain should be carefully considered. On tent platforms, it should be no trouble. But I've woken up in the morning to see that people have pitched their tents on what turned out to be a flood plain during heavy rain. The flood waters are literally flowing in one end of the tent and out the other end (if they have doors at both ends). Of course that means the sleeping bag (and probably clothes and other gear) is not just wet, but completely saturated and the only option may be to abort the walk entirely (if that is even feasible).

Make sure you watch the following video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rA4DElALKt8
(“Hammock vs tent in the rain”)

It’s over the top but still good for a laugh.

Here's where I think liners make more sense than pack covers. You can put everything except the tent inside the rucksack tighten it down and then put a wet tent inside with no fear of the water getting into the other gear.

Moondog55 wrote:Here's where I think liners make more sense than pack covers. You can put everything except the tent inside the rucksack tighten it down and then put a wet tent inside with no fear of the water getting into the other gear.

Exactly. Pack covers are only useful for preventing the pack fabric from wetting out (and getting heavy, depending on the material)

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Thanks for all the replies and comments. I particularly like the suggestion to go to the pub, however, might not be practical in the middle of a 6 day through walk.

The idea of erecting the tent under cover then taking the tent to a platform is doable. Using the cover of my hammock tarp, or in the shelter of a hut, to erect the tent would work. I have used my current tent lots and can erect it quite quickly. The opposing bows create a shape that is easy to lift and carry. Taking the tarp creates a weight penalty. The comments suggesting that I use the hammock and leave the tent will get more research on what is allowed. I have a long commitment to Leave no Trace principles and will act accordingly.

Huts as Plan B. I am really only concerned about erecting my tent in pouring rain. I have packed up in the rain. If a pub is not available, maybe a hut is the option to consider. Have never used a hut so I'll do the reading on hut etiquette.

Weekend forecast here is for rain. Guess what I have planned for the weekend.

TB

ChrisJHC wrote:Make sure you watch the following video:

(“Hammock vs tent in the rain”)

It’s over the top but still good for a laugh.

Not so over the top as demonstrating the concern that prompted this thread. The tent used was a bit of a setup to make a point. I once did 51 nights straight in a hammock and it was raining the majority of nights and days. Mate with me threw his tent in the bin and we ended up at Spotlight buying Rip-Stop nylon to make a hammock for him. There is a whole story in that experience but the video is a pretty true representation of how you can stay dry in a hammock. Only thing I did not like in the video was the use of thin rope around the trees. Responsible hammock hangers use 45mm webbing or similar.

TB

Ticklebelly wrote: I once did 51 nights straight in a hammock and it was raining the majority of nights and days.
TB

Ticklebelly it sounds like you and a hammock were meant for each other, why fight it.

Just a question how do you deflect the mozzies ?

Many camping hammocks have built-in mozzie nets.

Son of a Beach wrote:Good thing the rain always falls vertically in Tasmania.

Son of a Beach wrote:Packing up is more of an issue than setting up. Everything is more difficult to manage when its wet. And the tent has to go into the pack last (instead of first),

If you expect to unpack in the rain then the tent should be easy to extract from the pack without exposing the contents to much rain. If the tent was wet when packed I have a tenancy to pack it outside the main pack compartment - so It has some chance of drying and is easier to set up that night.

Son of a Beach wrote:Also placement of the tent in (or before) rain should be carefully considered. On tent platforms, it should be no trouble. But I've woken up in the morning to see that people have pitched their tents on what turned out to be a flood plain during heavy rain. The flood waters are literally flowing in one end of the tent and out the other end (if they have doors at both ends). Of course that means the sleeping bag (and probably clothes and other gear) is not just wet, but completely saturated and the only option may be to abort the walk entirely (if that is even feasible).

I have advised some to move their tent ... they placed it in a hollow on the west coast of the south island of New Zealand where the rainfall is 10 meters per year. The next morning there was a good puddle where their tent was. While a hollow may be comfortable for sleeping the puddle is not.

commando wrote:Ticklebelly it sounds like you and a hammock were meant for each other, why fight it.

Just a question how do you deflect the mozzies ?

Not fighting it, just thought that hammocks were a No No in the OLT. In the absence of platforms, use of a hammock does a lot less damage to sensitive ground than does a tent, if the hammock user is committed to Leave no Trace principles. A couple of comments above suggest that a hammock is possible if I choose to do the OLT.

Mozzies, rats, spiders, and snakes, have been prevented from sharing or intruding on my space more than once by the built in Bug net on my Hennessy Hammock. If you choose to DIY a hammock, a Bug Net is very easy to construct.

TB

For putting up a tent in the rain stop for a moment and think how your going to do it to minimise getting your stuff and the inside of the tent wet. Even if that means standing in the rain for a few more minutes.

Hopefully you have the tent in a easy to access location.

Look at the site, clear it and ensure you have decent drainage so you don't end up with a lake under your tent but maybe that's less of an issue on the olt as it's platforms I think.

Practice and test before you go:

Test your tent floor before you go by putting it in a tub. If their is a leak then it's best to know beforehand.

Practice cooking in the tent.(lit stove goes in open vestibule or better slightly out of it, you stay inside the tent in your sleeping bag and cook from there)

Make sure you roll the door in such a way that the drips won't roll into the tent and vertical rain wont land inside the tent while cooking (I usually roll halfway up and use my walking pole to create a little Annex) if rain is of the horizontal type then it pays to have a 2nd door

Make sure you dry your tent if possible at lunchtime by draping it in the sun.

But most important is making sure you have a always dry set of thermals to put on.

Resign yourself early on that no wet clothing is going to dry.

Also test your rain jacket/pants. Unless they are new or made of outdry there is a significant chance it will wet out and you will get wet from either pin leaks or sweat.

If you do all these things, then the next morning you can rest comfortable and dry in your tent while brewing a tea and listen to your friends complaining that their floor leaked during the nigh, the fly is dripping on them and they can't make breakfast without getting wet. And some of your walking clothes may even be dry as your rain gear performed as advertised.

My 3 cents

I don't think it's a big deal. Of course it is nicer to put up your tent when it is dry, but when it gets wet inside you just wipe it dry with a small towel. That takes 5 minutes at most.