Introduction

The tent, a staple of camping gear stores and forum discussions to no end.  There exists a nearly endless selection of options on the market to fill any budget, need and niche.  Selecting one can be a daunting task of deciding between styles, types, designs, and materials; each with its price tag and weight.  Hopefully, I can help shed some light on what some of these mean and help guide you towards the right gear for you. 

This will be a series of articles on selecting a tent or shelter to fit your needs. This first article will be focused on Style and Type of shelter. Future articles will focus on materials and design considerations, selection for various needs, and skills to increase your setup speed, simplicity and quality.

I will be linking to some offsite pages throughout these articles to help illustrate examples. None of these links are sponsored or endorsed. They will just be either example that I have personal experience with or have favourable reviews from people that I have solid trust in their opinions. Any images that I haven’t provided a source are my own.

Shelter Styles

I like to consider shelters in terms of style and type.  The style refers to the number of walls and type of enclosure.  While the type refers to the type of structural system used for the shelter.  The style will dictate the level of isolation from the elements while the type will dictate the skill level required to use it in variable terrain and conditions.

Looking at the style of shelter first we will look at the double-wall, single-wall, and open styles.  Each has its pros and cons which lend them to particular styles of use. 

Double-Wall

The double-wall freestanding tent is what most people think of when they think tent.  The double-wall refers to the outer rain and wind shell with the inner net tent and waterproof floor.  These tents generally are the most isolated from the elements and bugs with their sealed-up nets. They also often have low edges to the shelters with little to no adjustment of ventilation without leaving a vestibule door open for airflow.

Many will favour this design for the increased protection from bugs and the elements. These shelters generally provide the largest bug-free interior space. With an appropriate design, they will provide a large living space out of the elements for days spent socked into camp.

These benefits come at a cost however, the net tent adds weight and bulk to the tent to be carried. Typically these tents have a single pitching option, meaning that the setup can’t be changed for variable terrain or weather conditions.

Single-Wall

The single-wall shelter is simply a shaped rain shell to take a closed shelter form.  Often these shelters will have improved ventilation over a double-wall tent.  A drawback, however, is that there is no liner to prevent you from touching the condensation inside the tent.

For those who are seeking weight savings without sacrificing protection from the elements, a single-wall shelter is an excellent choice.  The increased exposure to bugs though can be a turn-off for some with this style.  Use of a small bug net or bug bivvy can reduce this exposure.  But, this can be claustrophobic in areas with a lot of bugs to contend with.

Many of the backpacking tents sold today can be pitched without the inner net tent as single wall shelters. These are often not as good of a pitch as it is a secondary option; but, it can be a good way to cut weight for a specific trip before departure.

Open

Open shelters are single-wall designs that do not have full weather closure.  They may be a shaped shelter that forms a tent-like shape or a simple tarp shelter.  From this, it can be seen that these shelters require better weather conditions to be comfortable for most, or a higher tolerance for exposure to the elements.  Generally, open shelters are non-freestanding and often represent the lightest weight option.

Other

There is a myriad of ‘other’ category shelters on the market to fill specific niche roles. Likely if you are looking at them intently you will have a strong understanding of what you need/want from them. However, I will hit on a few of the more common styles here.

1 1/2 Wall Shelters

These are shelters that have a partial net that seals to the main fly. Doing so saves a significant amount of material from the liner; resulting in a large bug-free area with a little weight penalty. Downsides include: a lack of a buffer from touching the condensation on the inside of the fly, and they are usually very lightweight shelters made of very technical materials. This means that they require more care in use and cost a pretty penny.

The Z-Packs Altaplex is a highly reviewed example of this category.

Bivvy Bags

There are two main styles of bivvy bags, the bug bivvy and the standalone.

A bug bivvy typically has a waterproof bottom, a wind-resistant top and a net cover over the face. They typically are used under a tarp or other open shelter for bug cover. I will discuss them more in-depth later in this series of articles.

The standalone bivvy is a waterproof bag to cover your entire sleeping kit. They are often made with a WPB (WaterProof Breathable) top layer to keep out the rain but hopefully allow your breath to escape. My limited experience with them is that they do not breath nearly as well as required to keep you from getting soaked in your condensation. If left mostly open under a minimal shelter they can be an effective way to increase the protection. Overall I would generally steer away from them outside of advanced and highly experienced users.

Hammock Systems

An entire book could and has been written on the topic of hammock camping. I will be putting out some information on the topic in the future. I am not the most experienced Hammocker on the net but I have a fair bit of time in the hang. The hammock has been my system of choice for treed trips in weather around or above freezing for several years now. The hammock system is very personalized and custom setup for each user. A general layout would be a tarp for rain shelter, the hammock with its suspension, a bug net that is either integrated into the hammock or a cocoon that hangs around the hammock, top insulation of some sort, and then lower insulation of either a pad or underquilt.

The hammock can be an excellent system for areas with consistent tree cover and a low to moderate level of ground vegetation. If you are in areas of heavy, dense shrubbery then it can be difficult to find a hole to hang in. One of my favourite aspects of the hammock is that the ground you pitch above doesn’t matter. It can be a swampy hole, a mess of bumps or rocks, or otherwise inhospitable to the ground sleeper and it’s no factor.

Shelter Types

As I have said the type refers to the structure of the shelter, from the typical dome-style tent to tarps.  An increase in skills and experience will be needed for the types further down the list.

Freestanding

Freestanding tents are what most people think of.  Using flexible poles run through sleeves or clips to give the tent its form.  These tents do not require staking to hold their shape and structure, although staking out of vestibules and tensioning lines will improve the setup.

From this, these tents are the simplest type to use and have the lowest skill requirement and are the easiest to satisfy ground requirements.  Usually, all that is required is an open and flat area large enough to accommodate the tent.  The main drawback is the additional weight of poles that are needed for the shelter.

Often these are double-wall shelters, sometimes capable of being pitched in a single-wall configuration.

Non-Freestanding

Non-freestanding tents usually need poles for support, often your hiking poles or a stick found in the woods.  Shaped tarps will often also fall into this category.  The pole provides a prop to keep the peak up while staking out of the tent gives it shape.  This requires a more careful selection of location and a greater skill set for staking in poorer ground conditions.  This may include the use of deadman anchors instead of regular stakes in sandy or rocky conditions or if camping on top of the snowpack in winter.

Open shelters are usually non-freestanding and offer very good ventilation with improved protection over most tarp pitches.

The weight savings of a non-freestanding tent can be quite significant, especially if it is also a single wall.  However, if setting up the tent for a few days at a time the loss of hiking poles on day trips can be a negative.

Tarps

I have flat tarps in a separate category due to their extreme versatility in setup.  The pitching of a tarp may require poles in areas with limited vegetation or a ridgeline in wooded areas.  The skillset required to reliably set up a solid tarp pitch is the most extensive of the three.  However for those who enjoy the extra challenge and consideration it can be quite rewarding and the lightest option.  Most of the common tarp pitches are open and very well ventilated resulting in little to no condensation.  However, there is an increase in exposure to the weather.

Final Thoughts

This first article has covered the style and type of shelter and has begun to introduce some of the considerations towards shelter choice. Already my bias towards lighter and more easily ventilated shelters is likely beginning to show.

In the next article, I will be discussing materials common to tents and shelters and common designs. Once that framework has been laid out then I will have a third entry regarding how to string this all together into a shelter choice.

Please leave any thoughts or questions below and I will address them as quickly as I can.

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