How to pitch a double wall tent in the rain (and keep it dry)
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- čas přidán 24. 10. 2021
- This is how I keep my double-wall, freestanding tent dry when pitching it during heavy rain. Watch me pitch this in the pouring rain and gusting winds, and see the results for yourself.
The tent used in this demo is the NEMO Dragonfly 2P, a two-person double-walled freestanding tent with a large cutout in the rainfly to save weight. Many people have expressed doubts about whether this design keeps out the rain, so I thought I would put this debate to rest once and for all.
Interested in this tent? See my long-term review of the NEMO Dragonfly 2: • The sweet spot for a 2... - Sport
I've seen four tent in rain videos, and this is the best. You're the only one to build the tent until the fly. That's what I do. Kudos to your wife for putting up with this. Mine wouldn't!
Facts. I’ve been trying to test my Nemo tent in hard rain myself but the wife things I’m insane. I think it’s fun to use your gear. That’s the beauty of it
It takes a lot of guts to make these tent set up videos in the rain. Props for going thru it. This also demonstrates why I personally stay away from these type of tents and prefer to use double-pitch or single-walled tents. It's OK when you're well rested and doing this in the day time, but it gets a lot worse when you get to camp after a day of hiking and have to do this while tired and losing day light. Those tiny velcro straps also are the worst to be fiddling with if your hands are cold and wet. Most people don't bother with them in the best of conditions, so there's even less incentive to do them in the worst conditions.
What a great tutorial! Excellent tip. And thank you for showing a setup in actual wild weather instead of a gentle drizzle. Immensely helpful to see the setup is possible in the conditions that would make it the most difficult.
Great to see a real life video of putting up a tent in the rain and wind. It's always easy to demo when the suns out and no wind.
Well done to both of you, very useful video.👍
Thanks for the useful and informative video in an actual wet and windy environment.
5 mins for someone who regularly erects a tent.
This confirms me to buying a popup tent for my motorcycle here in the UK.
Respect, you did a great job. Thank you so much for sharing under very difficult weather conditions. I can‘t understand why NEMO doesn‘t provide the possibility in rainy conditions to build up the tent only with the rainfly and the footprint. The new footprint of my dragonfly bikepack has no loops which could so easily connect with the poles and the rainfly. The older footprint of the MSR tent has such loops, but the new ones don‘t. I will write to NEMO about this issue which is in my opinion very important to have the option to build up the tent without the inner tent. Later the inner tent could be fixed much more easily from the inside as you did or it could remain dry in the backpack until the rain is gone.
Great Job! Love real world examples. Good idea to clip the fly on at home. Nice work...
Love this video. You really put it to the test in the weather. Nice job. I've watched 4 videos. This is the best.
Fantastic demonstration and helpful tips! Definitely something to practice in the backyard prior to hitting the trails!
Good to see you'r back.
Well done. This is a situation I didn’t think of, so I would have had a wet inside tent. Now to practice.
Thank you very much for teaching us such a useful technique! And in properly horrible weather, well done 😊
I have the same tent and needed to see this. Thank you.
Good demo. Thanks for your efforts and time! Camera director did a great job 👍👏 👍
Well thank you for proposing a question I only slightly asked myself and then provide the answer. Definitely will have to employ this method when I hit the trail next month.
Thank you so much for making this video!!! Such commitment!
Most excellent demonstration. Very nice.
Very nice my man. So much work to show us something so awesome. I will be trying it today, no rain LOL. keep up the great videos.
Awesome ! I've heard about this method of pitching a tent in the rain but have never seen a video demo. I subscribed as a Thank You😍
Such a good tip! I was hesitating between a single/double wall tent but this shows me its possible to get a double even for my more rainy adventures. Cheers!
I have the Nemo hornet and the galaxy, both are fine in the rain if pitched correctly. A couple times in Joshua Tree I was hit with flash flood weather and both were in several inches of water. I pulled the spikes and moved them and I was so surprised they were dry inside. I love Nemo cuz they are great in harsh elements. Thanks for the video they are always great.
I have a Hornet Elite and, in its first rainstorm, the uncovered head area soaked through. Fortunately it was a test at home and a coat of Nikwax seems to have prevented further issues.
@@three-cats-photography it seems like this is different from person to person. I’m looking at getting the 2p version.
And one thing nice about free standing double wall tents, you can move them easily if needed.
Excellent video... never seen that before. Got a tent exactly the same design... so thanks for your ingenious ideas..
Great Effort and Results, so appreciated… I have purchased one for my upcoming 55 day bike-packing trip next April … Awesome Job!!!!
David
Wow, thanks for braving the weather to do that!
Thanks so much for this - have been practicing this at home before heading out to hike a bit on the AT - and I know I will encounter rain! Bought the footprint but it is a bit bigger than the tent and doesn't work great so will be returning that piece and will just be using tyvek. That center pole is tough but after watching your video I will practice this a bunch - thanks!!
Glad to know it’s helpful! Good luck and happy trails
Great video and dedication. Didn't think that could be done but you got it done in terrible conditions. It does make me appreciate my x-mid though that can be set up fly first and then clip in the tent under it.
Thanks! It's nice that with most tarp tents, they're designed to be pitched from the outside in, so this problem does not exist.
Good job ! Very good Idea to clip the fly to the ground sheet before you pack up your tent so it’s ready. Also good reason to buy the ground sheet.
Great tip. Although, it would have been super easy for Nemo to put 4 grommets in the ground sheet so that, like Big Agnes, you could quickly set up the fly on the ground sheet and then attach the tent. I've been thinking I may put in some grommets to facilitate that as I like to separate my tent and fly for carrying, especially when the fly is soaked.
Thank you so much for making this video. I just took our daughter backpacking in the Sierra Nevada’s. It started raining 20 minutes after hitting the 2.5 mi trail to Winnemucca lake. We’re somewhat new to backpacking, but we’ve practiced setting up and taking down the tent a few times, and have become fairly quick at it. However, we struggled to get our lynx 2 up. Within just the minute it took to get the rain fly on, our floor bottom was pretty soaked. We made do, and it eventually cleared up, but if I would have thought about this before hand, and watched your video, we would have saved our extra socks from becoming squeegees. LOL. Thanks again
Jack
Now you’re ready to camp in downtown SF! Lol, just kidding. I’m new to backpacking and I live in SoCal, so the idea of pitching a tent in the middle of a rainstorm is very intimidating. This video was definitely informative and educational.
Great hack on setting up in the rain. Thank you.
Great process documented, thank you!!
That atmospheric river was intense! I shouldve checked out the swollen mt tam creeks today. Thanks for the tent set up tips!
I biked up Mt Tam on Saturday... there was some rain up there!
very unique video, thank you! I have the 1P on order
This is a great video.
Thank you for the real-world example.
Great info. I've not seen this idea before.
Thank you. Very helpful. I learned something new👍🏻
I appreciated this! Thank you!
My deepest and heartfelt condolences on pitching a tent and this tent in the rain. Apparently they even work great. Matt/Masochist is carrying his from Key West deep into Canada this year. Met a lot of guys who hate them. Prefer my TT Notch over my semi freestanding BA in the rain. In such weather I still prefer to sit in the hotel bar and drinking some Russian Ice-T. Hope you had some serious neoprene socks on.
great video!! trying to decide on double wall vs. single wall tent - thought I would def want only a double wall, but im understanding more why thru-hikers opt for single wall tents
Thanks for this video!
Great idea - thanks
Great advice
I got to say, I've enjoyed your reviews over the last few years. They're extremely concise and well thought-out. Have you ever dabbled in hammocks? I have a really bad back so for me, it's the only way to go. There's a bit of a learning curve but it's well worth it in terms of comfort. I've always kind of thought of it as the difference between bait fishing and fly fishing. It's a bit of an art form. Once I got it down, I slept better than I ever do at home.
Thanks Sam! I’ve dabbled with hammocks but I’m often above tree line and I toss and turn a lot. I haven’t had issues sleeping on an airpad so I’m a bit reluctant to add more weight to the system without appreciable gain. What setup are you using?
I have the Dutchware Chameleon in hexon 1.0 with titanium cinch buckle and 12' spider/poly strap suspension at 1 lb 7 oz total. A 12' Hammock Gear DCF tarp that is 7.5 oz with all its accouterments. An HG 20° 3/4 length underquilt 15 oz. Two HG tops quilts (wide), 40° and 20° degrees, at 15.75/22.5 oz. Next spring I plan to get a custom Dream Hammock Darien in 1.0 Monolite which should be a little more side-sleeper friendly, plus you can see through the fabric for 360 views. I live on the east coast so there's never a problem finding trees.
See-through fabric would be a nice touch!
Yea, that's what I'm thinking :). I would have gone with that the first time but the Dutchware factory is literally three blocks from where I live lol. Plus the netting on the Chameleon is symmetrical so you can sleep in either direction. It's also modular so you can add and remove components as necessary. For example, you can replace the bug net with a solid piece of fabric that is vented at the top which kind of turns it into a floating bivy for colder weather.
Good Job !
Got married and gained a camerawoman. Sounds like you really made out in the deal. I think pitching a tent in the rain has got to be one of the more miserable things you can do outdoors. My sister lives in Silicon Valley (Santa Clara) and she says it's dumping outside. I hear it's heading south to where I am in southern California so I'm not looking forward to that. Of course, we can use the rain and it's probably doing wonders to help put out some of the fires around the state, but then there's the risk of mudslides and cliff erosion. Stay warm and safe. I'm glad you and Emily immediately collapsed the tent and went someplace warm and dry.
I definitely lucked out. On the other hand, she ended up with more tents than she ever wanted 😂
@@HikingNerd A lifetime supply of tents. Every woman's dream.
This is exactly my plan for my comming trip
Great video. Only one I've seen actually in some weather. Depending on tent, it is easier to keep the actual tent dry if you don't clip them together. Keep the main tent body in the bottom of your tent bag, The fly on top. Set up the fly and poles then you climb under and pull out the main tent and clip to poles.
😎🤙🏻 thanks for doing this video.
If you buy the footprint the poles can be anchored to it to allow you to assemble the rest of the tent under the rain fly
Great job, thx
I travel by motorcycle and tent as much as I can., but in weather this bad my tent prefers to watch HBO from the corner of a motel room. LOL. I appreciate your advice on putting your tent up in adverse weather. At 69 my adventure curve isn't quite high as yours. 👍👍🏍🏍🏍🙋♂️
That was great. Now pitch it up the traditional way and show the difference inside after that pitch. Just for curiosity sake. I’m rocking the zpacks Altaplex so rain’s usually not a problem during pitching.
Thanks for your time and rainy effort to make this video.
Nice! Alot of rain out there in SF.
I have found that this is usually more trouble than it's worth, especially when much water is brought in when entering anyway, so I have much faster and better results by just using normal methods, then drying the interior with a super absorbant towel, which is necessary to do anyway. Thanks. Love, Hope, and Joy.
would say great idea to connect fly and body before, I would start by extending pole set first in the field to reduce wetness on tent. Like the staking before pole set up in very heavy windy conditions. In the field I am usually under tree canopy so rain is reduced and the wind factor decreased. Thanks for your time.
I backpack with a spare light rainfly that I use in situations like this. I will put my rainfly up first nice and high and then build my tent under it where its dry. If There are no trees available it has inserts for my trekking polls to create a dry area. Then I just build my tent. When its not pouring I use the spare rainfly as a footprint. And if I am expecting rain anyways I will usually set up the rainfly above my double walled tent as an added layer of rain protection and to reduce drying time if its going to be a wet backpacking trip.
Genius. Another factor aiding the process is the selection of glove - the palm and finger tip surfaces are grippy even in the wet, particularly with aluminum, carbon fiber, silnylon and dyneema.
Thanks!
Thank you!
I think the first version of Nemo Hornet didn't have enough overlap, but the designs since then by Nemk have been fixed for the most part when it comes to keeping out the elements.
Brilliant idea. Thanks for the dedicated teamwork.
Can’t you also set the fly up first, then the tent under that?
Good question. The Dragonfly doesn't have a "fast fly" pitch with a footprint (though they could easily do this, but I don't use footprints anyway). Therefore, I needed to use the tent body with grommets so that the fly has an underlying structure. The only ways I've seen a fly-first pitch done with a tent like this are with: a) a footprint with grommets, b) a perimeter strap system with grommets, or c) a rainfly that has grommets (e.g. Sea to Summit Telos)
@@HikingNerd Forgot about that! But couldn’t someone half arse just Velcro the fly to the already erected pole structure, get underneath and clip tent up.
(Of course it would blow away if you had wind like you had lol)
The velcro wouldn't keep the pole structure in place because the ends of the pole need to press against something (like a footprint or tent body that can hold tension). I think if there's any takeaway from this video, it's that half-arsing anything (for example, where I was too lazy to do the extra guy lines)when your margin of error is slight is more likely to result in unacceptable consequences.
@@HikingNerd ah ha, got it. I can get what you mean now. What you did was excellent!
A great video. I have a Hornet 1P, and have practiced this at home, but thankfully haven't had to do it yet. I am wondering, though, how to set up the pitch for a second day of rain, if I keep the fly on the outside of my pack in an attempt to dry it out during the day. I guess maybe take things out and set it up (and then re-pack it) if it looks like more rain is on the way?
Thanks for the demo of the tent! And the tip about the gloves. What kind of jacket and pants were you wearing?
You're welcome! I was wearing Ultimate Direction's Ultra pants and jacket.
best to just use a tent that pitches outer first, or inner already attached to the outer, such as the Vango Banshe or Nevis tents, or Zpacks tents
I use a strap made from very light nylon cord to stand up the frame first, but your method is better because you can immediately and progressively stake down the tent with your approach. With my frame-first approach, there is more for the wind to catch right at the start before a stake is in.
Question- If you have multiple days of rain and need to break camp in the rain, do you flatten the tent like at the end of the video (sped up portion) and then try to fold everything so that the wet outside surfaces don't dump their water into the interior through permeable fabric? Does that actually work, or do you find the inside is wet after the first cycle?
Thanks for the nice video. If anyone is curious, the nylon cord that I use is what would be used to repair window blinds. It is roughly 1mm, very light, and available at the local hardware store. Just setup your tent at home without the fly and tie loops as needed in the cord to match where the ends of the poles are. In the field, you'd put up the frame with the premade cord first, put the fly over it, and then build the tent underneath. As mentioned, though, wind can make this hard and even blow your tent out of your hands while you do all this, so get some stakes in as soon as humanly possible.
That’s a neat approach. I haven’t found a way to keep the tent surfaces dry when it’s actually really humid out and you have to break down the tent and set it up again later. Even if you wipe it down with a dry cloth, you need that moisture to move into the air and sometimes the air is just too saturated.
Thanks for all your efforts. This weather is typical of the UK ...which is why outer pitch (fly first) first tents ....or all-in-one pitch tents do very well over here. Much easier in the rain.
Most all-in-one pitch tents are tunnel tents eg terra nova compact, abisko, hilleberg acto etc . If you wanted a free-standing all-in-one then the Helm 1 and 2 by Wild Country might do... but are nearer to 2kg.
I wish there was an outer-pitch or an all-in-one pitch 3 season tent which was free-standing but as light weight as the nemo. This is perhaps the Holy Grail of tents :)
Does anyone know of one?
Rgds
Imran
There are a lot more options when you look into trekking pole tents - those are almost exclusively pitched from the outside in. For freestanding double-walled tents, not many come close to the NEMO Dragonfly and BA Copper Spur in terms of weight so most will add on additional weight to achieve extra features.
I was taught, footprint, poles, fly, tent. Much easier!
Love realistic Raw videos. Just being real. Not trying to make a company looke glossy clean!
Your rain coat is awesome! What’s the brand and where did you get it? Thanks
It’s the Ultra Jacket made by Ultimate Direction
GUY GUY GUY GUY GUY! You are not DONE! :D
Otherwise nice demo for folks!
Nemo tents collapse way to easily. I have a Firefly 2p, after view collapses, one pole broke and pierced right through the rainfly.
Got it replaced by the shop that sold it to me, but I'm not trusting it anymore, its picking up dust in my closet.
Did you take this video by the Mountain Lake in Presidio?
Good eye!
Great video! Is this the tent you took up Mount Shasta?
I have taken this tent before to Mt Shasta but would not take it on any trip, really depends on the wind and snow forecasts
@@HikingNerd ah I see! Any tents that you can recommend for camping at Helen lake? Planning on going up there in early June and would love any recommendations
You’ll see a whole spectrum of tents there. If it’s your first time, you’re probably ok with a 3 season tent - with the implication being that if the weather is bad enough to cause you concern at Helen Lake, you should probably start getting down the mountain because it’s not going to be a summit day.
@@HikingNerd thanks so much for the reply! Appreciate it. And I've been up to 50-50 flat but had to turn around due to deep snow. (April 2021) I have a week and can pick the bets weather window but still debating if I should pick up a 4 season tent or if I'll be fine with the eureka suma 2 I have already. Found a decent deal on a marmot hammer 2p that I could get for around 400 but don't know if it's worth it.
If you guy out the tent properly and surround with snow blocks if super windy, you should be fine with what you already have. Lots of people will be in the same boat so if the wind is super bad, lots of 3 season tents would get shredded and everyone would probably have to hike down together or ask a friendly neighbor for refuge. It’s unlikely you’ll have to consider snow drifts this time of year so a 4 season tent like the Hammer 2P would give you insurance but unlikely to change your likelihood to summit (if that’s your goal). But that’s just what I would personally feel comfortable doing.
Btwm that's a Nemo Dragonfly not Hornet.
🇺🇲
These Nemo tents wouldn't last over 14 days in Tasmania....get a Mont Moondance ! 🍺🇦🇺👍
when i pitch a tent i want it wet.
There is one serious flaw in this video, there is no footprint being used which is a big no no.
I used this video's prep technique but _with_ a footprint, as I knew a) it was likely to rain and b) I would need the footprint due to the terrain.
It is a bit more of a faff to set up at home, but it worked well in the field.
Why do you need to talk just put up the tent