Tarps...?

[snag]

hmmm, if I could understand a word he was saying it would help! Is that really singing? I'm sorry I must just be getting old.........or that's just NOT singing!  lol

[DeerSpotter]

We have had a Dan Cooke tarp for over 15 yrs.
we have used it in BWCAW area, in 1999 the blow down yr the tarp stayed up until we had to leave.

great tarps from Dan Cooke


Carl

[woodchucker]

Why not a small 5' X 7' or a 6' X 8' dome tent?????

I won one a few years ago in a raffle,then I bought another one for about $29.

They weigh very little and they are far more weatherproof than any tarp IMHO.

[JockC]

Snag, that's true about the heavier fabric.  In my mind that's not always a problem in windy states where junk is coming off trees during storms or the lightest stuff tends to be a little more noisy at a given pitch.  I stay away from the the very lightest and most delicate for that and for financial reasons.  It's still pretty darned light.

[JockC]

Oh, Snag, one other thing--Those GoLites come with relatively crappy, massive aluminum stakes.  They are much lighter with better stakes from Virga or backpackinglight.com's shop.

[wahoo]

tarps are easy and cheap. If you want to spend some money look at Hennessy hammocks, you will have a tent and also a fly or tarp but it will cost you some money.

[JockC]

Snag--
Mountain Gear has the single wall Black Diamond Firstlight on sale.  2 person, 3 lb, $225.  Not suitable for major sustained rain, and not that cheap (well, $75 off list), but bugproof and windspray proof.  Very good tent.

For woody areas, as wahoo points out, a hammock might be the ticket.  There are a bunch of them, with Hennessey being one of the good choices.  One I'm half-interested in the Jacks R Better Bear Mtn Bridge hammock; it lies flat:
 http://216.83.168.206/index_files/BMBH.htm

Note that with many hammocks the rainfly is extra $$ and weight.  You don't need a ground cloth (though I use cheap and light Tyvek sheets for that), but you usually do need a pad under you for insulation purposes.  Hammocks seem to be either a love it or hate it proposition.