Let's Talk Outdoor Camping Tips, Tricks, Hacks

[GroovyGeek]

There are always counterpoints and in this case strong ones. I used to car camp with ground tents for a long time now exclusively RTT and I'd never go back.

1. If you worry about mpg, you just can't be that much of an off roader and the impact in a Bronco isn't huge.
2. Noise too is minimal increase, but again in a rig with a removable hard top, it's already very noisy.
3. Set up and packing time is, by my own experience with others with ground tents, SIGNIFICANTLY, decreased, including vehicle leveling. In addition, many nice sites don't have a good flat place for a tent. I've never found it hard to get my rig extremely level. Most ground tenters I camp with have or really want to UPgrade.
4. One and ones gear stays cleaner in a RTT, part of which is no (or minimal) cleaning of tent nor ground tarp.
5. Minor, but more storage in vehicle without tent.
6. You stay much drier.
7. Comfy mattress included (often).

Again, having done lots of both, I'd never go back.

Key critical question. Do you actually have first hand experience in a RTT?

Limited experience with RTTs but tons with ground tents. If you stay much drier in an RTT you may be comparing an RTT to a low end ground tent. I have spent multiple days in a ground tent, many miles off trail, in serious rainfalls and snowfalls and have been completely dry all the time. Most recently 4 sequential days of near continuous rain on the Juneau icefield this past July. The only minor moisture that got in the tent was through the floor and that was because the tent was pitched on a snow shelf which was melting from under me as the days went by.

In an RTT you pay a lot for the mechanical structure to attach to the vehicle and it is usually made by an off-road company that knows very little about proper tent design. For 1/3 of the typical cost of a RTT you can get a tent from Samaya that will survive an Everest storm. And for half of a Samaya you can get a tent from Mountain Hardware, TNF, or Big Agnes that will survive conditions which will shred an RTT to pieces.

Yes, these are corner cases. We will have to agree to disagree.

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[The Green Flash]

As noted prior, that number was incorrect. These all aluminum, hand crafted in the USA stoves, that are made to survive any class of river rapids, are actually $500.

That's not likely to change your opinion, but is still relevant.

It's all good - you do you.

I'll keep my Colemans.

 

[Pops]

Distilled water won't kill ya. But...

Drinking distilled water regularly poses several potential health risks, primarily due to its lack of essential minerals like calcium and magnesium, which are important for cardiovascular health, bone strength, and electrolyte balance. While distilled water is safe in the short term and free from contaminants, long-term consumption may lead to nutrient deficiencies, reduced hydration due to poor taste, and increased leaching of metals from storage containers.

• Distilled water is molecularly unstable and can leach metals and other harmful substances from pipes, storage tanks, and containers, potentially leading to ingestion of undesirable compounds.
• The absence of dissolved minerals and oxygen gives distilled water a flat, unappealing taste, which may discourage adequate water intake and reduce overall hydration.
• Long-term consumption of demineralized water is associated with an increased risk of health issues such as cardiovascular disease, higher fracture rates in children, preterm birth, and neurodegenerative diseases, according to epidemiological studies cited by the World Health Organization.
• Individuals with inadequate dietary intake of calcium and magnesium may be at greater risk of deficiencies, leading to symptoms like fatigue, muscle cramps, headaches, and weakness.
• Athletes, the sick, or malnourished individuals are particularly vulnerable, as distilled water lacks electrolytes needed to replace those lost through sweat or illness.
• Distilled water also removes fluoride, which may increase the risk of dental cavities, making proper oral hygiene essential for those who consume it exclusively.
• Although the World Health Organization states there is insufficient scientific evidence to make definitive recommendations on long-term consumption of very low mineral waters, it acknowledges that drinking water contributes to daily mineral intake.

In light of recently released scientific evidence, I've started the change to a healthier lifestyle while having fun in my Bronco.

 

[Techun]

Limited experience with RTTs but tons with ground tents. If you stay much drier in an RTT you may be comparing an RTT to a low end ground tent. I have spent multiple days in a ground tent, many miles off trail, in serious rainfalls and snowfalls and have been completely dry all the time. Most recently 4 sequential days of near continuous rain on the Juneau icefield this past July. The only minor moisture that got in the tent was through the floor and that was because the tent was pitched on a snow shelf which was melting from under me as the days went by.

In an RTT you pay a lot for the mechanical structure to attach to the vehicle and it is usually made by an off-road company that knows very little about proper tent design. For 1/3 of the typical cost of a RTT you can get a tent from Samaya that will survive an Everest storm. And for half of a Samaya you can get a tent from Mountain Hardware, TNF, or Big Agnes that will survive conditions which will shred an RTT to pieces.

Yes, these are corner cases. We will have to agree to disagree.

I've had 8" of water in a ground tent. Fun stuff. Floating on an air mattress.

 

[TPadden72]

I've had 8" of water in a ground tent. Fun stuff. Floating on an air mattress.

You had faulty equipment, pitched in a creek bed, or encountered a flood. In over 50 years of 2 wheeled tent camping; including 4 Alaskan 30 day camp every night trips: I never had more moisture in a tent than could be wiped up with one swipe of a micro fiber towel.

Tom

 

[EasternSierra]

The one time I had significant water in a tent was user error - pitching a tube tent in a low spot because that was the only place where we could string the rope to hold it up. My friend got hypothermia because his sleeping bag was crap. Of course it then started snowing at 3 in the morning. In the end we got out OK. Beginner mistakes...

This all happened 50 years ago in August, in the Sierra Nevada in California. Good times in retrospect, really sucked at the time. Hasn't happened since and I wonder why?

I'd rather be in a ground tent than a rooftop tent if thunderstorms move in.

 

[TPadden72]

I'd rather be in a ground tent than a rooftop tent if thunderstorms move in.

... or when I have to step out for an after midnight whiskey wizz.

Tom

 

[Techun]

You had faulty equipment, pitched in a creek bed, or encountered a flood. In over 50 years of 2 wheeled tent camping; including 4 Alaskan 30 day camp every night trips: I never had more moisture in a tent than could be wiped up with one swipe of a micro fiber towel.

Tom

I don't think there's a tent that can hold back 8" of water for 8hrs. And unfortunately for me I was a kid at a boy scout event and did not have a say in where my tent was pitched.

We spent 4-8am in a bathroom taking turns hitting the hand air dryer to supply warmth ...

 

[Gassyjack]

Fun! There’s cold, and then there’s wet and cold. A whole nother level of miserable.

 

[TPadden72]

Fun! There's tent camping, and then there's a kid at a boy scout event. A whole nother level of being un-prepared.

Want to be miserable, try tent camping at a USMC event.

 

[aermtr]

Not a low cost hack, but a good video with camping locations in Oregon and lots of other stuff too by @swooshdave. I tow an Airstream so definitely not a low-cost hack, except that I pull it and camp between Portland and Vegas 2X /year and save a lot on hotels with with my wife, haha.

 

[GoHawks63]

Several years ago, my significant other purchased an inflatable sleeping pad at REI that was in the discount aisle. It was there because it apparently had a slow leak. Now she has camped way more than me and is a firm believer in the "pay once, cry once" idiom, but this pad was apparently a premium brand and she figured we would find the leak and patch it.

Couldn't find the leak. First time using it, woke up at 4am to a deflated pad and had to get out, find the pump in pitch black and pump it back up. We were in a 2-person tent that time.

Next few times we went with our larger 4-person tent and I thought, "hey, let's bring our air mattress". Worked fine and was very comfortable for a couple of trips, until it would randomly deflate. Some nights it would be fine, and then another night it would be completely flat.

The last straw for us was when we were camping in 20+ degree weather and again woke up at 4am (why is it always 4am?) to a deflated mattress and essentially sleeping on the cold frozen ground. We were camping with others, and I wasn't about to wake others up by starting the vehicle to get power to fill the mattress back up, so we toughed it out for the remaining hours.

We now use camping cots. They require a little bit of assembly, but you're a few inches off the ground and I don't need to worry about them ever developing a leak.

 

[swooshdave]

Not a low cost hack, but a good video with camping locations in Oregon and lots of other stuff too by @swooshdave. I tow an Airstream so definitely not a low-cost hack, except that I pull it and camp between Portland and Vegas 2X /year and save a lot on hotels with with my wife, haha.

"save"

 

[swooshdave]

Several years ago, my significant other purchased an inflatable sleeping pad at REI that was in the discount aisle. It was there because it apparently had a slow leak. Now she has camped way more than me and is a firm believer in the "pay once, cry once" idiom, but this pad was apparently a premium brand and she figured we would find the leak and patch it.

Couldn't find the leak. First time using it, woke up at 4am to a deflated pad and had to get out, find the pump in pitch black and pump it back up. We were in a 2-person tent that time.

Next few times we went with our larger 4-person tent and I thought, "hey, let's bring our air mattress". Worked fine and was very comfortable for a couple of trips, until it would randomly deflate. Some nights it would be fine, and then another night it would be completely flat.

The last straw for us was when we were camping in 20+ degree weather and again woke up at 4am (why is it always 4am?) to a deflated mattress and essentially sleeping on the cold frozen ground. We were camping with others, and I wasn't about to wake others up by starting the vehicle to get power to fill the mattress back up, so we toughed it out for the remaining hours.

We now use camping cots. They require a little bit of assembly, but you're a few inches off the ground and I don't need to worry about them ever developing a leak.

I use one of these inflators. While they wouldn't be silent at least you don't have to start up a vehicle.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BCPK76VJ?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

 

[Poppavein]

My first Boy Scout winter camping trip I found out air mattresses are very comfortable but very cold if uninsulated.
The main dealbreaker of RTT for me was that I’d have to carry 2 dogs up and down the ladder. And I get up several times a night to pee.
I’m very happy with my Gazelle tent:

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