Camping In The Rain

[briansnat]

Originally Posted by Roy

I'm with Lame beaver. If I'm already set up and my gear is nice and dry inside the tent then it's no problem. I never have any leaks. Setting up in the rain is another matter entirely.

Also I DO dig a trench if it looks like there might be a lot of rain.

Trenching is generally frowned upon these days as it's high impact. That said, I recall frantically digging trenches during a severe storm while backpacking in the Catskills. I was in the tent with my wife, our then 11 year old daughter and her friend, when our daughter said "look at the floor". It was floating like a pool cover. The girls were poking it and giggling.

We had pitched the tent in somewhat of a depression that was filling up with water and it was several inches deep. The root of a tree was acting as a dam holding the water back, so out I went into the pouring rain to dig a trench around and under the roots so the water would drain.

I got soaked to the skin but at least the tent didn't float away.

Like others I hate setting up a tent in the rain and hate taking down and packing a wet tent. But if the tent is set up I kind of like the sound of the rain on the tent and the cozy feeling of being dry inside. Unless there is lightning. I have a terrible fear of lightning and all I can think of is that I'm sitting in a tent with aluminum poles.

[Theosus]

I think hammocking in the rain would be a lot more pleasant than tenting. Once the fly goes up your under a dry cover to hang the hammock, and you don't have to worry about groundwater. Of course then you're tethered to two trees when the lightning starts.

[Grandpa]

Hiding out in a tent/hammock for a ten hour rain followed by trying to sleep all night sucks. Getting out of a tent in the rain is no problem but getting back into that tent all wet without getting everything in the tent wet sucks. I just like to go for a walk in the rain. If it starts raining harder, I just move over next to a tree. (but not a single tree or the biggest tree)

[firedancer]

I don't know if I would intentionally camp in the rain, but it's not so bad. As others mentioned, that sound on your tent can be very relaxing. Setting up and breaking down camp in the rain is not as much fun - I especially dislike having to pack up a wet tent!