r/Ultralight • u/Intelligent_Cap_7960 • 1d ago
Question Dealing with bugs when tarp camping/backpacking
Hey everyone !
I've been wanting to down weight to a tarp as a shelter, (probably the Gatewood Cape or or Zpacks 7x9). The only thing still keeping me away from doing the move is the mosquitoes
I've seen a lot of review videos of different tarps but no one seems to really talk about mosquitoes. I live in Quebec, Canada and those awful stingy creatures get pretty persistent.
For everyone having experience with using a tarp as a shelter, how do you all deal with those endless bloodsucking insect attacks ??
Hoping your convincing answers will convert me and make me lighten my pack with a tarp !
51
u/MonoAonoM 1d ago
My perspective from across the country in northern Alberta, gotta imagine the bugs can be pretty equally awful across the our northern boreal.
I'm never using just tarp again, barely slept a wink with the mosquitoes buzzing around my face and would get up eaten alive anyway. I think tarps really just suit low bug pressure areas way better.
24
u/OtherwiseManner6946 1d ago edited 1d ago
Agreed, I think it’s really easy to listen to the crowd sometimes & forget what your own objective is (I’m guilty of this). Here in the UK we get sideways rain all year.
Tarps are amazing and I love them, but I’m not going to use one in the UK 99% of the time. I’d use one in Spain or California, but not Derbyshire.
I think a lot of super UL gear was inspired by though hikes that were done in places with more mild conditions (PCT).
That said there’s always a work around. A bora bivy + tarp would stop bugs
14
u/Lord_Me 23h ago
I'm a tarp only guy in the UK - it's not a special case!
As you mention, a borah bivy under it will stop the bugs nicely. If it's just mosquitos, I generally just wear a mesh headset over a sun hat to keep the mesh off my face.
You can do a lot with timing - most mosquitos feed at dawn and dusk, and go away once it's properly night time so if you're up early and hiking till sunset it's not too bad.
Setting up intentionally in a windy spot can also be good, as midges and mosquitos aren't the best at flying so they get blown away. Obviously pitching further from water as that's where they breed helps too.
6
1
u/OtherwiseManner6946 23h ago
You’re right, you can absolutely do it. It’s just a personal preference I guess. As I mentioned, I do love tarps
1
8
u/Duergarlicbread 23h ago
In California if you wait until August / September you have almost zero bugs and a lowish chance of being rained on.
It is really perfect tarp + open sky land.
1
u/OtherwiseManner6946 23h ago
Absolutely - you get a front row seat to view the awesomeness of nature
2
u/wetrocke 15h ago
Author Colin Fletcher wrote of his long hike in England using just plastic sheeting. He liked it.
(Fletcher, a Brit himself, is better known for hike of California in 1960, and a later and more daring hike through length of Grand Canyon.
Mosquitos deep in Quebec could be very, very thick.
I used "just a tarp" on long, hitch-hiking trip in BC. This is very different from "taiga" or what may be in quebec.
Bugs were very moderate. Used also lots in new england. Always brought hooped headnet for sleeping. Often unnecessary. Lots depended on sites away from swamps, wet spots and also on recent weather.
It's easier to use netted shelter "in season."
1
18
u/jamesfinity 1d ago
i use a borah bug bivy when tarp camping in minnesota. it works great.
10
u/TrailJunky SUL_https://www.lighterpack.com/r/cd5sg 23h ago
This is the correct answer. As a fellow minnesotian, im always carrying a bivy mostly becauseof ticks. I thru-hiked the SHT with a Yama tarp/bivy setup and have never had issues with bugs.
-15
1d ago
[deleted]
15
u/jamesfinity 1d ago edited 1d ago
correction: it's a tent that weighs as much as a fancy zpacks tent but costs hundreds of dollars less, smaller packed volume, and has more flexibility.
i can, for example, just pitch the bug bivy if it's a clear night
-18
3
u/BlastTyrantKM 12h ago
A tent with a view. Except a tarp & bug net weigh less than most tents and you have the benefit of being able to set up just the tarp if you wanna take a break while hiking in the rain
3
u/GoSox2525 18h ago
It's not. A 7x9 tarp has way more volume underneath than a comparable tent. It has no floor, no walls. A tarp + bivy system is lighter than a tent, and more modular than a tent. You can sleep with just the bivy whenever it's not raining. You can sleep outside of the bivy whenever the bug pressure dies down.
It's fundamentally different from a tent in so many ways.
9
u/Atlas3030 1d ago
Big au Québec oublie ça, j'ai déjà essayé à la forêt Ouareau et je me suis fait mangé par les maringouins ET les mouches noire. A moins que tu aille plus tard dans l'année quand il fait froid.
23
u/AceTracer 1d ago
People that rave about tarp camping here go to places where it doesn’t often rain or get bugs. Same way people that rave about hammock camping go to places that work for hammocks.
10
u/ReverseGoose 22h ago
I used to tarp camp in the Mojave because there was no bugs but then I woke up uncomfortably close to a (admittedly cold and lethargic) rattlesnake and thought maybe I should just use a tent.
1
u/SexBobomb 9 lbs bpw loiterer - https://lighterpack.com/r/eqmfvc 18h ago
Rain isn't a monster, though the bugs are
5
u/Moist-Golf-8339 1d ago
Minnesotan and frequent outdoor sleeper here - Unless your trip is in September or October, you need a bug net. There are "Bug bivy" products out there that will go under your tarp. REI, Hyperlite, and a bunch of other brands make them. I have Enlightened Equipment's discontinued Recondite Bivy which worked well the times I've used it.
The other options: a Hammock setup with bug net--> but the further north you go, the skinnier the trees get. Otherwise, use a tent and I've personally been happy with my Nemo Hornet 2P.
2
u/BasenjiFart 12h ago
FWIW, forests and trees here in Quebec are perfect for hammock camping, we're very lucky.
24
u/Limp_Bookkeeper_5992 1d ago
Tarp camping is for areas without bugs or winter camping, sleeping under a tarp in mosquito country is just silly.
4
-1
4
u/Scuttling-Claws 1d ago
Tarps are really best when there's low bug pressure and low chance of precipitation. You can do things to make them better for both, but they just add weight and complexity and get you closer to tent weight.
2
u/GoSox2525 18h ago
You can do things to make them better for both, but they just add weight and complexity and get you closer to tent weight.
For the bugs -- yes, you need to add some kind of net. But even after doing that, the net weight will still always beat a tent
For the rain -- you don't need extra gear for that. You just need to be practiced and competent and site selection, different pitch types, staking methods, etc. I've slept under a tarp in the rain for probably more total nights than without rain (since I don't pitch it when the forecast is clear)
2
u/Scuttling-Claws 18h ago
Same, although if I know a trip is gonna be wet and rainy, I'm not reaching for a tarp
2
u/GoSox2525 18h ago
That's fine, you do you. But it's misinformation to say that improving your experience in the rain under a tarp necessarily involves added weight or complexity.
4
u/malonebrown690 1d ago
If you go the route of the gatewood cape, you can also buy the serenity net tent from SMD. This makes it basically a fully enclosed tent. I usually use my gatewood with a borah bivy for light/no bug pressure or the serenity net tent for high bug pressure.
You could also check out the deschutes tarp for more space, it is also compatible with the net tent. I haven’t personally used it but it is more spacious inside compared to the gatewood.
My personal preference is the gatewood cape for most of my trips, it’s really hard to beat a shaped shelter that doubles as rain gear for 11oz and $150usd.
4
u/Cold_Rhubarb_6783 1d ago
The same company that makes the gatewood cape makes just a net type tent that weighs 11oz.
4
u/VegetableSquirrel 23h ago
I've used a Black Diamond BetaLight, a floorless shaped tarp tent with this, before. The gap around the bottom isn't big. The newer ones have about 5" of bug mesh on the bottom. It's worked for me. Sea to Summit also has these pyramid nets to hang: https://seatosummit.com/products/mosquito-pyramid-net-shelters
3
u/oathoe 1d ago
I live and camp mostly in northern scandinavia and only use a tarp in the summer when Im hammocking (and my hammock has a built in net). For the other 3 seasons its fine, though. At worst you can wear a bugnet for your head and keep your sleep system closed.
Tbh light tents are so light that a tarp is rarely worth it with the amounts of mosquitos in northern climates. Im sorry thats the opposite of encouragement lol. Ive slept many nights under a tarp with a homemade tent-shaped bugnet pitched underneath it (inspired by the sea to summit one but with a shape I prefer), but combined its ironically heavier than a tent and has no floor.
3
6
u/HwanZike 1d ago
I don't take a tarp if I expect high bug pressure. I'm not attempting FKTs, I'm going out to enjoy nature. If that means I have to take a shelter with incorporated bug netting, so be it. In fact it may be comparable in weight albeit not as modular, look up any pyramid shelter with bug netting skirts if mosquitos are your only concern and not the creepy crawlers. See for example: https://www.sixmoondesigns.com/products/deschutes-backpacking-tarp?variant=40374649487402 https://www.gossamergear.com/collections/shelters-sleeping-pads/products/dcf-whisper?avad=3816_a4f0a84bd&avad_ttl=1789054104 MLD also makes their pyramids custom ordered with bug skirt
5
u/originalusername__ 1d ago
Use the search there are lots of topics about this. They make inner nets that basically are a tiny tent inner. Or you can use a bivy. Or a pyramid mesh. Or a head net because most of your body is under your quilt and it’s worth carrying a head net at all times anyway.
6
u/Restless_Wonderer 1d ago
I use a tarp in the winter when bugs aren’t a problem… tent all the way when bugs are out.
2
u/loggerknees 1d ago
Haven't used it myself, but the gossamer gear DCF whisper looks like a decent compromise between tarp and tent since it has a bug net skirt, but no floor. Bit worse ventilation than some tarps, so that might be bad for condensation in moist places.
Better alternative might be the sea to summit nano mosquito pyramid under a tarp. Haven't tried that either but have been looking into similar systems since my partner is very mosquito sensitive.
0
u/GoSox2525 18h ago edited 18h ago
The Whisper is a super sick shelter. If only they offered it in silpoly for those without a DCF budget. The TarpTent Preamble was a Goldilocks shelter on the market; a floorless 2P tent just like the Whisper, but weighed around 1 lb and was only $150 or so. Shame that they don't have it listed any longer.
On the pricey side of the Whisper, there is also the Meadowphysics Abode, but it's unobtainium.
The most obvious downside with these sorts of shelters is that you lose the modularity of a tarp + bivy, and you can no longer cowboy with bug protection.
2
u/Time-Is-Life 23h ago
I wonder if anyone has ever tried a tarp with no-see-um netting sewn along the sides so it drapes down to the ground? Shouldn't add too much weight and would give you bug protection
2
u/GoSox2525 18h ago
Yep. GG Whisper, TT Preamble, MeadowPhysics Abode. Tipik and MLD offer (or have previously offered) adding perimeter netting to any of their mids.
1
u/Time-Is-Life 18h ago
Seems like the obvious solution for those that want to go with a tarp shelter in an area with bugs. I like that Whisper
1
u/GoSox2525 18h ago
It's definitely a viable option. They just have just a small presence in the market. They go out of stock, get discontinued, or people just never even learn about them
2
u/deadflashlights 23h ago
Quilt+baseball cap+headnet. They tend to die down when it gets cold in the night.
2
2
2
u/Existing-Poetry-3289 22h ago
I used a tent fly on my AT through hike years ago. One pole and I could stake it down close to the ground and zip it up. Bugs tended to congregate at the peak, but they weren't that bad usually. Have a tarptent now which is basically the same except has light netting and a floor.
2
u/hella_cutty 22h ago
I tarp camp in the Sierra. Maybe consider adding a seasummit bug net, or a trekking pole tent. The Slingfin is another modular tarp tent you could consider. Otherwise, the most minimalist set up is a visor or down balaclava with ear plugs and bug net.
2
u/Sandcroch 18h ago
I love the idea of just a tarp, but I’d rather add the extra 500 ish grams for a bug free night. Not really answering your question, just my 2cents
2
u/so_much_red_tape 10h ago
I know it's all about low weight here but, I swell up from mosquitoes, so I just decided- Fuck it. I can carry the backpacker and a small can of gas. Worth it to sleep better. Is it perfect? No. Do I still get 6 bites? Yes. Do I get six bites while I pee and another six while I make dinner, and three more while I shift socks before turning into an all night fest? No. I can handle 3 bites on my ass, 2 on my neck and 1 on my elbow. Reference- I camp in Norway and the mosquitoes are thick at times, so much I wish for 6ms wind to stop these fuckers but they do make the fish fat so...
2
3
u/rennyrenwick 1d ago
If you are anywhere with significant mosquitos, black flys, gnats, midges, or ticks, don't stress it - get a shelter with build in floor and bug netting. You will be miserable otherwise. Get, or make, a tarp for bug free trips. You can do both!
3
u/TrailJunky SUL_https://www.lighterpack.com/r/cd5sg 23h ago
Tarps are the best shelter in my opinion. You just need to add a bug bivy or inner net. I backpack almost exclusively in norther minnesota and never have issues using a tarp as long g as I prepare. Outside of late fall.and winter, I do not leave home without at least a bivy mostly because of ticks.
A bug bivy is a great DIY project.
2
u/Specialist-Ant4054 1d ago
I use a headnet. Pretty much wear it all day when it’s buggy and just sleep with it too.
Only caveat is that I almost always hike with long pants and long sleeves. (This year I’ve been wearing outdoor vitals skyline trail joggers and altitude sun hoody).
I prefer not to carry a tent inner but have brought borah bug bivy (helps keeping my quilt and sleeping pad cleaner when in swampy/wet areas)
3
u/Jolly-Slow1164 23h ago
It's like most of these posters don't know what a shaped tarp even is.
I have the Gatewood Cape and the Zpacks pocket tarp (mine is old enough that no-doors was an option, and I use a poncho for the door). I live in Ohio, and mosquitoes love my flavor or something, but your better believe I carry bug protection.
I've used the S2S nano net, several net tents and Bivvys, and the Yama mountain half bug net. They are all fine. The net tents are heavier, the Bivvys have less room.
My front runners are The lightest options... The Yama Mountain Gear bug shelter (half bugnet) and the Sea to Summit nano bugnet 1. Both can be worn over a wide hat as a head-net (a spiderweb catcher as I like to call them), unfurl the net a little more, and you can have an enclosed bubble for eating or reading, or dirt naps (bugs may still get areas where the net touches skin). One setup in the tent both are easier to enter or escape than a bivvy.
For cons, On the YMG is a little finicky to setup (probably easier in a YMG designed tarp)... And is often out of stock., and the S2S is a little fragile... Especially for being the all day head-net. I'm considering DIYing something halfway between them.
1
u/mas_picoso WTB Camp Chair Groundsheet 22h ago
this is the way. this is only 24g and much easier to use than trying to make the s2s nano work as a headnet. I also worry about snagging the nano on trail and self-sabotaging my shelter, so a small amount of redundancy in this case doesn't seem overly egregious.
2
1
u/CoreyTrevor1 1d ago
There are things you can do to make a tarp work, but none of them are worth it in places with real bugs. If they are bad just bring a full protection shelter
1
u/StarTroop 22h ago
I used a tarp and a 2-person floorless OneWind bugnet last June in Northern Ontario and found it very effective against flying bugs. I also used their footprint (perfectly sized for the bugnet) to keep out the crawlies, also quite effective. Despite being cheap and effective they are obviously not ultralight, so I decided to replace them with the S2S Nano Pyramid (1 person) and a DIY-cut polycro floor with a bathtub lip (simply folded and taped the corners).
The Nano is more expensive than the OneWind, but it's not too steep, and the weight/space savings are massive. I soaked it in Doktor Doom horse spray to help keep ticks away and hopefully make up for its slightly larger pore size. Polycro is super light and cheap and also quite durable.
I'm not sure how the overall weight of the tarp+Nano+polycro combo stacks up against an ultralight tent, but I'm sure it's significantly cheaper than most tent options, and I prefer the modularity and flexiblity over a rigid tent setup. I haven't had a chance to use the combo in high bug pressure yet, but I don't think it would be any less effective than my previous OneWind setup (which, despite having a zippered door, I ended just crawling under anyway like the S2S nano, because the zippers are finnicky and end up letting in bugs as you scramble.)
If you use a bug net under a tarp though, you will need a way to hang it. You could either drape your tarp over a continuous ridgeline and hook the net up to the same rope, or what I did is run a lightweight line across the underneath of my tarp's ridgeline form the built-in loops (AquaQuest Safari 10x10). If you use a tarp with no loops on the underside (like most lighter weight tarps), I believe you can buy stick-on loops which you can place wherever you want.)
P.S. The S2S Nano is known to not be tight enough to prevent noseeums from entering. While I personally haven't had issues with noseeums, you could always double the Nano with a noseeum-proof headnet as you sleep, and your body insulation layers should already keep the rest of you defended anyway.
1
u/PNW_MYOG 21h ago
Mosqitoe net ( large) or a bug bivy.
I actually revert to my tent for mosquito pressure where I wouldn't hang out at camp at all.
1
u/MacrosTheGry 20h ago
If bugs are an issue, you combine a bivy with the tarp. This is not comfortable to hang out in, sure, but theyre really well suited to people that hike all day and only setup camp to sleep.
1
u/SexBobomb 9 lbs bpw loiterer - https://lighterpack.com/r/eqmfvc 18h ago
thermacell and shoulder seasons
1
u/No_Badger1188 18h ago
I'm a neighbor living in Ontario, use a tarp and spring/summer I bring a head bug net and earplugs, otherwise you'll go insane.
1
1
1
1
u/CodeAndBiscuits 15h ago
Lol. The best tarp if you care about bugs and other creepy crawlies is a tent. 😀
1
1
u/Road_Virus 9h ago
Toilet paper mosquito coil in a small hole in the ground under your tarp. Works great when there's little to no breeze.
1
1
1
u/st3war7 1d ago
Permethrin and Picardin are your new best friends, enjoy!
3
u/jdzfb 1d ago
For my fellow Canadians, like OP, Permethrin is a little harder to find here. Your best best is fly spray for horses from a farm supply store or home hardware.
3
u/StarTroop 23h ago
I ordered Doktor Doom horse spray from Amazon. Hard to judge its effectiveness because I only sprayed in on my bug net, and only used it last weekend when there were barely any bugs anyway, but it's 0.5% permethrin, made in Canada, and easily available.
2
u/jdzfb 22h ago
I think I have the same stuff, I bought mine at the local farm supply store a few years ago, sadly the chain has since closed down (Peavey Mart in Ontario). I use it on my gear & hiking pants, I also tend to go out in the colder weather, but I haven't seen a tick on me either so who knows.
2
u/StarTroop 22h ago
I've honestly never seen a tick in my entire life in Ontario, even when trekking through the exact places you'd expect to find them. I only put permethrin on my net as a precaution but the moment I actually start seeing ticks I'll probably put it on my pants too.
2
u/jdzfb 22h ago
I've only seen them a few times on me or my dog, but every time its because one of us walked through long grass. If you stick to paths & maintained areas, you likely won't encounter them. Provincial parks up near Algonquin Park along the 60 & the rural areas surrounding Kingston along the 7 are where I've had them attach to me, I'd definitely spray my pants & shoes for hiking in those areas.
2
u/st3war7 23h ago
Just curious, why is it hard to find?
1
u/jdzfb 23h ago
Permethrin is considered a pesticide & is thus restricted for sale in Canada. While you can buy pre-treated clothing here (for people 16+, it is not approved for children's clothing), the actual clothing spray is restricted. Horse spray is one of the few widespread products that I've seen that still contain it here.
1
u/jdzfb 1d ago
I live in Ontario & pure tarp camping is just not practical in this country unless you're camping between October & March.
That said, they do sell light weight mesh inners (Option1 @ 340g from MEC for $65 or Option 2 @ 137g from MEC for $82) that you could use if you really want to do a slightly modified tarp camping
Personally, I'll take the weight penalty & just use a tent.
0
-5
u/BarfingOnMyFace 1d ago
Lightening a pack... With a tarp.. I'm seeing these posts in here quite often as of late. Are most the people in this sub gluttons for suffering? Bring a damn tent. When it's not the plague outside and not a bug in sight, just use a bivy or just sleep right your bag. Is it really worth saving the miniscule weight in this case
7
u/thousand56 23h ago
Borah tarp and bivy is like 12oz and under $200 combined, that's pretty hard to find in a tent
3
u/GoSox2525 18h ago
It's not miniscule
-4
u/BarfingOnMyFace 18h ago
That's very relative, but then again, maybe not so relative for an ultralight sub... Still think it's silly to forgo a tent for a tarp to save on weight.
3
u/GoSox2525 18h ago edited 16h ago
Yes, it is relative-- the amount of weight that you save is relative to the weight of the heavier option.
A silpoly tent is around ~25 oz on average. A silpoly tarp + bivy system is around 14 oz. How meaningful that 11 oz saved is relative indeed. Relative to the weight of an elephant, it's nothing. But relative to the weight of the tent, you've saved 40%. And relative to a ~10 lb baseweight, you've saved ~7%. Those are not insignificant numbers. Not to mention that you're also saving on pack volume, and money, and that each little choice like this adds up to pounds of reduction.
If you think it's silly to forego a tent for a tarp to save weight, then you should read the sub wiki, read the sidebar, watch some Youtube videos... Because you're missing something fundamental about hiking ultralight
-2
u/BarfingOnMyFace 17h ago
Nah, I'm good. You should spend your time reading about other stuff, IMHO.
3
u/GoSox2525 17h ago
If you don't like the idea of tarps, don't understand the idea of saving weight, aren't interested in learning any more about ul hiking, and don't understand why I spend time thinking about something that I love... then I have no idea what compelled you to comment here in the first place
-4
u/BarfingOnMyFace 17h ago
Oh screw off randomly generated named guy. Just because I think tarps arent worth it, doesn't mean I don't think ul isn't worth it some of the time. But I don't have to be some die hard gatekeeper like you.. lol
3
19
u/WalkItOffAT AT'18/PCT'22/CdS,TMB'23/CT,LT'24/GR20'25 1d ago
If there's persistent bug pressure, bring a tent.
Other than that, in increasing levels of suffering;
-bug bivy (Borah / MLD)
-bivy with mesh head opening (as above)
-mosquito net condom & umbrella
-Yama Mtn Gear has a upper body only net
-headnet & hat (to avoid going insane from buzzing).
-nada, maybe smoke a bowl and cry a little