Just got back from a trip to the Olympic National Forest and saw something that made me check my gear.

I was hiking the Hoh River Trail last weekend and a guy's brand new, expensive-looking tent collapsed in a light rain. The fly just sagged and pooled water right on top of the mesh. He said he'd only set it up once in his yard before the trip. It made me realize I hadn't actually tested my own rainfly in wet conditions since I bought it two years ago. Has anyone else had a tent fail its first real weather test?

3 comments

3 Comments

mary7769d ago

Check the guy probably didn't tension his fly right. A lot of new tents need the lines pretty tight to shed water, not just snapped onto the poles. I mean, I've seen it happen even with good gear.

the_sam9d agoTop Commenter

Oh man, that reminds me of my first time using a fancy new tent in a drizzle. I was so proud of getting the poles up fast, but totally forgot about the lines. Woke up at 2 AM with a cold drip right on my forehead. The fly was just flapping around like a sad flag. It's crazy how something so small makes the whole thing useless. You really have to crank those things down.

taylor6685h ago

Ugh, @the_sam's story is a classic.