>>951411>How do you stay dry in a shelter half tent with no floor? Doesn't the water just flow right under it and onto you?The answer is that you need to know what to look for in not just your campsite, but in the exact spot where you pitch your tarp. A lot of people think they know what they're doing, but the reality is that they may tarp-camp for many years before they experience a big enough rain storm to really flood their tarp site to the extent needed to prove that it's a good spot.
The ideal tarp site will be slightly elevated over the rest of the ground, maybe be located on a slope, have somewhat rocky/sandy, even spongy soil (rather than muddy or dense-packed dirt), and ideally be sheltered by large trees above and around you to block blowing rain.
Pic related is a bit hard to see, but in a very, very large storm two summers ago - I'm talking storm of the decade if not biggest storm in 25 or 40 years - I experienced puddling underneath my tarp at this site. The site really isn't *that bad* compared to where some other people in my group pitched their tents, but notice how the site is basically at the same level as the rest of the forest floor. That made it prone to puddling.
1/3
