Guide To Tents

Any self-respecting prepper knows the importance of making shelter if you’re caught away from home or need to stay mobile in the wake of a disaster or emergency.

To prepare for any such emergency, that typically means kitting yourself out with a tent – one that is lightweight enough to carry easily but that is also suitable whatever the season, whatever the conditions, and has room enough inside it to stow your gear and provide at least a degree of comfort.

You … and your team

Survival is usually a challenge you’ll share with others – family or close friends. When you’re choosing your tent, therefore, think about how many people you’ll probably want it to accommodate. When you’re constantly on the move, of course, a compact one- or two-man tent is likely to be the most suitable.

The tent will need to pack down small enough either to fit inside your backpack or to strap on top of it. Obviously, it will need to be as long as you are tall – you don’t want your feet sticking outside and with enough headroom to accommodate you in a comfortable sitting position.

The type of tent

Tents come in various shapes, sizes, and designs – and some are more likely than others to suit the discerning prepper:

Traditional ridge

• when you mention the word tent, the design that is likely to spring to mind is the traditional ridge tent – canvas slung between two uprights;

Bell tent

• this is a similarly traditional design, with a single upright and the canvas flaring around it in a circle – rather like a tepee;

• it might do well if you’re planning a more permanent encampment, but the tents we have in mind at the moment are for people on the move;

Dome

• it’s a design beloved of the experienced backwoodsman since it can be built by bending a circle of wooden poles which all meet in the centre and then covered with bracken, leaves, or moss;

• if you are buying a tent designed like this, you’ll need to make sure that the poles are lightweight, of course, but even so, the sheer number you’ll need make this option that will be heavy to carry any distance;

Tunnel

• probably the best design is the tunnel tent – which has an excellent weight to space ratio and incorporates a storage space at the front that is separate from your main sleeping compartment;

• because they are light and easy to pitch, they make ideal tents for trekking, backpacking, and survival.

How it’s made

If you’re investing in a tent to add to your prepping gear, it’s important to choose the best material for the job.

The material used as the “canvas” for modern tents is usually either polyurethane-coated or silicone-coated. Outer canvasses made from all silicone-coated material are usually tougher and more robust than polyurethane – so, they’ll also last you longer.

By far the most common material used to make the poles is aluminium – which is strong, light, and durable – but you might also find poles made out of fibreglass or, for ultra-lightweight gear, carbon fibre.

Tent reviews

Against that general background to guide your choice of a suitable tent, here are just a few examples:

Vango Soul 200 Tent

• the Soul 200 from Vango is the classic tunnel design for a two-person tent;

• the simplicity of its configuration – a simple tunnel slung between two uprights – means that you’ll be able to pitch it within just 7 minutes or so;

• the entrance to the main part of the tent incorporates a small, covered area where you can store your gear and a sewn-in, waterproof, hardwearing, polyethene (PE) groundsheet keeps the bugs and the damp;

Vango F10 Hydrogen Air Tent

• the F10 Hydrogen Air Tent is like no other you’re likely to encounter – it’s done away with poles altogether and is instead inflated like a big bubble, so you’ll need to carry something like a bike pump to inflate it;

• when packed, it’s extremely compact and lightweight – ideal as a one-person shelter if you are caught away from home or other more permanent refuge when an emergency strikes;

Vango Nevis 200 Tent

• another novel design, the Nevis 200 – also from Vango – is a two-person tent designed to be erected with the minimum fuss and bother in a very short space of time;

• its innovative design incorporates two doors – one into the spacious interior and the other into the storage space at the front – through the inbuilt flysheet and its inner walls;

• the Nevis 200 incorporates an O-shaped inner door that can be unzipped using just one hand.

Summary

As any prepper will tell you, if you’re stuck out in the open away from other safe refuges when disaster strikes, some form of shelter could prove essential.

A compact and lightweight tent that you can put up easily and in just a few minutes will fit that bill and provide all the shelter you need – whatever the conditions outside.