Adventure Bike Rider Forum

Nope nothing that anyone says about using minimilaist camping cuts any ice with me - it breaks the essential law of survival in the wild;Stay as warm and dry as possible.

At the Stella campsite there was one , and there were about two to three hundred people up there, one solo guy in a basha. He looked sodden and cold the next day. He was still shivering when I left at lunch time to head back down to Bardo.

For the price of a good quality goretex bivi you can pick up a Vango Banshee 200 - pitches with 10 pegs in 10 mins. Enough space to keep you lid and gear dry , and rolls up small enough to fit in a std BMW pannier. I was warm dry and comfy in mine at the Stella as I had taken a 3-season bag and silk liner. Slept quite happily in the liner on the bag on a couple of other nights listening to the rain as I drifted off with all my gear dry in the tent with me.

Same footprint lengthwise as a bivvi but enough width and ventilation and importantly stretching and minimal dressing space.

As someone who in the past has been a volunteer with Mountain Rescue teams, trust me, a bivvi is a LAST resort not a first choice.

This is as minimal as I will ever get...



Stella Alpina 2010 by Scouse_and_Jules, on Flickr

Lancastermick wrote:

Motorcycle diary Scotland 041.jpg

Single skin tent and tarp..under 1.5 kgs in total. The tarp lets me leave the flap open to reduce condensation and also gives me a workspace in the rain. Suits me.

Nice little set up on the go there!

I fully appreciate the versatility of a proper hooped bivi or Terra Nova lazer comp type tent combined with a basha/tarp - more versatile than a lightweight tent really.

Not really kipping in an MOD bivi exposed to the elements & wildlife though is it?
More like kipping in a tent with belt & braces.

appleby wrote:Not really kipping in an MOD bivi exposed to the elements & wildlife though is it?
More like kipping in a tent with belt & braces.

Your damn right its not. It does however take me 10 minutes to set up and lets me dry out under cover next to a small fire with a hot cup of coffee in hand...and maybe a smoke if I'm feeling all decadent.

Generally while I'm kipping my belt & braces are hanging over the bike attached to my pants on the off chance they'll dry a bit.

..at the end to the day, if we all used the same stuff these forums would be, quite frankly, shit. Half the appeal is seeing what everyone else is up to, taking inspiration, and admiring the different toys. Bloody marvellous!

Anyone tried a tipi type yet, eg the Go-lite one?

I have a bivi (alpkit Hunka) and tarp.

I have never really used either!!

I'd like to. I bought them to make lightweight outings in and around Estonia feasible, but as I always end up going for short jaunts camping with the dogs, I take the Ural, so lightweight hardly seems a priority.

The tarp I have used and will again to keep rain off the tent: packing a wet tent sucks and I recently had concerns about the impermiability of my tent in heavier downpours. May have been a set-up issue, but why gamble?

Temperatures being reasonable I'd probably use the sleeping bag and tarp before breaking out the bivi: have tried it out it does seem like moving about would be a little difficult and I'm a mover and fidgeter!!
LancasterMick: nice set up. It has a tried and tested look and I always like that. I guess it is a bit iffy in a stiff breeze, though!!

If you're looking for comfort, Field & Trek have a good offer on a Coleman 3 person tent right now down from £249 to £100. I've not used this model but I've yet to check out a sub standard Coleman

Warthog wrote: LancasterMick: nice set up. It has a tried and tested look and I always like that. I guess it is a bit iffy in a stiff breeze, though!!

I tend to work on the wild camping principal of keeping my head down (what people don't see, doesn't offend) so I always end up in a well sheltered spot. I guess if it was windy I'd stick the bike accross the wind and camp in its lee. Cheers for the compliment, it works for me! Would be interesting to see some pics of other peoples set-ups.

..oh, and your right about packing a wet tent..that was one of the main reasons that I got a tarp.

Lancastermick wrote:Would be interesting to see some pics of other peoples set-ups.

..oh, and your right about packing a wet tent..that was one of the main reasons that I got a tarp.

Last time I was out in the desert, I packed this little number. It was comfortable enough but had I problems covering it with a tarp on the one night it rained.

Hahaha...how long did that take to peg out?