Tent camping in the rain. Tips and Tricks.

• Author: DigitalMind
• Filed under: Camping
• Date: May 14,2008

Tomorrow my girlfriend Marina and I are going tent camping in Oka for a few days. It’s mid-May and the mornings and nights still get cold, so it means we’re bringing LOTS of warm blankets and sleeping bags. There’s also pretty high chances that it will be raining for 2 out of the 4 days we’ll be there, so this involves some extra planning. When you’re properly equipped, camping in the rain can be VERY fun. It’s wonderful to spend all this time outside, while it’s raining, being close to nature and all the things that come out in the rain. It’s wonderful as long as you’re not getting soaked, cold, or bored that is ; but those are all things we can prepare for!

Things to bring and DO when camping in the rain :

• TARPS are your friends when you go camping and are expecting rain. I bring 1 ground tarp, 1 HUGE tarp that goes above the tent and into the cooking area. (So it makes us a roof outside the tent) I’ve also got 1 more emergency tarp that will be used to make a single side-wall on the outside of the tent to prevent horizontal rain from soaking us if it’s really raining hard. (I use rope thrown up into high branches to pull up my tarp)
• Bring lots of Games ! I always suggest bringing games when camping, but when you’re expecting rain, pack a few more in there. You never know how long you’ll be in the tent or under your shelter watching and listening to the rain fall, and it’s always nice to have things to do. Bring whatever games you and your camping companions like to play. I’m bringing a deck of cards, scrabble, Blokus, Guesswho, and Connect 4.
• Rain Gear for yourself : The most important thing when camping is to stay dry and warm. Being wet and / or cold is a perfect recipe for misery. Bring a raincoat, bring a back-up rain coat, rain boots, umbrella, LOTS of socks, and lots of clothing. Don’t keep it all in one spot either. If you’ve got a car nearby, keep a bag of clothes in the tent, and have back-ups of everything in another bag in the car in case the things in your tent get flooded for some reason. Don’t forget back-up shoes ! (I’m a boy scout at heart : BE PREPARED !)
• If it’s raining when you arrive at camp, make sure you put up your “roof tarp” first so that you have a roof on top of you and the tent when you put it up. It’s very horrible to see the tent filling up with rain AS you’re putting it up and having it be soaked before you even get inside it for the first time.
• DON’T FORGET TO SPRAY THE SEAMS OF YOUR TENT WITH WATERPROOF TENT SEALANT ONCE EVERY YEAR! I don’t care if the tent says it’s not necessary, or it has tapered seams or whatever. SEAL’EM anyways, you have nothing to lose.
• Don’t let any objects INSIDE the tent touch the sides. This will make the tent leak at that spot. This includes blankets, yourself, a bag. (It’s ok to touch the sides temporarily, but anything that is touching the sides of the tent while it’s wet will slowly let water in, and overnight that little bit of water can add up to a puddle in the tent)
• Bring Food that you enjoy that can be eaten “as is” in case you can’t use your BBQ or make a fire.

Thank you for reading, and happy camping !! Remember, camping is always fun when you’re prepared for any situation ! (Although it leads to really full vehicules and lots of things to remember to pack)

I’ve come back from this camping trip, and added a video-slideshow of Oka National Park here.  I had a great time and I recommend it to anyone as long as you BEWARE OF THE RACCOONS!