Cook Tent Setup

[Pelagic]

I’ll be adding a cook tent to my Davis 14x16 this year and was looking for ideas on how to set up a nice comfortable kitchen / cooking / hang out area. I assume a 6 foot table, and some shelving / storage are in order, and I’ve got a camp chef 2 burner stove already, + will be putting a wood stove in there too.

Any cool cooking setups you’ve used? Storage? Any ideas or input on what has worked well for you would be great.

 

[PWCGray]

Not sure what kind of frame you're using, but we used to put an upright "snow pole" in the dead center of the ridge pole. You can do the same thing with a metal frame, just have to figure out how to attach the top. We would bury the bottom 6" or so and angle screws in top to attach to the wood ridge pole. Put a bunch of high nails into that upright for hanging pots/pans/rags. We used to also build a higher top counter off of that pole in a L form. Upright pole at the turn. Good surface to work on and kinda contains the kitchen to that corner of the tent. Hope that makes sense.

 

[Pony Soldier]

I built an 18 inch shelf across the end of the cook tent. At ten feet it accomidated my portable kitchen, stoves, water jugs and various items. Under that provided storage for fuel, wood and various spare items. The other end had the wood stove and inbetween was a metal picknick table that folded up for easy packing. Pack boxes provided storage for supplies and chairs. I covered the area between the tents with a tarp to make travel between the cook tent and sleeping tent comfortable.

 

[Pelagic]

Not sure what kind of frame you're using, but we used to put an upright "snow pole" in the dead center of the ridge pole. You can do the same thing with a metal frame, just have to figure out how to attach the top. We would bury the bottom 6" or so and angle screws in top to attach to the wood ridge pole. Put a bunch of high nails into that upright for hanging pots/pans/rags. We used to also build a higher top counter off of that pole in a L form. Upright pole at the turn. Good surface to work on and kinda contains the kitchen to that corner of the tent. Hope that makes sense.

That does make sense, Cliff, thanks. I like the top counter idea to give more surface area to work. It would be internal frame, and connected to the main tent so I may want to leave that center ‘aisle’ more open for walking through, but this gives me something else to consider.

 

[Pelagic]

an 18 inch shelf across the end of the cook tent.

Was this free standing, or connected to the frame somehow?

 

[Pony Soldier]

2x4 frame

 

[Corvus Corax]

We ordered our tent with the extra angles and the optional ridge and eave sleeves. We made an extra section of EMT poles that functions as our front porch/cooking area. It’s all covered by the rain fly.

 

[strongarm]

@Pelagic
When we go with a whole hog basecamp, which admittedly has been a while due to more backpack hunts, we’ll take a camp kitchen (e.g. Cabela’s Deluxe Camp Kitchen). Good prep area, small shelving over work surface, lots of utensil hangers, lantern hanger, paper towel hanger, etc.

Biggest boost IMHO are the pantry cabinets. Keeps all the crap that when lacking a bougie basecamp ends up all over the table so you have to carve a spot to even put your plate. It’s big and heavy, but if truck camping a real boost to keeping the rest of the space more usable.

When space isn’t an issue, I’ll take a propane camp oven. It’s literally the best upgrade to a truck camp kitchen…

 

[YellowDog406]

In our wall tent when you walk in the door, on the left is a "table" that has a 10 gallon water cooler on it and also big enough for a wash basin to clean up. The table is a 1/2" piece of plywood screwed on to 4 legs that are just small logs pointed on the end and pounded into the ground. This table sits high so you dont have to bend over to wash up. The wood stove is just past this table. On the right side of the door is an L-shaped counter. The counter is in two pieces and connect using hinges and has 6 threaded pipe flanges on the bottom where the legs screw in. The legs are 1" pipe that slide into 1-1/4" pipe with set screws to adjust the height. The counter itself is built out of beefed up hollow core doors which makes this lightweight. The three burner stove sits on the door end of the counter and we have 3 apple boxes on the other part of the counter for food storage. The other end of the counter gets screwed to the "camp kitchen", which is a 3/4" plywood cabinet that houses all the pots, pans, plates, bowls, silverware, etc. For cold food we dont want to freeze, that gets put in coolers under the counter, food that is frozen stays out in the enclosed trailer in coolers. We also have collapsible shelves in the trailer where we keep all the bread and other baked goods.

Folding table and chairs go in the middle. We use LED floor lamps that have been modified and wired up to car batteries. On sits over the stove and one on the far end of the table.

 

[Howdoyoulikemenow]

We have a Davis 14x16. Bought new in 2012. Always covered the tent with a tarp and Jerry rigged poles off if that in front of the tent for a cooking area. Two years ago we bought the awning and angles from Davis along with their full fly made for our tent covering both the tent and cooking awning.

Save yourself the pain and bite the bullet and set it up correctly. Sure wish we had done that when we bought the tent in the first place. We string up solar lights along the conduit of the awning. Tables, coolers and stoves all fit. Door mat in front of tent door. I can’t emphasize how much more comfortable and efficient our camp is since upgrading.