Set up/Take Down Speed

[burlap]

I'm heavily debating with myself to do a backpack hunt. I have the gear to be able to wall tent at the truck, tipi w/titanium stove a little ways away, or just go and not come back until I want to.

My issue is the set up/tear down of camp, and also containing the condensation inside my pack.

How are you guys setting up and tearing down? Any tips? How long is it taking you to throw up the tent, inflate your pad, and situate everything every night? And, how long is it taking you to pack everything up?

People talk about the time it saves to sleep with the elk, but if you're just taking that time to build/pack camp everyday...I don't know enough about it.

 

[stumpy waters]

I'm heavily debating with myself to do a backpack hunt. I have the gear to be able to wall tent at the truck, tipi w/titanium stove a little ways away, or just go and not come back until I want to.

My issue is the set up/tear down of camp, and also containing the condensation inside my pack.

How are you guys setting up and tearing down? Any tips? How long is it taking you to throw up the tent, inflate your pad, and situate everything every night? And, how long is it taking you to pack everything up?

People talk about the time it saves to sleep with the elk, but if you're just taking that time to build/pack camp everyday...I don't know enough about it.

Best thing to do may be to get out in the backyard and set up camp and take it down a few times and see how long it takes. Then asses how far from the truck you’ll be in that same amount of time and see which seems to be the better option for you.

Tent takes me a couple of minutes up and down not getting in a hurry. Pad is probably a minute up and down. Sleeping bag is seconds to get and a minute to stuff. Very little packing back up I keep the tent and pad in an outside pocket and the bag in the top of the pack.

 

[Dr. Rx]

That’s why everything is done in the dark and usually you don’t get enough sleep and you end up Napping on a side hill in the mid day..

 

[burlap]

Best thing to do may be to get out in the backyard and set up camp and take it down a few times and see how long it takes. Then asses how far from the truck you’ll be in that same amount of time and see which seems to be the better option for you.

Tent takes me a couple of minutes up and down not getting in a hurry. Pad is probably a minute up and down. Sleeping bag is seconds to get and a minute to stuff. Very little packing back up I keep the tent and pad in an outside pocket and the bag in the top of the pack.

Super good point. I've got the gear, why not try it out and see if the time frames are acceptable. Excellent point.

I'm going to skip the stuff sacks for the tent, pad, and bag. I'll also get my freeze dried meal going before setting up the sleep system.

Any other ideas to save time?

 

[cnelk]

Practice in the backyard, when it’s dark, and when it’s raining.
You’ll get damn good at setting it up

 

[stumpy waters]

Super good point. I've got the gear, why not try it out and see if the time frames are acceptable. Excellent point.

I'm going to skip the stuff sacks for the tent, pad, and bag. I'll also get my freeze dried meal going before setting up the sleep system.

Any other ideas to save time?

I use the stuff sack for the sleeping just to save room in the pack but I know a lot of folks don’t use them.

I don’t have a lot else to get out other than food in the evenings. When I go to bed the pack is packed except the tent pad and sleeping bag so when I get up it’s just those three things. Well my food bag is hanging close by I grab it.

The other thing to consider, try camping close to your glassing point for the next morning. You don’t always have to wake up and break down camp first thing.

 

[5 shot group]

Taking my time in the dark, takes less then 15 minutes.

Practice in the backyard will certainly help.

 

[Poser]

The key is to have the absolute simplest setup you can reasonably get away with. I hate dealing with breaking down camp first thing in the morning, especially with cold fingers and simultaneously trying to eat and drink coffee.

Condensation: I put my extra clothes as my quilt in water resistant stuff sacks to help protect them from any moisture that may be on my tarp.

As mentioned above, when possible, I try to camp close enough to my glassing spot that I can come back for camp mid morning. However, this doesn’t always make sense.

I haven’t timed myself, but I’d think that I could be completely packed up and ready inside of 10 minutes if I’m properly motivated. Usually takes a bit longer because I like to get my backpack packed just right and I’m kinda lazy.

All that being said, beats walking up at 2 am to hike 3 hours.

 

[fatlander]

It takes me 5 minutes to set up everything and about half that long to pack up while still half asleep in the morning.

Tarp goes in a dry bag and gets aired out at lunch to dry.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[KyleR1985]

When I use my pro trail, my pad and quilt stay in it. I have an oversize waterproof stuff sack. I get the thing into an 18" tall, 12" wide burrito, drop in stuff sack. I put it in meat shelf of pack, and compress as tight as possible. If I have meat to pack, I just transfer that burrito to the front of my pack. With the silex, I use an ee recon bivy. Same concept, but the Silex usually goes in a separate stuff sack in pack, but the bivy/pad/quilt all roll up burrito style in the meat shelf.

I can be ready to do my "camping" in less than 15 minutes with either setup. I can be ready to hit the trail in less than 10 with either. This is a leisurely pace - I could have either end done in 5-7 minutes if forced to.

My thought is taking each individual item and packing and compressing separately is where a lot of the time suck is. Sometimes you don't have a choice if you're packing the kitchen sink and space is at a premium. I just stare at my empty meat shelf, and far superior compression capabilities of the straps on my pack, and think that's a 2 for 1 over individual compression sacks.

All other aspects of camping versus going home(or truck, hotel, cabin, whatever) are the same - you're cooking and eating and changing/hanging clothes and sleeping just the same. You may lose another 2-5 minutes with things you could leave out at a base camp.

All told, I'm looking at 30 minutes total each day I wouldn't be spending if I weren't packing camp. On my hunt last year, I didn't have a walk to the area I hunted or back to truck or base camp that was less than 1.5 hours. On a 7 day hunt, that's almost 18 hours that could be spent hunting, sleeping, glassing, etc.

There is a tradeoff though - You're packing 6-25lbs of extra weight depending on how light your gear is, and how much food you have to carry. That adds up to extra calories burned on the time you are spending out there.

To me the middle ground is being prepared for 1-2 nights in the field. If I find elk, I camp. If not, I still have the option of staying put or heading out to try somewhere else. If I prepared for 10 days in the field, and packed 25lbs of extra crap a few miles in, I ain't coming out, elk or not. The animals are going to dictate what you do. I like having the option to stay in long term or come out with me in the truck, and the option to stay in 1-2 nights in my pack no matter what.