Equipment Outfitters

Specialized Travelling Tents

If you intend travelling in a large vehicle such as a Kombi, you may wish to try a tent that fits snugly over the vehicle, extending its interior by several square metres. It works somewhat like a carport, and you can still drive the Kombi away — the inside door of the tent matches that of the vehicle, which allows access between the two without them being attached.

For school groups or sports tours of 20 people or more, look in the army surplus stores. The tents you’ll find there are very big, and although they are sometimes used by campers they’re more suited to caterers who hold large functions. They are sturdy but also very heavy, and require many strong hands to put them up and take them down. Such tents are usually associated with school outings, outer-fringe religious group gatherings and soldier-of-fortune reunion weekends.

Because of their size such tents tend to catch a lot of wind, and are difficult — if not impossible — to control in a squall.

Car-top tents are all the rage with the 4×4 fraternity. They are small compared to other tents, but then they are only ever meant to be slept in — the vehicle is used as storage space. They have several advantages. At the end of each day they provide their travel-weary owners with a perfectly flat platform on which to rest — although horizontal only comes if such a parking place can be found.

Exit and entry are by ladder, which means that the occupants are kept safe from ground-dwelling insects and prowling animals. And it can rain all night and you should remain bone dry — the nearest ground water will be a shade under two full metres below you. These tents attach directly onto your roof rack, so no pegs or ropes are necessary.

Camping Pegs, Zips and Spares

For normal grassed stands, the best pegs are made from spring steel and the density of the earth provides the friction that determines the peg’s holding capacity. Design-wise, the pegs shaped like a ‘V’ with an open circle attached to one end have the best ground-holding capacity and are used mainly on the guy ropes of larger tents. Simply hammer them into the earth so that the spring pushes down onto the ground, which in turn prevents the rope from slipping off should it work loose. To pull it out again, hook another peg around the bend in the ‘V’ and give a good tug. The distance from peg to tent should be about a metre.

You will need heavy-duty pegs if you are expecting to pitch your tent on very hard ground (it can still have grass on top). They should be made from high-tensile steel, be about 25cm long and 12mm in diameter and have straight shafts to absorb the serious hammering you are going to give them. Heavy-duty pegs have been bent into a hook at one end and sharpened at the other. To get them into the ground at a slight angle away from the tent you will need a 1kg hammer; the soft rubber one usually supplied with the tent is too light for the task. All things being equal, straight pegs do not have the same holding capacity as the V-shaped ones and are usually just used to keep down the sides of the cabin.

When you’re buying a tent, don’t forget the crucial element of doors and windows. Their zips should be strong and made from some noncorrosive metal such as brass. Nylon zips are very strong and can usually be trusted, but if you are shown something that looks like ordinary plastic, give it a miss. Each zip should have two robust travellers, which should have holes large enough to take a small lock should you need to leave your possessions unattended for any length of time.

Your repair kit should include spare eyelets (these are inexpensive and come in packets with a handy tool), rope and a box of patches with the right adhesive. If you have bought a new tent, you may need to have it waterproofed. You can do this yourself with a can of resealing compound, which comes in a tin or aerosol can. Waterproofing wax is a good standby and is available in tins as light as 180g.

Camping Storage

Once home, store your tent in a moisture-free environment. Treat it as you would a winter blanket: take it out to air every now and then. Microorganisms do not like ultraviolet rays and sunlight will keep the fabric free of fungi and prevent it from smelling like a tent!

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