Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Thoughts On Tents....

Hi All,

I'm planning a week-long hike of the High Sierra Trail for August (ending with a summit attempt at Mt. Whitney), and am having some last minute concerns regarding tents and would like to get the opinion of those who have been on Mt. Whitney. Currently, i have a non-free standing (staked) tent and am wondering if the ground at the upper elevations will be too hard to put stakes in the ground. I put up my tent last night in my back yard in Southern California to seam seal it, and had an extremely hard time getting the stakes in.....and this is on a lawn i water once a day! I had to use a hammer, and even then I bent a couple of the stakes pretty good. Since I'm really not interested in carrying a 2 lb dead blow hammer around in my pack for a week, what are my options? Are there better/stronger/sharper stakes I can buy? Has anyone here had success with a staked tent?

-kevin

There are rocks and boulders galore in the Sierra; just take along some nylon cord. I like the 2 mm variety, only $0.15 a foot at REI. If there are other anchors available, you can use them too; see #40 in <a href=http://members12.clubphoto.com/robert634908/4564028>this album</a>.

I have often wondered why people bother with stakes at all up there.

Bob R,

Thanks! I'll have to show my wife this thread....she shook her head at me last night when I said I should get some cord and tie the tent down. Necessity truly is the mother of invention.

Bob's right. Unless you're planning on going out and buying a new tent, guy lines are the way to go. Learn the clove hitch before you set out, so you can adjust the chords quickly.

If you're after a new free-standing lightweight tent, the Black Diamond Firslight or Lighthouse would fit the bill.

Gusto

I've never had a problem staking out my MSR Zoid in this area. As BobR said, there are more than a few rocks in this area and you should have some cord in your pack.

Rather than the clove, I would recommend the taut-line hitch for adjusting tenstion. Also, instead of two wraps, use three to pinch the main line; found doing this helps a bit better in more windy conditions.

Cat..... music Co,toss the stakes and go with the stones,Im shure you will find satisfaction. get it he he he. Arthur U.

I'll second the taut-line; arguably the best for quickly adjusting guy lines

Kevin:

I'd like to hear what stakes you were using in your backyard--so I can avoid them!

Although you can take extra cord and guy out your tent to rocks, the negative is that it requires a larger camping spot. It won't work well if the only place you can find for your tent is only as big as its footprint.

I use very thin titanium stakes. They're good for getting between rocks. But sometimes the soil is too hard for them to penetrate, so I take along one titanium "nail stake," which I use to punch holes for the thin stakes. (I got these stakes at backpackinglight.com.)

That said, I still bring along a little extra cord, for when I've staked out the tent and found that the very last stake is trying to go into a big boulder. Too lazy to redo everything, I just guy out the last loop to a rock.

By the way, the titanium stakes are so light that you don't save weight by leaving them behind and replacing them with lengths of cord.

I have problems with stakes a lot in Arizona as well. They best one's I've found that will take any abuse are MSR Ground Hog Stake



I've pounded the heck out of them in some pretty hard ground. I also used them on my Cottonwood Lakes to Mt. Whitney trip last week. I always have extra cord on hand too just in case.

katahdin music company-

I'm up in Maine doing some hikes, climbs and kayaking this week and just went past your namesake yesterday. You guys have some great places to hike and paddle around here. Maybe you can answer a question that no-one here seemsto know: what is the difference between a pond and a lake. Clearly it isn'tsize alone, since you have some ponds that are much bigger than some of the lakes.

Enjoy Whitney, it is a much different climb that what folks call a mountian in these parts! My only contribution to your tent question is to bring a lightweight one since you'll feel the difference on the long climb. You might even consider just bringing 2 bivvy sacks.

Sierra Sam,
About your pond v.s lake question, this is what I've always heard...

If light penetrates to the bottom, it's a pond. If not, it's a lake.

Another staking solution for hard ground: Turn your stakes horizontal to the ground and center your line on the stake, forming a T. Pull the tent tight, then place 2 large rocks against the "armmpit" of the T. Pile on more rocks if necessary...sort of like a snow anchor.

I am from Maine and most "ponds" are smaller than lakes, but Maine has many large lakes and the typical pond is less than half a mile across, but may still be 100 feet deep. If you're in Maine..climb Katahdin. It's a fine mountain and is much bigger than you'd think from its height, as it has a very low base elevation of around 500 feet.

Adrian

Adrian-

Thanks for the advice about climbing Katahdin, it was a very nice climb. Left N. Maine for the coast today. After climbing out west, it's kind of funny to see what they call mountains on the coastal part of Maine - these little 700' (yes, that's seven HUNDRED feet) bumps that are barely a warm-up hike. It is beautiful here though. (sorry for the OT).

SS