Fresh air: The bivy/tarp sleeping set up

Sleeping in the outdoors is awesome, there’s no question about that. The sounds of running water, birds chirping, seeing the stars-it’s the best. A tent is the traditional way to sleep in the outdoors, and while I use a tent sometimes, my preferred way is to sleep is in a bivy sack with a tarp on top. What’s a bivy sack? It’s basically a big waterproof/water resistant fabric shell to put your sleeping bag and sometimes a sleeping pad in. This is a great alternative to a tent for a number of reasons: it’s easier to sleep in more locations, it’s convenient (just lay the bivy out!) and it promotes a stronger, closer connection to nature, because you’re just lying on the ground. The tarp is like a nice little porch roof over you and will keep off rain and heavy dew.

In good weather with you can set up your bivy and tarp almost anywhere in an outdoor setting, so if the lakeside is busy with campers, climb above it, find a nice, flat outcropping just big enough for your stuff and set up camp in peace and quiet. From a Leave No Trace perspective this is great, because camping on rock or sand is more durable than the heavily trampled ground by a lakeshore. Getting away from crowds provides you with a richer wilderness experience, as there’s a far better chance to have an animal sighting or just enjoying the quiet when you’re away from noisy people.

For the tarp and bivy setup usually requires the following:

1. a tarp (made of lightweight silnylon or cuban fiber preferably with 8 or more tie in loops around the margins of the tarp. What are tarp dimensions? width/height

2. about 18 feet of guy line cord to stake it properly. There are tons of setup options, so Google “tarp setups” for the one that fits your style. I prefer to do the A frame setup (see below).

3. A lightweight bivy sack (a silnylon/M90 hybrid is ideal for summer camping, as M90 is very breathable, or one made of eVent or Terratex fabric for winter is good, as those are denser and more waterproof.

4. At least 4 high visibility titanium stakes that are 6 3/4 inch long to attach to your guy lines and 2 that are 7 1/2 inch long to use with your trekking poles to stabilize them. Titanium is the lightest material, but also very strong.

5. The trekking poles you use during the day.

6. A ground cloth of Tyvek or polypro material will protect the fabric on the bottom of your bivy and extend its durability.

I like the A frame setup because it’s simple and easy, something I definitely look for at the end of a long day of hiking! I attach the trekking pole tips to the center loops on either side of the tarp, tie on two 3 foot cords to each side, each with a 7 1/2 inch stake attached, and stick the stakes into the ground firmly so they won’t come out. I then pull the cords out to the desired length.

I judge the weather situation to decide on the length for the trekking poles and therefore the height of my tarp structure. For good weather, I set it higher for air circulation and for bad weather, low to the ground so wind and rain are less able to get in.

Once I’ve tied the center lines, it is much easier to pull out the other four corner cords in the same way and adjust them accordingly to the terrain around your camp (trees, rocks, etc) and make them longer and shorter. Extra cord is wrapped around the stake.

Then I lay out my ground cloth under the tarp and put my bivy on top of it, and then put my sleeping bag and sleeping pad into it. Voila- you’re ready to sleep!

For someone that is new to the tarp setup allow 30 to 40 minutes till you get the hang of it. If the weather seems to be cooperating and the forecast looked favorable don’t be afraid to throw down the ground cloth and the bivy and forgo the whole tarp! This is my favorite way to sleep outside. There’s lots of great ventilation and I love watching the stars at night.

Even though tent walls are just mesh or thin nylon, they still put a barrier between you and the wilderness. Without those walls, it’s easier to become part of nature and experience what we normally never get to anymore-and isn’t that why you are in great outdoors for in the first place? I know that’s why I’m out there. And I’ll be reviewing a couple of bivy sacks in my next few posts for those that want to learn more about the wonderful world of bivys.