The range of camping tents available is literally huge, and most are quite good and affordable.
The camping tent can be considered in two main categories, walled marquees tents for the family
camping holiday, and the A frame tent, bubble tent, dome tents and tunnel tents used by hikers.
The walled marquee or family tents should be selected for size, ease of putting up,
and sturdy fabric construction. A breathable material should also be selected such that
moisture can escape during the night of camping.
The A-frame, bubble, dome, and tunnel tents are generally used for hiking, where
weight and size are a trade off against strength of the tent. Points to keep in mind
when selecting your hiking tent are :-
- Domes or Tunnels are more popular for strong wind environments
- A Dome Tent is more sturdy than tunnel tents
- Tunnel tents are more lightweight and compact
- 2 skin tents generally perform better at breathing than 1 skin tents
- It is better to be able to erect the tent, outer skin or fly first, then inner
tent (particularly in wet weather to keep the inner tent dry while erecting)
You really need to understand the purpose for what you want a camping tent before selecting one.
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A Sleeping bag is either down filled or synthetic fiber filled. Down filling is, soft feathers either
from duck or goose, packed into a very small space and generally retains more heat than synthetic
filler on a per weight basis. The big draw back with a down sleeping bag is that it is no good when wet. Synthetic
sleeping bags are filled with the likes or quadrofill or hollofill, still function when wet, and are easier to wash.
Synthetic bags need less care than down bags, but don't last as long. A sleeping bag is given a
rating of 1-5 seasons (as below).
- ONE SEASON BAG - These bags are usually for taking to parties and crashing on peoples floors or
sleeping in well insulated caravans.
- TWO SEASON BAG - A summer sleeping bag, preferably in the south of france. Also ideal for boat, home
and caravan.
- THREE SEASON BAG - Suitable for most temperature and hot desert treks, and the odd night above the
snow line.
- FOUR SEASON BAG - Good through out the year, covers treks up to and including the alpine region
and in and about the snowline.
- FIVE SEASON BAG - This is the maximum rating that covers every possible cold rating, cold deserts,
high altitude and Norwegian films. The ideal bag for those willing to loose weight during the night.
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