Building up a tarp

What's that?

A poncho-tarp is a tarpaulin with a sowed in hood in the center and loops in the corners. Adantages:

• During walking it keeps not only us, but also our baggage dry
• It keeps dry also our hip, because it reaches our knee
•  
• We don't sweat in the poncho-tarp during walking, because air comes in
• We save weight, because it substitutes a rain coat and a tent and weighs only around 500 g

I prefer to sleep under a tarp and not in a tent: fresh air and view in nature! Please look for waterproof material and seams; in Equipment I recommend some good examples.

How does it work?

Here I explain how to build up a tarp for the night in case there is no tree - step by step with photos. If there is a tree, we can bind the string in step 7 and 10 on the tree; this is even easier.

I don't know if you can learn it only by this photos, but at least the photos can help you to remember, if you joined a tarp-building workshop in a gathering.

Tarp-building - step by step

  
1. At the 4 corners of the tarp affix loops
 

2. At all strings knot loops on one end

  
3. Tent pegs (5-15 g) we can make by ourselves
 

4. Fix one windward side corner of the tarp with a tent peg in the earth

  
5. Bat a solid stick 20 cm behind the opposite corner
a bit in the earth
 

6. Fix a string with its loop and a tent peg 1 m behind the solid stick in the earth

  
7. Twist the string on the stick (height: 1 m) and bind it
with a slip knot on the loop of the tarp (tautly)
 

8. Fix the both other corners of the tarp with a slip knot (see below) at the loop of the tarp and tauten it

  
9. Lengthen a string, if it is impossible to fix the tent peg
in the earth or if you want more space under the tarp

10. Draw up the middle of the tarp like shown

  
11. If need be, put soft stuff (e.g. hay) on the earth, prepare
the sleeping place, check if your baggage is under the tarp,
if necessary put up barriers
 

12. Good night!

Bow-binding - step by step

Like explained above in step 6 and 7, we fix all strings at first on the tent peg or on the tree and then with a slip knot on the tarp - not with a knot...

  
7.1. Put the string through the loop, tauten it
 

7.2. Put the string under the tautened part

  
7.3. Put a loop from the other side through the whole *
 

7.4. Tauten it *. This slip knot doesn't work sometimes; therefore:

7.5. Put a loop through the loop, tauten it *.
In the next morning we just need to pull the strings...
 

* In the photo I held the string too much above; better hold it where both strings touch each other.