Now here's something which has been bothering me for some time now.
In 18 years of sleeping under bashas, Ive only used cord/string/something non stretchy once to erect my makeshift home. That was the first time I put up a basha as a young teenager, when after circling my semi finished makeshift home in a constant holding pattern endlessly tightening, loosening, and retying, somebody with more experience whispered to me in a knowing tone that i needed to get myself some bungies. That Sunday night, my dads Paddy Hopkirk roof rack found itself attached to the garage roof with sisal rather than the aged 1970s bungies that had previously done the job, and i was thus suitably equipped for my subsequent basha experiences.
Many many years later, Ive never looked back. To me, I stare in disbelief when the TV Characters instruct in the correct knots for tying up a tarp etc. I just don't understand it, why not use bungies?
They self adjust, they are far far quicker, easier to do in the dark with no torch light, in heavy wind, you just wrap them around the tree a few more times to get them very tight, and the slight stretch left in them reduces the stresses on the bashas attachment points.
All in all, a very handy way of helping keep all edges of a basha taut, even when the nylon stretches once its wet.
A further top tip (and one used by the military), use a pair of pliers to bend the hooks at one end of a bungie to permanently attach them onto the four corners, so your basha is ready to go as soon as you pull it out of the bergen.
Travelling in military circles, where they have been erecting bashas long before the bushcraft fad kicked off, you would struggle to find someone who doesnt use bungies.
Ok, they are slightly heavier than cord, but thats more than made up by me using an aluminium mug rather than a heavy steel crusader mug, but that there is a whole new campaign for reason that I will start another day!
In 18 years of sleeping under bashas, Ive only used cord/string/something non stretchy once to erect my makeshift home. That was the first time I put up a basha as a young teenager, when after circling my semi finished makeshift home in a constant holding pattern endlessly tightening, loosening, and retying, somebody with more experience whispered to me in a knowing tone that i needed to get myself some bungies. That Sunday night, my dads Paddy Hopkirk roof rack found itself attached to the garage roof with sisal rather than the aged 1970s bungies that had previously done the job, and i was thus suitably equipped for my subsequent basha experiences.
Many many years later, Ive never looked back. To me, I stare in disbelief when the TV Characters instruct in the correct knots for tying up a tarp etc. I just don't understand it, why not use bungies?
They self adjust, they are far far quicker, easier to do in the dark with no torch light, in heavy wind, you just wrap them around the tree a few more times to get them very tight, and the slight stretch left in them reduces the stresses on the bashas attachment points.
All in all, a very handy way of helping keep all edges of a basha taut, even when the nylon stretches once its wet.
A further top tip (and one used by the military), use a pair of pliers to bend the hooks at one end of a bungie to permanently attach them onto the four corners, so your basha is ready to go as soon as you pull it out of the bergen.
Travelling in military circles, where they have been erecting bashas long before the bushcraft fad kicked off, you would struggle to find someone who doesnt use bungies.
Ok, they are slightly heavier than cord, but thats more than made up by me using an aluminium mug rather than a heavy steel crusader mug, but that there is a whole new campaign for reason that I will start another day!