building shelter vs tents

[tommy11]

I hate tents, they're such a nuissance, but ofcourse they are waterproof....

I would like to try building my own shelter from tree branches in the woods, it would mean you don't have any equipment to carry and it would be rewarding having built one yourself.

Does anyone here have experience of sleeping in a tree shelter?

 

[Graham_S]

Shelter vs Tent.

The tent has speed of assembly, weatherproofing,

The shelter, they need time, it takes far more time than you think to make a decent one.
Materials. It takes a lot, an awful lot.

It's a bit of a toss up really.
Personally I prefer a tarp.

 

[widu13]

Debris shelters especially are lovely and warm in winter- in suffer they can be too much, lean to's can be too open in the driving rain, BUT as Graham says they take a VERY long time to make good and waterproof. If you are dossing around in the woods great, but I wouldn't want to be doing it after a 20 mile walk. Tarp/basha for me.

 

[Melonfish]

Tarp/Basha every time. no messing with tent poles or owt just sling it on a line or prop with a stick.
plus if you do make a leanto you can use the tarp as your rain cover on it.

 

[Dark Horse Dave]

If I were you I'd have a go at making a debris shelter yourself. You really need to experience for yourself just how long it takes and how much material you need. That said it's also great fun, and if you build it just right - big enough to lie down comfortably, perhaps with your kit near your feet but not too big to heat effectively - you can have a really cozy night's sleep. A reflector with a small fire near the entrance is really nice too, but it almost goes without saying that caution and common sense is needed here!

And you're right, it is rewarding! Give it a go! (though as Widu says, not after a great long hike!)

 

[sandbender]

I hate tents, they're such a nuissance, but ofcourse they are waterproof....

I would like to try building my own shelter from tree branches in the woods, it would mean you don't have any equipment to carry and it would be rewarding having built one yourself.

Does anyone here have experience of sleeping in a tree shelter?

Yes I have made and used several types of natural shelter. They can be every bit as comfy as a tent but as folks have pointed out it will take you quite a long time and a few tries to get it right.

In a Scottish deciduous wood you can build a decent shelter with what you will find on the ground, no branches need to be cut, no tools required, so when you strip it down it will be as if you were never there.

I mostly sleep under a tarp.

 

[Nonsuch]

I think shelters can be disruptive to the natural environment, especially if they have involved cutting living wood. For this reason I think tents or tarps are a better choice on this small island of ours. If they have been built in a very large wild area, like some in Scotland, only involved dead tree and leaf material, and they are scrupulously dispersed after use (and not left standing as I have often seen the case) then I suppose it is OK.

 

[ged]

I think shelters can be disruptive to the natural environment, especially if they have involved cutting living wood. For this reason I think tents or tarps are a better choice on this small island of ours. If they have been built in a very large wild area, like some in Scotland, only involved dead tree and leaf material, and they are scrupulously dispersed after use (and not left standing as I have often seen the case) then I suppose it is OK.

+1 to all that.

 

[Dark Horse Dave]

Fair comments from Nonsuch & Ged - and I have used the 'leave no trace' principle myself when building these things, though forgot to mention it

 

[tomongoose]

I stay out in shelters in the winter but I have a bivibag as well in case they leak. In the summer I just stay out in a Bivi bag with the addition of a tarp if its tipping it down down

 

[Ex-member EagleOwl]

Have a DD tarp but prefer my DD poncho, don't know why, it's smaller than a tarp and heavier but i like it plus a bivvi bag.

Love a natural shelter.

My mate works for the forrestry commision in a large wood near me so i get the heads up when some loggings going to take place so i get to come in a week beforehand and take the boughs, Not harming anything as they don't use them all.

 

[ged]

... My mate works for the forrestry commision in a large wood near me so i get the heads up when some loggings going to take place so i get to come in a week beforehand and take the boughs, Not harming anything as they don't use them all.

Taking away wood from a forest is taking away energy, food, growth media and shelter from a host of living things, from simple micro-organisms to fungi to invertebrates to small mammals. We all share guilt in taking from the planet more than it can sustain; on this forum I think perhaps we ought to be better informed and more honest with ourselves about it than elsewhere.

 

[Ex-member EagleOwl]

Taking away wood from a forest is taking away energy, food, growth media and shelter from a host of living things, from simple micro-organisms to fungi to invertebrates to small mammals. We all share guilt in taking from the planet more than it can sustain; on this forum I think perhaps we ought to be better informed and more honest with ourselves about it than elsewhere.

Don't quite know what your getting at.

If you mean looging, i understand why it's done as well timber is needed.

If you mean me using boughs, they are just going to be put in a heap and left to rot, me building a shelter out of them isn't changing anything as they stay in the same forest but they get used by me.

I take only what is already taken and i don't disturb the regeneration of the forest.

 

[3bears]

tarp or poncho for me really, less to carry than a tent and a lot faster to put up. it's a minimalist approach which isn't everyone's cup of tea I know, but I find that it works for me

 

[Tony]

I like building shelters when i've got time to enjoy the process, if i've got limited time i like the tarp and if i've got the fmaily I like the tent

 

[lannyman8]

I hate tents, they're such a nuissance, but ofcourse they are waterproof....

I would like to try building my own shelter from tree branches in the woods, it would mean you don't have any equipment to carry and it would be rewarding having built one yourself.

Does anyone here have experience of sleeping in a tree shelter?

i had an open front lean too in my 5 items or less, of course it goes without saying not to destroy any wood and only take what is really needed.... i was lucky that the area where i stayed had been copiced and small hazel branches where all over for me to use.....the only other thing i used was some leaf litter and firn, and that will grow back no problems im sure......

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=74225

a tarp is my normal way though.... it saves the woods a bit...

regards.

chris...

 

[Crefftwr]

Shelter for groups everytime, though its too labour intensive for 1-man1night, I always feel a bit cheated when Im in a tent, that being said, rarely travel without a tarp/bivi. I've never cut anything down for shelter building, theres plenty lying there if you pick your location right, in North Wales anyhow. Word of the day has to be ventilation though!!!

Enjoy

 

[The Lord Poncho]

Taking away wood from a forest is taking away energy, food, growth media and shelter from a host of living things, from simple micro-organisms to fungi to invertebrates to small mammals. We all share guilt in taking from the planet more than it can sustain; on this forum I think perhaps we ought to be better informed and more honest with ourselves about it than elsewhere.

I think a sense of perspective is needed here. The amount of material that Eagle Owl is talking about removing every now and then really will have a minimal impact. I suspect he removes only a tiny proportion of the boughs that are left in the logged area, and you ignore the fact that the boughs he takes will very probably create such a habitat wherever he repositions them. A little bit of a heavy handed holier than thou response maybe?!

Let's not worry about the minutia, and spend our time focusing more on things that really have an impact on the environment!

 

[Retired Member southey]

Hahaha I see no comment about the fact he is using boughs from trees that are being logged? your worrying about the tiny part of a massive organism that's being chopped out? hahah random! does it matter where the boughs are? they will rot down where ever they are, I guess the only place that would be difficult to contribute to would be a car park? but then wouldn't the nutrients be washed into the water table anyway.

EDIT: AH! sorry TLP, kind of stepped on your point there.

 

[The Lord Poncho]

EDIT: AH! sorry TLP, kind of stepped on your point there.

Not a problem- my thoughts exactly!