Be sure to get your "Senior Pass" if you don't have one. You can camp at federal campgrounds for half price. And you can ride through Yellowstone for free.
NoNTnow
Guest
Hmm, just some associative thinking here:
1. Primitive campgrounds = no showers.
2. Phil and Rick wear banana
suits.3. They are riding long distances
in warm to hot weather. Note to Self: Stay Upwind when visiting with the Dynamic Duo....
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Hmm, just some associative thinking here:
1. Primitive campgrounds = no showers.
2. Phil and Rick wear banana
3. They are riding long distances
Note to Self: Stay Upwind when visiting with the Dynamic Duo....
Key word here is "primitive"......
Someone has to take pictures as Phil and Rick progress through their "Epic Ride"........brown banana suits (over ripe) and ZZ Top beards?
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'Primitive' campgrounds have lots of different looks. Some are truly primitive which means you park your vehicle and hike 1/4 mile off the road to an area with nothing from a possible clearing... no campfire ring, no tables, just nature. I've never camped in one like this before.
The campground at spearfish is tagged as 'primitive' yet it's better than some of the RV sites I've camped at.
I always camp where I can be within a few feet of my bike, both for security as well as convenience, unless it's something like we have in Spearfish where I'd have no problem parking in the parking lot section.
The campground at spearfish is tagged as 'primitive' yet it's better than some of the RV sites I've camped at.
I always camp where I can be within a few feet of my bike, both for security as well as convenience, unless it's something like we have in Spearfish where I'd have no problem parking in the parking lot section.
On one trip where we camped I used a relatively cheap bright orange tent. It worked to keep the frost and rain off OK. But one clear full-moon night it was so bright in the tent I couldn't sleep. It was actually brighter than being outside, as the fabric acted like some gigantic diffuser that left no dark place to point your face toward.
That senior pass is a great thing...saved me lots of money over the last two years.....
Chris who sleeps with a T-shirt over his eyes to keep out the light
Chris who sleeps with a T-shirt over his eyes to keep out the light
Phil Tarman
Site Supporter
I have three Senior Passes. It's cheaper to buy another one than to pay the fee for RMNP when I forget and leave the pass in one of our other vehicles. Now I've got one in my car, one in Joanne's car, and one on the NT.
The Senior Parks Pass is the single greatest benefit to growing old.
The Senior Parks Pass is the single greatest benefit to growing old.
Phil touched on the luxury Lite cot... I wanted to mention this as well. They offer two different models. One packs smaller, is lighter, and is a little ore expensive. It could work for backpacking as well. Their other one is a bit heavier and doesn't pack as small but fits fine on a bike.
When car camping I use a full size air mattress and a 4 person tent to have lots of room. When motocamping I use a cot and a thermarest in a very small-packing 2-man Kelty tent. Cots can negate the battle with cold earth and give a little extra storage space in a small tent. But it would mean an additional item to carry. A thermarest alone isn't enough for me personally. And while I could bring a big air mattress I find it takes up more space and is much heavier than my cot plus thermarest. Just different things to consider. The cot fits inside my large-sized Wolfman waterproof duffle.
The suggestion to test stuff in your backyard is excellent. There is really no better way to figure out what works and what you might be missing before being out on the road.
The comment on bringing a real pillow is a valid point. Camp pillows can be terrible. I replaced m awful Coleman one from walmart with a nice thermarest one that rolls up. It's much better, but still doesn't compare to a real pillow. If you go with a camp pillow and they come in different sizes, opt for the bigger ones. And if it does not compress all that small, it will likely be more comfortable.
I've like the Mountain House brand MRE's. With those and Starbucks VIA instant coffee, the Jet Boil stove is all I really need. These are fantastic by the way. They are designed around boiling water quickly and efficiently and the entire kit fits into the container you boil the water in. A tad pricey but not too bad. Fuel refills are $5 a pop. I enjoy coffee to a degree not matched by many - so I hear the collective cringe when I said instant coffee. I will assure you that Starbucks' instant coffee is not like any instant coffee you know. No, it's not as good as fresh-brewed quality coffee... But it is very good and better than fresh brewed crappy coffee. It comes in convenient single serve packets and makes it very easy to have a good cup of Joe sitting at your fire and when you get up in the morning. No filters to mess with, grinds to dispose of, presses to clean out, and so on. Try some out sometime.
+1 on the Kermit Chair. VERY high quality product from Arkansas I think it was. Folds up very small but Phil is right about the cost. At $140 or so, it's a very expensive folding camp chair. Makes a good birthday/xmas/anniversary gift request! Although you my not want the significant other to know how much it costs!
When car camping I use a full size air mattress and a 4 person tent to have lots of room. When motocamping I use a cot and a thermarest in a very small-packing 2-man Kelty tent. Cots can negate the battle with cold earth and give a little extra storage space in a small tent. But it would mean an additional item to carry. A thermarest alone isn't enough for me personally. And while I could bring a big air mattress I find it takes up more space and is much heavier than my cot plus thermarest. Just different things to consider. The cot fits inside my large-sized Wolfman waterproof duffle.
The suggestion to test stuff in your backyard is excellent. There is really no better way to figure out what works and what you might be missing before being out on the road.
The comment on bringing a real pillow is a valid point. Camp pillows can be terrible. I replaced m awful Coleman one from walmart with a nice thermarest one that rolls up. It's much better, but still doesn't compare to a real pillow. If you go with a camp pillow and they come in different sizes, opt for the bigger ones. And if it does not compress all that small, it will likely be more comfortable.
I've like the Mountain House brand MRE's. With those and Starbucks VIA instant coffee, the Jet Boil stove is all I really need. These are fantastic by the way. They are designed around boiling water quickly and efficiently and the entire kit fits into the container you boil the water in. A tad pricey but not too bad. Fuel refills are $5 a pop. I enjoy coffee to a degree not matched by many - so I hear the collective cringe when I said instant coffee. I will assure you that Starbucks' instant coffee is not like any instant coffee you know. No, it's not as good as fresh-brewed quality coffee... But it is very good and better than fresh brewed crappy coffee. It comes in convenient single serve packets and makes it very easy to have a good cup of Joe sitting at your fire and when you get up in the morning. No filters to mess with, grinds to dispose of, presses to clean out, and so on. Try some out sometime.
+1 on the Kermit Chair. VERY high quality product from Arkansas I think it was. Folds up very small but Phil is right about the cost. At $140 or so, it's a very expensive folding camp chair. Makes a good birthday/xmas/anniversary gift request! Although you my not want the significant other to know how much it costs!
Sorry, buddy, but getting up on a cold dreary rainy winter morning and watching everyone else have to go to work while you go back to bed beats even the senior pass!!!!!I have three Senior Passes. It's cheaper to buy another one than to pay the fee for RMNP when I forget and leave the pass in one of our other vehicles. Now I've got one in my car, one in Joanne's car, and one on the NT.
The Senior Parks Pass is the single greatest benefit to growing old.
Chris the late indentured servant now the freeman.
Phil Tarman
Site Supporter
OK, Chris, I can imagine that to be true...I'm only nine months away from freedom myself. I'm doing things I've been doing for the last 33 years for the last time. Next Sunday we'll have our Committment Sunday to wind up our Stewardship Campaign. I'll have to live with the results for five months, and the first five months always go pretty well. I just hope we raise enough to continue what we've been able to do for the last 18 years. I'd hate to leave my successor in a mess.
Tent Security:
The Lone Ranger and Tonto went camping in the desert. After they got their tent all set up, both men fell sound asleep.
Some hours later, Tonto wakes the Lone Ranger and says, 'Kemo Sabe, look towards sky, what you see? '
'The Lone Ranger replies, 'I see millions of stars.'
'What that tell you?' asked Tonto.
The Lone Ranger ponders for a minute then says, 'Astronomically speaking, it tells me there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, it tells me that Saturn is in Leo. Time wise, it appears to be approximately a quarter past three in the morning.. Theologically, the Lord is all-powerful and we are small and insignificant. Meteorologically, it seems we will have a beautiful day tomorrow.
What's it tell you, Tonto?'
'You dumber than buffalo dung Kemo Sabe. it means someone stole tent!'
The Lone Ranger and Tonto went camping in the desert. After they got their tent all set up, both men fell sound asleep.
Some hours later, Tonto wakes the Lone Ranger and says, 'Kemo Sabe, look towards sky, what you see? '
'The Lone Ranger replies, 'I see millions of stars.'
'What that tell you?' asked Tonto.
The Lone Ranger ponders for a minute then says, 'Astronomically speaking, it tells me there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, it tells me that Saturn is in Leo. Time wise, it appears to be approximately a quarter past three in the morning.. Theologically, the Lord is all-powerful and we are small and insignificant. Meteorologically, it seems we will have a beautiful day tomorrow.
What's it tell you, Tonto?'
'You dumber than buffalo dung Kemo Sabe. it means someone stole tent!'
NoNTnow
Guest
Okay, after looking at a display of various tents at local Sporting Goods store I have a question regarding the recommended tent size. I understand there are a lot of personal preferences that come in to play, and some folks may actually "hump" their gear hiking in to a campsite. But assuming you are only motorcycle camping, not back packing, why wouldn't you want as Big of tent as practical, like a Limelight 4P rather than a two or three person dome? I saw the point about pole length but either size will easily fit when stored crossways on a relatively wide bike like the NT/ST. And going up from 5 to 9 pounds packed weight isn't a big jump either. Having not used any of these style tents is setting up the larger 4P version going to be that much more time consuming or difficult than a smaller 2P version?
Having "camped" in various spots around the world, courtesy of the military, and having done some family camping as well, I quickly found that more space is better...especially if you are staying in one spot for more than one night at a time. Inclement weather, especially rain, is a lot more tolerable, at least for me, if I have a bit more room and don't cramped or caged. Being able to sit up and read in a Kermit chair, while in the tent, would be a big plus for me as well. I'd probably end up towing a trailer behind the Tri-Glide if I bought the gear I think I'd want...:rolleyes1:
Having "camped" in various spots around the world, courtesy of the military, and having done some family camping as well, I quickly found that more space is better...especially if you are staying in one spot for more than one night at a time. Inclement weather, especially rain, is a lot more tolerable, at least for me, if I have a bit more room and don't cramped or caged. Being able to sit up and read in a Kermit chair, while in the tent, would be a big plus for me as well. I'd probably end up towing a trailer behind the Tri-Glide if I bought the gear I think I'd want...:rolleyes1:
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Wayne, you can bring as MUCH or as LITTLE as you want when camping. It's pretty much up to you.
This thread was simply the basics of what you need. A 2P tent is min if you ask me but some go for 3p, 4p or larger tents because maybe they are taller or ride 2-up so need a lot more room.
Weight really isn't a factor on a motorcycle like it is while backpacking, it's more about pack size. If you ride 2-up, all that room that many of us use that back seat for is no longer an option so smaller compressible gear that will fit into saddlebags helps and there's a good deal of difference in pack size between a 2p and 3p tent - some brands/configurations are smaller than others so that does vary.
Yes, if you were stuck in a 1p or 2p tent all day while it was raining would suck - why aren't you riding - but you could save a lot of space by just bringing an extra tarp that would pack better. Some tents have add-on sections as well.
A bigger tent will take longer to setup, there's just more to it... but, it may be a small difference... say, 6 mins vs 4 mins... unless it's Phil which means 45 mins
I also like to carry my tent and poles in the same bag so they are less likely to separate from each other... I've seen some folks store/pack them separately and I've seen some folks arrive at a campground to find out they forgot or lost their poles.. oops..
You have a different bike now.. so, you have some options for packing that the rest of us don't... the key is to adjust what gear you need and then go up from there until you have what you feel is too much... there's a nice middle-ground there somewhere.
My original post was only meant really to tell someone from a minimalistic view what was needed to comfortably camp off the bike but it's just a guideline and if you feel you'd be more comfortable with different gear then that's all that matters.
The Marmot tent is a good one, mine has held up nicely but just over a year old so can't tell much from that, they have great customer service and repaired a tear in my rainfly free of charge.
This thread was simply the basics of what you need. A 2P tent is min if you ask me but some go for 3p, 4p or larger tents because maybe they are taller or ride 2-up so need a lot more room.
Weight really isn't a factor on a motorcycle like it is while backpacking, it's more about pack size. If you ride 2-up, all that room that many of us use that back seat for is no longer an option so smaller compressible gear that will fit into saddlebags helps and there's a good deal of difference in pack size between a 2p and 3p tent - some brands/configurations are smaller than others so that does vary.
Yes, if you were stuck in a 1p or 2p tent all day while it was raining would suck - why aren't you riding - but you could save a lot of space by just bringing an extra tarp that would pack better. Some tents have add-on sections as well.
A bigger tent will take longer to setup, there's just more to it... but, it may be a small difference... say, 6 mins vs 4 mins... unless it's Phil which means 45 mins
I also like to carry my tent and poles in the same bag so they are less likely to separate from each other... I've seen some folks store/pack them separately and I've seen some folks arrive at a campground to find out they forgot or lost their poles.. oops..
You have a different bike now.. so, you have some options for packing that the rest of us don't... the key is to adjust what gear you need and then go up from there until you have what you feel is too much... there's a nice middle-ground there somewhere.
My original post was only meant really to tell someone from a minimalistic view what was needed to comfortably camp off the bike but it's just a guideline and if you feel you'd be more comfortable with different gear then that's all that matters.
The Marmot tent is a good one, mine has held up nicely but just over a year old so can't tell much from that, they have great customer service and repaired a tear in my rainfly free of charge.
NoNTnow
Guest
Riding is fine but...when we had the Travel Trailer we were "destination" campers going to some type of event that might last several days. During event down time the tent / RV is your only home and as much as you might want to ride sometimes that just won't work with event schedules and locations...
True, that is why I kept the comparison to the NT/ST on the 2P versus 4P as I can haul a lot more now...not that I want to haul a lot of "stuff" I have to keep track of... I found RV camping to be like most other things...it tended to increase in size, complexity and weight just because it could...
My question is approximately much how longer, on average, would it take the average person, working alone, to put up something like the Marmot Halo 4P versus your tent... That is assuming I'm a little bit faster than Phil...and it isn't dark, raining, and my headlights are burned out....
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The key is practice... I can put mine up in I don't know... 3-4 mins and maybe faster if I was rushing.. let's say 5 mins if I was taking my time and not in a rush.. 5 mins is a pretty long time.
I would say add at least a couple more mins to that for that tent.. so it's not ridiculously longer and quite possibly the same once you've done it several times and get the hang of it... after about 3 days I think I could put my tent up blindfolded. Oh great, another youtube video.
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... just to add to that.. the more complicated the tent design the longer it takes... more poles means more work to situate them correctly. I like 2 or 3 pole tents as it's all just more simple.
Now that you have said it, you just HAVE to make a blindfolded camp set-up video, dude
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We'll see.. wouldn't be that bad actually.
Well, I DO carry a 4person tent (Kelty). Simplicity? It sets up faster than most. Only 6 pegs and three poles. I set it up myself in 5-10 minutes.
I also carry a twin size air BED.
I can have my bed set up in the tent and still have room to put my chair in there and put my feet up on the tripod seat I also carry. The vestibule of the tent is also nice to have to store things that don't have to be kept completely dry.
I also carry a twin size air BED.
I can have my bed set up in the tent and still have room to put my chair in there and put my feet up on the tripod seat I also carry. The vestibule of the tent is also nice to have to store things that don't have to be kept completely dry.