Originally Posted by
rekmeyata
This tarp stuff has me confused, admittedly I've never used a tarp but knew one person only who ever has. I've camped for many years and can tell you from experience you don't want to be sleeping with just a tarp overhead in a rain because the grass your bag and pad is on will get soaking wet which means you stand a very good chance getting wet. A tarp is not a 3 season shelter, strickly a fair weather animal. I would much rather sleep in a tent that has a tub with the tent sides fastened to it to keep water out; some complain that tents have condensation which will get you wet, true if you don't properly ventilate. Also tarp tents offer zero protection against bugs, nothing like stinging bugs attacking you in huge numbers in the evening to ruin a camping trip. Some tarps you can buy an optional bug screen...get it if your wanting to go with tarps. Tarps are indeed lighter but only about a pound, and gives you that primitive approach to camping. You have to decide how much comfort you want or don't want. If your going to be out in no mans land and need the absolute lightest thing possible then get the tarp because the one pound difference is about one days worth of food and maybe you need food more then comfort, but it didn't really sound like you were roughing it that much. I still think if this is your first time not to put much money into it just in case you decide never to do it again then you won't have money wrapped up in camping gear you may never use again or maybe use one more time.
You can get inexpensive Eureka Spitfires or Solitares for under $100 and they weigh almost as little as tarps at between 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 pounds; or you can get nicer ones.
Anyway that's my worthless opinion.
I'm going to disagree, well sort of.
At least factually, Tarp tents (at least commercial ones) have all the bug protection of a double walled tent; the bathtub floor is attached to the walls with netting, and it should be completely bug free.
Tarps do have some of the problems you described, but there are easy ways to mitigate them. A 9X9 tarp will give you twice the coverage of most any tent for a fraction of the weight, allowing you space for you, your gear, your bike, and even a friend or two. While they are lighter, they require more skill to set up properly. The grass will only get wet if you pitch in a valley where water will flow though; if you take some care in selecting a site, avoiding low spots and gulleys, you can stay just as dry under a tarp as you would in a tent.
I've spent a few thunderstorms huddled under a tarp, and I've been glad for the extra space that they provide. Two of my friends and I have spend a night perfectly comfortable, despite the driving rain with nothing but a tarp. I honestly find them more comfortable than tents, you get more space, more light, and more flexibility for the same weight.
Of course, I've also spent a miserable night or two when I didn't pitch my tarp properly, it collapsed on me in the middle of the night, and I had to run around in the rain trying to fix it. Thankfully I was alone for that trip, or I would have felt all kinds of guilty.
Tarps, generally speaking, trade weight for skill.