Run on days of rain is precisely why on longer tours (two + weeks) I now pack a tarp that's bigger than my tent. my procedure is to FIRST pitch the tarp then pitch the twnt under the tarp. That keeps the tent dry both when setting it up and taking it down. It also VASTLY extends the life expectancy of the tent since it's never rolled or stored wet.

Addendum. Another really big advantage with my tarp over the tent and a bit beyond is that after the tent is taken down and readied for transport, I can bring the bicycle under the tarp and load the bicycle where everything stays dry. The tarp is the LAST thing to be taken down and fastened to the bicycle and the first thing to go up at my next campsight. keeping the stuff dry in Northern Ontario (Canada) is important even in summer because it's a goodle distance to places with laundry facilities and the nights can be cool enough that wet gear can be dangerouis. Besides, I'm often at least a good day's ride from any town.

Cheers

Saddle Tramp sung by Marty Robbins fits us bicycling tourers/drifters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0zSun_yJ8g

Lyrics:

""Saddle Tramp"

They call me a drifter, they say I'm no good
I'll never amount to a thing
Well I may be a drifter and I may be no good
There's joy in this song that I sing.

Saddle tramp, saddle tramp
I'm as free as the breeze and I ride where I please
Saddle tramp, saddle tramp.

At night I will rest 'neath a blanket of blue
Doubt if I ever will change
I might even dream of a lady I knew
Might even whisper her name

Saddle tramp, saddle tramp
I'm as free as the breeze and I ride where I please
Saddle tramp.

I might even wind up in Idaho
And visit a cute little miss
A sweet little someone I used to know
And I might even stop long enough for a kiss.

Saddle tramp, saddle tramp
I'm as free as the breeze and I ride where I please
Saddle tramp, saddle tramp.

Might even ride back through Phoenix someday
Might even stop for awhile
But branded, no never! I'll not be tied down
Trapped by a fair lady's smile.

Saddle tramp, saddle tramp
I'm as free as the breeze and I ride where I please
Saddle tramp!"

Cheers

"It probably comes from watching too much TV. The news all time wants you to think that if something gets wet it will get mold on it and the mold is going to kill you. They fear the worst as a simple result and don't want to pack anything wet. Too much time watching TV and not enough time riding the bike or doing something else constructive."

(Reply w/Quote not working)

I remember when media was doing big scare campaign about mold; I've lived in places where a room got moldy from flooding but never had a health problem despite that as a kid I was supposedly allergic to mold. I guess one shouldn't hike thru the woods 'cause they're filled with mold! OTOH I suppose a sleeping bag could get soggy & mildewed from days of damp weather & I'm not sure how easy that would be to fix. Folks recommend putting mildewy bath towels in the microwave but that doesn't seem to be reasonable for sleeping bags. Maybe stopping at a self-service laundry with wash/power dry would fix it.

(Reply w/Quote not working)

"Run on days of rain is precisely why on longer tours (two + weeks) I now pack a tarp that's bigger than my tent. my procedure is to FIRST pitch the tarp then pitch the twnt under the tarp. That keeps the tent dry both when setting it up and taking it down. It also VASTLY extends the life expectancy of the tent since it's never rolled or stored wet."

Sounds like a good idea but wouldn't you need to have either separate tarp poles or convenient things to hang tarp? Also, what if air is damp/foggy--stuff inside tent can get damp even if tent has been protected from rain, no? Dampest conditions I've camped in were in foggy weather where there was almost no rain. OTOH I camped before going to Richmond2015 Worlds & it rained heavily all night--I was surprised that stuff inside tent actually dried off a bit overnight (with vents open).

Out West it's different, in California I've seen how they can get heavy fog overnight leaving puddles in roads but it usually burns off in morning. But with El Nino maybe it makes everything both damp & rainy. BTW current East Coast damp weather is supposedly not due to El Nino but a jet stream anomaly instead. Barely dropped below freezing yet, woulda been great time for short tour.

Where I tour there are usualy a number of trees around I can tie my tarp to. Most of my touring is done in Northern Ontario, Canada. there can be heavy fog in the mornings but because I have the tarp over the tent i can leave the fly off or leave all the dorrs and windows open. Therefore fog or condensation aren't really problems. However getting into a tent/sleeping bag that's been packed away wet for a day is NOT comfortable at all. I take great pains to protect my bedding and shelter fromn moisture.

Cheers

Someone who does most touring in N Ontario surely knows about weather. I now read about "fly-first tents" but apparently they tend to be $$/not esp spacious & a bit heavy so it's easy to see that a separate tarp has advantages.

Pitching in the rain is very easy with a single-wall tent, like my Tarptent Contrail (superceded by the Protrail). If it's wet from the night before, give it quick wipe with a cotton bandanna before laying out the bag. But then you have to carefully deal with condensation, and there is a learning curve to that.

I'm as concerned about moisture in my insulation from perspiration and respiration as from rain and humidity. After four of five days in high humidity, things can get a little soggy in even in a perfectly pitched tent.

I knew a guy who lived in a tent in SE Alaska for a summer and he ran his stove in his tent just to dry things out once in a while, even in good weather. Risky, but it was all he had. (Come to think of it, I wonder if CO poisoning led to some obvious mental issues....)

I live in a place where rain only comes for two weeks a year, mostly at once. On tour I have to adjust my attitude a bit to again accept rainy conditions as i do with long climbs.

I try to remember: No Rain - No Rainbows. Never judge a day by its weather.

shut up!

This year is El Nino

Yes it is but I have not even had enough rain for a free shower so far this "rainy"season. El Niño rainfall is usually very erratic in my experience.

The predicted rain last night danced past SB offshore without any rain here. It landed in LA instead.

70% chance of rain today here in Los Angeles but it did not rain. 100% chance tomorrow and Wednesday.

I use a freestanding tent so I can just pull up the stakes and carry the tent to a shelter to dry it (mostly) before taking it down.

next 3 days in Oceanside, CA id 100% of rain

Raining like heck this morning. I had to drive the car. : ((

When I worked in the Yonge and dupont area of Toronto Canada I often commuted home via Rosedale Valley Road. Sometimes there'd be a problem with that route when there was very heavy rain. The problem was that the Don River would flood Bayview Avenue which happens to be the road that Rosedale Valley Road ended at and there is quite a dip on Bayview south of Rosedale VR where i had to ride. I'd ride along closed RVR, turn right onto Bayview and rided through standing water that was often up to my waist. I was wearing one of those rubberized yellow rainsuits with the bib pants a nd jacket. I'd duct tape plastidc bags over my shows and to the legs of the rian pants. The police always let me through the barricade at the start of Rosedale VR. They thought it was neat that I could ride along Basyview to the River Street exit and then up to Gerrard Street.

Those wre times when truly sealed bottom brackets and hubs would have beebn great. Ditto for tours in Northern Ontario where a lot of rivers or streams were crossed by riding/wading or whatever and the entire bike was nearly underwater.

Cheers

I could have ridden but I didn't want to get my pretty new bike dirty. : ))

Funny isn't it, actually ironic isn't it that riding in a heavy rain gets a bicycle dirty instead of clean?

Cheers

I have some microfiber towels designed for drying cars after washing. They're fairly light, absorbent & dry quickly--might work nicely for drying tent as you describe. One can also buy propane canister tent heaters that aren't UL of course but might help in some situations.

I did not take the job on the Carnival and bunkhouse had Bedbugs