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My neighbor the weekend warrior made me question my whole tent setup

I got into it with this guy Mark who lives two doors down while we were both packing up at Pine Grove campground last Saturday. He was bragging about his $40 Ozark Trails tent from Walmart that he's had for like 8 years and uses maybe twice a year. I started listing off all the reasons my $300 REI tent was better - lighter fabric, better poles, sealed seams. But then he pointed out that his tent has never leaked, never ripped, and he doesn't stress about scratching a zipper. It kind of hit me that I spend way too much time babying my gear instead of actually enjoying the trip. Has anyone else had that moment where you realize your expensive stuff is more of a hassle than a help?

2 comments

2 Comments

evan_stone21d ago

My buddy Dave spent six hundred bucks on a high-end backpacking tent and spent the entire first trip stressing about a tiny speck of sap hitting the rainfly. Meanwhile his girlfriend was sleeping in a thirty-year-old Coleman from a garage sale, and it didn't leak a drop. Sometimes I think the best gear is the stuff you don't have to think about at all.

henrygrant21d ago

Jump right in there with a credit card next time and see if he wants to upgrade his Walmart special. I swear half the fun of camping is convincing yourself your gear is "good enough" while your back hurts from that bargain bin sleeping pad. My buddy spent a whole afternoon arguing about tent pole weight while we were hiking, then tripped over a root and snapped one of his fancy carbon fiber poles (which, of course, cost more to replace than Mark's entire tent setup). Meanwhile I'm over here with my beat up Kelty from 2005 that I bought used for thirty bucks and treat like a lawn ornament. You're right though, it's a trap - we get so caught up in the specs we forget the whole point is to sit around a fire and not think about your gear at all.