Floorless Shelters, who uses them?

Grantbvfd

Active Member
Jun 10, 2011
223
0
Anderson, CA
Floor less has a time and place. So does having a floor. There is one place I hunt that is so wet and saturated you need a floor. Either that or you are hiking 5 miles extra every day just to get to the deer. I would love to use Floorless all the time but it's not always the best shelter.
 

jimss

Active Member
Jun 10, 2012
230
93
The problem I would have with floorless is my sleeping bag, pad, and gear will end up a dusty, dirty mess! I usually don't pitch my tent where there is grass. A thin painters plastic weighs a couple ounces and is well worth bringing along. I know some guys use a super light tyvex sheet rather than plastic.
 

duckbum

New Member
May 29, 2015
35
0
i have gone back and forth on floorless and decided not to knock it tell i try. i am going to give it a shoot this year
 

Laddy

Member
Nov 19, 2013
93
1
Idaho
When I'm back country hunting I always bring a floored tent, no matter how much the extra weight.

I get the whole "laugh at ounces, cry over pounds thing; however, back country hunting is slightly different than thru-hiking....where I believe this phenomena of psycho-counting every ounce originated. In a 7-10 day period I'm probably not going to break camp more than once.

My main reason for not going floorless, in essence cowboy camping, is (a) it rains too much where I rifle hunt, and (b) I hate being woken up with bugs buzzing my ear.
 

grizzly

Active Member
Dec 3, 2013
195
1
UT
I liked the floorless shelter article in the latest issue but Guy forgot one key thing... the nest.

His arguments about the shortfalls of a floorless shelter are valid, but a SeekOutside Cimarron or LBO with a 2-person nest is tough to beat. With a nest, you can keep the stove and the large footprint, but still have a waterproof bathtub floor and bug-free sleeping area. Pretty good compromise in my book.
 

ScottR

Eastmans' Staff / Moderator
Staff member
Feb 3, 2014
7,679
2,570
www.eastmans.com
I liked the floorless shelter article in the latest issue but Guy forgot one key thing... the nest.

His arguments about the shortfalls of a floorless shelter are valid, but a SeekOutside Cimarron or LBO with a 2-person nest is tough to beat. With a nest, you can keep the stove and the large footprint, but still have a waterproof bathtub floor and bug-free sleeping area. Pretty good compromise in my book.
I have used the nest in my own LBO.


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grizzly

Active Member
Dec 3, 2013
195
1
UT
ScottR, how do you like the nest in the LBO? Do you feel its a good compromise with floorless/floored?

I use the SO 2-person nest in a Cimarron and like the functionality. I leave the pad and sleeping bag in the nest at all times and push it out of the way while I cook, then expand it back out and have a bug-free sleep at night. It's a good system for what I'm looking for.
 

alaska2go

Active Member
Oct 20, 2012
274
133
Canon City, CO
GOPR0083.jpg

We used just the fly and poles on the MSR hubba tent. At home before the trip I cut a piece of Tyvek house wrap to put on the tundra in cased of rain and as you can see by the pic it rained. The tyvek kept the water at bay as long as it didn't slide past the fly.
 

Huntingfanatic

New Member
Nov 3, 2013
4
0
Msr Twin brothers don't have to worry about boots, running a stove etc. No issues at all with no floor only advantages
 

wileywapiti

New Member
Feb 21, 2011
48
0
gods country
we went to a SO tipi and it worked flawless. had two days of down poor and 3 days of snow, never had water inside and definitely no bugs. it was nice to be able to walk in and sit down to take off the boots and stoke the stove.

all three pics from the same hunt.

IMG_1526.jpg rainy day

IMG_1546.jpg after snow

IMG_1485.jpg sunny days
 
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jimss

Active Member
Jun 10, 2012
230
93
If the weather is nice I often use just the fly off my 4 season tents. I have a Hilleberg Nallo 3 and an Exped Aries Mesh 2. Both weigh around 2 1/2 lbs and are pretty much bomberproof. There is plenty of room. If it rains or snows I bring the tent with tube floor. If it is super wet I'll add a footprint. I've used them everywhere from Alaska to Colorado and they've both worked out super well. Once in Alaska when it was super wet I used my bivi bag inside the fly which also worked out well. There are quite a few options if you are willing to think outside the box!
 

SouthForkguy

Member
Oct 11, 2015
100
1
Wisconsin price county
I am planning a backpack hunt for a velvet muley on the Big Bo the first week of September in my new Cimarron. Since there is a chance for rattles, is there any way to determine the snake from entering the perimeter of the tent ie.. rocks piled sticks etc.. Wondering if someone has any experience camping in that area or any insight on keeping snakes out of camp. BTW the cimarron has a tonew of floor space, extremely packable and has my thumbs up to SO
 

laxwyo

Very Active Member
I am planning a backpack hunt for a velvet muley on the Big Bo the first week of September in my new Cimarron. Since there is a chance for rattles, is there any way to determine the snake from entering the perimeter of the tent ie.. rocks piled sticks etc.. Wondering if someone has any experience camping in that area or any insight on keeping snakes out of camp. BTW the cimarron has a tonew of floor space, extremely packable and has my thumbs up to SO
Do they make any insert for that particular tent? Does it have a sod skirt? Those would both keep out most critters




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