1. Tents
Front cover

2. Different Types of Tents
Tents come in many different shapes, sizes and styles. From one person designs made to fit in a rucksack, to eight berth frame tents ready to be fully furnished with everything including the kitchen sink! In between them there are numerous styles offering excellent choice and flexibility, made out of lightweight materials that are suitable for a variety of locations.
Each tent is designed with a different purpose in mind.

3. Our Tents
As Scouts we use tents for a variety of purposes and activities from week long summer camps to lightweight expeditions.
For these different camps we have different types of tent. The most common used in Scouts are the patrol tent and the hike tent but there are many other kinds on the market which all have pros and cons and should be chosen according to the purpose.
We also use other tents and canvasses such as mess tents, store tents, fire shelters or marquees depending on the type of camping we are doing.

4. The Patrol Tent
These tents are most commonly made of canvas and usually have separate groundsheets. Large enough to sleep around 6 Scouts and accommodate their kit.
Patrol tents are traditional Scout tents and are often used in camping competitions. Due to their size they take at least 3 people to put them up properly. It could also be considered as a ridge tent.

5. Parts of Patrol Tents
Every item has a name; easier than just saying 'Can you hand me that thingamajig please!'
Two main Tent Poles of 2 pieces each, a Ridge Pole made up of 3 bits.
Canvas tent with Flaps (doors to you and me) sewn in.
Walls and Sod Cloths sewn in too.
Sod cloths should be tucked under ground sheet - walls can be rolled up for fresh air.
Main Guys with Dollies (no, not Parton!) hold the main poles up, and can be front or storm lashed.
Main canvas has several Guy Ropes, keep straight with seam - 4 corner guys at 45 degree angle with corner.
Brailing pegs hold the walls and flaps tight to the ground - can be released to roll up walls.
Flysheet to protect from rain. Top of main poles have Spacers to keep flysheet off tent.

7. Ridge Tents
A classic ridge design with sloping sides and a roofline that runs parallel to the ground (A-framed shape).Ridge style tents offer good stability in bad weather conditions and even heavy snow, but they can be heavy and so not a good choice if you're backpacking or travelling on foot carrying your tent.
Most ridge tents other than the patrol tent are made of lightweight materials such as nylon.
There is usually an outer tent and then an inner with a sewn in groundsheet.
The deeply sloping sides often make the full height of the tent unusable.

8. Tunnel Tent
A tunnel design uses two hooped poles or more running in parallel to maximise internal space. Some can be huge; others are sized generously but still fairly lightweight. Small or large, many tunnel designs offer a large porch area and good living space useful for family camping trips.
The construction will most commonly consist of a nylon outer and an inner with a sewn-in groundsheet.
Smaller designs are great for lightweight camping.

9. Frame Tent
These are often larger ‘family tents’ and are often used for camping holidays. The frame is built first and then covered with the canvas, however this can be a disadvantage in bad weather conditions.
A frame tent will be bulky and heavy when packed away and will most often be used on a site with vehicle access. There is usually a sleeping area at the back and a front area for cooking or relaxing.
Many marquees or mess tents are also pitched in this way.

10. Pop Up Tents
Pop-ups were once regarded as play tents but no longer. Larger sizes, better designs and good materials combined with out-of-the-bag pitching are now a popular choice offering a fast effective shelter. The flexible poles offer a similar tent profile to tunnel designs.
Striking these tents can be more difficult and putting them back in their bag at the end of camp can be a real skill.

11. Bell Tents
Bell tents have a unique silhouette, are quick to put up and pack down small – they were used as military kit in the 19th Century.
The design is simple: natural cotton canvas drapes down from a central pole, and is held tight by guy ropes, pegged down around the circumference of the tent to create a distinctive old-fashioned shape outside and a good working area within.
They are fully waterproof, and in full sun you can roll up the sides and enjoy the breezy shade beneath.

12. Tipi
Tipis are constructed from poles and canvas or historically rawhide. Most versions start with 3 poles which are joined with a tripod lashing at the height of the cover. Another 12 poles are then arranged against the main poles in the tripod.
The cover is then tied to another pole which is then lifted up and the top of the pole is rested where all the poles meet. The skin is pulled around the pole framework.
The overlap seam is closed with wooden lacing pins which are thin sticks about 10 inches long with one or both ends tapered.
Sometimes a door is attached to one of the bottom lacing pins.

13. Dome Tents
These tents look like bubbles and are made from various strong but flexible materials.
There are usually 2 cross poles and often a third pole if the tent has a porch area.
These are very good tents for shedding water and remaining standing in high winds, making them very popular in Scouting and in Scotland.
Dome tents come in a variety of sizes and vary greatly in quality
We will look at pitching them in more detail as we use these regularly for lightweight expeditions and Zodiacs.

14. Choosing a Dome Tent
1. Guylines - These are easily adjustable and help to maintain the tents shape and stability. It is worth spending a little time getting all the guylines taut and checking them again before settling down to sleep, so to ensure maximum sturdiness in the event of any strong winds or bad weather. Some guylines are reflective or luminous which makes them easier to avoid tripping over by torchlight. Why not change yours or personalise them with your own bright visual warnings?
2. Groundsheet - A groundsheet is usually sewn-in as a tray-shaped floor to your tent. The purpose is to keep you off damp ground, protect against rainfall run-off and cut out draughts as well as stopping creepy-crawlies getting inside. To protect a sewn-in groundsheet from abrasion, it pays to place it over a cheap plastic tarp or, even better, a custom tent 'footprint' that fits the shape exactly. As there's no real insulation value in a groundsheet, spreading out a fleece blanket makes a comfy 'carpet'.
3. Mesh doors - Mesh doors keep annoying biting insects, creepy crawlies and irritating moths at bay whilst allowing air to flow through the tiny pores to aid ventilation when going to sleep in your tent.
4. Flysheet - Pitched over the inner tent's like a large umbrella, it's made from strong waterproof material to keep out rain and any bad weather. It also offers some protection from the sun and the doorways may unzip fully to form sun and rain awnings.
5. Doors - On inners and flysheets, doors usually have a two-way opening facility for flexibility with ventilation and shelter. Condensation can easily form on the inside of a totally waterproof flysheet with two people (or more) breathing away all night in a tent zipped up tight against insects and draughts; it's easy to mistake this condensation for leaking! This can be helped by opening up the doors, venting the tent and getting rid of the moisture. Maintaining good ventilation is advisable when camping, and most tents have features and tips to aid good airflow and minimise the potential problem.
6. Poles - Poles make up the framework of your tent, the sections are often linked for easy assembly using elastic cord. Colour-coded poles and pole 'tunnels' help easy pitching and are great for helping to teach the children how to put a tent up. Continuous or in sections, pole sleeves guide the poles into position so that they can be held snugly in place by eyelets or ring and pin systems that slot neatly into pole ends.
7. Porch - Porch space can vary throughout tent designs, from just enough space to park a rucksack, boots and stove in a lightweight tent, to a huge living space sheltering a table and chairs on larger family styles.
Inner tents - Light and very breathable, often with insect mesh doors, inners make cosy bedrooms.
Dimensions - The tent dimensions will show you how much length, height and width you have to play with; helping you make the best choice for you. The overall size diagrams of the tent will give you a good idea about how much space it will take up on a site and the pitch size you will need if you are pre-booking a campsite. It also makes sense to give some thought to the internal dimensions, especially headroom if you want to stand up in larger designs.

15. Sigma Pitching
Assemble poles and lay them on the ground parallel (3 poles:- 2 longer diagonal poles and 1 shorter porch pole
Open out tent and position in required direction.
Insert the two longer poles diagonally through pole sleeves on outside of flysheet.
Insert the shorter porch pole into front pole sleeve over doorway
Locate one end of each diagonal pole onto pin system at rear tent corners
Push each diagonal pole into an arch from door end and locate pole ends onto corresponding pin system.
Locate one end of the porch pole onto second pin at front pole end of tent.
Push porch pole into an arch from opposite side and locate pole end onto pin system.
Peg down four corners through the metal ring using pin-pegs.
Pull out porch doorway and peg down elastic pegging points at the base using pin-pegs.
Peg out all remaining shock-cord pegging points on the base of the flysheet using pin-pegs.
Peg out ALL guy lines using pin-pegs ensuring that guy line fabric attachment points are evenly
tensioned and are in line with the seam they are attached to.

16. Zetes Pitching
Assemble the 2 poles and lay them parallel on the ground.
Open out tent and position in required direction.
Insert the two poles straight through pole sleeves on outside of flysheet.
Locate one end of each pole on one side of flysheet into the metal pin system at the end of the pole sleeves
Push poles into an arch from opposite ends and locate pole ends into corresponding metal pin.
Start pegging out the main corners at rear end of the tent using the pin pegs provided.
Pull the tent forward until taut and peg out the main corners at the front end of the tent, again with the pin pegs.
Ensure the tent is in a straight line.
Secure the tent using the pin pegs through the ring & pin system .
Pole guylines should be pegged at an angle towards front, and back, of tent, to tension roof panel.
Peg out all remaining shock-cord pegging points on the base of the flysheet using pin-pegs.
Peg out ALL guy lines using pin-pegs ensuring that guy line fabric attachment points are evenly
tensioned and are in line with the seam they are attached to

17. Summary
Choosing a tent is an important part of the planning when going to camp. It needs to be fit for the job and should be chosen according to number of people, transport, duration of camp, weather, location, size and weight.
Striking tents properly after camp and caring for them appropriately whilst away and when you return home can ensure they are suitable for use and ready to go the next time they are needed.
Tent Care
Clearing away gravel and twigs from your pitch reduces the chance of tiny holes appearing in the groundsheet; using a cheap tarp under it will help protect it and make it far easier to clean. A regular sweeping out of the tent takes just a couple of minutes and keeps your tent clean and tidy. Without it, debris can puncture fabric when it is tightly packed away. Even synthetic fabrics don't like mould and mildew, so it's no surprise that airing the tent and drying it completely before packing it away for a while is very important!
It's worth checking out guylines, tensioners, eyelets, knots, zips and poles for damage each time you use the tent. Tents are durable and resilient but over time the various components will wear and suffer damage. Hopefully, a small spares and repair kit won't be needed but, if you have one handy, there's no drama; prevention is better than cure! Zips can take quite a beating and it helps if they run smoothly. They tend to get yanked all ways and can be put under quite a lot of strain, so make sure the stitching around the zips is sturdy and make any repairs before loose threads lead to frayed tent fabric. If a main or mesh door won't zip closed easily, reposition the pegs rather than trying to force the zip closed; often the tent can be pitched too taught and the zip can struggle to close up; allowing the tent shape a little more slack can make all the difference.