Well I just got back from this years hunt. Got my first buck. I know nothing about these and thought I'd start here. I usually sleep on the floor of my buddy's dad's 5ver, but thought I should get shelter of my own. Plus it would be a good place for all of the guys to gather for dinner and drinks and the like...

I'm looking for the kind that can have a stove in them too. I have little experience with stoves in mountain houses, but not in a tent. Help.

Any tips, experiences, thoughts, comments.... LETS hear em!

I'm looking forward to next years hunt, so help me out.

If you have one of the above, where'd you get it or where would you go get one now. Options you would like or have and don't need....?

 

I don't know where to get them, but I've seen canvas tents that have places for stovepipes to go out the roof.

 

I got mine at military surplus.

 

millatary mess tents usally fill the bill

 

I am on about twenty years with my big wall tent. It is a 14 x 20 and we have slept up to seven guys on cots and still have room to cook and eat in it. The first year we were up north of Steamboat Springs and it got down to 20 below! The big Riley stove and plenty of wood kept us warm and it was a great experience.

I have it loaded in my little utility trailer and am leaving for Gunnison tomorrow. Like you, I decided that if I wanted to hunt and have friends come along, I would have to commit to building and collecting enough stuff to put a comfortable camp together. I got mine from Colorado tents here in Denver and it has been a good investment. There are several other tent makers around and you could go down to Bass Pro, look at Cabelas, and look in the yellow pages for canvas and tent makers here locally. Go visit and talk to them and get some ideas. Bigger is better if you are going to truck to your camping area. If you are going to pack in on horses, size is a consideration. I like to cook and having a oven is a great accessory to your stove. Biscuits in the morning, pies at night. Brownies, bringing a frozen entree from home and you can have a hot meal in short time. It is a tradition for my wife to make a big pan of enchiladas, we freeze them at home and have them on a cold night. Everybody loves it. I have even done a big prime rib in it. An XM radio in the mountains with Marty Robbins and a little Crown Royal makes it pretty special after a long day trudging up and down the mountains.

There are some hi-perf materials and treated canvas materials out there and it would be a good idea to talk to the folks that build them about the advantages over straight canvas. A good tent will keep you warm and dry and you will have memories that will last a life-time.

Congrats on the Buck!

 

If you get one get one with the stove jack not in the roof try to get it out the side right by the door or ware ever reason for this is that when put the pipe out the roof any snow you get if any or rain will run right in your mountain house. With the stove jack out the side and your stove pipe ran out n up it will not let moisture in to your house. I would steer away from one with a floor for the reason that it will be trashed and will be hard to keep clean. What I would recommend is a sod cloth witch is about a 6'' strip that you bury in the dirt against the edges and will seal out drafts. Then you can put straw down or go to the carpet store and get scrap carpet then you can burn it on the way out and re peat next year. You may or may not want to look in to a rain fly also just a thought

http://sheridantent.com/
http://davistent.com/

 

Last one was from Cabela's.....also have a military surplus........called wall or outfitters tent.......very comfortable......come with flue exit......I've had the flue (or my buddy has) cherry red.....no problem.....except the tent was like a sweat lodge.

 

Sometimes called cabin tents or platoon tents too. Had a few of them in scouts when I was a kid. They were mil surplus. I thought they were the greatest thing around when it was freaking cold out. The only draw back I can see is they weigh a ton.
One of the fathers built fold up floors for ours that were kind of like a pallet. The space off of the ground really makes a big difference. Ours had sides that you could roll up when it was warm and air the place out. After a few days with a bunch of guys in it that was really nice.
Our tents looked just like the ones in Mash.
Good luck finding them, I have great memories of that kind of tent.
Congrats on the deer!

 

I'm really looking into this now.

I agree that a stovepipe exit out the wall makes sense. I'm looking into how to make this happen.

Weight is not such an issue as we set up camp and then go out to hunt (the truck is 10 feet away ).

Wouldn't it be smart to get the biggest tent with the biggest stove possible. It seems to me that you can't have too much room, and if it gets warm, just let the fire die out for a bit....


Thoughts? Other comments? Thanks as always!

 

Just depends how much wood you want to cut!!!

One of the kids on my boys football team sets up a 'compound' in the hills. I think it is like 28 x 54!!! whole bunch of tents that they join together. Different tents have different uses. in the main sleeping tent they hang wall dividers for a bit of privacy. They have one 10 x 10 that they use to hang game in.

They use military surplus, and have canvas pieces that they make the 'connections' with.

I agree though get it as big as you can, If it seems to be to big then put a big ol dance floor in the middle!!!!

 

That picture looks like a lot of fun!

A bigger tent means more flat ground and sometimes that can be a problem, unless you are out in the flat desert. A good kind of stove is one of those drum conversion kits you use with 30 or 55 gallon steel drums. The drums are light weight, easy to get and wow, do they crank out the heat.

It's so nice to be able to get warm and out of the rain on trips like that. When I was riding dirt bikes in the high desert in the winter we would set one up just as a shop for the bikes or general use.

Now, I'd rather camp at the hot springs and soak when it gets cold.

 

These post remind me of when i was a kid ,camping on the North Fork of the Cour 'dlane River with my Aunt and Uncle and cousins. They had a big miltary tent like Dodgecowboys. They slept in the tent part and had the kitchen set up in the covered part. It was great. Good luck finding one, and like others had said check the surplus stores.

 

I saw these in Cabela's over the summer, and depending on how well stocked your local Army/Navy Surplus store is you could find an old GP Medium there.

Good post with good info. I need a new tent as well, but where I go camping I don't need a four season tent.



Kris