If you’ve never set up a tent before, it can be a bit scary to think about. Starting a camping trip struggling to pitch your tent is not a fun experience, especially in bad weather or if you’ve brought kids with you.
Fortunately for you, our team of experts knows a thing or two about how to pitch a tent from years in the field, and we’ll help you learn quickly.
The process generally looks like this:
Practice before your trip
Choose the right campsite
Follow the instructions given to pitch your tent
Continue reading below to learn everything you need to know.
Prepare Before Your Trip
Successfully pitching your tent begins with proper preparation at home. This is especially true if it’s your first time camping or you haven’t used your tent before. Trust us, you don’t want to find any issues after you’ve already arrived at the campsite.
Make Sure You Have Everything You Need
Before you head out on your camping trip, open up your stuff sack and make sure that everything you need is in there. No matter how long you’ve had your tent, you should keep a copy of the instructions around so you can take a proper inventory while you’re checking.
Practice Tent Setup Beforehand
This doesn’t apply if you’re an experienced camper and have had your tent for years, but if you’re new, haven’t camped for a while, or have a new tent, setting it up in your backyard the day before you leave is a helpful exercise.
Pitching a tent for the first time while you’re already camping can be stressful, especially if you have other people with you or the weather is bad. Practicing beforehand helps you work through any difficult steps in a low-pressure environment.
Choose The Right Camping Location
Picking the right spot can make setting up your tent much easier. Here are some tips on things to look for and avoid when looking for a place to set up your tent.
Things to Seek Out
Camp in higher elevation areas where possible. They will be less humid and, more importantly, ensure that water doesn’t pool around your tent if it rains.
Pitch your tent near natural windbreaks, such as the side of a hill, mountain, or a row of trees. It’s much easier to pitch your tent where the air is calm.
Most importantly, choose a piece of level ground as the base for your tent. Not only will it be much easier to pitch there, but it will be more comfortable as well. You don’t want to feel like you’re going to roll down the hill when you’re in your sleeping bag at night.
Places to Avoid
Don’t camp near a mountain that could have potential rockslides or large trees with damaged limbs. If something were to happen, it could put you in a dangerous situation.
You should avoid camping in any valleys or spots between higher elevation areas. They are natural places for water to collect (something you don’t want under your tent floor!) and are more humid.
Pitching Your Tent
Now that you know how to choose a good spot to set up, you’re ready to pitch a tent.
Initial Setup
Once you have chosen where you’re going to camp, the first thing you should do is clear away any debris, such as sticks or rocks, from underneath where your tent will be. They can make sleeping at night uncomfortable and damage your tent floor.
Once you’ve done this, you can lay out your footprint or tarp if you brought one. While not necessary, it does help protect and extend the lifespan of your tent.
Next, take the tent out and position it over the footprint. In most cases, you should position your tent door away from the wind direction for better weather protection and ventilation.
However, if it’s particularly hot you can reverse it. Tuck the footprint just barely under the edges of your tent so it won’t collect any water.
If it’s a super windy day, then you should temporarily stake the tent corners into the ground so they stay in place.
You can always move them around later and this will make tent setup easier in the meantime. If there aren’t strong winds, move on to the next step once you’ve positioned your tent.
Assemble Tent Poles
Next, you should take out the tent poles and assemble them according to the instructions. Poles can be fragile depending on the type, so be cautious when setting them up.
Once they’re ready, you can either attach them to the hooks on the tent or through the sleeves on the tent body, depending on how it is structured. Most tents come with perfectly interchangeable poles, so you don’t have to worry about matching them up with anything.
Attach Rain Fly to Tent Body
With the structural integrity of your tent intact, it’s time to attach the rain fly. As the name describes, this piece of equipment will protect your tent from the rain and stop the inside from getting wet.
Most rain flies will have velcro straps that you can wrap around the tent poles or body, but read the instructions to find out exactly how to attach it. Make sure that the rain fly is taut and secured tightly, as a loose one will collect water instead of letting it roll off the tent.
A taut rain fly will be evenly aligned with the seams and have equal tension on all corners. It’s perfectly fine to secure them all loosely at first and tighten them after for the best results.
Stake Out Your Tent
The final step to pitching a tent is staking it out. Start with the tent corners first to completely tighten up the floor perimeter. Then, you can move on to other parts of the tent body until it’s nice and taut everywhere.
Even if you don’t think you need them, you should use all the guy ropes and pegs that the instructions suggest. Even though the tent probably won’t blow away if you don’t, hearing your tent walls flapping in the wind will easily interrupt a peaceful night.
As far as actually putting in the stakes go, they should be vertical with just enough room to slip the rope underneath the top of it. Also, it never hurts to bring an extra or two. This goes for poles as well.
Other Helpful Tips
The information above covers all you need to know about the tent-pitching process, but taking it down can also sometimes be a challenge. Also, if you haven’t bought a tent yet and are worried about setup, we have some tips for you there too.
Choosing An Easy To Pitch Tent
Most modern tents are pretty easy to pitch, but if you’re buying a new tent, check what people say online about setup and takedown before making your purchase.
If you want the easiest possible experience, a self-supporting or pop-up tent is also always an option. They’re more for casual experiences than serious camping, though.
Taking Down Your Tent
Luckily, this is even easier than the setup. Start by clearing out the inside of any dirt and debris.
Then, take out all of the stakes and ropes except a couple to hold the tent in place, before removing all of the tent poles. Fold them up gently and leave them partially assembled so that they hold their elasticity for years to come.
Finally, with the door of the tent open, you can remove the last of your pegs and roll it up. You should squeeze out most of the air, but leave a little bit for the tent fabric to breathe. Last but not least, make sure to store your tent properly when you get home.
Conclusion
With this article and a little practice, you’ll know how to pitch a tent perfectly in no time. Instead of fumbling around with all the tent parts, your camping holiday will be spent enjoying the great outdoors like you’re supposed to.
If you have any other tips on how to set up a tent, please let us know in the comments below. Happy camping!
Carl is a content writer for The Camping Buddy, specializing in informational camping articles and product reviews. Carl has been a freelance writer for outdoor news sites while spending his time backpacking across the world. His favorite camping spot is Malaekahana Beach in Hawaii.
