Hi Guys, please be gentle with us, converted static caravan holiday family to 1st time Tent holiday this July 2009. We tend to go to spain to static caravan holiday parks but decided to holiday in the uk this summer. After so much research we finally decided on Woolacombe Bay Golden Coast park. Seems to be very popular and good for kids as we have 3 but a wee bit concerned about reports of high winds. Can any body answer some simple questions to a non camping guy.
Ok the tent we purchased was the Skandika Montana 8, is this a good or bad tent?
High winds blowing tents away, is there a better way to pin the tent down rather than the standard pegs we get with the tent. Thought about putting wind breakers around the tent to prevent this, am I being over concerned.
When setting up should you put the tent up long ways or short ways into the wind??
How do you prevent tents from blowing away??
Sounds daft I know but any advice would be helpful.
The best piece of advice I can give you is invest in some delta pegs: http://www.deltagroundanchors.co.uk/. I have the plastic ones and they are brill. They kept my tent firmly anchored in very windy conditions last year. I use windbreaks too, but that is more to do with having dogs!
Cant comment on your tent as i have never had one.
Hello and welcome to this wonderful site! You'll now spend far too much time reading everything there is to know about camping and in turn spend a fortune buying all the things that folk recommend. Be warned lol!!!!!!! regarding the wind issue, park your car between the tent and any prevailing wind. Much better than a fabric windbreak anyday. It's saved our skin a few times as have Delta pegs as mentioned above, they are worth their weight in gold.
------------- If you have a problem stressing you, sort it. If you can't, there's no point worrying about it coz it won't make a blind bit of difference!!!! Jules
Hello and welcome. There are no daft questions on here (well almost none). Remember most of us have been where you are now, unless they were brought up in a camping family.
I second the endorsements of Delta Pegs, you don't need to go wild, just buy enough to do the guys on your main poles. They guy who runs it is very helpful and will tell you what you need.
As for wind breaks, from my experience if its so windy your tent is under threat your windbreak will be long gone. We rescued a couple at Barny last year that were thrashing themselves to death and risking damaging the tents.
As for which way to pitch it, on most commercial sites with a tent that size and shape you won't get any choice, as there has got to be 6 metres between you and the tent next door for fire regs (although this is enforced with varying degrees of enthusiasm) and the pitches tend to be oblong with the long sides together. If you get the choice I would pitch tail into wind, but as yours has doors in the middle this may mean you have no sheltered entrance to use.
Most of all I would advise you book a couple of nights somewhere local, if you can, to try everything out and get some confidence - you will then feel more relaxed about the main holiday.
You will tend to find that campers are generally a pretty helpful bunch and if you are struggling you will normally get help pretty quickly. A couple came out in an absolute downpour at Bala last year to help us set up as we arrived late and there was no sign of it abating so we just had to get stuck in.
Best of luck - this time next year you will have a house full of gear, a bigger car and you will start twitching when you have been in a brick building for over a fortnight.
Cheers
Alasdair
------------- "If nothing else works, a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through." General Melchett
We converted from statics to canvas some years ago, like you we came here for advice. Delta Pegs are the business particularly for tube/tunnel tents.
The wind direction can change, so which way to pitch is more likely to be guided by the size and orientation of your pitch. Pegging out is the best way to go. Having said that we were just up the coast from Woolacombe before the deltas and we were perfectly stable.
------------- I own a caravan, that makes me a grown up, right?
Scott and family, welcome to the most addictive site on the web.
I too can't comment on the tent and, it appears, there are no reviews in the tents section. I have to admit to never having used Delta pegs, although those who have swear by them (And you can get a special UKCS discount on them). The theory is that you pitch your tent with its back to the prevailing winds. The trouble with this theory is that nobody has yet bothered to tell the wind this!! I really believe most people, myself included, will pitch our tents so we get the best view. The trouble with using windbreaks is that they are far more likely to be blown over than any tent. I believe there is little danger of a tent actually being blown away with our huge one standing up to some horrendous true gales last year. Yes, they will bend. They will creak but if they are pegged out fully and carefully they won't blow away. The worst that seems to happen is the poles breaking and the tent collapsing and, hopefully, that's unlikely with a good tent like yours. Just relax and enjoy your camping and don't forget, I've already ordered a good summer for this year following the weather we had last year!!
Thanks guys for your replies, sitting here in 2 minds, wondering if we should purchase a shower unit for our tent, any one tried adding this to your own tent, looked up the showers on the web they seem to be ok, the extension for our tent is http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/710-5232-2978-1/1?AID=9479574&PID=1428744&mpre=http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/SKANDIKA-SHOWER-TENT-UTILITY-SHELTER-CAMPING-BLUE-NEW_W0QQitemZ310133160323QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_SportsLeisure_HikingCamping_Tents_JN?hash=item310133160323&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1262 all replies welcome.
I would have two questions.
1 Where does the hot water come from - you normally have to carry your (cold) water to your pitch?
2 Where does the waste water go?
Very few pitches have running water and drainage and they are normally hard standings for campervans
All the campsites we have been to have excellent showers, its just a case of getting organised before you go.
First impressions are this is a gimmick but I haven't seen one so I could be wrong.
Cheers
Alasdair
------------- "If nothing else works, a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through." General Melchett
Quote: Originally posted by wilemanfamily on 10/4/2009
Thanks guys for your replies, sitting here in 2 minds, wondering if we should purchase a shower unit for our tent.
Forget all the fancy gimmicks, wait until you have camped a few times in order to ensure that you have all the essentials. Don't forget, space in the car will be at a premium.
most sites have showers and toilet blocks. If i am honest i would make sure you have decent table, chairs, bedding and lighting than spending money on things like toilets or showers. toilets are a nice to have unless you have someone with a disability where it may be esential (depnding on how far away from the toilet block you are,but my four year old son loved running to the toilet on his own (we could bearly catch him up as he would be finished by the time i got to the toilet!).
decent equipment on the seating and sleeping side will make or break your holiday.... concentrate on that so you make sure you enjoy it!
also before you pick something to buy ask on here. some have cheaper aternatives or can give advice about where to purchase what. i agree with bernie as well, stuff like outhouses and toiets are nice to have and 18 months in i have bought them, but not essentials. stick to what you need first as decent equipment is not cheap this time of year (cheap part of the year for equipment is Nov-March).
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Topic: Camping Virgin Family
