Survival Shelter Tune-up

It is getting nicer in the midwest, and my nephew and neice wanted to camp in their backyard. So, last Friday, I helped them setup their tent for the night, which is the tent  Ibought used at the REI Garage sale in Chicago. I then constructed a shelter for myself using two medium sized tarps, a little bit of rope, a few stakes a ski pole, and the bottom half of a Chicago Cubs "W" flag pole. 

According to the weather report that I had read several hours earlier, it was supposed to rain torrentially--this I was prepared for. I think my shelter was ideally suited for rain. 

After I made cobbler in a dutch oven on the campfire, we went to our seperate shelters. After a few minutes of lightning, my sister brought in her kids for safety. But even though there was lighting cthunder crashing around the neighborhood, I felt warm, dry and safe under the protecting arms of a few old maple trees(see. Dangerous sleeping habits)

After a few drops of rain, the storm was blown away. It was blown away by a weather system with wind gusts of 40+ miles per hour, and it seemed to be coming from both the north and south of my shelter. Unfortunately, I had not had time to test my shelter in a wind tunnel. It was not meant to endure these winds. My shelter was in a state of constant flap. I was essentially sleeping in a windsock. I barely slept. At one point I had to remove some supports and create what resembled a bivvy shelter or tarp cacoon(I am currently copywriting/patenting the tarp cacoon, so do not steal my idea.) 

Shortly after this, I began to hear the old maple trees above me begin to groan, creak, and crack. I began to worry a little about my safety. If a tree limb fell on me, what would they say at my funeral? "What an idiot!" 

What had I accomplished with my life? ......not much. 

What would the newspaper say? 

 "Pretend Survival Situation turns deadly"

 "Local Idiot crushed while sleeping in tarp cacoon"

This was unacceptable. At 4:30 AM, I brought my mummy bag and thermarest inside and slept on the couch. 

When I awoke, I went outside to take a picture of my shelter, and to gather the rest of my gear. The trees were still intact. But the tarp cocoon had been ravaged by the winds. It didn't survive the night, pictures would be too gruesome to show, just imaging what a yard sale looks like. 

I learned a few things about weather reports, and shelter placement, and that wind is the main enemy of bootleg survival shelters. 

REI Garage Sale- Results

On Saturday, REI had a Garage sale to get rid of items that were returned, damaged, used, or out of stock. The sale was to start at 9 AM, so I woke up around 8AM, and drove over to the store. I arrived at about 20 minutes before 9 and saw a very long line of outdoorsman and outdoorswomen lined up outside the designated garage sale parking lot. Some of the residents of this line had camp chairs, sleeping bags and one guy was wearing a Selk sleeping bag aka a mummy sleeping bag with legs check out the link to see what I’m talking about.  http://www.lippiselkbag.co.uk/store/d58-Selk-Bag-Store-(US-Dollars)

So I was in line with about 200 people in front of me. Shortly before nine, and REI employee began shouting to the crowd.

“If your mom never taught you manners, Leave now. No Pushing!, No Shoving!, No grabbing from others! If I or any other employee tells you to leave, leave immediately, you are trespassing. If pushing or shoving happens, you will be banned from all REI stores for LIFE! I can make that happen.”

With the threat of a life sentence away from our favorite store, the tension in the air was tangible. Like your first day in prison, everyone was contemplating what they would have to do to survive. I wanted to push EVERYONE.  I wanted to grab EVERYTHING!

When the floodgates were opened, I could see the people that had camped in line running like the wind to go grab armfuls of the best items. By the time I got in, many of the clothes racks had been pillaged, and the Vikings that had ravaged them were guarding massive piles of loot. I even saw one guy that had gotten his hands on three Mountain Hardware monkey man fleeces for $50 each.

I was able to snag a used REI Taj 3 tent for $39.99. It is a 3 person, 3 season backpacking tent that had formerly been used as an REI rental tent, and I’m sure it has been on many trips. It is in good condition, and as the weather improves, I can’t wait to pitch my tent!

As far as the sale went, I had the opportunity to buy some light North Face hiking boots for $35, and there were some decent snow shoes for $40, but I failed to pull the trigger before someone snatched them.  The sale was advertized as going from 9-2, but by 9:15, the place was mainly cleaned out besides a few canoes and kayaks up for auction at the end of the day. Overall, people were well behaved and courteous. For me, this was a great start to my Saturday. Up early, interaction with gear, and likeminded people, and a chance to improve my current cache of outdoor gear. I recommend REI Garage Sales for anyone; just get there earlier than I did. I will continue to look for them in my neck of the woods. 

Contributor Bio: Jeff Eckenhoff

• Name: Jeff Eckenhoff
• Home Base: San Francisco, CA
• Education: Graduated from University of Colorado-Boulder
• Industry: Commercial Real Estate
• Music: Bob Marley, Sublime, Classic Rock
• Adventuring Experience: Wilderness Survival, Hiking, Backpacking, Camping, Fishing, Skiing, Surfing, Rockclimbing, Mtn. Biking, Canoeing, Kayaking, Snow camping, Cliff Jumping, international travel, Eagle Scout
• Non-Adventure Hobbies: Sand between my toes or in my hair, sports gazing, lifting
• Countries Traveled: USA, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Australia, Thailand, England, Scotland, Ireland
• Noteworthy Adventures: Backpacking on the Kalalau Trail twice(Kauai, HI); Snowcamping (Lake Tahoe, CA); Camp Oljato (Fresno, CA); Middle Fork River Rafting Trip-5 nights (Idaho)
• Places I want to set up a tent and sleep in it: Bear Valley (CA), Pacific Coast, Mexico, Colorado Rockies, Half Dome (CA), Yosemite, Grand Tetons, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Alaska
• Where I want to travel: All over the world, definitely Germany for Oktoberfest, back to Australia, South America
• Best part about Adventuring and Travel: I love being prepared for what my travels could throw my way. Being prepared is all about having the right gear for the right situations. When I don't have the right gear, I enjoy the rush of adrenaline in surviving when I don't have what I need. It is all about getting out in the wilderness, away from electricity and tvs, and spending some time with the outdoors. Backpacking 11 miles on tough terrain to a white sand beach that can only be accessed by foot or helicopter is what I dream about...