Snakes and Tarps?

[Reverse]

Hey Everyone, So I have been tarp camping in NZ and I am now in the US. Hoping to thru in 2018. I have a question. Do any of you fellow tarp user ever have problems with snakes coming into your sleeping area? I ask because NZ has no snakes, no bear, and really no tick problems.

[Miner]

I've been either cowboy camping (ie. Sleeping under the stars with no shelter) or using a tarp exclusively since 2006. I do most of my hiking out west, but I did do a large chunk of the AT back east, and I've never had problems with a snake. I think this is the number one fear most people have with tarps, but I have never heard of it happening other then fear filled rumors with no first hand accounts. I once had a frog encounter when hiking the PCT though. I was sleeping too close to a creek and I was in between him and the creek. I haven't had much issues with crawling insects, but I do look for them before setting up camp. If the area is swarming in ants, best to move on. No bear problems, but once was was visited by a large buck deer grazing about 2m away that I thought was a bear since it was really dark and all I knew was it was big. Also a couple of mice issues, but my tent neighbors also had issues with them. That's all of my encounters over the past 11 years.

[MuddyWaters]

Hey Everyone, So I have been tarp camping in NZ and I am now in the US. Hoping to thru in 2018. I have a question. Do any of you fellow tarp user ever have problems with snakes coming into your sleeping area? I ask because NZ has no snakes, no bear, and really no tick problems.

Never heard of an actual instance of a snake.
Given the choice, a normal nake wants nothing to do with you. You arent on its menu.
Nocturnal visits by mice, skunks, etc arent uncommon.

[G22inSC]

I would be more worried about spiders than snakes but that's just me.

[Lyle]

I've never had any problems, never heard of any actual problems except one.

It was at a shelter in PA. A thru hiker I knew was hammocking. There was a known rattlesnake who lived in and around the shelter. In the evening, the rattler had been found on one of the tent platforms. When the person occupying that platform returned to their tent, the snake left and proceeded to the area under the hammocker's tarp to hang out a while. He was forced to postpone going to bed for a half hour or so, until the snake moved on.

That is the extent of any snake encounters I have personal knowledge of when tarping, and it wasn't really an encounter so much as a sighting.

[Rain Man]

I sometimes tarp or cowboy camp. Never had an issue with creatures of any sort. Have used a treated headnet for mosquitoes, though.

[Martzy13]

I've never had (nor heard) of problems with snakes entering a tarp for the evening, but a guy I was hiking the AT with earlier this season had a skunk try to dig under his tent to get to his warm body. It was also about -15° out, so can you really blame the little fella?

[PAHiker]

No snake issues. But, I have awoken to slugs all over the underside of my tarp as well as on my sleeping bag and pillow(I thought it was me drooling but it wasn't) when I camped in a meadow near a stream. I have also had to evict various insects or spiders (it was dark and I just grabbed and tossed) from my sleeping bag during the night. These were all on backpacking trips in Pennsylvania.

[yaduck9]

I've never had (nor heard) of problems with snakes entering a tarp for the evening, but a guy I was hiking the AT with earlier this season had a skunk try to dig under his tent to get to his warm body. It was also about -15° out, so can you really blame the little fella?

+1

skunks can behave like a persistent house cats that insists on cuddling with you. Raccoons will look around for scraps of food.

best strategy is to camp away from well used areas.

you may want to consider a borah bivy for the ticks and creepy crawlies.

[BuckeyeBill]

I never had any snake problems when I was section hiking. I did have to dump a few scorpions out of my boots when hiking in the Grand Canyon.

[Feral Bill]

I never had any snake problems when I was section hiking. I did have to dump a few scorpions out of my boots when hiking in the Grand Canyon.

Really? I guess that is not a myth after all.

[BuckeyeBill]

Yes. I don't know why they did it, but we were told by the Park Ranger when we were getting our back country permits, that scorpions were extremely active. He also said that their numbers were higher than normal that year.

[Bronk]

I remember watching a skunk come strolling into a crowded camping area and walk right up under someone's tarp and crawl into their pack and start eating from the food bag. There were a couple dozen people there and we all pretty much just watched it happen. I remember thinking "I'm glad I have a tent." Having said that I've cowboy camped lots of times because I was too lazy to set up my tent and the weather was good and there weren't any mosquitoes out and have never had any problems.

[BuckeyeBill]

My parents loved the Smokey mountain and usually spent part of their vacation time. I stopped by to see them on my way to Florida one year and a crowd started to gather around something. We walked over and there was a skunk with one of those small paper Dixie cups stuck on its head. It couldn't see and was bumping into stuff. Nobody made an effort to help, so I carefully walked over and it took tries, but I got the cup off its head. He just stop and looked up at me, shook head a few times and walked away. Actually was pretty comical. that year for Christmas mom gave me a stuffed toy skunk with a Dixie cup on its head.

[Reverse]

I had to dump cockroaches out of mine once, but that was in a shelter.

[Reverse]

We seriously need a like button

[jimmyjam]

I got harassed by a buck and two does while camped just south of Black rock in the SNP. Turned out I was camped in a blueberry patch and they were there to graze. We reached an agreement and they grazed and I slept. They did actually come right up to my tarp and sniffed.

[Deadeye]

The only critter that ever bothered me while cowboy camping was a porcupine that munched on the salty webbing of my pack. I thought it was the wind flapping!

Oh, and if you happen to have a beer, watch out for slugs, ugh.

[Fredt4]

You're going to get bitten by a snake, tick and a bear. They love chewing on NZ. I through hike the AT in 2011 and the southern portion of the PCT this year and have mostly either bivy sacked or cowboy camped without a problem. How ever in 2011 I did get bit by a tick on the lower left leg. Never saw the tick, but it did leave the bullseye to let me know it had been there. I took the prescription for Lyme's disease and didn't have any problems. Whether my camping style of many decades was a factor in the tick bite I'll never know. You may face that problem and it may be that you used a tent. Can't say either way. May be it just my turn, perhaps not. I'd camp as the circumstances dictate and not worry if you'll get Lyme disease just be aware it's a problem and get the prescription if you get bite. As far as snakes and other critters I wouldn't worry about them. If you leave your food unattended you can expect a visitor so I carry a UrSack and sleep with it. Remember if you hang your food it's unattended and most likely it's not hanged properly (assuming it could be hung properly).

Enjoy your hike.

[Smithereens]

I remember watching a skunk come strolling into a crowded camping area and walk right up under someone's tarp and crawl into their pack and start eating from the food bag. There were a couple dozen people there and we all pretty much just watched it happen. I remember thinking "I'm glad I have a tent." Having said that I've cowboy camped lots of times because I was too lazy to set up my tent and the weather was good and there weren't any mosquitoes out and have never had any problems.

I was on break one night, talking on the phone to my wife when I spotted a skunk walking right to me. I just stood still.. she came straight to me and rubbed against my leg just like a house cat would. She walked on her way and I just laughed and wished her a good night.