Shelter: Six Moon Designs Deschutes CF

A 7oz tarp??!!? Yep. And it kept me dry and cozy the 160 days I was on trail. A truly awesome product that doesn’t weight much at all. The set-up is similar to a mid design where one central pole (hiking pole) is the support for the shelter. The tarp has a zippered front vestibule, and depending on how it is pitched can provide varying degrees of protection. When windy or snowy I would secure the tarp close to the ground, this would keep wind and snow out of the sleeping area, but when fully secured against the ground my head and feet (I’m 5′ 8″) would sometimes brush up against the sides…only really an issue with heavy condensation. To mitigate condensation issues I would often use the accompanying guide lines to increase air flow and room under the tarp (like in photo above). With the guide lines I could set up differently depending on the terrain. Sometimes I would pitch the back flat to the ground and have the outer 2 corners at full extension…it really allowed for flexibility, especially when I didn’t spend much time picking a suitable campsite and had to make due. I added in two drying lines from the top of the tarp to attachment points on each side so I could hang socks and such after a long day. There was always plenty of head room in the tarp, and was much much roomier than my previous tarp, the GoLite Lair. You really can’t beat the weight though. This was an excellent shelter to carry on the CDT.