Modifying the Tarp and Plash-Palatka
I’ve been tinkering for a long time with sewing some modifications to my oilskin tarp from Bushcraft Spain. The idea is that it should be able to button together with my Polish plasch-palatka. The rain capes can be combined into a lavvu, which is pretty awesome – but there isn’t a lot of space inside.
I bought a cheap tent stove from Temu that I wanted to test to see if hot-tenting is something for me. The stove can actually fit inside the lavvu setup, but then there’s only room for one person. Most often I bring my youngest son on trips, so it’s best if there’s space for two people.
In the oilskin tarp I’ve sewn on buttons and buttonholes so they match the rain capes. Behind the buttons I’ve sewn a leather patch so there isn’t too much strain on the fabric. The buttonholes are just made with repeated zigzag stitches layered on top of each other and overlapping.
I always bring the rain cape on trips – it’s some of my favorite gear. And the possibility of combining it with the tarp is great. But the original plan was to make something that works like a hot tent. Unfortunately, a 3 m tarp isn’t long enough to close all the way down to the ground.
First Trip with the Setup
Used on a trip.
The setup was easy, I just needed three sticks with tennis balls on them to hold it up. The entrance was crawling under the roughly 40 cm high opening.
The stove burned well, but the setup couldn’t really retain and spread the heat properly. You could obviously feel that it was running – we had our heads near the stove. Since it’s freezing and has been for a while, I had my Exped sleeping pad and reindeer hide. In terms of insulation from below, I could easily stay warm.
I tried to stay warm using only a wool blanket, but I had to sleep with my anorak on after waking up around 2:30 am. That would also have been a good time to light the stove again, but I didn’t feel like it.
If I insist on sleeping with only a blanket, I definitely need to use the trick of heating stones and bringing them to bed. I filled my Pathfinder water bottle with almost boiling water, put it in a wool sock, and threw it into my boy’s sleeping bag. It was still warm at 2:30. That’s definitely something I’ll keep doing if I continue sleeping with just a blanket.
So, not a super comfortable night – but good knowledge about tricks that could have made it much better. I wasn’t cold from below, but from the sides. Even though I was wrapped in the blanket (so actually two layers), I was cool there. That’s probably because I move around in my sleep and push things aside.
It makes good sense to sew myself a bivy bag that can sort of hold the blanket together.
The Stove
The stove weighs only 4.5 kg – it’s quite a bit smaller than the ones it copies. It took no time to heat water in the Cuma Gear kettle.
It was fed well with wood and the stovepipe was glowing red. I’ve read that some of the Chinese stoves can warp from the heat after use, but there’s nothing like that with this one. The steel feels quite thick (like an ammo box, for those who know them – and they’re often used as stoves).
I’ve bought a few extra bits for the stove. Fiberglass tape for the stovepipes so they fit a bit tighter. And a heat shield for the tent exit. Even though the pipe was glowing red around the sleeve, there was nothing visible the next day. So it definitely works.
I’ll write a proper review of the stove one day, but it needs more use first. But right now, it definitely seems worth the 700 kroner.
And it’ll also add some coziness in the summer. It’s a good way to control that no embers fly up and hit the tarp. And it makes a nice box to cook on. This time it was just oatmeal for breakfast.
Oats, milk powder, raisins, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and chocolate in a bag, packed before the trip. I love it – oatmeal is just really good when it’s cold outside.
Setup Upgrades
Setup upgrades: I’m going to try a different configuration – this one isn’t great for cold winter. Not as a hot tent, but it works. And I could just have brought a sleeping bag, and then the warmth would have been perfectly fine.
Here’s a sketch of how I want to set it up next time. I think it’ll make a much better tent and be more closed. The idea is to angle the rain capes so there are 3 m (the full tarp) at the back, but only 1–2 meters at the front. The extra fabric can then be used to create a higher but narrower entrance. I think that’ll give a better tent feel and protect better against wind. But it needs to be tested.
In summer, the front of the setup will just be used as a porch/awning with two poles at the end. That should work well.
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