I. Several Non-Negotiables to Strictly Remember for Camping
Do not camp near water
— To avoid flooding
Do not camp under cliffs
— To avoid falling rocks
Do not camp on high, exposed ground
— To avoid strong winds
Do not camp under isolated trees
— To avoid lightning strikes
Do not camp in thick grass or bushes
— To avoid snakes and insects
II. Methods and Techniques for Setting Up a Tent
First, decide on the location to set up the tent. Following the sequence, four people can complete the job together without taking much time, setting it up simply. To consider the situation when taking down the tent later, it’s convenient to record how it was initially set up.
There are various types of tents, as well as different designs, assembly methods, and combinations. Small tents, A-frame tents, and wall tents, due to their construction sequence, are of the “pitched tent” type, using ropes for setup, while the more recently developed and improved bullet-shaped and cabin-shaped tents belong to the “assembled tent” category.
The following uses one of the basic types of tents, the wall tent—which has been quite popular since ancient times—as an example to explain how to set up a tent.
① Choosing the Location
After considering the wind direction and terrain, choose a flat area.
② Checking the Tent Equipment
Take out all the items stored in the bag and check each part one by one. To facilitate taking down the tent later and to avoid missing anything, it’s best to record them first.
③ Laying the Ground Mat
After laying the ground mat, secure its four corners with nails. In damp areas, lay a mat first before placing the ground pad on top of it.
④ Erecting the Poles and Stretching the Main Ropes
Insert the bottom ends of the poles into the holes at both ends of the ground mat, and at the same time, insert the pointed upper ends of the poles into the holes of the two main curtain poles. Pull up the left and right main ropes to prevent tilting. This forms the main structure of the tent.
⑤ Adjusting the Main Ropes and Pulling the Corner and Waist Ropes
Use the guy ropes attached to the main ropes to adjust the shape of the tent, ensuring the two poles stand vertically on the ground. Next, use the guy ropes to adjust the corner ropes and waist ropes to finalize the tent's shape.
Securing the Walls
Connect the tent base fabric, ground mat, and lower parts of the walls.
The above is the setup sequence for a wall tent. With four people working together, it can be completed in about 10–15 minutes when well-practiced.
Usually, to reduce the impact of wind, rain, sun exposure, and severe cold, a roof cover is added. In step ④, when inserting the poles into the holes at both ends of the ridge, first put on the roof cover, then pull up the main rope. Once the main rope is secured with nails, form two sides of an equilateral triangle using the endpoints of the ridge as the apex, and adjust the length of the base side to be equal to the length of the poles. Viewed directly from above the roof, the corner ropes should align along the extended diagonal lines, while the side ropes should run in a straight line parallel to the corner ropes.
In the past, after setting up a tent, people would dig a drainage ditch around it. Nowadays, from the perspective of protecting nature, trenches are no longer dug unless in marshy areas.
III. Camping Site Discipline:
1. When setting up a tent, the entrance must remain closed. Develop a good habit of zipping the tent door shut when packing or unpacking. Always close the tent door promptly upon entering or exiting to prevent insects or small animals from crawling in and disturbing your sleep. Often, some team members not only fail to close the tent door properly but also chat with it open, which frequently leads to being woken up by animals in the middle of the night, disrupting their own and others’ rest.
2. When going to bed in the tent, place your hiking boots with the toes pointing outward. Aside from essential items like sleeping bags and pillows needed for the night, all other belongings should be neatly packed and stored in your backpack, placed under the outer tent flap near the entrance. This way, if an emergency occurs at night, you can quickly put on your boots, grab your pack, and evacuate. On hundred-kilometer hikes, many hikers carelessly leave their boots, packs, and clothes scattered outside the tent. If it rains or there’s heavy dew at night and these items get soaked, what will you use to continue your trek?
3. Before going to sleep in the tent, develop the habit of placing your headlamp within easy reach—**under your pillow. If an unexpected situation arises at night, you can grab your headlamp and **, and dash out of the tent to escape. If the tent won’t open, you can use the ** to quickly cut your way out. Many hikers don’t understand the value of a sharp 25cm ** during outdoor camping. They ask, “Why carry a ** if I already have a multi-tool?” adding unnecessary weight. But in unfamiliar wilderness settings, a sharp 25cm ** is essential. For instance, those who’ve heard of the crossing of the Chatian Ancient Trail know that team members were attacked by bears inside their tents on freezing nights, and could only fight back bare-handed. If they had had a ** to fend off the attack, fewer people would have been injured. Similarly, during the 814 incident, if team members trapped in their tents by flash floods had had a sharp **, they could have cut their way out and bought more time to escape.
4. Strictly follow the schedule set by the team leader for night watches and rest. From the designated rest time until wake-up and camp breakdown the next morning, loud talking or horseplay in the campsite is strictly prohibited to avoid disturbing others’ rest.
5. At night (including during night watch handovers), do not open your teammates’ tents without first gently waking them up, to avoid startling them into thinking there’s an intruder or wild animal attacking, which might lead them to react defensively—possibly causing accidents.
6. All tents used by the trekking group are considered shared equipment, and the team leader has the right to assign them appropriately. Typically, when arranging tents, I try to group team members who snore loudly together and place them in the central area of the tent, away from others, to avoid disturbing everyone’s sleep with snores.
7. In principle, team members sharing a tent should also take turns keeping night watch during the same time slots, to avoid waking up the next watch person in the middle of the night and disturbing others’ rest.
8. In principle, less experienced or “rookie” team members should be placed in the central part of the tent area. If camping conditions are poor or the site is relatively unsafe, stronger male team members should share tents with less experienced female members. That way, if something happens at night, they can look out for each other.