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Camping

Our UK Camping forum has all the information you need on finding the right equipment for your tent or caravan.

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Original poster

scary camping experience!!

41 replies

Ineed2 · 29/08/2010 17:52

Have just come back from a short weekend with some friends at a local water park. Sooo windy, yesterday had to hold on the the porch during some torrential downpours where the wind was gusting, Should have taken the porch down but the wind dropped in the early evening. Woke this morning to gusts again. my OH [not camping with us] came to help me take the tent down. It took 3 of us to hold onto the porch and as I was undoing it from the main tent it ripped badly. Luckily I had managed to detatch it from my new quechua pop up. We got the pop up down without too much trouble and came home. Some friends who were staying another day have just text to say that their large vango has collapsed in the wind and many poles are broken.
Morale of this story beware gusting winds, unfortunatly this site was very open with no hedges to pitch near, we won't be returning.

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LadyBiscuit · 30/08/2010 18:45

MollieO - you weren't camping in Oxfordshire last weekend were you? :o Someone with a Mazda was parked very near us

MollieO · 30/08/2010 18:47

fabs we have a heater, lots of fleece blankets, a shiny new tent (albeit a Vango), tent carpet, fleece enormous picnic blankets. Hopefully will be okay but we won't be going if the forecast is foul. I've had enough of wet camping this year.

MollieO · 30/08/2010 18:47

LadyB no we were in the Forest of Dean.

What tent did they have? I'm always curious to see what others with small cars manage to pack.

LadyBiscuit · 30/08/2010 18:57

Not you then :o I am convinced there was at least one MNer there (especially the woman with a big Boycott Nestle sticker on the back of the car!)

I don't know what tent they had I'm afraid - they were in a big group with lots of different tents. Very brave doing October although we went end April and it was absolutely gorgeous (albeit below freezing at night!)

MollieO · 30/08/2010 19:03

It will be mid-October (which obviously will be warmer than the following week ).

It was 0 degrees at Beddgelert in August so a few degrees below that won't make much difference. That was in a tent without a sig so definitely colder than our new tent.

Surprise · 31/08/2010 17:31

On a similar note - beware if you have a gazebo. We were camping a few weeks ago and a very gentle breeze was blowing. A slightly less gentle gust came along, picked up next door's 2 gazebos (which were tied together) and tumbled them across the campsite. But it really was just a very small gust - so beware and make sure you secure them carefully.

Funny thing was, they were out at the time, so we rescued the gazebos, folded them up and put them by their tent. Of course, when they returned, we'd gone out and there wasn't a breath of wind..... Fortunately someone else had seen what happened and did explain that we weren't just vandalising their pitch for the sake of it

LackingInspiration · 31/08/2010 17:35

Riven - our bell tent pole broke in strong gusts last week

Going to buy a storm pole next year which should be stronger, but not so strong the tent will rip before it breaks IYSWIM.

I think the moral is 'be careful where you pitch your tent'!

Batteryhuman · 31/08/2010 19:22

Our Outwell Sun Valley 6 is a tunnel shape and has withstood gale force winds without a problem but my DH is obsessed with putting it up with its back to the wind and on windy sites ensuring that where possible we are sheltered by hedges or trees. Our friends big aircraft hangar sized Vango looked very vulnerable this weekend in the wind but it is twice the size and half the weight of our tent and the poles IMO are too light and flimsy.

EColi · 31/08/2010 19:38

We have a Vango Diablo 600 and it's fab in wind/rain. Have had it for a few years and had no problems. We also have a Wynnster Anteres up at the moment (both tents in our garden over the last few days of high wind and downpours) which has been a lot more affected by the wind and has needed seam sealant. I think the shape must have a lot to do with it.

CaptainNancy · 31/08/2010 19:41

We have a Vango, and it is utterly bomb-proof!
It was v windy where we pitched this weekend (somerset coast) but we had no problems.

We are minimalist campers though... and our tent is not one you can stand up in!

kitbit · 31/08/2010 20:01

We camped in Norfolk last week and were allocated a pitch - everyone else was around the edges but ours was right in the middle and the 40mph gusty winds came that night.

First time camping, never mind camping in blardy wind, but thankfully with some extra guys, some pegs with attitude and dh darting about with the mallet we survived. Also parked the car on the windy side which helped.

Next night 4 others turned up on the windy side of ours, 2 had problems that night with porches lifting off, guys snapping etc. Ours was OK though, think it's because it's a good shape with slopy sides (Outwell Nevada).

Wind is scary stuff though.

castleonthehill · 01/09/2010 13:55

we have camped in high winds on the Kent coast lends blow a lot if not correctly pitched. It seams to be a good idea to get a tent that is only as big as you need and are able to pitch properly. A good tent will fail if not up well. I would not buy a new this season tent again as it has not had real life testing. We have a colman Darwin 7 it is great for us stands up to high winds. The only problem is I have arthritis which means sometimes I am not much help witch means people not used to the tent help and have broken a pole twice when taking it down this year o well

Original poster

Ineed2 · 01/09/2010 21:57

Our big family tent has storm lines similar to the ones on caravan awnings, it stands up to the wind really well, including a brief stay on the top of a cliff in Wales, I think its the noise tents make in the wind that can be scary. The only draw back to the stormlines is that you have to remember to twist them or they hum loudly in the wind.
Oh the things we do!!

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littlemisslost · 01/09/2010 22:05

we recently bought a Coleman Pamanda? I think its acalled thta, its fab has a massie canopy out the front and two good sleeping areas, we had a lovely break a few weeks ago and strong wind and rain on two of the nights and the tent didnt budge!
I MUST reccommend Cotswold View camping park! it is gorgeous, spacious pitches, little shop and games room and play area and family farm all onsite, we had a fab time and even spent a bit of cash and has brekfast in the farm house on our last day

Jugglers · 02/09/2010 14:36

We're just back from first camping experience, in second hand Vango Diablo 600 and were fine. Pitched in the rain (welcome to camping!) and weathered 2 dreadful nights of wind and rain and the tent was fine. We were in a very sheltered position in corner pitch with hedge and trees protecting us.

Am utterly hooked on camping - can't wait to go again. (no bunting or fairy lights, but would have to have some serious persuasion to go without hot water and leccy I'm afraid!)

Original poster

Ineed2 · 02/09/2010 23:12

The windy site we were on had no hot water, [we never have elctric] gosh I hadn't realised how spoilt I had become with covered washing up areas and hot water, did a fry up on Saturday morning and then had to boil water to wash up. As I said we won't be going back.

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