Caribou drop camp tent

[badlander]

Booking a drop camp Caribou hunt for 2023 and looking at tent options. I've looked in to some of the services and transporters that offer a rental gear kit but after many years of DIY hunts I already own most of the gear these services supply and without the gear we get 80# each so we can spread the gear out in our individual kits easily and pick up fuel canisters etc... up there.

I am looking at tent options for up there however. I have a Cabela's Alaskan dome tent which seems to be what many of the rental outfits offer but they are heavy and offer no heat. I am considering purchasing a tipi tent - probably seek outdoors redcliff or 6 person tipi.

Have any of you been up there? What did use? The tipi with stove is lighter than the dome, has heat, no floor but could bring a floor liner. I know wood isn't everywhere up there but I am told enough brush etc... can be scrounged around the rivers and pockets to help heat up, dry things out if wet etc....

Let me know what worked for you, or what you wish you would have done differently. Thanks!!

**edit Mid September timeframe

 

[Schaaf]

For that time of year I don’t think the stove is worth bringing.

I used a Hilleberg Nallo and my buddy was in a Stone Glacier tent.

 

[badlander]

For that time of year I don’t think the stove is worth bringing.

I used a Hilleberg Nallo and my buddy was in a Stone Glacier tent.

Without the stove, would you consider a tipi/floor liner a viable option? I have a wall tent, the alaskan, and a Stone glacier sky air for solo backpacking. If I am going to buy one, I was looking to fill a niche that I don't have with a backpackable hot tent for late season spike camps.

 

[justdada]

Having been snowed in, on an August caribou hunt in the Brooks, I'd say a stove is a good idea for September... what part of the state are you looking into?

 

[Trial153]

I like having a stove in Alaska, providing your in an area that has sufficient wood. There is plenty of places that it would be nothing but added weight as enough fuel to make it worth while isnt around.
Last August two of us used a Kifaru Sawtooth and Medium Seekoutside U turn stove.
Some cold nights it was very welcome.

 

[badlander]

Trial - that looks awesome! Is that an enlightened equipment bag/quilt?

Did the floorless shelter give you any issues?

Ive spent time on Kodiak, and I know what kinds of winds and rains Alaska is capable of. I also know that in bad conditions being wet could get dangerous so the trade offs between a bathtub floor and dry interior vs a tipi/floor liner and the small potential of water inside with gear lying on the ground gives me a small amount of pause.

JustDada - Kotzebue

 

[Trial153]

Trial - that looks awesome! Is that an enlightened equipment bag/quilt?

Did the floorless shelter give you any issues?

Ive spent time on Kodiak, and I know what kinds of winds and rains Alaska is capable of. I also know that in bad conditions being wet could get dangerous so the trade offs between a bathtub floor and dry interior vs a tipi/floor liner and the small potential of water inside with gear lying on the ground gives me a small amount of pause.

JustDada - Kotzebue

Yes it is. I took a 20 degree synthetic quilt for this trip.

No the floorless didnt give us any issue at all. I have been using floorless for a lot of years, so I tend to avoid the very few pitfalls that come with it. No issues with the shelter on this trip at all. I would have liked to bring a larger shelter however weight considerations prevented it. Also in honestly a bigger foot print might have an issue finding a suitable flat spot that wasn't tundra

 

[badlander]

I’ve got the same quilt, recognized the camo pattern. First year using it, wound up with 6” of snow using it for archery opener in MT and it worked well. I’m used to the floorless in my wall tent and don’t worry too much about it there.

Did you look at the SO Tipis at all, any reason you went Kifaru over seek?

I don’t have opportunity to put hands on both, just reading reviews and looking at options. There are a few options SO offers that have me leaning that way, but it’s not a strong lean yet. I’ve read a bunch of threads here and at other forums and it seems mostly to be 6 of one vs half dozen of the other conversations.

 

[Bambistew]

Mid September, I'd bring a stove if you can. September can be cold and wet. Life will be much more enjoyable with a little heat. If the tipi is small(ish) bring a small backpacking tent to throw gear/food in. I have a Cabelas dome tent and use it for truck camping. Its like 40lbs and not that great of a tent and wouldn't take it on a fly out trip due to weight.

Floorless tents work fine, but it can be a challenge sometimes finding a spot that's dry (not a lot of moss), flat and out of the wind. The spots with less vegetation are usually windy... Sometimes you just have to settle. With a floor you can sometimes live with a little moss/sponge. Pitching out in the moss can be tough to keep stakes in the ground as well. It could be dry with 8-10" of moss/duff that won't hold stakes. bring a few longer stakes, and put big rocks over them all.

The wet ground can be an issue with condensation, just have to manage appropriately.

You can probably find some "wood" to burn about anywhere, but the wood you may find will burn about as as well as a crumpled up wet newspaper. So stock up and get it dried out and keep it dry. Bring a tarp, a good saw and a hatchet. Alder and willow burn like shit. If you have spare weight, toss in some fire logs, and bring fire starter sticks. They are nice to have when wood is wet, or hard to find.

Good luck with planning. Its not really that different from any other remote hunt in the L48, other than there is no going to town if you forget something.

 

[Trial153]

I’ve got the same quilt, recognized the camo pattern. First year using it, wound up with 6” of snow using it for archery opener in MT and it worked well. I’m used to the floorless in my wall tent and don’t worry too much about it there.

Did you look at the SO Tipis at all, any reason you went Kifaru over seek?

I don’t have opportunity to put hands on both, just reading reviews and looking at options. There are a few options SO offers that have me leaning that way, but it’s not a strong lean yet. I’ve read a bunch of threads here and at other forums and it seems mostly to be 6 of one vs half dozen of the other conversations.

I had access to a SO Cimarron and my Sawtooth...they only real reason I picked the sawtooth was because it was larger. Owned shelters from both of them and there isnt any real difference in materials or quality.
I would take which is laid out and the size you want.

 

[brownbear932008]

If your headed to the North slope more than likely you will not have firewood available. The spot we dropped in was pretty much just tundra and no trees. I would also use a floor of some type unless your taking lightweight cots. Everything is wet up there, mid Sept in the tundra could be pretty cold. We hunted first week of Sept because we wanted to avoid velvet bulls. It's an experience of a lifetime love bou hunting. I'd love to go back.

 

[badlander]

If your headed to the North slope more than likely you will not have firewood available. The spot we dropped in was pretty much just tundra and no trees. I would also use a floor of some type unless your taking lightweight cots. Everything is wet up there, mid Sept in the tundra could be pretty cold. We hunted first week of Sept because we wanted to avoid velvet bulls. It's an experience of a lifetime love bou hunting. I'd love to go back.

We will be in GMU 23 so South Slope - a few of the people I have talked to said that there was at least some brush around and up/down the rivers and although not going to stack firewood that they found enough to warm up at night and dry out wet clothes a bit.

 

[AlaskaHunter]

Even on the north slope on larger rivers you should be able to find enough dead willow/alder for a warming fire.

 

[OldSnort]

Yes it is. I took a 20 degree synthetic quilt for this trip.

No the floorless didnt give us any issue at all. I have been using floorless for a lot of years, so I tend to avoid the very few pitfalls that come with it. No issues with the shelter on this trip at all. I would have liked to bring a larger shelter however weight considerations prevented it. Also in honestly a bigger foot print might have an issue finding a suitable flat spot that wasn't tundra

He is dead on about finding a flat spot.

 

[OldSnort]

We will be in GMU 23 so South Slope - a few of the people I have talked to said that there was at least some brush around and up/down the rivers and although not going to stack firewood that they found enough to warm up at night and dry out wet clothes a bit.

The nice thing about having some heat is being able to dry your cloths because you will get wet.

 

[BZNHNTR]

Used a big Agnes flying diamond on a north slope float trip, great in between backpack and truck camp tent that could handle wind but I don’t think they make them anymore, available equivalents I could find would be mountaineering base camp tents. I prefer a floor when it’s wet but many are happy without.