Wet Weather Camping: Keep Your Tent Dry

Brad Sanderson · April 23, 2021 · 5 min read

How do you stay dry camping in the rain? In a hammock tent, pitch the rainfly first, hang the tent under it, angle the fly ends down and guy them out, and keep some ventilation open to limit condensation. In a ground tent, pick high, well-drained ground, put a groundsheet under the tent with its edges tucked in, and rig a tarp over the top in heavy rain. Standard Haven rainflies are rated to 4,000 mm of water pressure; the Haven Spectre's mesh hammock body isn't waterproof, so it relies on its rainfly.

A little rain never hurt anyone during the day, but to me, the difference between a fun campout and a dreary, miserable one is being able to return to a dry, clean tent at the end of the day.

Growing up in Washington State, wet weather was just part of camping. If you waited for perfect warm, sunny weather you'd basically never go. Whether you're spring camping or live somewhere with a lot of rain, these tips will help keep you and your gear dry.

Staying dry in a hammock tent

Hanging off the ground removes your biggest point of contact with moisture: there's no floor sitting on wet ground, and rain runs off underneath you instead of pooling. You still need a good rainfly pitch. Here's the order I use with a Haven:

Rainfly first. If it's already raining, hang the rainfly before the tent body so the tent goes up under cover. The rainfly can stay attached to the tent between trips, which makes this quicker (attaching the rainfly).
Angle the ends down and guy them out. Use the included guylines and stakes so water sheds away from you, and use the sliding tensioners rather than static cord on the corner toggles (guyline tips).
Make a front porch. Guy one side out wider to make a covered area for taking off muddy shoes.
Lock it down for storms. When a storm rolls in, undo the fly loops and batten the rainfly down to the corner toggles on the hammock body (how).
Keep some airflow. Moisture inside the fly is almost always condensation, not a leak. Leave the downwind side a little open when you can (condensation vs leaks, and our post on managing condensation).

Man hanging a hammock with bug net between two trees

Blue lay flat hammock tent with bug net and rainfly

For more cover in long, wet stretches, the Haven Camp Fly is our biggest rainfly and has its own storm mode. When the rain clears, roll the fly up and use Stargazer Mode to keep the bug net closed.

Blue lay flat camping hammock with bug net and rainfly

Staying dry in a ground tent

1. Read the ground

Look at the place where you want to pitch your tent. Is the ground already wet? Are leaves or pine needles holding moisture? Is the spot lower than the area around it? If it starts to rain, where will the water naturally flow?

Wet spot on the ground in the woods

In this picture the ground has two channels. One runs to the right and down into the river, and the other runs up through the trees, then right and back to the river. The circled area is a slight depression collecting water, which makes it a poor place to set up. The area to the left is the high ground, and you can see it's drier.

Tent on the ground outdoors

Pitch on higher ground or somewhere that absorbs less water. On saturated ground, moisture can wick up through the tent floor, especially around the edges, and in a real downpour you can end up with an inch of water around the base. Trust me, it's not fun. I set this tent up on the higher ground from the first picture, between the two channels, which kept it out of the worst of the mud.

2. Bring a tarp or two

tarp on the ground for camping

A tarp under the tent adds another barrier against water coming up from below. Fold any part of the tarp that sticks out back underneath the tent. If you don't, the exposed edge catches rain and channels it under the tent, where it soaks you and your gear.

Man adjusting a tarp beneath a tent while camping

In very heavy rain a tent's rainfly can be overwhelmed and start to drip inside. A second tarp pitched over the tent keeps you drier, and if it's big enough it makes a porch where you can take off shoes and wet gear before going inside. Tie a rope between two trees above the tent and stake the tarp out with guylines through its eyelets, or lay it directly over the tent and stake it down. Either way, give it an angle so water runs off instead of pooling. You don't want to be underneath when a pool of water pulls the tarp down!

If it's raining while you set up, put the tarp up first so the tent stays dry until the rainfly is on.

Man setting up a rainfly on a camping hammock tent

3. Bring a trowel (where it's allowed)

Early in my scouting days I learned that you don't always get to pick the best campsite. Sometimes you have to camp in a small gully, or you know a big storm is coming. Scouts used to dig a shallow trench to guide water around the tent. Today, Leave No Trace guidance and many campgrounds discourage or prohibit trenching, so check the rules first and use it only as a last resort on a site that will recover. If you do: find where water will flow in first, start there, and make the trench gradually deeper toward where the water will flow out, so it carries water around your tent and past your camp.

Digging a trench around camping tent to stay dry

When the rain won't stop

No shelter is perfect in every storm. Wind-driven rain and multi-day storms are hard on any setup, and a fully enclosed ground tent is the better choice if you expect to sit out long stretches of bad weather (see when ground tents win). Whatever you sleep in, pack it dry when you can. If you have to pack a Haven wet, take it out and dry it fully at home before storing it, ideally in the sun with the rainfly and pad removed (cleaning and drying).

Choosing between a hammock tent and a ground tent for wet trips? See Hammock Tent vs Tent in Rain and Wind.

Don't let the rain keep you from enjoying the outdoors. See how a lay-flat outdoor sleep system works, or find your Haven.

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