[pct-l] tent stakes

Sat Apr 9 07:59:44 CDT 2011

Thank you for that extremely in-depth answer, Steel-eye. I'll be tarping, so
I also have more options for tie-outs/stakes. I hope to cowboy camp most of
the time, of course. I'll probably stick to my cheap round stakes (actually
some are the skewer type, I have a mismatched set) rather than take my V
stakes, which are both shorter and heavier. Or, maybe I'll further mix and
match, and take a few of both. I need 2 round ones as a pot support in my
hobo stove, so I'm a little stuck on that.

On Sat, Apr 9, 2011 at 7:07 AM, CHUCK CHELIN <steeleye at wildblue.net> wrote:

> Good morning, Brandon,
>
> Ten-times the holding power of a Y-shaped stake vs. a traditional, round
> cross-section, skewer-type stake is a bit of an experienced-based
> guesstimate but not without some logical basis.  The best general-case
> definition of a stake’s holding potential – given equal length – is its
> projected width:  The wider the stake, the more soil it will engage, and
> the more load it will accept.  The Y-shape, Go-Lite stakes that I often
> use have a projected width of 0.51 inches.  The diameter – read width – of
> skewer-type stakes varies quite a bit by model and manufacturer, but on the
> small side the ultra-lite models have a material diameter of 0.07 inches.
> That’s a width advantage of about 7.3:1 for the Y-stake.
>
> I expect a V-shaped stake of appropriate width would do every bit as well
> as a Y-shape, but some of the ultra-lite V-stakes I’ve seen seem to be of
> rather thin material and may collapse or bend when pushed, and would be
> subsequently difficult to straighten.  I wouldn’t trust any but those made
> of good titanium alloy.
>
> What I find is that greater width offers a disproportionate increase in
> practical holding power, apparently because such is more likely to engage
> soil irregularities such as pebbles, rootlets, etc. while the very thin
> stakes may knife-through -- or around -- any such irregularities, reducing
> their apparent engagement.  How great this effect may be will depend upon
> the soil makeup, but I estimate the advantage to move from about 7:1 up to
> 10:1.
>
> In actual on-trail practice I don’t find the difference is that pronounced
> because I rarely rely upon pure soil engagement for stake holding power.  If/when
> I do pitch my shelter I don’t stake it directly to the ground:  I use
> tie-out cords.  In the even-more-rare event I use a tent I have short
> tie-out cords on the normal peripheral tent-side loops. The result is I
> don’t have to install a stake where the profile of the shelter or tent
> dictates; I have many options of anchor types and stake location.
>
> If I don’t like how a stake feels when I push it in the ground, I just move
> it till I’m satisfied.  Most often I first look for natural features to
> anchor my tie-outs, and my tie-out cords are fairly long to allow a good
> choice.  I look for limbs, bushes, roots, rocks, down-fall timber, etc.  The
> stakes are used as a last-resort: That’s why I usually only carry about 4 of
> them.
>
> Most often I try to push the stake in just past something resistant such as
> a rock or a root.  If, as it often happens, I push the stake in a short
> distance and feel an object, I just probe the ground further away to try to
> get behind the object for much better holding power.  In desert country a
> valuable anchor can be bunch grass which commonly grows in clumps on
> otherwise bare sand/dirt.  These tight little grass communities have a
> good root system and a fairly tough surface mat to accept a stake – of any
> kind.
>
> Rocks are a good anchor, but often it’s difficult to tie a cord to a rock.
> I sometimes pile rocks on top of an installed stake, but most often I loop
> the cord around the center of a stick or a stake, place it flat and
> crosswise on the ground, then pile rocks on top.
>
> Another personal reason I like the Y-stakes is because, being larger, they
> are much more easily noticed on the ground.  Skinny skewer stakes –
> particularly those made of gray, low-luster titanium -- have an unfortunate
> way of disappearing in plain sight.  To reduce this probability I add some
> color to the tops, such a small piece of orange plastic flagging, or paint.
> At the Kick-Off Mr. Switchback offers a stake-painting service which I
> recommend.
>
> Steel-Eye
>
> Hiking the Pct since before it was the PCT – 1965
>
> http://www.trailjournals.com/steel-eye
>
> http://www.trailjournals.com/SteelEye09
>
>
>  On Fri, Apr 8, 2011 at 5:43 PM, Brandon McGinnity <bmcginnity at gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> Is that true, Steel-Eye, that Y shaped stakes have 10x the holding power
>> of a round stake? How do V shaped ones compare, do you think?
>>
>>
>>
>>  On Fri, Apr 8, 2011 at 6:14 PM, CHUCK CHELIN <steeleye at wildblue.net>wrote:
>>
>>>  Good afternoon, White Jeep,
>>>
>>> http://www.trailjournals.com/entry.cfm?id=263806
>>>
>>>  Steel-Eye
>>>
>>> Hiking the Pct since before it was the PCT – 1965
>>>
>>> http://www.trailjournals.com/steel-eye
>>>
>>> http://www.trailjournals.com/SteelEye09
>>>
>>>
>>> On Fri, Apr 8, 2011 at 3:57 PM, David Lippke <lippke.list at gmail.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> > My wife and I are here staring at our collective pile of tent stakes
>>> > wondering how to divide them up (since we are mostly camping
>>> separately)
>>> > and
>>> > which ones to leave behind.
>>> >
>>> > What type or mix of stake types do you experienced PCT hikers bring?
>>> Do
>>> > you bring two full sets of different types?   Just several more than a
>>> full
>>> > set so that you have a mix?   Just enough of some type and simply deal
>>> with
>>> > the misfit situations as they come up?    Inquiring minds want to know.
>>> >
>>> > Thanks much,
>>> >     David - White Jeep
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>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> ~ Moccasin
>>
>>
>

-- 
~ Moccasin