Camping with a group as a kid, there was one girl my friends kept making fun of. We were all sleeping outside in our bags, but a heavy rain caught us off-guard, and we only had one small tent. The girl's dad, without a word just pulled out a tarp and made an A-frame with a ground mat. I shared it with another kid and it kept us warm and dry. We learned mad respect for that guy...and respect for his kid by association.

Holy crap Batman! I can’t believe I watched this great video again but each time I get something new. I’ve been setting up and sleeping under this Coalcracker 8x8 for over a year now and I thought I would give you an update. It’s getting better and better the more I use it. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and expertise and producing a great product.

Awesome video for a camping neophyte like me! 0:30 Plow Point 1:23 Plow Point Diamont Fold 2:01 Lean-to 2:53 C-Frame Lean-to 3:37 A-Frame 4:19 Coffin A-Frame 5:03 A-Frame with Fly 5:49 A-Frame with Ground Mat 6:36 Fly 7:01 Bivy

The last one, the Bivy, was what most of us used in Vietnam with our poncho and poncho liners. Even getting soaked in the monsoons, as long as we stayed wrapped up, we would be warm, wrinkly by morning, but warm.

I'm so happy to have found your channel to learn so much.

I’ve used tarps from Cooke Custom Sewing for a tad over 25 years. No grommets, many tie down loops around edges and across center, color and material options, I like them as a good choice. Courtesy of Half Vast Flying

I'm partial to the plow point. So simple with very good coverage.

I've been watching a lot of videos concidering tarp setups. Yours is one if not the most efficient, quick and informative video without any BS. I love the setup Variations and how you mention the Ups and Downs to every single one of them. Compressed and important Information. Job well done!

Best video in months. Huge bounty of knowledge condensed down in a nice format

Darn, Dan ... 10 possible life savers in 10 mins. Outstanding. Thanks. God bless. And right now I'm too old at 72 to stay in the woods. I'm doing chemo and radiation. But still trying to prep some for SHTF. So thanks.

With a rectangle tarp, create a 3 sided pyramid and the excess few feet becomes a dry tarp portion inside the pyramid. Need a 9x12 tarp, pole about 4ft , 4 tent spikes minimum but 6 is better . Totally closed and wind/rain protected. Best for cold conditions to maintain body heat. Great video ,thank you!

Finally 100k subscriptions - You deserve it....

I don't see how people discount a tarp's usefulness as multi functional piece of gear. Thanks, Prof.

I keep one of the pos blue tarps in my van. put it over the hatchback and got a sick shelter! Camping with steve sent me.

Thank you my life in the bush can be so much more comfortable when I learn these set up I will be back Kevin NZ

a commercial that does not seem to be a commercial? Very effective!

One of the best videos I have seen on Tarps..........................

This is the best shelter demonstration video I have seen. Thank you Dan!

Finally, my incessant refreshing of the Coalcracker website can subside a little, now that the tarps have been posted!!! Looking forward to that mail call in a few weeks!

As someone in this niche with spinal cord injury tarp camping is where its at! Easy setup and half or less the weight of a tent!! Great videos Dan! Love the channel!

All the essential info w/o a lot of chit chat. Thanks for lots of info and examples in just a few minutes.

I like that you put so much Information in such a Short Video. Greetings from Germany!

TARPS, my personal choice since giving up tents 20 yrs ago...very versatile....Thnx my friend...👊💯

Love your videos!!! I love making primitive tools and such!!! So happy to see others enjoy all things bushcraft!!!!

Great video as always! A couple of approaches/mods that I hadn’t tried before, so thanks! My go-to from younger years of backpacking is a variation of the flying wedge , i guess. Simply stake the back corners of a square tarp, then secure midpoint of the elevated side and suspend it about waist high. (Tree or hiking staff work fine. )This leaves two triangles flapping about. On starry nights I flop them onto the top with cordage attached to the corners. I can then have a fire to front or either side depending on conditions. If I need covered, I just pull the flaps together by pulling the dangling cordage and join them at the base of the hiking staff then stick a peg in the corner grommets. I don’t even have to get out of my sleeping bag! Seals out wind and rain from any direction. On your 8x8 it gives 32 sq ft even buttoned down. Either flap can be adjusted from fully stored above or as a fly or anything in between. Thanks again for your incredible videos! I never want to miss them.

Added this to my liked vids. This presentation combined more useful information, more efficiently and effectively than any other KZfaq video I can recall! Hats off to the professor!

I’m a tarp guy. You’re a good teacher. A square tarp is best, in my humble opinion. Texas

Third time watching this. I had to because I just got my 8x8 tarp from you guys. The first time I watched it I checked out the tarp. Hmm. The second time I watched it I ordered one. I just got it today and the quality is amazing, so I had to watch it again. And again and again! Thanks Dan

After decades of 3x3m tarps I’ve loved the added floor with 3x3 room of the 3x4.5m tarp .. worth every gram

Thanks Dan.

I monitor your channel to learn things from you, that sometimes, ur not discussing directly, while explaining other things in detail. I like that u told th weight of this oil cloth, also, that it could be a bit darker, for camo. Needs. But all in all, u gave a good presentation for th different tarp/tent setups. Thanks Dan.!! Good job. Good Educator too.

Thanks for walking thorough these options and rationale for each.

When I was in the army by far the most common I used was simply a sleeping bag right on my tarp with the tarp rolled over me. It saved me many times by keeping my sleeping bag dry while every one else had a wet sleeping bag.

I like a 10'x10' square tarp. I have two. One has 19 attachment points the other only 8. Even the one with eight attachment points is very configurable especially since I take a long a handful of tarp clips. I like the plow point, a low A-frame for stealth, a Holden configuration, the tarp tent and an enclosed pyramid shelter. I will occasionally use a baker or gunyah configuration. You've probably guessed by now that I really like a tarp and that I'm a frustrated architect 😅

10/10 - comprehensive + mercifully succinct

Well now I feel foolish. I just watched your video “This wilderness shelter tip lets you to get the most out of any tarp shelter.” Exactly what I was thinking. Well done! 👍

Great video. Always having a tarp with you is the best and fastest way to get a shelter up in any situation. A lot better and easier than making a shelter from natural materials. Thanks for sharing.

The best part about that last one is it's extremely fast and effective. In fact the reason I got into tarp shelters is because I've been rolling up in tarps for a few years and decided to take things more seriously.

Thanks for making gear that actually lasts!! That tarp is the real deal

This was a super cool video. I really like how you layed this out and clearly demonstrated how they were setup. I will have o do something like this in the future.

My go to has been the Holden tent

Tarp looked very well constructed! I also like the Adirondack shelter, the Diamond fly for hammock camping and the tarp tent using a trekking pole or tying one of the middle loops. Square tarps are indeed super versatile!

Very nice! I love the videos! I have a lot of training, but I still learn something new every time I watch a video.

Tarps are the best. Thanks for demonstrating some of the configurations. Very nice tarp.

Hi Dan. The best I have yet to see - thanks. ATB. Stay safe. Nigel

For extreme weather, I like the pea-pod tarp/ hammock bivy.

Love that tarp. Will last a good long time if looked after

I went solo backpacking in the Rockies last summer, and at first I used a lean-to configuration, but I found that it didn't do a good job of retaining body heat when the temperature dropped in the thin mountain air at night. (Fire use was heavily restricted, so I couldn't rely on radiant heat from that.) I switched to an A-frame with ground pad configuration for the latter half of my trip and was way more comfortable!

Nicely done! Once you start carrying a tarp and get comfortable with it I'm not sure why anyone would buy a tent. 👍👌✌

Sadly, this video is not going to get the views or recognition it deserves. Fantastic video and info!

Awesome video. Lots of setups to practise! New subscriber here! Cheers, from the Netherlands

Need To Get Me One Of Them Tarps

I got an old soviet tarp like thing which is a raincoat as well

We have a 9 x 12 tarp. Make it into a triangle so all sides are covered (ridgeline down each side, fold excess under the upside down V or U.) Other intent was to make a simple upside down V, high enough to string a hammock underneath it. Keeps you dry and keeps most of the crawling bugs off you.

This is a high quality video 🤠 I have a dd 10 ft also with magic carpet XL

So glad I stumbled across your channel. Love learning with you.! Keep the content coming, please.

Great tips. Thanks. All setups of square tarp with a ridge line, that I have watched, show configurations with the centre seam loops aligned with the ridge line. Have you considered rotating the tarp 90 degrees, use the front, back and centre loops to attach to the ridge line, and tie the remaining centre seam loops on the sides to other trees to provide additional headroom?

Great information to know. Appreciate you showing all the different setups with one tarp! Thanks a lot! 👍👍

Just wanted to say thx for all the videos and sharing your wealth of knowledge, I've been meaning/wanting to learn this kind of stuff for quite a while, as someone who likes to spend time in the outdoors and wants to be able to be self sufficient and prepared for a potential survival situation these videos are extremely helpful and informative.

I love people who can just go out with a tarp and a knife and thrive wherever they lay their head. That's impressive. I live in the UK. I think there's maybe 3 places left here where you could get lost! Yorkshire moors, Breacon Beacon, maybe Thetford forest? Even then, you'll usually find a fence or a path. Which lead to civilisation. I'd like to have the skills though.

Congratulations on 100k subscriptions!!!!!!

For decades I've always suggested hikers pack a 6'x6' tarp as safety gear. It's pack volume and weigh is nothing. But, the advantages in an unplanned situation? Priceless! Rain protection, rain water gathering, tent, shelter, shade, blanket, windbreak, and the list goes on and on and on. To say I'm stunned when folks on the Internet offer hiking gear advice and skip this oh-so-versatile piece of kit? Well, they shouldn't be offering advice.

The plow point and a space blanket on the ground is my favorite.

OUTSTANDING! Thank You!

Now! That is a proper tarp!

I like doing a really low plow point. It conceals well and I like how your basically covered all around except for one side

I like to use it as you called it 'coffin'. I'd say it looks more like 'turned over boat'. I like its secureness.

To quote Huey Lewis, "It's hip to be square."

I've been using tarps for long as I can remember..I love them and super easy to put up and especially when the weather turns for the worst. I loved this video, gave me a couple of new ways to use them.

Man, I love this channel. Thanks.

Great info and clear, concise presentation. Nice work.

My favorite is the adirondack tarp shelter. It can be opened to the fire or closed to the weather.

I'm gonna go check out that tarp... Thx!

Hello my outdoors friend, thank you for sharing this very informative video. All the best to you. 🤗

One thing you should consider is going 1 size up to a 10 X 10 if you need a little more room. I know, it adds more weight. Another thing to consider is adding an Army rain poncho to give additional protection. Just my 2 cents worth.

Had success with this: Line from tree to ground, about 2’ high at the tree, forming something similar to the coffin, but the foot of the shelter is at ground level. Cover draped over the line held on by clothespins. Tree blocked wind from entrance, and everything else by the cover. Condensation runs down and away.

That looks like a nice tarp Dan. Thanks and take care.

I am a backpacker just getting into bushcrafting. I have a 1P tent that weighs less than a pound and a half, and I can cast it anywhere the ground allows stakes. It’s tarptent style so it has good breathability, no real condensation problems. I’ve taken it through a torrential thunderstorm, kept me dry until the hail came. Luckily, morning was breaking. I see 3 advantages to an oil tarp: 1. Setting up a fire for warmth (something I usually don’t need in CA) 2. Casting where ground doesn’t take stakes (but requires trees, something I don’t always have in CA) 3. Affordability Outside of that, I’m having a hard time being persuaded to carry a 6LB tarp over my 1.5 tent. What am I missing?

Might actually try out that A Frame w/ Ground Mat. I'm a shorter guy so it should work pretty well. Also, congrats on 100k!!

That is a heavy tarp!

Thank you for posting today.

Great suggestions.

Love my oilskin tarp from Coalcracker Bushcraft

Nice one , a tarp is so versatile, as you showed excellent video , as usual 👍 take it easy Mr Coalcracket

Very nice, thank you! Can't wait to get a tarp and start experimenting.

"The coffin" set up is one I haven't seen, at least in that exact configuration. Gonna try that one out!

That was great. Thanks so much, Dan. Time to get out and practice!

most excellent examples on trap uses and their names. Thanks so very Much.

Awesome video man!!

i loved this video

Fantastic resource! Thanks for the DND, fast motion info.

Thank you for all your knowledge, I will look at oil tarps and get a couple. Love your channel be safe thanks again..

Thanks, Dan.

Wow your plaid game is strong, that's one beautiful shirt.

Great video, thanks.

As always, really great tips. Thank you.

Excelente video irmão! Obrigado por compartilhar seu conhecimento! Vc me ensinou muito! Obrigado! Abraços do Brazil!!

Haven’t watched yet but I can tell already this one is going to be really good!! Thanks Dan!!!

Nice video.. Congratulations on reaching 100k subscribers

Dan, you’re one of the best teachers I’ve seen among the bush crafters on KZfaq. I hike more than camp. I’ve been a tarp guy for many years. I wonder why you bush craft instructors seem to go for the canvas tarps. Yes, they aren’t damaged as easily by sparks; but, I usually cook on a stove. If I have a fire, it’s in a Solo Campfire and small. Normally campfires are just too big, require too much wood and leave too much mess. I know you’re an experienced hiker. Now, I may truck camp with a canvas tarp and it’s big, big enough to park my truck under. Do you hike with canvas tarps? Texas