Having arrived without stakes again, I have decided to keep the stakes in the top of my pack and not depend on them being in the bag. It was fun to whittle stakes fer sure and pound em in with a rock, but some of the staking rings are pretty tiny.
So if you have multiple tents, bivys, hammocks, does each have its own stakes or do you just carry 6 stakes?
Jim
_________________________
These are my own opinions based on wisdom earned through many wrong decisions. Your mileage may vary.
I am fortunate that I almost never need stakes. I can tie off to trees, roots, rocks, etc... The occasional time I do need a stake or 2, I push a stick into the ground. No need to whittle or pound for me. I am fortunate I know. When I travel to an unknown terrain I have a separate stake bag. This gets packed with my other "sharps".
I wonder how many tent or other staked devices you may own and whether each is in its original bag with its original stakes?
I am down to 3 or 4 backpacking tents and a mosquito screen tent. I like the Antique Easton Aluminum stakes and since I only have about 8 left, I just assigned 6 of them to the top pocket of my pack. Now all I need in the tent sak is poles.
I also have a beautiful pair of Koa wood chopsticks [in my pack] that I bought in Hawaii. I've carried them for years but never used them. They would make fine stakes but I can't bring myself to do it. Somehow the Titanium fork and spoon cover everything, but if I was taking some take-out Chinease food they would be perfect. Jim
_________________________
These are my own opinions based on wisdom earned through many wrong decisions. Your mileage may vary.
Some of the tents I don't use (but are occasional loaners) I have stakes with them , the ones I do I add the stakes I want to take as I pack. So I choose the mix I take according to the ground I expect to find. (14 tents, well over 100 stakes...) Franco
I have two tents and well over 100 stakes. For some reason, I have a knack for seeing stakes that were driven in and then left behind by other campers. Part of my LNT drill is to take the abandoned stakes with me when I leave. When I hiked the JMT, I started with 8 stakes and finished with 14. I also choose stakes for the ground that I anticipate encountering: I have some 6" steel gutter spikes for some of the camp sites in the Grand Canyon.
I never understood how people leave stakes behind. I'm probably overly obsessive (or, as one buddy put it, "tight-***"), but I know how many stakes I put in, and I count them as I pull them out the next morning.
But I have brought home my share of others' abandoned stakes, too.
Our long-time Sponsor, BackcountryGear.com - The leading source for ultralite/lightweight outdoor gear:
Affiliate Disclaimer: This forum is an affiliate of BackcountryGear.com, Amazon.com, R.E.I. and others. The product links herein are linked to their sites. If you follow these links to make a purchase, we may get a small commission. This is our only source of support for these forums. Thanks.!