I'm interested in getting an enclosed floorless shelter for my dog and I that only uses 1 trekking pole (or 1 trekking pole and a stick). I was hoping to keep the weight under a pound and the price decent (less than about $150). And I'd like it to be mostly enclosed to reduce the temptation of chasing wildlife for my dog and to reduce my need for a bivy.

I've really been looking at the Gatewood Cape and am finding conflicting views on the amount of usable space within it. I'm 5'6'' and my dog is 50 lbs. Think we'd have enough room? My dog typically sleeps in a ball right next to me. I rarely experience rain, but I want it to work when it does rain. I've also looked at the Integral Designs Silshelter, but have read it's difficult to get a taught pitch. Any other suggestions? Would a large tarp pitched close to the ground in some way be my best option?

MLD's Trailstar and Duomid would easily fit most of the bill. Trailstar is a touch over $150, Duomid a bit over $150. But both plenty of room and can be easily pitched with one pole.

Thanks for the suggestions, Doug. Do you think the Solo Trailstar would be big enough? I can't find many good pictures showing different pitches of it. Or would I need to go with the larger Trailstar Shelter?

Check out one of Eugene Smith's trip reports. He has a shot with four or five guys in his Trailstar...

Edited by ChrisHanson on 06/16/2011 20:38:54 MDT.

I think the solo Trailstar would be big enough, though your pup might get spray in a harder rain. But the regular Trailstar would give you lots of spreading out room for not much weight penalty. At only $14 more dollars, I think it's the better value.

The Trailstar Shelter definitely looks big enough and plenty storm-worthy. I really like the weight and footprint size of the Solo Trailstar though. Is there any reason to go with the Solo Trailstar over the Gatewood Cape?

"Is there any reason to go with the Solo Trailstar over the Gatewood Cape?"

I can't really answer that question, as I've never used a Gatewood Cape. Owned one once, long time ago, but never even set it up before I sold it.

John,

Do a search on Google Images for the Gatewood Cape or the Wild Oasis, it might help you decide if there is enough room.
Even though there may be enough floor room the wall angles and height may make things tight for the inevitable "circling" and moving around before laying down. I have a Tarptent Rainbow for the dog and I, it works, the floor is: 40"wide x 8.5' long which is about the solomid size I think. Thinking of Duomid or Speedmid in the future though.

+1 for the Trailstar. Keep in mind that while you don't have to have 2 poles for a TS, it does make it easier to have a door, especially in an area w/o any trees to guy out to.

If you want a 1P shelter and take the dog only occasionally/rarely, I think the Solo TS, Gateway Cape or similar-size tarp would be fine. You might be cramped a few nights of the year, but you could put up with that.

If you take the dog almost every trip and really want a 1P+ shelter, then the minimal extra weight of a larger shelter is worth it. The TS does have a large footprint, but I've set it up in PNW forests w/o too much trouble. The nice thing about the TS is that each point can be set up at slightly different heights if needed. This is how, in fact, the TS gets a "door" by staking one point out high, usually with a trekking pole or around a tree. A pyramid (just guessing, I haven't used one), however, likely needs to be staked at a fairly even rectangle, with each corner at the same height.

Most of the single pole shelters seem to be pyramids or similar, but if you are open to bringing 2 poles (either trekking or tent-style poles), there are some good designs that would meet your needs, like the SMD Haven. Just a thought.

Well from most of the images I found, it looks like the Gatewood Cape would have enough floor area, but I can't really tell about wall height. Right now I'm thinking I'll buy one to try it out, and if it doesn't work, then try a Trailstar. My dog comes on most of my trips and I only use one trekking pole (if at all), so I'd rather not bring an extra pole unless necessary.

FWIW, a Contrail feels really room with my dog in it. And as a side note, dog fur rubbing against silynylon can apparently build up huge amounts of static electricity.

Once the dog finds he can lift the side of a floorless tent or tarp you might have to stake a lease

My dog, (55lbs), and I fit in the gatewood cape pretty well. I am 5'7".

Alright, thanks for the input every one! I ordered a Gatewood Cape this morning and hope to try it out next weekend. Hopefully I'll remember to come back and post an update and some pictures showing how it does. I'll definitely be leashing my dog to something...probably either myself or her dog backpack stuffed with rocks and/or water.

I like the dog pack stuffed with rocks idea I have not considered a floorless shelter b4 because of past experience trying to get a dog to stay in a vestibule.there is so much amazing stuff to see and smell in the wilderness. My dogs are gentle animals but liked to slide out under the edge and the weight penelty for a stake capible of holding even my 30# kids wanting that squirrel is heavy

OP ordered, but I bought a Bear paw Cub Den 1.5. Here is my review:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=47924&disable_pagination=1

It was actually originally designed to house a hiker and his dog....it's huge for a solo hiker and my GF and I could fit in here. I can fit 2 x 20in wide sleeping pads.

GL with the purchase though!

@ Mark: My dog only tries to chase squirrels (or any other moving thing) when she has a good view of the outside. If she's enclosed, she'll be passed out the whole night. This will be my first floorless shelter though. Before, I've always kept my dog inside a tent with me. She seems to have no idea that she can't run through netting, so I think it will feel pretty much the same to her. I use the "backpack full of rocks" idea to keep her around when in camp and it works pretty well, so I'm confident it will work at night too. The full coverage provided by the Gatewood Cape should help out a lot too.

@ Bryce: I looked at the Cub Den (the cuben fiber version is surprisingly affordable), but it looks like it needs two poles to set up. I could carry an extra tent pole, but then that's extra cost and extra weight and I'd lose the ability to adjust its height. If the Cape doesn't work out, then it would definitely be one to consider though. Could you set it up using one trekking pole on the inside and then doing a clove hitch with a stick on the outside?

Here is my full album with more pics of the setup on my actual backpacking trip (tallest pole on the outside:)
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.615833447846.2120101.17506531&l=ef68787f17

You'll notice the pics from my review, where I set it up in my front yard are with the tallest pole on the ~inside~ of the shelter. Why did I do this? Well Bear paw's own blueprint from the website leads you to believe it should be inside. It works, but not great.

In actuality, when talking to the owner of Bear Paw, he sets it up with the tallest pole on the OUTSIDE all the time. Ugh...change your blueprint on your website them. But whatever. (service was excellent otherwise).

So I setup the shelter with the tallest trekking pole on the outside. You'll want an adjustable trekking poke, as I extended my GG LT4S pole pretty long to get the height...much higher than I would extend the pole for normal hiking use. This shelter has great interior volume, including height...especially when you pitch it off the ground a bit for ventilation.

The shorter pole in the front of the shelter (again, outside the shelter) is supposed to be set around 30in. as I recall. So an adjustable trekking pole is great here as well.

In terms of using one adjustable trekking pole and a stick. Definitely doable, especially in the NE where there are plenty of sticks. Shorter sticks are much easier to find than the longer ones. :p (of course you could tie the tallest peak of the shelter off to a tree or overhead branch if you'd like, and use a stick for the lower peak)

GL!

John,

How is the shelter working out? Big enough? Condensation with two bodies?

Thanks for the reminder to update this thread. I am actually not using a Gatewood Cape right now because a couple of days after I ordered it, I tried out a friend's hammock and loved it! So now I plan on hammock camping with my dog, which I had never really considered before. I've found that if I hang my hammock pretty low, my dog sleeps right next to me/kind of under me. The small hammock tarp I got and my GoLite poncho tarp should easily be able to cover us both and provide a semi-enclosed shelter.

But before returning the Gatewood Cape, I did set it up very briefly in my house. I found that it had the exact right amount of room for my dog and I. I think that due to my height (5'6'') and using just a foam pad, I would have had enough room to pitch it pretty low and weather some good storms in it. For a taller person on an air pad, I think a lot of it would depend on how much room your pup takes up. I can't say anything about condensation, but there seemed to be several ways to vent it in shelter mode.

The cape was a lot bigger than I expected it to be. I felt super small when I tried it on in cape mode. If I ever decide to go back to the ground or have a trip where weight is really important, I'd probably use the Gatewood Cape. It really is a cool shelter that would have the exact minimal amount of room I'd want.

Thanks for the insight, I am trying to decide my next shelter move and the Wild Oasis (supposedly the same size) is on the short list. I am 5'8" and use a foam pad so I am optimistic it would be fine. Good Deal your dog stays close to the hammock, I am pretty sure mine would just sleep right outside the tent as well.