Confession time Gerald - I usually only take it when my XYL is with me as we can share slightly more stuff in our two rucksacks. If I’m on my own with just the one, I usually get by with suitable outdoor clothing for me and a large poly-bag for the KX2… 
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Memories of many a GM/SS hill sitting huddled over the backpack to protect the rig. My latest effort was reasonably effective against wind (and sun!), but I’d want to rig it differently when it was wet.
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Most of the tarp photos posted above involve using walking poles for support. I don’t use walking poles [If God had intended us to …]. So I take an extending tarp pole for a (poor-weather) inverted v entrance. I use the antenna pole as well if I want a more open configuration for warm weather.
I was amused to see @2M0WNA Mike’s photo with antenna way in the distance [Unless that was a rival activation trying to steal his pile-up]. That would be a lot of exercise for band changing my quad-band linked dipole.
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I thought what a lot of coax he must carry. But it will be an end-fed fed from the bottom sloping up to the mast.
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Been using two walking poles for 30 years Andy, and they get more useful the older I get, esp coming downhill. As for the distance to the antenna, it’s all a cunning plan to keep my exercise levels up…
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@MM0FMF It’s a homebrew W3EDP in an inverted-V. I don’t believe in carrying miles of co-ax either….,
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I thought the same until i used mine to ascend the side of West Lomond and my legs didn’t give me jip afterwards. Since then I’ve taken the view that at the age of 70 (and with some modified system features 
) I’ll take any help I can get.
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I’m envious of those who can ascend and descend without poles. Paul W6PNG was in single pole mode on Stuc a’Chroin. However after my left leg vanished to well past the knee into the gloop and with me saying there were some proper soft bits on Meall Corranaich, he had both poles in use mainly for testing the ground.
For me they have three uses… better traction to get my vast bulk up and down the hills, checking for ground that will bear my weight and holding the ends of the antenna off the ground. A work chum picked up a pair of Leki Titanium poles “used” from eBay for about £35 which is a steal especially as for used poles he said they looked new.
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…20 odd years ago worked with a group of professional outdoor instructors ( Mountain. Guide… serious international climbs under their belt ) … and they used walking sticks ( because their knees will still need to work in 20 years time., ) since then I have used two poles. Mine are so old they are cross country ski poles as the concept of a walking pole was a bit new. So +1 for Leki Poles… probably older now than some of the contributors to the reflector …. 
Paul
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[Slightly Off Topic]
Paul, your comment prompted me to see if there’s any scientific evidence to support this claim. I’ve read only a few articles, e.g. Harvard Health suggests walking sticks / trekking poles do reduce forces on leg joints particularly on descents.
But I can’t find anything that says these compressive forces – apart from aching at the time and maybe next day – lead to premature aging of knee and other joints. It appears that the main factors – apart from natural aging over which we have no control – is excess body weight and a lack of exercise, i.e. exercise actually helps maintain healthy joints.
I understand of course why some people use hiking poles for improved stability and / or pain relief / avoidance. I don’t feel the need as yet. And while my 71-year knees do ache on some [particularly rocky] long descents, they are usually right as rain the next day. But if anyone can point to non-anecdotal evidence that using poles will extend the life of my knees, I’ll get the walkers e-catalogue out forthwith.
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Probably not, but I like the way they exercise the arms as well as the legs. My poles definitely reduce the load on my knees and provide additional points of contact with the ground during awkward descents, crossing streams, etc. I’d have been stuck a few times without them.
I’ve often seen people walking up gradients with poles that barely brush the ground… what’s that all about? If you are going to use them, then apply some load through them!
Anyway, back to tarps, has anyone actually constructed a specifically designed shelter from tarp material? I will shortly have some tent footprint material to hand and I’m considering designing something.
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Hi Gerald, I did.
I used a nylon kyte fabric (similar than the one for umbrellas) , cut it in a triangular shape and my mother sewed and sealed the outer profile.
It deals okay, very lightweight but to be honest I barely use it as I prefer to avoid activating with bad weather.
I find difficulties to setup in windy conditions as well, despite I can hold it in the fishpole instead of the trekking poles.
Pictures in this thread:
73 Ignacio
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I am surprised nobody is using a tarp line running from the antenna pole, or one or more of the guy lines for that matter.
Hi,
I think it depends on the antenna configuration.
If you set the wire inverted L, or a dipole, sitting by the base of the pole is feasible, and then it makes sense to hold the tarp in the pole and guy lines.
But if you set an end fed antenna inverted vee (as I do most of the times) then the antenna feeder is too far from the pole and therefore you need a separate arrangement.
73 Ignacio
I do. See the photo in my post #6 above.
That’s the configuration I’ve been using, but I discovered quickly that in a 20-25mph wind the walking pole will fall over unless guyed upwind. Once I did that it worked a treat.
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I’ve considered that format several times, but have decided to try something else. Quite frankly up in Scotland where i do most of my activating, protection from the side is as important as from above because thats where the worst of the weather is coming from. Sometimes it’s as simple as stopping the horizontal air flow which may be carrying rain, sleet or even snow. It makes the operating position so much more comfortable.
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I prefer to activate on dry days but I’ve noticed here in NW England (which has always had a lot of rain days per year) we seem to be having even more in recent years. So, either I activate less or I resign myself to taking my tarp more often.
I’m not prepared to carry a larger/heavier tarp than my DD Tarp S (2.8m x 1.5m, ~500g + ~400g pegs) which limits the number of practical configurations. I don’t use trekking poles and have until today used a single extendable pole to make an A-frame entrance configuration. But now with two new (cheap) bivi poles (120cm extended, 58cm collapsed) I’ve been experimenting with different configurations. I decided this is the best one for rain or windy days [but yet to be tested ‘in the field’, well, on a mountain actually].
Unless it’s dry and sunny I don’t like to sit with legs stuck out of the tarp getting me, the log book and paddles wet. This config has plenty of leg room [length wise] when sat in my (very comfortable) Helinox portable chair and more space for my gear and the dog.
It has a rain flap overhead, end wind flaps and a steep wall on the windward side so I have enough headroom and don’t waste space near the ground).
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