Floorless in Western WA?

[froyoandpho]

How do people feel about floorless shelters in the rain? I'm thinking about the Kifaru Supertarp or the Trailstar by Mountain Laurel Designs.

[Cylvertip]

My note below was aimed at a response on this thread from someone calling out ticks on the Wet side as a reason not to go floorless.  It looks like that post has been deleted now.  I will leave mine I guess.

Warning, total thread jack here, my apologies  

   Still don't get the tick thing.   

     I have never had one on me in 39 years of living in Western Wa.  I have spent a ton of time in the woods in Thurston County for 19 years and Snohomish County the last 20.  I archery hunted elk and deer in Lewis, Skamania, and Cowlitz couties for close to ten years.  Clallam, Jefferson, and Gr.ays Harbor Couties for the last 11.  Have hunted from areas along to Pacific Crest Trail and the Pacific and have trapped on the edge of Puget Sound during the Spring.  I have nuisance trapped for beaver year round for the last 18 years in a couple dozen different drainages between King and Skagit Counties.Never have had any issue or even seen one on me. 

Back to the original subject of the thread - if you pick the right location, I think you would be fine. A few drainage trenches around the perimeter may be a good idea though.

[Magnum_Willys]

Gotta have floor in sleep area.  So half floor is option.  3/4 floor better.

[Stein]

I'm not a fan of floorless shelters at all, whether in western WA or elsewhere.  Single wall floorless shelters are an ancient technology that in my mind has been improved so much as to be obsolete.

There are fans for sure, particularly with certain brands and certain brand ambassadors.

For me, I'll take a solid double wall tent for any fall through winter conditions.

[trophyhunt]

Gotta have floor in sleep area.  So half floor is option.  3/4 floor better.

[trophyhunt]

Warning, total thread jack here, my apologies

   Still don't get the tick thing.   

     I have never had one on me in 39 years of living in Western Wa.  I have spent a ton of time in the woods in Thurston County for 19 years and Snohomish County the last 20.  I archery hunted elk and deer in Lewis, Skamania, and Cowlitz couties for close to ten years.  Clallam, Jefferson, and Gr.ays Harbor Couties for the last 11.  Have hunted from areas along to Pacific Crest Trail and the Pacific and have trapped on the edge of Puget Sound during the Spring.  I have nuisance trapped for beaver year round for the last 18 years in a couple dozen different drainages between King and Skagit Counties.Never have had any issue or even seen one on me. 

Back to the original subject of the thread - if you pick the right location, I think you would be fine. A few drainage trenches around the perimeter may be a good idea though.

Try the blue mountains in spring time, you'll find ticks.

[pianoman9701]

Use a floored tent.

[jackelope]

I moved this to the backcountry hunting board as I think it's more fitting. I assume the OP is asking for opinions with the intent of backpack hunting.

I think floorless has it's place in terms of weight savings. I'm personally not a fan. I've woke up with a mouse on my chest while I was sleeping for example. 
I'm a fan of a free standing tent with a floor. In my current situation...mountain goat hunting in the Cascades in October...the idea of a stove sounds nice...but I think I would get a half sized nest with a bathtub floor in my SL5 if I was to add a stove jack.

[boneaddict]

Ants, mice, other bug relief versus weight.         I “tarp” most of the time.  It’s not cozy.   Additional protection in wind and rain is kinda nice

[pd]

Yes, flourless teepee with a wood stove in the driving rain.  Sometimes you will get a river through your tent, those are the breaks.  I will take a flourless + wood stove over a dank tent any day of the week.  Besides, I can backpack my teepee deep into the woods, much lighter than a conventional (floored) tent, even with the stove.

[Houndhunter]

I personally like floorless for most backpacking situations, but it is nice to have a fully enclosed tent if bugs are out. I've got to spend a fair amount of time in a Hilleberg, what I like about those is it gives you the option to have both a fully enclosed tent or unclip the guts and just use the fly. I've been in some pretty bad weather and rain/snow wouldn't keep me from going floorless. Mosquitoes would though 

[jackelope]

Yes, flourless teepee with a wood stove in the driving rain.  Sometimes you will get a river through your tent, those are the breaks.  I will take a flourless + wood stove over a dank tent any day of the week.  Besides, I can backpack my teepee deep into the woods, much lighter than a conventional (floored) tent, even with the stove.

I'm not sure about your weight claim. I have a free standing "conventional" tent that has plenty of room to sleep 2 people that weighs less than 5 pounds and it's a relatively low budget tent. Drop down a little in size and up in quality and it's relatively easy to get below 3 pounds all up. I also have a good quality teepee that is well over 5# with the nest and 3+ pounds nest free.

Biggest benefit to me of a conventional/free standing tent over a teepee style is the free standing part.  Unless you know exactly where you're going to set your tent up and know that you can stake it out and all that, you run the risk of not finding a suitable place to set it up.
I'd be curious to know how the teepee style would have stood up to the 3" of concrete-like snow I had on my tent last weekend that weighed about 300 pounds.

[Alpine Mojo]

I can backpack my teepee deep into the woods, much lighter than a conventional (floored) tent, even with the stove.

What weight are you looking at with your teepee and stove together?

[jackelope]

I can backpack my teepee deep into the woods, much lighter than a conventional (floored) tent, even with the stove.

What weight are you looking at with your teepee and stove together?

I was always under the impression that with a lightweight quality tarp/teepee, a stove and stove pipe you'd be right around 5-6 pounds with the best quality stuff.

[The scout]

I have stayed in a floorless tent quite a few nights over different trips and weather conditions, I don't like it, the only thing to like is the wood stove heat that can come with it. your gear gets filthy with mud if its wet outside, you need to worry about critter's getting in, there is always a draft, I could go on and on about bad things but some people like them so maybe try one and see of its for you