Lost my tent pole mid-storm at Yosemite last June - patch or pack up?

My aluminum pole snapped right at midnight during a sudden hail storm near Half Dome. I used a splint from a hiking stick and duct tape to hold it, but it collapsed again after an hour - would you call it quits or keep fighting to save the trip?

2 comments

2 Comments

caleb_thomas9322d ago

Agreed with willow407, pack it up and save yourself the headache. I had a similar thing happen on the Wonderland Trail two years ago, pole snapped right at dusk in a downpour. Tried the splint and duct tape fix and it held for maybe 45 minutes before the whole tent just sagged and soaked everything. I fought it for another hour, freezing and miserable, before giving up and hiking out at 2am in the rain. That was the right call because I ended up with hypothermia anyway and my gear was wrecked for weeks after. Better to cut your losses and come back when you can actually enjoy the trip instead of just surviving it.

willow40722d ago

Oh man that's rough. Honestly I'd call it quits and pack up before you hurt yourself. A broken pole in hail at midnight is basically the universe telling you to bail. You can always come back for Half Dome another weekend but you can't fix a shattered trip in the dark with duct tape alone. Save your energy and the gear for a dry day.