sleeping under the stars?

[chisos_muse]

When I was 15 I went to visit my cousin in CA. We slept outside in sleeping bags with no tent. The next morning I woke up and went to the bathroom and the whole right side of my face was swollen and red and had about 5 mosquito bites in a cluster. I could barely see out of my eye and it was completely nasty and oozing.....

I love my tent.  8)

. . . but completely healed!?

Al

Physically... :lol:

I like the protection from the elements that a tent gives me. And I also don't camp when it's cold. I despise the cold :!:

[BIBEARCH]

I like the protection from the elements that a tent gives me. And I also don't camp when it's cold. I despise the cold :!:

I like the protection that a nice zipped up tent gives from a heat-seeking rattlesnake curling up beside me while I'm snoozing.

Under the stars, been visited by coyotes, spiders, millipedes, centipedes, and probably some other critters I'm not aware of.

[mountaindocdanny]

We generally go tentless Fall through Spring and use a tent in the summer for bugs. My oldest (3 yo)has started taking a liking to tents and talked me ino taking a tent on our most recent trip when I would have preferred not to. Not planning on taking one on my solo Deadhorse traverse next month.

[dryer]

so, how many of you sleep under nothing but the moon and stars?  or do you always prefer the boundaries that a tent provides?  do mountains or desert affect your decision-making?

i've always been an under-the-stars kind of guy (on a cot); but, i have seen some trippy looking insects in the bend that give me pause about being al fresco in the desert.

whassup?

I haven't slept in a tent in years.   If trees, then I use a hammock, if no trees and good weather, it's under the stars, if questionable weather its a poncho/shelter tarp thing.  
Like this:


Tents are heavy to backpack and the night sky is too beautiful a 'ceiling' to miss out on (50% of the reason I go to BB).
Hammocks are my all time favorite....no ground concerns and the most comfortable sleep in the boonies.  Hennesey Hammock is the one I carry.
Mine's the one on the right:

If car camping I'll use a big cot with mosquito netting over it.  Perfect for the desert.