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Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Ask a Mustachian => Topic started by: Candace on March 23, 2015, 02:07:55 PM

Title: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: Candace on March 23, 2015, 02:07:55 PM
Hello all,

My boyfriend and I are going to hike in the Grand Canyon for three days and two nights in May. We don't own camping equipment, and heard crickets after posting on Facebook to see if anyone has equipment to loan us.

Does anyone know a way to rent a tent and other camping equipment that would work well?

I'd rather not buy equipment, even used on Craigslist, because neither of us intends to camp more than once every few years.

There are actually going to be six of us on the hike (three couples). We have to fly out there from Virginia. We would really rather find a cheap way to rent camping equipment after getting to Arizona than haul all that shit with us on the airplane. If we could rent for cheap in Virginia, we might be able to FedEx the equipment out and back for less than baggage checking fees anyway.

I'm posting here because the collective brilliance and shrewdity (my made-up word) of the people on this site lead me to believe there has to be some cost-effective way to get the use of a tent(s), some cooking equipment and whatever other crap we will need.

Thoughts?

Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: boarder42 on March 23, 2015, 02:13:05 PM
you can pick up cheap tents at walmart for like 30-40 bucks probably cheaper than renting.
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: boarder42 on March 23, 2015, 02:18:16 PM
http://www.walmart.com/ip/GigaTent-Cooper-2-Dome-Backpacking-Tent/19218410

order this shipped to a walmart near where you're headed.  20 bucks per couple
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: Candace on March 23, 2015, 02:20:56 PM
Ha ha ha, you guys rock.

So simple.

Thank you.
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: Exflyboy on March 23, 2015, 02:24:34 PM
Yup.. nothing special required for the GC.. good boots and sunscreen/hat are musts.

In the Summer the only thing the tent is for is to keep the mosquitos off...:)

Great adventure.. takes about 8 hours from the bottom to the top.
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: boarder42 on March 23, 2015, 02:35:19 PM
and if you pack a check bag its probably small enough you could pack it back with you for kids to play with etc. or sell on CL back home for around what you paid.
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: desertCyclist on March 23, 2015, 03:23:26 PM
Are you backpacking or car camping? You can rent gear from REI too: http://www.rei.com/stores/rentals.html#Arizona

You will probably want sleeping bags and sleeping pads in addition to tents. The GC rim is at a much higher elevation than Phoenix so it is much colder and temps can be near freezing at night even in May.
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: PEIslander on March 23, 2015, 03:30:45 PM
You might want to check out these guys: LowerGear Outdoor Rental & Sales (https://www.lowergear.com/product.php) based in Tempe, AZ. They'll courier what you need to wherever you want. Return it the same way.

Will you be car camping or back-country hiking? The Walmart tent idea is great if you are car camping - not so great if you need to carry your tent hiking. If you need to carry all your stuff be obsessive on keeping the weight down. Lightweight hiking gear can make a huge difference in how much you enjoy the trip.
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: boarder42 on March 24, 2015, 05:20:59 AM
both of those sites cost more than just outright buying some cheaper things at walmart.
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: mm1970 on March 24, 2015, 03:15:01 PM
Ha ha ha, you guys rock.

So simple.

Thank you.
Are you backpacking or camping?  (Are you camping, say, at Mather campground for 3 nights?  Or are you trying to go rim to bottom and back?)  That changes what you would need.

If you are just camping at top, then yeah, buy a cheap tent (or 3).  Also look into the weather and the kind of sleeping bag that you would need, and a pad.  I really like Mather campground.
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: SaintM on March 24, 2015, 07:09:30 PM
A little off topic:  did you get a camping permit and, if so, how difficult was it?
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: Candace on June 23, 2015, 08:28:01 AM
Hi all,

Checking back in here.

SaintM: We walked down and camped at Horseshoe Mesa for two nights in May, so we were at the same site each night. My boyfriend got the permits in February or March, so you can use that as a guide for how far in advance you need to plan for a "back-country" permit. The permits for the main trail from rim to rim were not available for May in February or March. For those, I'm told you need to apply a year in advance, but I can't confirm that.

We ended up buying tents and air mattresses at WalMart after traveling out there from Virginia. The air mattresses were heavy, but well worth it. (We also had to bring a battery-powered pump.) We bought two tents and three air mattresses, with the others being for his kids and their SOs. One of the kids already had a tent. The pump worked fine for filling all three mattresses and also putting more air in the next day. One of the air mattresses wouldn't stay full, but we discovered that one of the kids didn't close the valve properly.

The tents performed like champs. These were very cheap, something like $18 each. They're two-person tents that fit the queen-sized air mattresses and still had room for our gear.

Believe it or not, in May in the Grand Canyon, we were setting up tents during a nasty storm. Rain, wind, and cold. In addition, the ground was so rocky and hard that the small posts that came with the tents would just bend when we tried to hammer them into the ground. We ended up putting rocks on the corners of the tent, which worked fine. In spite of a nasty storm that lasted for hours, our tent held up fine and kept us dry. I was seriously concerned that the top part over the vent would fly off and leave us with rain coming in, but it never did.

The next night we had another windstorm. The wind would blow hard for a few minutes, and then stop for a few minutes, and so on. The tent was bowing in rather dramatically, but again it held up fine. We were impressed, especially for the price.

We ended up paying to check a large bag on the way home with the equipment in it. Personally I hope to never camp again. It wasn't my preference in the first place, and now I feel like I've done my duty, but I would recommend the WalMart equipment. One of the tents has already disappeared with one of the kids anyway :-).
Title: Re: Rental camping equipment for the Grand Canyon?
Post by: Dee18 on June 23, 2015, 03:11:49 PM
Another option is to stay in a bunkhouse at the bottom.  We did that, but so many years ago that it was inexpensive.  I loved it.  When we started hiking down, on Oct 30, it was chilly.  By the time we got to the bottom it was 80 degrees and most of my clothing layers were in my daypack.  We only stayed one night and had prepaid for a yummy dinner and breakfast.  The next day by the time we hiked back to our car it was snowing and all those layers of clothing were back on.  It was an incredibly relaxing way to visit the Grand Canyon, though not the most Mustachian.