Setting up the Tarptent Stratosphere Li on hard ground

It is possible, but difficult

I like the simplicity of the Tarptent Stratosphere Li. It is spacious, two walled, weighs nothing and is water resistant.

Setting up is a breeze, provided you stake the tent.

This worked well for me in most places except hard ground. I had to pitch the tent on a river bed once when water was sparse and there was nowhere else to go. It was a pain to tie a rock to the not so long guy lines. After reading about it a bit, I ordered these guylines from Amazon. These come with an adjuster (the red part) that allows it to be tethered to the existing guyline easily without a knot.

I have been practising this in my backyard using bricks (that aren’t very heavy), but here is quick video of how this works. The principles are the same, but there is even less leeway in correclty positioning the first 4 stakes.

Difficult, but doable. Give it a try and let me know how it works for you. I hope I won’t fight as much the next time I have to setup the tent on hard floor.