Saw a cracked tent pole repair at Yosemite that changed my packing list

Last weekend I was camped near Tuolumne Meadows and watched a guy tape up a broken aluminum pole with duct tape and a splint made from a fork. It held for the night but he admitted it bent again on the way down. That got me thinking about how I never carry a spare pole section, just patch kits. I've camped maybe 40 times in 20 years and never had a pole snap, but he was 300 miles from home. Now I'm looking at those collapsible repair splints that fit over the pole, they weigh about 4 ounces. Has anyone actually used one of those in a real storm, or is the fork trick just as good? I'd rather carry the weight than be stuck like that guy.

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1 Comment

the_zara18d ago

Tbh I’ve carried just a patch kit for years and figured a fork splint was fine if it ever came down to it. Seeing that guy’s pole bend again on the descent kinda flipped my thinking though. I’d rather toss the 4 ounces in my bag now than gamble a whole trip on some duct tape luck.