My 40-mile hike got saved by a $12 tarp repair kit

Last month on the Appalachian Trail near Hot Springs, my bass pro tarp ripped right down the seam during a 3 AM thunderstorm. Water was pooling everywhere, gear soaked, I was ready to turn back. Pulled out a cheap repair tape I grabbed at the gas station, patched it in 5 minutes, and it held for the rest of the trip. Anyone else had a cheap fix outlast their expensive gear?

2 comments

2 Comments

emma_flores1mo ago

Wait, youre telling me a gas station tape patch held up better than a Bass Pro tarp and youre framing this as some kind of miracle story? I mean, sure, thats decent luck, but lets be honest, a tarp ripping at the seam in the first place is the real problem. Most decent tarps are built with reinforced seams and tape is just a bandaid, not a fix. If the rest of your trip was smooth after that, great, but Id be checking that patch every single night and honestly just budgeting for a better tarp next time. You got lucky this go around, but that same trick might not save you when the wind is really howling and the rain doesnt stop for two days straight.

spencer_coleman1mo ago

Used to be all about the premium gear, thought spending more meant less problems. But that trip changed my mind, @emma_flores. The cheap tape outlasted that expensive tarp's own seam, which tells me the real issue was how it was made in the first place. You're right about checking it every night though, I did. Still, watching that patch hold through a full storm made me rethink what "quality" actually means. Sometimes the simple fix just works, even if it looks like a bandaid.