101 Camping Out Ideas & Activities

THE TRAPPER'S ROOF

This model of the trapper's roof lies about halfway between the gabled hut and the ranger's tent. It is usually rainproofed with reeds and intended as a nook to slide into on a rainy night—an emergency refuge—rather than a cozy shelter.

You can build a large, roomy trapper's roof in an afternoon, and then gradually improve it until you have built a regular hut.

You can move the trapper's roof around and place it where it will best protect you from the rain. In spite of its simplicity, it still offers good protection. It is also easily adaptable as a movable roof over cooking sites, but you'll have to be very careful that no sparks hit it.

First get two solid forked supports and stick them in the ground, then connect them with a horizontal pole. This is the crossbeam of the roof, where the upper edge will be bound. The lower edge rests on the ground or you can put it on a board, into a wood pile, or against a rise in the ground. The different examples of gypsy tents shown on page 19 may give you ideas for such constructions. The illustrations here show the roof sometimes resting on the ground, sometimes a bit above it.

It is best to cover the roof with reeds, using the same methods as for the reed hut. Complete the frame of the roof with a lattice of branches or cords, and then weave in the reeds. In an emergency, you can also use straw, ferns, and so forth, but you will have to make each layer much thicker than with reeds.

Since the slanted roof lacks side walls, you must carefully place it against the direction of the wind and rain. Set the roof at a steep or a gradual angle according to the angle at which the rain is falling.

Don't forget the ditches or drains or you'll quickly be flooded out. Since this airy hut has no walls, it's a good place to light a fire; the smoke can draw off freely.

You can spend a comfortable night under this roof with a warming glow next to you. .

This sort of hut has still another advantage: you can take it apart easily and set it up again in another spot. I know some fellows who cycle out to a river in the country for swimming during the summer. The reed roof they set up there provides shade during the day and shelter at night. Before they start for home, they dis­ mantle their trapper's roof and store it away in a little shed at a nearby farmhouse. The next time they come, they simply pull it out again and set it up.

Very cautious people prepare more than one set of vertical supports so they can immediately shift the roof around in case the wind changes. This is also advantageous when you are using the roof as a sunshade, because you can always adjust it at any time to suit the position of the sun.

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