Single or mingle : Should you share a tent on a trek?

 If you are setting out on a trek in India, be prepared to stay in a tent. India, unlike Nepal, does not have tea houses with comfortable beds and attached beds (unless you are doing the Sandakphu trek).  Most trekkers in India who go with a trekking company or guide, give little thought to tents. After all, that is the organizers responsibility. If you are on a low budget hike, you may be instructed on how to set up your own tent and that can be a fun learning process for a twenty something year old who has walked for over eight to nine hours and still has the energy to fix the poles and stake the tent to the ground. If you are keen on doing this, check out this blog post on how to pitch a tent like a pro. But if you are like me, in your fifties and just want to laze around in the camp with a hot cup of chai and garam pakoras, then do go with a trekking company, whose staff would have set up the campground, even before you get there.

To share or not to share a tent is the question

Tents come in all shapes and sizes and can fit anywhere between one to eight persons depending on the size. A vast majority of trekking companies prefer to offer two or three person tents. It definitely, brings down the costs associated with the trek both for the organizer and the client, reduces the burden on pack animals and porters who carry the equipment, is definitely more eco-friendly and reduces the carbon footprint. Besides the very essence of trekking is to rough it out, so a bit of a squeeze and adjustment is the norm. 

But sharing a tent with a fellow trekker has its pros and cons

Building a bond with your tent mates

It can help you build a bond with your fellow tent mates. If you are sharing your tent with your soul mate or partner, then it could be romantic and intimate. If you are an extrovert who connects to people easily, then sharing can be fun. If you are the kind of person who hates sleeping alone in a strange, lonely isolated place, and wants a friend or acquaintance around you, then by all means share a tent.

Do share a tent with a fellow trekker with whom you have a good equation. Giggling and gossiping in the dark before you fall into a deep exhausted exercise induced sleep can be fun.  During my Markha Valley trek, I stayed with a friend who was much taller than me. Neither of us were slim and the tent was small. The tent was a tight fit with both of us in it. We frequently bumped into each other and jostled for space. We fought over space for our trekking bags. Yet we had a great time, laughing about the most trivial things. Two warm bodies also help the tent retain heat and makes you feel safer when you hear strange noises at night.

Claustrophobia and lack of space can be a mood spoiler for tent mates

But if you are the kind of person, who becomes grouchy and cranky after a hard day of trekking and  not in the mood for conversation, then it is not a good idea to share. The tent has to accommodate not just two or three people but their trek bags, sleeping bags and shoes. The atmosphere could quickly become claustrophobic and uncomfortable especially if your tent mate is a new acquaintance and not a friend.  There is barely elbow room as it has and try opening up a trek bag and laying out your items when you have to share space with another person doing the same thing. 

Cost can be a deciding factor

And of course, it also has to do with economics. Are you willing to pay extra to go solo or are you traveling on a budget? Opting for a single tent will definitely cost more and burn a hole in your pocket. Older trekkers who want a more comfortable trekking experience may choose to opt for a single tent, especially if they are solo travelers. It also gives them time away from noisy young trekkers whose energy levels continue to be high even at the end of the day.

Alone in a tent

As you get older, space matters.  For an older trekker, comfort is of utmost importance. I have opted for a single tent on a few treks and have enjoyed the experience. I am happy to get some alone time after I am done with trekking for the day.  It gives me time to reflect on the day’s experiences and make a few notes in a notebook I carry with me. After dinner in the dining tent, I walk back to the cozy environs of my tent and slide into my sleeping bag. I arrange my torch, and my water around me and watch the play of light on the roof of my tent and eventually drift to sleep.

A few years ago, I experienced the pleasure of having a tent all to myself during an all women trek (Druk Path) in Bhutan. Oh, the ecstasy of tossing stuff all around your tent with space to spare, of withdrawing into your own private cocoon with the gentle muffled sounds of the outdoors as your companion, no more elbow jostling or worse with your tent mate, or spending sleepless nights listening to their snores (it’s another matter that snores permeate tent walls but at least they are weakened by the distance they have to travel and barriers they encounter and are sans the booming surround sound experience of a double tent).

A trekking company, that particularly cares for the comforts of the trekkers is a God send. Mr. Wangchuk of Hiking Bhutan Travels made our trek as comfortable as possible.  My tent had the look of a Persian boudoir – a private crawl space that beckons you to put head to pillow (I had a heart shaped one with the words ‘I luv u ‘printed on it which induces a soporific effect.)

The only time I wished for a companion was when the tent quivered and quaked in the wake of a powerful cloud burst, deluged by heavy rain and fierce gusts of wind. I huddled inside invoking the names of all Gods that I remembered. My prayers went unanswered for almost an hour or so; the tent, a refuge that held well against the fury and might of nature. Perhaps the proximity of the Jele Dzong (Buddhist temple) was a saving grace.

I say “Single tent Zindabad” but there are many others who prefer to sleep with a warm body of another trekker by their side. Irrespective of your choice, the experience of staying in a tent is like no other. Now, if they could only do something about the toilet tent. But that’s a story for another day.