On Fri, 29 Oct 2004 17:45:29 +0200, Hans-Georg Michna wrote:

On Thu, 28 Oct 2004 23:41:41 +0200, "Jean-Marc V. Liotier"
wrote:

I always travel with no tent, but I carry a Gore-Tex sleeping bag
shell that enables me to sleep outside in the rain with no discomfort. And
considering the heat, it is often much more comfortable that a tent
because tents lack aeration for tropical conditions.

until that one leopard stumbles over you ... (:-)

Seriously, I do camp out a lot, but I wouldn't sleep out in the
open. I also close the tent door at night. That helps. And I've
had all kinds of animals right at the tent, touching it,
including hyaenas and lions (can't hear leopards).

The wild animal problem is mostly confined to wildlife reserves, but you
are right : where the nightly visit of wild animals is a common occurrence
an enclosed space is preferable and will keep out the unwanted curious
visitor. But on a typical overland trip, only a fraction of the time is
spent in wildlife reserve and the weight and bulk of a tent may not be
justified just for these occasions. If travel is based on a vehicle then
by all means bring a tent even if it is just in case, but if you routinely
walk for some distance while carrying your backpack, as I do, you will
think twice before adding to the already very heavy weight of the typical
overland backpack.

In the beginning there were many things I thought would be worth taking
for comfort or just in case, but after a while the urge of backpack
weight optimization makes hard decisions much easier. But the experience
of each individual will lead to very different decisions about what is
really useful, so it is really a matter of personal travel style.