u/Ok_Departure_7551

A couple of years ago, did a short backpack in the Mineral King area of SEKI, where the marmots are notorious for attacking salty things. I was using my XMid non-Pro, and the handles of my poles were salty from sweat, so the marmots crawled under my vestibule, grabbed the poles and dragged them out (along with my sweaty hat) and proceeded to chow down. (Fortunately a friend was nearby and prevented them from dragging the poles to somewhere I couldn't find them!)

I'm going back in August and don't relish a repeat experience. Any suggestions for deterring them? Maybe:

- Wrap the handles in plastic bags?

- Apply some unpleasant smelling/tasting stuff to the handles (that won't be a problem for me the next day without scrubbing the handles somehow)?

- Something else?

(BTW, Komperdell fixed the handles at no charge! The hat was a total loss, sadly)

EDIT: I see there was a previous post on this: TL;DR: wash handles before trip, wear fingerless hiking gloves, then try to rinse the handles late in the day to minimize salt. Some people suggest using the poles handles-up in this situation (which the non-Pro isn't designed for) so you'd have to be in a non-windy area (which, sadly, this is not).

EDIT 2: TarpTent sells adapters to make handle-up pole usage more robust for tents that are designed for handle-down. They're cheap, so I'll give them a try too.

EDIT 3: bring alternate poles to use in this location and hide the trekking poles.

Look at the risk I encountered by leaving the basement today!

I’m traumatized.

I've only used my tent maybe six nights, but I have yet to have a drop of rain on it. I don't usually wish for rain while camping, but a little precipitation would be interesting for a waterproofing test. And my pitch isn't great either.

See! It says "Ultra-Light" right on the lid!