The average two or three season tent is shipped with thin gauge metal pegs that are the equivalent of bent clothes hangers. Attempt to drive them into the rocky soil of Ontario, Canada's north country and render them bent and useless. Tap them into Baja, Mexico beach sand or Colorado mountain snow and they will pull like a comb through fine hair in the slightest breeze. There is a simple and inexpensive solution to your home blowing down a mountain valley or nocturnal tusseling with floating corners - aftermarket tent pegs.
I found the perfect tent peg on the shelves of Adventure 16 in sunny California during the late 1990′s. They appeared to be hacked out of scrap aluminum and ground with a dull hand grinder. There was beauty in their utility. They embodied what a growing number of bad experiences had convinced me I needed in a tent peg:
This photograph compares the three styles that I keep in my gear box. From experience, the Adventure 16 peg will find purchase in beach sand, snow, mud and rocky soil. Of the three, I am confident packing my canvas bank deposit bag full of these pegs regardless of my destination, the weather forecast, or my mode of travel.
The centre peg came with our MSR Fusion tent and is well suited to the purpose of securing this tough, lightweight backpacking tent. With high visibility pull cords they are easily located, difficult to forget and pull from firm ground with ease. The compromise made for their packability is a reduced length and surface area in a direction of pull. When tasked with holding less rigid dome style tents, tent flies and vestibules - I have found the MSR pegs insufficient for inclement weather. Perfect for the backpacker with a rigid tent, MSR pegs are for sale individually at MSR retailers.
The bottom peg is supplied with the Oztent RV3 and is shown for comparison purposes only. Oztent’s are heavy, large when packed but comfortable and impervious to foul weather; Oztents are the tent equivalent of the third little pig’s brick house. The Oztent pegs follow this design philosophy with heavy steel construction, long length, and a generous bend to secure tent stays. I consider this peg for car camping purposes only and generally prefer the versatility of my Adventure 16 pegs.
A quick internet search will provide a number of alternative options that meet my identified tent peg design criteria. For example, the TC "Y" tent peg or the DAC J-stake peg are available at most oudoor retailers, and the design is remarkably similar to my chosen Adventure 16 tent peg. In my homecountry of Canada, both are available from nationwide retailer Mountain Equipment Co-op.
For a relatively small expense, a tent peg upgrade will result in a reduction in setup frustration, and the foul weather liveability of any tent. It is worth the price to upgrade.