People spend a lot more than the value of my Gull dinghy tents. I have to say at anchor I look over at other boats with a bit on envy.

My scheme was probably less than £20. It is based on a camping tarp from Amazon, there is a vast array of them but I eventually found one the exact size I needed. The Gull has a sliding goose neck so it’s easy to tension. I have a line on the outside of the boat just under the gunwale and the tarp clips to that. The front is just an off cut of cheap tarp. It has a line to pull it to the stem.

Recently I have added a tent pole as a hoop to extend the internal space. I don’t use a boom crutch just a rope with eyes to hook over the boom and to cleats on the quarter.

I have used this system about 6 times including one very wet and windy night. Even in very heavy rain it hasn’t leaked, or at least not on me in my sleeping position.

The biggest issue I have found is condensation and a that is best eliminated with a draught, so the simplicity of my system is a positive it has plenty of ventilation.

Another advantage is this it’s very compact and easy to dry. I often host it up the mast it the morning to blow dry.