11.2. Tents

Our team trialed a modification on the standard polar tent design involving split poles to fold the tent to a more compact size. We experienced no great difficulties with the system of slotting poles together, though we would be suspicious of using the system in extreme conditions of cold or wind. Some form of lubricant where the poles join together would improve the ease with which the join could be made and also pulled apart

We carried with us two dome tents as emergency back-up. We also found these tents useful as a mobile "laboratory" in which batteries could be charged more efficiently due to the warmer environment. In future we would consider taking an extra tent of this type solely for the purpose of "laboratory", thus avoiding the necessity to disassemble the tent before a days travel from base camp.