My tent flooded at 3am and I learned the hard way why you don't skip the footprint
I was camping up at Lake Arrowhead last fall, just me and my dog, when this nasty storm rolled in around 2 in the morning. I'd bought this cheap tent off Amazon and figured I didn't need the extra ground tarp they recommended, you know, to save a few bucks and a little weight. Big mistake. Water started seeping through the floor right under my sleeping bag, and within 20 minutes my whole tent floor was a puddle. I had to grab my dog and my wet gear and huddle in the car until sunrise, which was miserable because the windows fogged up so bad. The next morning I drove straight to a sporting goods store in town and bought a proper footprint and a better tent with a sealed floor. Has anyone else had a night ruined by something dumb like skimping on gear?