Do you struggle to get your tent stakes in the rocky ground?
Are your tent stakes bending every time you go to drive it into rocky soil?
I see campers all the time struggling to get their tent stakes into hard ground. And while there are tricks to help you hammer them in, you only get so far on poor quality stakes.
We did the hard work for you and picked the 4 best tent stakes for rocky ground.
The best tent stakes for rocky soil need to be made of steel or titanium and use a nail or screw shape. These will allow the stakes to handle the pressure without bending and cut through the ground better. Our picks for the best 4 are:
- GROUNDGRABBA Heavy Duty Tent Stakes
- BareFour Tent Stakes Heavy Duty
- RIY Tent Stakes Heavy Duty 12 inch Steel Tent Pegs
- Hikemax Forged Steel Burly Tent Solid Stakes
Look ahead for more information and our review of the products below.
Table of Contents
Direct Comparison Of The Best Tent Stakes For Rocky Soil
Use this quick reference guide to help you decide what tent stake is right for your rocky soil needs. For more details, hop down to the review section.
| Tent Stake | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
  GROUNDGRABBA Heavy Duty Tent Stakes | *Very tough tent stakes *Accessories for driving stakes into hard ground *Screw in shape for easier driving *Lifetime Warranty | *High price |
  BareFour Tent Stakes Heavy Duty | *Great value *Tough steel resists bending and breaking *Nail-like top for easier removal | *No design help for driving the stake in *No carry bag |
  RIY Tent Stakes Heavy Duty 12 inch Steel Tent Pegs | *Great value *Doesn’t bend or break *Sharper end drives into rocky soil easier *Lasts a long time and many uses | *Quite heavy |
  Hikemax Forged Steel Burly Tent Solid Stakes | *Good value *Heavy duty steel material *Nail shape for easier driving *Useful hole for tying and removing | *Heavy metal |
What To Look For In The Best Tent Stakes For Rocky Soil
What makes a tent stake good for rocky soil? This section will answer this question. Use this information to decide what to look for.
Material
First and foremost is the material of the tent stake. The biggest problem with driving tent stakes into rocky soil comes from the pegs bending or even breaking under the pressure.
No plastic or aluminum will be able to handle this.
The best choice is steel, especially a high tensile steel. Titanium will be able to handle it in some cases, but if you want a stake to take any rocky soil down, steel is the way to go.
Shape/Design
V-shape is good for almost anything, and it can handle rocky soil fine, but nail shapes or screw shapes are the best in tough ground like this.
Nail shape offers the best durability in the stake. It’s the least likely to bend of all shapes.
However, this shape is quite heavy when combined with a steel like this.
The screw shape works only if the threads are tight to the body of the stake. The threads will cut through the rocky soil.
A screw shape combined with a cordless drill (and maybe a pilot hole) is a killer combination sure to get through almost any rocky ground. These are usually more expensive.
Length
For rocky soil, you want a good length to get deep enough for security but not so long the stake bends. With rocky soil, 8-12 inches are typical for handling the ground easier.
Review Of The Best Tent Stakes For Rocky Ground
In this section, we’ll go over our picks for the best tent stakes. These ones are sure to get in the ground and keep your tent secure.
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GROUNDGRABBA Heavy Duty Tent Stakes
Ground Grabba’s tent stakes are heavy duty and will do a great job of holding your tent down. This pack of 12 tent stakes with accessories is a premium option for almost any weather, and as such, it comes at a high price.
The tent stakes have the unique feature of a hex-shaped top. With a cordless drill combined with the stakes’ screw shape, they’ll cut through rocky soil with ease.
They even include a masonry drill bit to pilot holes into rocky soil for easier driving.
The stakes are made from galvanized steel which won’t bend or break under most normal pressure. At a 12-inch length, the stake will hold tight once it goes in.
There are a number of useful accessories coming with this pack including:
- 12 galvanized steel stakes
- 12 Hex hooks
- 2 Hex socket drivers
- 1 Masonry drill bit
- 1 Carry bag
Pros For This Product:
- Very tough tent stakes
- Accessories for driving stakes into hard ground
- Screw in shape for easier driving
- Lifetime Warranty
Cons For This Product:
- High price
BareFour Tent Stakes Heavy Duty
For a more affordable option, the BareFour tent stakes have some same design elements for rocky ground without all the accessories. You have to do more work yourself to drive the stakes in, but once they’re in, they’re solid.
This 8-pack of stakes are made of S45C steel which is an extremely durable type of steel. It won’t bend or break under most pressure you’ll use on it.
This is great for when you have to work hard to get the pegs into the rocky soil.
The stakes also have a hook near the top for tieing the lines/loops onto and for preventing the stakes from going too deep as you drive it in.
For the top of the stake, BareFour uses a nail-like head to make it easier for hammers to grip the stakes and pull them out.
Pro-tip: Use a piece of wood placed on the ground under the hammer for more leverage when pulling the stake out. It may be firmly in there.
The tent stakes are 8-inches long and in a nail shape. This offers the stake more support when you hammer it in.
Pros For This Product:
- Great value
- Tough steel resists bending and breaking
- Nail-like top for easier removal
Cons For This Product:
- No design help for driving the stake in
- No carry bag
RIY Tent Stakes Heavy Duty 12 inch Steel Tent Pegs
The RED tent stakes are similar to the BareFour product with a little more design towards driving into hard ground. They offer the stakes in a 4 or 8 pack with a medium price per stake.
These stakes are made from S45C steel which is quite tough. It won’t bend or break easily.
RIY uses a hook to stop the stake from going in too far and for tying the lines or loops onto. The nail-like head makes it easier to remove the stakes when done.
Sound, familiar? What takes this stake a step up are two main features.
The stakes are 12 inches long. This allows the stake to be more secure, but it also gives you more length to drive with your mallet/hammer.
The point of the nail shape is a little sharper without sacrificing stability. This sharper end makes it easier to cut through the hard, rocky ground.
Pros For This Product:
- Great value
- Doesn’t bend or break
- Sharper end drives into rocky soil easier
- Lasts a long time and many uses
Cons For This Product:
- Quite heavy
Hikemax Forged Steel Burly Tent Solid Stakes
The Hike Max steel tent stakes are another affordable option with an eye towards making removing tent pegs stuck in soil a little easier. If you don’t have as much problem with getting tent stakes in the rocky ground as out, this may be the option for you.
Hikemax uses the standard S45C steel for material and includes a hook and nail-head as with other heavy-duty tent stakes for rocky ground.
It also has a nail shape for easier driving in. The nail-end is pointed enough to help drive in but not as pointed as some others which have an easier time going into hard soil.
The stakes come in an 8-pack and are 8-inches long.
But the biggest difference between this and some other stakes on our list is the addition of a hole as part of the hook and head of the stake.
This hole helps you tie your tent to the stake with a bit more security. It also makes removing the stake a lot easier.
If the stake is really stuck, one person can yank on the head with the claw end of a hammer while another pulls with a cord from the hole.
It also comes with a carry bag.
Pros For This Product:
- Good value
- Heavy-duty steel material
- Nail shape for easier driving
- Useful hole for tying and removing
Cons For This Product:
- Heavy metal
Conclusion
Now you know what the best tent stakes for rocky ground are. Any of these would be a good fit for you depending on what you need.
The important thing to remember is to choose a tough metal such as steel (titanium would be pretty good too). Help yourself by learning how to put tent stakes in hard ground.
Now get outside and enjoy the fresh air!
