If I recall correctly, it was somewhere in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. Either that or Upstate New York. In any case, I was a bit off on the size of the spiders. They were actually closer to 1 - 1.5 inches. I think someone at the time said they were called “Jumping Spiders”. There were other creatures there besides them, including some Daddy Long Legs. It was pretty shocking to turn on the light and see all of these things inside the tent clinging to the walls.
I’m an arachnophobe so a 1” spider would look like 3”s to me if surrounded by them in a tent. I’ve made my peace with spiders but that kind of proximity would tear it.
That said; I’ve camped on the ground with no tent in southern Arizona and lived in a cabin in SW New Mexico that was far from sealed so some upstate New York spiders probably wouldn’t scare me off. lol