Recommend A Tent

[Miles]

Hey people,

So SWMBO and I are looking to make good use of our REI dividend by getting a new tent. We plan to use it for 2-maybe 3 season camping in Southern and Northern California with an option to maybe take it out on some real backcountry camping, but mostly for walk-in campsites. We have a giant tent already which we use for deluxe car camping, but we're looking for a little more streamlined and lightweight options for the other tent, likely a 2-person or 3-person max. Snow is not an issue, but we do get the occasional rainstorms.

So can you offer a suggestion? What tent do you use?

 

[urkel]

i bought a small sierra designs from rei a coouple years back. have used it on extensive trips into the wallawas. light weight and able to withstand some pretty good winds as well as major downpours. has 2 doors which i found extremely handy. i have a 4 season mountain hardwear that is by far the best tent i've owned but it's much heavier. you must've spent a bundle at rei to have a dividend large enough to purchase a tent. have fun with your search

 

[Groat]

I've had a REI Half-Dome tent for a few years now. It's one of the ones that sleeps two. I haven't had any problems with it at all. It seems well ventilated compared to the cheap tents we used when I was in Boy Scouts. It's also quite waterproof, as I haven't had a leak yet. I was camping with buddies on a VERY rainy night and was extremely impressed when I woke up in the morning that the inside was dry. It's a little bulky and heavy for those who take their ultralight backpacking seriously, but it fits into my backpack just fine for shorter trips (week long or less.) I really like the design where the tent sleeps two (relatively) snugly but the rain fly makes a vestibule on either side of the tent for bags and other gear. That way they're out of the way but still stay dry quite nicely. Though the one they've got now is a little different, mine is easily assembled by a single person. It is also freestanding, so putting in the stakes is not necessary if you're in a hurry (though with the rain fly I'd strongly recommend stakes.) Finally, I liked the price. I paid under $150 for mine and consider it a steal.

One thing to note: there is a 20% off coupon right now for REI members. I've gotten some stuff in the mail and in my inbox about it, but just wanted to make sure you're aware.

EDIT: Oh! You can rent tents at REI as well, kind of a try before you buy thing. Of course REI is quite liberal with their return policy, so I believe they'd probably take a tent back even after you used it once.

 

[Proinsias]

If two people are sharing a small tent and things are likely to get wet then agood sized, and well protected, porch/entrance area makes things much more pleasant.

 

[M80]

It probably is not what you are looking for but a couple years ago I made the switch from a tent to a hennessy hammock and have never looked back. I love the thing.

 

[DavyRay]

It probably is not what you are looking for but a couple years ago I made the switch from a tent to a hennessy hammock and have never looked back. I love the thing.

I have the classic Hennessy hammock in green. It is probably the best deal going for solo packing. It is only 2.5 lbs and is comfortable. The only downside is that it tends to compress a sleeping bag on the bottom side, which is exposed to the wind. That makes it less good for winter backpacking, unless you do something unique for a sleeping pad.

 

[M80]

That makes it less good for winter backpacking, unless you do something unique for a sleeping pad.

The 4 season insulation systems are on sale right now through the HH website. FYI.

 

[Clovis Man]

You probably already know this -- but a "2-man" tent is really comfortable for ONE, and a "3-man" tent is probably OK for TWO. Unless you LIKE being in a straight jacket...

 

[superbleu]

the Big agnes seedhouse line of tents are decently priced, fairly lightweight and roomy, there is a 1, 2 and 3 person version of this tent available, if you don't mind the extra weight having the extra space for a 3 person tent is nice,
there is one on sale here

the other option is to check out Henry Shires Tarptents especially for your climate/location

All the big name manufactures make very similar products, just pick one that is sized right and is light enough that you can manage carrying without too much effort. Sierra designs, Marmon, Mountain hardware, MSR, Black diamond, REI and even Eureka all make bomber stuff. Again check out the closeout section of Sierratradingpost.com or Campmor.com for the best deals.

 

[DavyRay]

I think we are a little off track (and I helped). The OP is trying to find the best use for his REI dividend. I am pretty certain that some of the products mentioned are not only inappropriate for a married couple camping, but not available through REI.

The REI web site makes it easy to search for a 3-person, 3-season backpacking tent. All the brands I saw there are good. Just watch the total weight in the specs, and you will do well.

 

[superbleu]

Good post to get the thread back on track DavyRay.

You really can't go wrong with any of the tents REI sells, just tell the sales person what you are looking for and they can help you out, main thing to look for is weight, durability, ease of set up, free standing or needs to be staked out, tent height (for headroom) in case you get stuck in your tent playing poker all night hiding from the rain, and internal size for you, your better half and your gear.

If what you choose doesn't work out you can take it back, I like to kid that REI stands for Return Everything Incorporated.


For tents that I use,
I have Bibler Ahwahnee 2 4 season dome tent. Single wall design. This is a bomb proof tent that has survived on Alaskan Glaciers, as well as outings in the Olympics and Cascades in snow, rain, windstorms you name it. The tent is almost 10 years old, but still there is very little in the market that can match it's durability, protection from the elements and weight.
Pros, light weight for a 4 season tent, great doors and ventilation, Dome tent is super easy to put up and still one of the best designs for wind stability.
Cons, no built in vestibule, expensive.

3 season 2 person tent
Big agnes Sarvis SL2 eVENT.
This tent is no longer made but the Current seedhouse 2 is similar to this tent.
It has a hybrid design, half is single wall made of eVENT a breathable fabric like gore tex but has better breathability, and the other half is the standard 2 wall (mesh inner and removable rain fly( construction,
Pros, good stability in wind, roomy both in width and for headroom, light packing weight big single door, has good size built in vestibule
Cons, the fancy hub designs used in many of the new tents may look cool but are a PITA to put up, and takes some practice to figure out, has quite a few stakeout points, and has a large foot print so you need a good size camp site.

3 season 1 person tent,
MSR Zoid 1, lightweight 2 wall tent, roomy for one with built in vestibule, bad thing is that it needs to be staked out to set up.

I also have a couple hennesy hammocks and an OR advanced Bivy sack but those don't fit the criteria at all.

 

[Miles]

Great info folks, thanks a bunch! I'll let you know what I end up with after we hit the REI.

Feel free to use this thread as a general tent thread if you'd like, I don't mind. Those hammocks certainly are interesting....

 

[rickboone1]

What's wrong with a perfectly good hotel room?

 

[gollum83]

What's wrong with a perfectly good hotel room?

Because you can't camp in a hotel room.

 

[mmack66]

I would go with the Sierra Designs Zia 3. Looks like it has a lot of interior space and Sierra Designs makes good tents. The near vertical walls is a nice feature.

Tent components can be broken up between two people so that one person doesn't have to carry the weight of the whole tent.

 

[Blue Raccoon]

Because you can't camp in a hotel room.

but you can have a hot shower and watch cable tv

 

[cbird]

I am thinking of ordering a Stephenspn Warmlite tent. These are made at a small, family-owned operation in New Hampshire. I have not seen one in real life, but have read their brochure and am impressed. These tents seem to have it all, but without significant compromise. The weights and packing size are a fraction of those of other quality tents, but what really appeals to me is their ease of set up. The poles can be inserted into their sleeves from the comfort of a chair, then all that is required is staking down the tent with four stakes, so the operation involves less crouching and crawling than with other tents and should be much quicker. The tents are not free standing, but since I always stake a tent down anyway, I see no disadvantage to this. I have tried Nemo tents, and can vouch for them that they are great tents, but I did not find much advantage to the air beam tent poles and did find that it made the tent (a Morphas AR) pack up size fairly bulky. The Nemo Nano uses aluminum poles inside of the tent, which is an advantage in wet weather, but it involved awkward contortions to get it set up, so would not be good for dome one with back problems, but is a great, compact tent.

 

[Go West Young Man]

What's wrong with a perfectly good hotel room?

You live in South Carolina, where just thinking of stepping out of the air-conditioning makes me uncomfortable. The OP lives in California where the weather is near-perfect year round

 

[DavyRay]

I am thinking of ordering a Stephenspn Warmlite tent. These are made at a small, family-owned operation in New Hampshire. I have not seen one in real life, but have read their brochure and am impressed. These tents seem to have it all, but without significant compromise. <snip>

I just bet you were impressed with the brochure. The web site is impressive as well. Aside from bare nekkid ladies, Colin Fletcher reported an unwillingness of Stephenson to acknowledge any quality flaws in his product. That was long ago, but do check their customer relations reputation before ordering.

 

[gollum83]

You live in South Carolina, where just thinking of stepping out of the air-conditioning makes me uncomfortable. The OP lives in California where the weather is near-perfect year round

Trade off is that they've got earthquakes though.