Tent for North Carolina

[Tyler Miller]

Between an excel spreadsheet and the search function on here, I feel like I've done my due diligence.

My biggest factors are price, space, and ventilation. I'm in North Carolina and need a tent that will deal with the summer humidity better than most. I'll also use it in the winter. Of course, weight is an issue too, but I've narrowed it down to two tents that should work for me in that regard. Now I just need someone to help push me over the edge with one of them. I'm 6'3'', sleeping on a large XLite.

REI Dash 2, REI Quarter Dome 2, or TarpTent StratoSpire 2

Dash 2 w/ Footprint
PROS: Fairly light, price (on sale soon or at least 20% off), ventilated, easy to set up, large enough vestibules
CONS: not as light as SS2, might be a little tight w/ 2 people, requires footprint IMO since the floor is so thin, no fast pitch option, difficult to set up in the rain, least storm-proof

Quarter Dome 2
PROS: price, ventilation, easy to set up, large enough vestibules, more storm-proof than Dash 2, easier to set up in rain than Dash 2
CONS: not as light as SS2, might be a little tight w/ 2 people, heaviest

StratoSpire 2
PROS: Spacious, light, removable inner, ventilated, sets up in the rain, most storm-proof
CONS: Price, time to set up, needs a larger space to set up

[Tyler Miller]

Here are a few more that made it past the initial cut. I made this to compare floor length/width, weight, and price.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1HDhq3pYb_mf7EXtUM2mBhFsjDeqqCvRNVuzg-o6VWHc/edit?usp=sharing

[Tyler Miller]

nm

[Michael Gartman]

The SS2 is a palace. My wife and I took it our for the first time last weekend. 5 minutes tops to set up. It does take a large area up, but we had no problem finding a spot. The vestibules are almost too big, if that's possible.

[Franco Darioli]

SS2 time to set up
Can be rather fast.
My first time :
SS2 set up
about 1:30
add a bit more for the apex guylines to be staked out

[Joe S]

I"m 6'3", and a stomach sleeper. I had high hopes for the 90" floor run in the newly redesigned Quarter Dome, but it did not work out for me. The angle of the foot section just did not cut it with my length and my feet pointed. I would not count on the full 90" being useable space.

[Nathan Wernette]

+1 on the strat 2

Didn't catch if you were going solo or not but might check out the strat 1.

The strat 2 is massive for 2 people it would be silly for one person.

Set up time on my rei qd3 when I owned it actually took longer than the strat2

Love that you set it up as one unit instead of the traditional tent then fly process. Makes a worry free set up in bad weather

And the construction is spot on and a solid sturdy tent. There's a YouTube video out on the web of this tent withstanding 70kph gusts with only an additional guy out. Amazing

[Jeff Jeff]

A little bit of thread drift, but is REI having another sale or coupon soon?

[Anonymous]

Tyler I have the TT Stratospire 1 which is a palace for 1, would fit an adult and a child, or adult and many dogs! I am 6 foot 195 lbs and my 70 pound boxer fits fine without having to put Mullet in one of the huge vestibules! So a Strat.2 should be fine. No they are not freestanding but easy to put up, and pretty bombproof in wind and rain. I cannot speak for snow..I like you can just use the fly as a tarp!! I like the design!! It handles for me strong wind better than my Zpacks Hexamid plus tent, though that shelter gets a good bit of use..

[Tyler Miller]

Thanks for the quick input. That was easy. StratoSpire 2 sounds like a clear winner. I'll see if I can answer the questions asked.

Before I get to that, I'm tempted to wonder if there's a less spacious 2 man shelter/tent that would work for 1 or 2 people my height (6'3") and not be a castle for one person, and still not break the bank. That way I could realistically take it on solo trips or trips where I'm the odd man out with shelter. It would also need to be a double wall or a very well designed hybrid single to deal with humidity. Any thoughts?

Thanks for the insight on the 90" floor of the Quarter Dome 2 and Dash 2. I'll take your word for it and save my time…though I'll probably be at REI tomorrow anyway.

Yes, I'll be using this primarily as a 2-man shelter, but like I said above, would love to see if I could make it work for one person.

And yes, REI has their anniversary sale starting next Friday, 5/16. They have a 20% off coupon that's good on regular priced items and a lot of stuff on sale. One rep told me some of the UL Big Agnes tents (and others) will be $100 off or so. Take that with a grain of salt. What that really could mean is some are $100 off and some are $30 off. We'll have to wait and see I guess.

[Michael Gartman]

I'd get the ss2 if I were going with another person most of the time…I'd rather have too much space when I was solo, then not enough with 2.

Anyway good luck whatever you decide.

Here is an in depth ss2 review that we watched at least 3 times before deciding.

[Ryan Smith]

Tyler,

If the Big Agnes tents are $100 off, I would take the Copper Spur UL2 and not look back. The Copper Spurs are great tents and I think would be the most livable in the conditions we see. It will handle snow loads well and also has a semi-solid interior to help block wind. The SS2 is a few less ounces, but the footprint is truly massive. I find nice flat spots are tough to find for even small shelters in the SE much less for something so large. At $300 that puts it at $6/oz. Not too shabby.

Ryan

[Joe S]

I'd check the useable length of a Copper Spur, it's 90" set up is almost exactly like the REI Q2. Though very well reviewed. I looked far and wide, and did not find a lightweight, large name production 2 man tent that would work for me (6'3", stomach sleeper, with size 13 feet pointed straight back) length-wise. I started to narrow it to:

–Lunar duo (90", near vertical ends)
–various tarptents
–Big Agnes Slater (probably long enough, 96" but fabric upper)
–Custom inner net for my Spinn Twinn

I ended up finding a Yama Gear Net Tent 2 (full 90" with vertical ends) for my Spinn Twinn off of gear trade, and will run with that for now.

[Tyler Miller]

You were right. I dropped by my REI and found the Dash 2, Fly Creek 2, and Quarter Dome 2 all too short. The QD2 was the best, but still unusable for me. However the QD3 was probably on the edge of being usable.

Im still eyeing the Lunar Duo in light of all this. The SS2 is still up for consideration but it just seems too big of a footprint for some parts of the SE.

And now I was just told about the Lightheart Duo from a friendly REI rep. Looks roomy, light, and versatile with the optional wedges.

Oh and speaking of REI, they told me only the BA Fly Creek would be on sale, not the CS.

[Ryan Smith]

Just fyi – I am 6'5" with a 13 shoe and find the Copper Spur series is long enough. It all depends on the angle of the ends. YMMV of course.

The Lightheart is a good design. Plus, I am pretty sure Judy is local.

Ryan

[Michael Gartman]

Those in the know can jump in, but the Lunar Duo looks to be at least as large as the S S 2, but I've never seen one in person

[Joe S]

Just fyi – I am 6'5" with a 13 shoe and find the Copper Spur series is long enough. It all depends on the angle of the ends. YMMV of course.

How do you sleep? I'd love to be a back sleeper or side/fetal. The CS and tons of other tents might be plenty long for that. Of course, maybe I just have a super-goofy sleeping position.

[Ryan Smith]

Side sleeper. Go back and forth between fetal and extended fully. Maybe it doesn't bother me because I'm in the fetal position part of the time. I will agree there isn't a ton of length there.

Fellow tall, goofy side sleeper,

Ryan

[Tyler Miller]

Stomach most of the time. I'll bring one leg up and keep one leg straigh and then go back to both legs straight. My arms typically go under my pillow or around my head, so that adds to my overall floor length too.

[Owen McMurrey]

"My biggest factors are price, space, and ventilation. I'm in North Carolina and need a tent that will deal with the summer humidity better than most. I'll also use it in the winter."

I have the Notch, not a Stratospire, but wanted to comment that the removable inner is a great feature. Lighter weight, and more room without it. As long as bugs aren't much of an issue, I don't use the inner. That usually means late fall through early spring in AL and TN, but cool nighttime temps let me stick with just the fly in TN up through two weeks ago, and it got left behind again this week in NC for use in the open with plenty of wind in the mountains.
The inner will go back in next week, but I've made it ~6 months without it, and it's really nice not carrying or fooling with that bug netting when you don't need it.

[John Donewar]

The Lightheart Duo with seam sealing done by Lightheart Gear would be $330.00 plus shipping to your door.

http://www.lightheartgear.com/index.php/tents/lightheart-duo-tents/product/view/6/5

Shipping to my location would be $8.60. It may be even less to NC. ;-?

The advertised weight is 2 pounds.

This tent could be lighter on your back and on your wallet. ;-)

I'm selling my Lightheart Gear Solo on Gear Swap but only because I've transitioned over to a hammock. If you have any questions about how the Solo performed for me send me a PM. I'm pretty sure my answers would readily transition over to the Duo.

Party On,

Newton ;-)

[Paul Ashton]

The REI Quarter Dome T2 is a great tent at a goodish price, if you are less than 6 ft. OK for me, but you will brush either end of the inner if over 6 ft. You need the T2 Plus which is several inches longer. Available at reduced price in the REI Outlet at the moment.

[Ken Bennett]

I'm 6-2 and find the Lunar Duo is plenty long enough for me with extra space at my head and feet. It's huge inside for two people, with two large doors and vestibules, Fairly easy setup once you've done it a few times. 45 ounces sealed and with stakes. No separate inner, and we do get condensation frequently here in NC, but the space is worth it.

We do have a Zpacks Hexamid Twin on order. It's smaller than the Lunar Duo, so it might be a bit tight for two, but at 20 ounces it'll be a palace for me as a solo tent, and can hold both of us when we need the weight savings. Zpacks also makes a 20 ounce 2-person tent, the Duplex, with two doors and vestibules. Might be something to look at. Not sure of the inside length.

[Tyler Miller]

Thanks to all for the suggestions and insight.

I'm leaning toward the LHG Duo for it's smaller footprint. The ZPacks tents look appealing, except for the price. I think realistically I could maybe do the Hexamid Solo-Plus w/o groundsheet, and make my own out of silnylon.

Here's a question about a solo shelter – I have a MYOG 9.5' x 5.5' flat tarp. Would that work well enough to cover me in an MLD Serenity Shelter? Or are there other solo bugnet shelters out there to consider? Better yet, I might just make my own.

[John Donewar]

Hey Tyler,

Assuming that your ridge line would be along the 9' 5" length you could have trouble with rain spatter. ;-?

What pitch would you be using?

Weight and price are inversely proportional. :-0

The MLD Serenity Shelter is quite light at 8 ozs.

A side zipped Borah Gear Bug bivy…

http://borahgear.com/bugbivy.html

…won't set you back half as much and weighs 6.5 ozs.

My favorite when I was still using a tarp was the Meteor Bivy.

http://www.sixmoondesigns.com/images/stories/pdf/Pattern_Meteor.pdf

Ron used to manufacture and sell these but I can't find them on his site anymore as a product for sale. I believe they used to sell for @ $110.00

Party On,

Newton ;-)

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