1 Person Shelter Advice

I love my Gatewood Cape!! Highly recommend it. I am 5’10.. And fit comfortably with large/wide pad and my bivy or the Serenity inner net tent. Being 6’1.. It may be little more snug but only way to find out if its really for you is to try it!

If you look at his production schedule at the bottom of this link you will see that he’s making DCF Mins this week and then silpoly Mins in a couple weeks. Signup for notifications and buy the moment they come out. Gen ships fast. Very high quality craftsmanship and materials. Excellent pattern. Nice details. I like the flexibility of side entry when the weather is nice or front entry when the weather is challenging. Pitch is almost as easy as a square mid and much easier than an octagonal mid. I’m a big fan of this design.

<i>  </i>I have the Deschutes and the Xmid, and the xmid is absolutely worth the weight if it’s gonna rain. I only carry Deschutes when I’m going super fast and light and slight cha ce if rain and I’m 5’8″. It’s cramped. Xmid without inner is a palace

Tarptent sells the notch fly only…

I can get fairly creative with a 9×9 thanks to Papa Hiker vids on YT.  That being said, perhaps bend an eye at the MLD Cricket?  Still tarpy but nonetheless.  Give him a call and see what he says about using the three inch pad.  Just some thoughts.  ~RL

there’s several videos of a cirriform in wind and it’s known for being as stable as a mid. they’re fine for 3 season backpacking and not any more condensation prone than other ul tarps

Anyone over six feet is going to struggle with a Gate wood, especially on a thicker pad.I’m 6’4″ and tarps are basically all I fit under, without going to a pole tent. I dunno why they can’t produce two sizes of Gatewood, but I suspect the more math-minded folks around here could confirm how much bigger the footprint would have to be to get that extra six inches of usable space.

I used a silpoly cirriform min a few nights this year, courtesy of a buddy, and it had some real pros and some real cons. All three nights were between mid-20s and mid-30s, with no real wind. I’m a tarp-and-ridgeline guy, accustomed to zero condensation, and as such, even the (apparently) mild moisture build-up shocked me. I didn’t see much of a difference leaving the ‘side door’ open all night, either. They’re ridiculously easy to set up, and you need zero knot skills – in Virginia, I’m never far away from a tree or two, but I can really see the peace of mind something like a cirriform would give you out in the open.

@Gerry V – Did you end up buying the Gatewood Cape on sale?

5×8 tarp is wonderful!! Nothing more special then laying and sleeping under an open tarp!!

SMD….If you’re listening, we need a slightly larger version.  I’m 6′ and mostly happy with the current model, but agree that >6′  and it would be too tight.

^Ratatosk,  I might be wrong but I would guess most users rarely put the Gatewood in the ‘poncho mode’.  A taller individual would raise up the sides a little better than us shorter (<, or = 6′) folk.   The few times I needed it as a poncho I also had a  shock cord loop (1/16″ dia.) around my waist…to control all the extra fabric.  One could also pull up any extra (dragging ?) material and secure it under the waist cord.

No perfect solution, still the Gatewood is my go-to shelter for about 95% of my hikes.   The dual-use feature is a nice bonus.