Lightweight shelter recommendations – with bathtub floor

I hike in the Southeast. When I was younger I camped under an open tarp…until the midnight SKUNK incident. I switched to a closed tarp..until the overnight ANT invasion. Now I prefer a closed shelter with a bathtub floor. I have tried out every Tarp Tent and MID out there (and sold many of them to people on this site) I have never had an issue with any Tarp Tent, Six Moon Designs, Mountain Laurel, Zpacks or Big Agnes shelter I have owned. For me it is really about ease of entry and exit, living space and footprint size. My favorites: Where there is plenty of pitching space and easy staking the Zpacks Duplex is a palace. If pitching space is tighter The Lunar Solo rocks. If you want simple, cheap and easy get the Tarp Tent Protrail. Camping on rock, tent platforms, in shelters or parking lots I like the Big Agnes Fly Creek. Order the custom poles that go with the tent if you don't use trekking poles. These are my favorites but I recommend any shelter made by these companies.

For rainy weather the StratoSpire II is a good choice. Drip free entry and very large vestibules, easy to get in and strip off your rain gear before you get inside the inner. (get in, undo the clip that holds the inner at the apex then you have a lot of room to maneuver, once done clip the inner up again) The solid inner is more than good enough to catch drips from the fly but I have never had my mesh inner dripping on me. In Australia we get rain and condensation too. I am on uneven ground there because the flat camping area is on the other side of the bridge ,not much higher than the creek. A guy camping on the other side had his tent dripping wet (from condensation) in the morning, my mate (inside his Moment) and I were dry. The next two nights it rained , no problem for us. BTW, if you find setting up tents a bit of a challenge then the SS2 may not be for you. The same however with many tarps and the like. franco@tarptent my version of the SS2 set up : SS2 set up

We love ours! We have been able to strip down in driving rain and put our gear in the tent without getting the inside wet, just by sitting in the vestibule. Set up is easy if you do it Franco's way: peg the corners first, then put the hiking poles in place. Henry does the poles first, then the corners. When we tried that, the poles just fall over when you let go of them.lol Franco rules! Seriously though, many, if not all of the above mentioned tents would be a great choice.

I've had a lunar duo for the last two years. I use it mainly for car camping because I have the heavier version and I live in the dry west where tarps work well. You need trekking poles or some other poles to use this tent. The bathtub is only an inch or two high and not something I would rely on in standing water. I've had it in light to moderate rain with no problems. I have not had it in humid conditions. The tent is large for two folks with a lot of headroom and has good quality workmanship. My only regret is that I should have paid extra for the lighter version.

OP- are you looking for a solo shelter or a 2P? Frankly, I don't understand why more easterners don't use hammocks. (Out west we're often above treeline, but you folks are never very far from a couple of trees.) No worries about being washed out, very comfortable, and you can easily find a setup much lighter than your current tent.

2P shelter. To answer your question RE: hammocks, honestly I've never tried them. But the short answer is I like a private spot where I can 1) change clothes, and 2) be insulated from bugs. I know there are bug nets for hammocks, but it's not the same as having some space to actually move around, change clothes, etc. btw/ I go mainly on scouting trips where I can't just change anywhere I want. A big part of it though is just my unfamiliarity with hammocks and all that's involved to get a good setup. It's probably a lot easier than I think. Any good sources for a "how-to" for a hammock setup?

Hammock Camping Part I: Advantages & disadvantages versus ground systems Hammock Camping – Part II: Types of backpacking hammocks, and spec comparison to ground systems Hammock Camping Part III: Helpful tips and resources for a virgin hammock camper be sure to read the question and answer section at the bottom of each article for even more tips and links such as Shugs videos , I really enjoy his videos a lot. SHUGS VIDEOS

Yeah, not a lot of privacy with hammocks. You can get a hammock tarp with 'doors', and make it work, but it would be awkward. I'm only familiar with TarpTents, so I'll endorse whatever TarpTent with a bathtub floor that strikes your fancy. Franco can discuss them at great length- he's a sort of rep for them. I've only had 1P ones, though.