Outdoor Research Helium Solo

I have the alpine awning which is basically identical to the Helium Solo, but with slightly more durable material and a few more tie outs

Can squeeze 2 people underneath, but def have to be cuddly; it has great coverage for 1.

Setup is relatively easy and quick which is what i like about the awning.

The only caveats I have about the awning is the lack of side panel pull outs and the lack of a rear pull out, which is a bit unusual (but those can be sewn on), in very windy situations the tarp basically compresses quite a bit, even when the tarp is tensioned quite a bit.

The other thing is raising the rear high enough for footbox area, but with a little bit of practice this doesn't become an issue

The other thing is for it's dimensions, it could be a little bit lighter, but for the material and construction, $55 is pretty decent! (got mine for $70)

Thanks Nat! I appreciate your feedback. I think I'm going to post a review on this tarp when I get back. My wife and I will use it tonight, and then I get the dog with me Saturday :)

Have a great trip!

I bought mine a few months back in like new condition off of eBay for about 60 bucks shipped. I liked it because it was the lightest tarp I could find in a earth tone color for the price.

I like my gear to blend in to the surroundings and so the "Lichen" color that they sell fit pretty well. I too was surprised at how little information I could find about this tarp though. It's got lots of tie outs and I like how it has little pockets at the tie outs to store your cord.

Maybe it didn't sell well for OR? You can still find a link on their webpage for it, but only indirectly. There aren't any links from their webpage for the tarp.

I dunno… We had good success with it over the weekend. In fact, early Sunday morning I woke up to sprinkles coming down. My daughter and the dog were in the solo tent with no fly. She drug her bag over and crawled in the middle. We were all back to back but comfy and we all fell asleep again :)

I like the tarp. Certainly not UL for a single person, but, at 18 ounces with tie outs, it works for me and I too enjoyed the convenience of the small pockets underneath to stash the tie outs in.

Taking the kid and her friend out Thursday & Friday, will use it again by myself. I have some bug netting and am thinking about making a removable "front door" and sides somehow.

The positive thing is that the wife actually loved sleeping under the tarp which surprised me. She wants to find a bigger one now for us :)

Oh, thought I would mention I used a spare AMK Heatsheets emergency blanket for a groundsheet. Worked beautifully. No rips, tears, or punctures.

I also used an inflatable pillow that is found here on BPL – This was our biggest surprise. They are fairly comfy. A tad noisy when rolling around but they work very well. Because of my size I have to have a pillow or I will wake up unable to move! :)