What type of single shelter??….

I own a TT Contrail and have used it in the rain several times with no condensation problems due, I feel, to its excellent 360 ventilation.

HOWSOMEVER, if I was starting all over today I'd get the TT Moment and the crossing pole to make it frestanding if I knew I'd need it, say on rock slabs for example.

The Moment looks to have much better wind resistance than the Contrail, which is more of a forest tent, and it also looks like it has at least as much ventilation as the Contrail. Then there's the fact that the Moment really needs only two stakes, unlike the Contrail's four. Still more weight savings.

Consider the Moment kinda like a single wall Hilleberg Akto, one of the best solo tent designs going, albeit double wall and heavier than the Moment.

Eric

A tarp and bivy combo will be lighter than any single wall or double wall tent on the market. It also pretty much eliminates condensation problems. I recommend the MLD Grace Solo tarp. If you can afford it, get it in Spectralite .6 fabric for major weight savings. You could also go with an Oware tarp as a cheaper alternative. As for a bivy, I recommend the MLD Superlight bivy. You could also look at a Tigoat bivy as a cheaper alternative.

Thanks for the replies guys, still totally undecided thus far, hoping to get some more insight before I pull the trigger. Both systems have benefits that i really like, but I'm not sure which will be best for my locale.

I recommend trying out a hammock. I've been converted. I sleep far more comfortably in a hammock than I do in my bed. So much so, that I've set-up a hammock stand in our bedroom (much to my wife's chagrin). The thought that I can sleep as comfortably backpacking as I do at home is hard for me to imagine. For as little as $25 try it out. Other advantages are you can set it up just about anywhere there are trees. No matter if there are rocks, steep inclines or other obstacles.

I am no longer a "groundling".

Since the OP mentioned alpine travel…

I hammock as well and am working on ways to continue using it in spite of traveling over the Sierra crest. Using rocks in cracks in big boulders or rock walls is one possibility. The other is to be prepared with a NeoAir or other pad/mattress, which works in the hammock or on the ground. Simple enough to pitch the tarp as a tarp on the ground. I figure if I spend a few nights on the ground and the rest of the trip in the hammock, I'll have still managed to make the trip comfortable enough to be enjoyable, instead of a long string of endless wakeful nights.

It's a rare thing to find any condensation in a hammock setup. I've never had that problem. Nor have I ever lacked for a place to hang it.