I’m currently in the market for a lightweight backpacking tent – after a bunch of research (perhaps too much?), I’ve narrowed things down to four models – two double wall tents and two single wall tents. Before I get to the tents though; a bit about my planned usage and wants.
As a current grad student in college, this will probably be the biggest tent I will buy for some time – until the whole issue of a family and little ones running around comes up in the hopefully rather distant future. On a lot of my trips with the tent, I will be sleeping solo, however, I want to be able to use it on trips with my sister, friends or significant other as a two-man tent. It doesn’t need to be a super spacious two-man, but it needs to be usable as such (i.e. not so tight that sleeping bags are touching outer walls or sleeping pads are overlapping). I’m not a huge guy either – 5’11” and about 165 lbs. The vast majority of it use will be in the Rockies and the Pacific Northwest – thus, wind and rain protection are high priorities. I don’t carry a lot of gear, so a ton of storage space isn’t necessary, but it is nice to have. I typically take good care of my gear so lightweight materials aren’t an issue per se, but I want a tent that will hold up well over a good number of years of normal use – no eroding of fabrics, guy points etc. That’s about all I can think of, so on to the tents. I’ve listed them along with their price and minimum weight below.
Vaude Hogan Ultralight: $215 1.44 kg
Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight CD 2: $199 1.53 kg
Tarptent Double Rainbow: $230 (+$10 for poles) 1.14 kg
Six Moon Designs Lunar Duo: $275 (+$50 for poles – can I get them cheaper, a la tarptent, somewhere?) 1.21 kg
*As a side note: I looked at the Big Sky Evolution 2P and it was the better option by a decent margin over these four, but it was also going to run close to $400 and I was rather put off by the stories on BPL. So unless someone wants to convince me otherwise, it’s a no-go.
My current thoughts on the tents:
I’m pretty comfortable with all the weights –my preference is obviously for lighter, but there’s not that much difference either way, so it’s not the most important differentiating factor. The Flashlight, and Lunar both have a lot of floor space – almost too much. On the other hand, the Hogan is a wee bit on the small side – mostly an issue with the width at the foot of the tent, though it does fit two 20” pads (just). More vestibule space on the Flashlight and Hogan would be nice, but I think they will work as is. The Hogan gets points for weather protection with the solid inner tent and excellent waterproof coatings. I’m a bit leery of the lack of ventilation on the Flashlight. Also unsure if the Lunar and Rainbow will handle wind as well as the other two – the Rockies get some wicked winds at times, and I have a dislike for waking up in collapsed tents. Last but not least, I’m a fan of the cottage industries – Six Moon and Tarptent get points here.
So what do the good people of Backpacking Light have to say? Opinions of these options? Something else you think might better suit me? Completely irrelevant anecdotal stories? I’m game.
Cheers.
